diff --git a/Gemfile b/Gemfile
index 59aab373..6749fc10 100644
--- a/Gemfile
+++ b/Gemfile
@@ -1,7 +1,7 @@
 source "http://rubygems.org"
 
 gem "salama" , :path => "."
-gem "ast" , :github => "whitequark/ast"
+gem "ast" #, :github => "whitequark/ast"
 
 gem "rake"
 gem "rye"
diff --git a/Gemfile.lock b/Gemfile.lock
index b9a2ec0e..5325090a 100644
--- a/Gemfile.lock
+++ b/Gemfile.lock
@@ -1,12 +1,12 @@
 GIT
   remote: git://github.com/salama/salama-arm.git
-  revision: 00beb3703b57702e6d8d4743abf7eac2504a3c83
+  revision: 866ae7ad961f1a387bfb75526fa170006005b13f
   specs:
-    salama-arm (0.3.0)
+    salama-arm (0.5.0)
 
 GIT
   remote: git://github.com/salama/salama-object-file.git
-  revision: f2aad98ff93a816aca7b47bea0751974a72b1e72
+  revision: aab01b23108f10063433b1ef9f703ff2927d0b80
   specs:
     salama-object-file (0.3.0)
 
@@ -18,12 +18,6 @@ GIT
       ast (~> 2.1.0)
       parslet (~> 1.7.1)
 
-GIT
-  remote: git://github.com/whitequark/ast.git
-  revision: 63db4686b33228e8f703cb7328e5e5c62aa3cd92
-  specs:
-    ast (2.1.0)
-
 PATH
   remote: .
   specs:
@@ -37,18 +31,19 @@ GEM
   specs:
     annoy (0.5.6)
       highline (>= 1.5.0)
+    ast (2.1.0)
     blankslate (3.1.3)
-    codeclimate-test-reporter (0.4.8)
-      simplecov (>= 0.7.1, < 1.0.0)
-    coderay (1.1.0)
+    codeclimate-test-reporter (1.0.3)
+      simplecov
+    coderay (1.1.1)
     docile (1.1.5)
     drydock (0.6.9)
-    ffi (1.9.10)
-    ffi (1.9.10-x64-mingw32)
+    ffi (1.9.14)
+    ffi (1.9.14-x64-mingw32)
     formatador (0.2.5)
-    guard (2.13.0)
+    guard (2.14.0)
       formatador (>= 0.2.4)
-      listen (>= 2.7, <= 4.0)
+      listen (>= 2.7, < 4.0)
       lumberjack (~> 1.0)
       nenv (~> 0.1)
       notiffany (~> 0.0)
@@ -56,41 +51,38 @@ GEM
       shellany (~> 0.0)
       thor (>= 0.18.1)
     guard-compat (1.2.1)
-    guard-minitest (2.4.4)
+    guard-minitest (2.4.6)
       guard-compat (~> 1.2)
       minitest (>= 3.0)
     highline (1.7.8)
-    json (1.8.3)
-    listen (3.0.3)
-      rb-fsevent (>= 0.9.3)
-      rb-inotify (>= 0.9)
-    lumberjack (1.0.9)
+    json (2.0.2)
+    listen (3.1.5)
+      rb-fsevent (~> 0.9, >= 0.9.4)
+      rb-inotify (~> 0.9, >= 0.9.7)
+      ruby_dep (~> 1.2)
+    lumberjack (1.0.10)
     method_source (0.8.2)
-    minitest (5.8.1)
-    nenv (0.2.0)
+    minitest (5.10.1)
+    nenv (0.3.0)
     net-scp (1.2.1)
       net-ssh (>= 2.6.5)
-    net-ssh (3.0.1)
-    notiffany (0.0.8)
+    net-ssh (3.2.0)
+    notiffany (0.1.1)
       nenv (~> 0.1)
       shellany (~> 0.0)
     parser (2.2.3.0)
       ast (>= 1.1, < 3.0)
     parslet (1.7.1)
       blankslate (>= 2.0, <= 4.0)
-    pry (0.10.2)
+    pry (0.10.4)
       coderay (~> 1.1.0)
       method_source (~> 0.8.1)
       slop (~> 3.4)
-    pry (0.10.2-x64-mingw32)
-      coderay (~> 1.1.0)
-      method_source (~> 0.8.1)
-      slop (~> 3.4)
-      win32console (~> 1.3)
     rake (11.3.0)
-    rb-fsevent (0.9.6)
-    rb-inotify (0.9.5)
+    rb-fsevent (0.9.8)
+    rb-inotify (0.9.7)
       ffi (>= 0.5.0)
+    ruby_dep (1.5.0)
     rye (0.9.13)
       annoy
       docile (>= 1.0.1)
@@ -99,9 +91,9 @@ GEM
       net-ssh (>= 2.0.13)
       sysinfo (>= 0.8.1)
     shellany (0.0.1)
-    simplecov (0.10.0)
+    simplecov (0.12.0)
       docile (~> 1.1.0)
-      json (~> 1.8)
+      json (>= 1.8, < 3)
       simplecov-html (~> 0.10.0)
     simplecov-html (0.10.0)
     slop (3.6.0)
@@ -109,15 +101,14 @@ GEM
     sysinfo (0.8.1)
       drydock
       storable
-    thor (0.19.1)
-    win32console (1.3.2)
+    thor (0.19.4)
 
 PLATFORMS
   ruby
   x64-mingw32
 
 DEPENDENCIES
-  ast!
+  ast
   codeclimate-test-reporter
   guard
   guard-minitest
@@ -130,4 +121,4 @@ DEPENDENCIES
   soml-parser!
 
 BUNDLED WITH
-   1.12.5
+   1.13.5
diff --git a/Guardfile b/Guardfile
index 69ff2e3b..78a1aa21 100644
--- a/Guardfile
+++ b/Guardfile
@@ -1,20 +1,6 @@
 # A sample Guardfile
 # More info at https://github.com/guard/guard#readme
 
-## Uncomment and set this to only include directories you want to watch
-# directories %w(app lib config test spec features) \
-#  .select{|d| Dir.exists?(d) ? d : UI.warning("Directory #{d} does not exist")}
-
-## Note: if you are using the `directories` clause above and you are not
-## watching the project directory ('.'), then you will want to move
-## the Guardfile to a watched dir and symlink it back, e.g.
-#
-#  $ mkdir config
-#  $ mv Guardfile config/
-#  $ ln -s config/Guardfile .
-#
-# and, you'll have to watch "config/Guardfile" instead of "Guardfile"
-
 guard :minitest do
   # with Minitest::Unit
   watch(%r{^test/(.*)\/?test_(.*)\.rb$})
diff --git a/lib/register/boot.rb b/lib/register/boot.rb
index fcc888bb..69130d07 100644
--- a/lib/register/boot.rb
+++ b/lib/register/boot.rb
@@ -54,7 +54,6 @@ module Register
       space_dict = object_with_type Parfait::Dictionary
       space_dict.keys = object_with_type Parfait::List
       space_dict.values = object_with_type Parfait::List
-
       @space = object_with_type Parfait::Space
       @space.classes = space_dict
       Parfait::Space.set_object_space @space
diff --git a/lib/register/parfait/space.rb b/lib/register/parfait/space.rb
index 191f61a6..4515b384 100644
--- a/lib/register/parfait/space.rb
+++ b/lib/register/parfait/space.rb
@@ -38,7 +38,6 @@ module Parfait
       end
     end
 
-    @@object_space = nil
     # Make the object space globally available
     def self.object_space
       @@object_space
diff --git a/test/helper.rb b/test/helper.rb
index 53028bcf..507064f4 100644
--- a/test/helper.rb
+++ b/test/helper.rb
@@ -17,8 +17,8 @@ require "minitest/autorun"
 $LOAD_PATH.unshift(File.join(File.dirname(__FILE__), '..', 'lib'))
 $LOAD_PATH.unshift(File.join(File.dirname(__FILE__), '..', 'test'))
 
-require 'salama'
-
+was = require 'salama'
+puts "loaded #{was}"
 
 class Ignored
   def == other
diff --git a/test/register/helper.rb b/test/register/helper.rb
index 26258082..fba6a8b9 100644
--- a/test/register/helper.rb
+++ b/test/register/helper.rb
@@ -1 +1,2 @@
 require_relative "../helper"
+Register.machine.boot unless Register.machine.booted
diff --git a/test/register/parfait/test_attributes.rb b/test/register/parfait/test_attributes.rb
index 01a27e43..c9dc80c7 100644
--- a/test/register/parfait/test_attributes.rb
+++ b/test/register/parfait/test_attributes.rb
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ class TestAttributes < MiniTest::Test
   def test_message_name_nil
     last = @type.instance_names.last
     assert_equal :indexed_length , last
-    assert_equal nil , @mess.name
+    assert_nil  @mess.name
   end
   def test_message_next_set
     @mess.next_message = :next_message
diff --git a/test/register/parfait/test_class.rb b/test/register/parfait/test_class.rb
index ff66e9bd..764ea0a8 100644
--- a/test/register/parfait/test_class.rb
+++ b/test/register/parfait/test_class.rb
@@ -50,9 +50,9 @@ class TestClass < MiniTest::Test
     assert_equal Parfait::Method , @try.get_instance_method(:foo).class
   end
   def test_method_get_nothere
-    assert_equal nil , @try.get_instance_method(:foo)
+    assert_nil  @try.get_instance_method(:foo)
     test_remove_method
-    assert_equal nil , @try.get_instance_method(:foo)
+    assert_nil  @try.get_instance_method(:foo)
   end
   def test_resolve
     foo = foo_method :Object
diff --git a/test/register/parfait/test_dictionary.rb b/test/register/parfait/test_dictionary.rb
index 344aea43..03080e91 100644
--- a/test/register/parfait/test_dictionary.rb
+++ b/test/register/parfait/test_dictionary.rb
@@ -1,7 +1,6 @@
 require_relative "../helper"
 
 class TestDictionary < MiniTest::Test
-  Register.machine.boot  #have to book, otherwise types etc not set
 
   def setup
     @lookup = ::Parfait::Dictionary.new
@@ -10,8 +9,8 @@ class TestDictionary < MiniTest::Test
     assert @lookup.empty?
   end
   def test_empty_dict_doesnt_return
-    assert_equal nil , @lookup.get(3)
-    assert_equal nil , @lookup.get(:any)
+    assert_nil  @lookup.get(3)
+    assert_nil  @lookup.get(:any)
   end
   def test_one_set1
     assert_equal 1 , @lookup.set(1,1)
diff --git a/test/register/parfait/test_list.rb b/test/register/parfait/test_list.rb
index 43caf234..13a6650c 100644
--- a/test/register/parfait/test_list.rb
+++ b/test/register/parfait/test_list.rb
@@ -3,7 +3,6 @@ require_relative "../helper"
 class TestList < MiniTest::Test
 
   def setup
-    Register.machine.boot unless Register.machine.booted
     @list = ::Parfait::List.new
   end
   def test_isa
@@ -35,7 +34,7 @@ class TestList < MiniTest::Test
 
   def test_length0
     assert_equal 0 , @list.get_length
-    assert_equal nil , @list.indexed_length
+    assert_nil  @list.indexed_length
   end
   def test_offset
     assert_equal 2 , @list.get_offset
@@ -67,7 +66,7 @@ class TestList < MiniTest::Test
     assert_equal 0 , @list.get_length
   end
   def test_empty_list_doesnt_return
-    assert_equal nil , @list.get(3)
+    assert_nil  @list.get(3)
   end
   def test_one_set1
     assert_equal 2 , @list.set(1,2)
@@ -122,7 +121,7 @@ class TestList < MiniTest::Test
     test_many_get
     assert_equal 2 , @list.index_of( :two )
     assert_equal 3 , @list.index_of( :three )
-    assert_equal nil , @list.index_of( :four )
+    assert_nil  @list.index_of( :four )
   end
   def test_inspect
     test_many_get
@@ -146,13 +145,13 @@ class TestList < MiniTest::Test
     assert_equal :one , @list.first
   end
   def test_first_empty
-    assert_equal nil , @list.first
+    assert_nil  @list.first
   end
   def test_last
     test_many_get
     assert_equal :three , @list.last
   end
   def test_last_empty
-    assert_equal nil , @list.last
+    assert_nil  @list.last
   end
 end
diff --git a/test/register/parfait/test_meta.rb b/test/register/parfait/test_meta.rb
index 77268389..03703142 100644
--- a/test/register/parfait/test_meta.rb
+++ b/test/register/parfait/test_meta.rb
@@ -47,8 +47,8 @@ class TestMeta < MiniTest::Test
     assert_equal Parfait::Method , @try.get_instance_method(:foo).class
   end
   def test_method_get_nothere
-    assert_equal nil , @try.get_instance_method(:foo)
+    assert_nil  @try.get_instance_method(:foo)
     test_remove_method
-    assert_equal nil , @try.get_instance_method(:foo)
+    assert_nil  @try.get_instance_method(:foo)
   end
 end
diff --git a/test/register/parfait/test_method.rb b/test/register/parfait/test_method.rb
index eab4b7e9..14f37a7b 100644
--- a/test/register/parfait/test_method.rb
+++ b/test/register/parfait/test_method.rb
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ require_relative "../helper"
 class TestMethod < MiniTest::Test
 
   def setup
-    obj = Register.machine.boot.space.get_class_by_name(:Object)
+    obj = Register.machine.space.get_class_by_name(:Object)
     args = Parfait.new_list [ Parfait::Variable.new(:Integer , :bar )]
     @method = ::Parfait::Method.new obj , :foo , args
   end
diff --git a/test/register/parfait/test_object.rb b/test/register/parfait/test_object.rb
index f8841977..00f1cc5c 100644
--- a/test/register/parfait/test_object.rb
+++ b/test/register/parfait/test_object.rb
@@ -14,7 +14,7 @@ class TestObject < MiniTest::Test
   end
 
   def test_empty_object_doesnt_return
-    assert_equal nil ,  @object.get_internal_word(3)
+    assert_nil   @object.get_internal_word(3)
   end
 
   def test_one_set1
diff --git a/test/register/parfait/test_space.rb b/test/register/parfait/test_space.rb
index f24d0f11..a606f947 100644
--- a/test/register/parfait/test_space.rb
+++ b/test/register/parfait/test_space.rb
@@ -3,7 +3,7 @@ require_relative "../helper"
 class TestSpace < MiniTest::Test
 
   def setup
-    @machine = Register.machine.boot
+    @machine = Register.machine
   end
   def classes
     [:Kernel,:Word,:List,:Message,:Frame,:Type,:Object,:Class,:Dictionary,:Method , :Integer]
diff --git a/test/register/parfait/test_word.rb b/test/register/parfait/test_word.rb
index 6fd66286..034795b7 100644
--- a/test/register/parfait/test_word.rb
+++ b/test/register/parfait/test_word.rb
@@ -3,7 +3,6 @@ require_relative "../helper"
 class TestEmptyWord < MiniTest::Test
 
   def setup
-    Register.machine.boot unless Register.machine.booted
     @word = ::Parfait::Word.new(0)
   end
   def test_word_create
diff --git a/test/register/test_instructions.rb b/test/register/test_instructions.rb
index 34715a06..da9a949a 100644
--- a/test/register/test_instructions.rb
+++ b/test/register/test_instructions.rb
@@ -42,12 +42,12 @@ module Register
       assert_equal @label, @instruction.last
     end
     def test_next1
-      assert_equal nil , @instruction.next
+      assert_nil  @instruction.next
     end
     def test_next2
       @instruction.set_next @label
       assert_equal @label , @instruction.next
-      assert_equal nil , @instruction.next(2)
+      assert_nil  @instruction.next(2)
     end
     def test_replace
       @instruction.append @branch