Autoconf 2.54a is released

[Akim Demaille]

The Autoconf team is happy to annonce the first beta of forthcoming
Autoconf 2.55.  Download, compile, install, torture, and enjoy!

        Akim, Alexandre, Jim, Paul, and Tom

  ftp://alpha.gnu.org/gnu/autoconf/autoconf-2.54a.tar.gz   (1.1 MB)
  ftp://alpha.gnu.org/gnu/autoconf/autoconf-2.54a.tar.bz2  (779 KB)

And here are xdelta-style diffs

  ftp://alpha.gnu.org/gnu/autoconf/autoconf-2.54-2.54a.xdelta   (44 KB)

Here are the MD5 and SHA1 signatures:

3c5ae43575fd82eede45285c4e993d9b  autoconf-2.54a.tar.gz
921076ed637757bcedf6aac4a072e3f8  autoconf-2.54a.tar.bz2
e612de9ceb46d8561c5f81e424a6b39d  autoconf-2.54-2.54a.xdelta
2168b9280a31e516b5b3a807c7d234adc23247d3  autoconf-2.54a.tar.gz
a0703a4829bdc1249ee775ac3a4123c6c85a84fb  autoconf-2.54a.tar.bz2
17ed07dc238d8b369d61bad8fbd852733fc79760  autoconf-2.54-2.54a.xdelta

NEWS:

** Documentation

- AC_CHECK_HEADER, AC_CHECK_HEADERS
  More information on proper use.

** autoreconf

- Is more robust to different Gettext installations.

- Produces messages (when --verbose) to be understood by Emacs'
  compile mode.

** Obsolete options
  Support for the obsoleted options -m, --macrodir, -l, --localdir is
  dropped in favor of the safer --include/--prepend-include scheme.

** Customization

- ~/.autom4te.cfg makes it possible to disable the caching mechanism
  (autom4te.cache).  See `Customizing autom4te' in the documentation.

** Macros

- New macros
  AC_FUNC_MBRTOWC, AC_HEADER_STDBOOL.

- Obsoleted
  Obsoleted macros are kept for Autoconf backward compatibility, but
  should be avoided in configure.ac.  Running autoupdate is advised.
  AC_DECL_SYS_SIGLIST.

** Bug Fixes

- Portability of the Autoconf package to Solaris.

- Spurious warnings caused by config.status.
  This bug is benign, but painful: on some systems (typically
  FreeBSD), warnings such as:

     config.status: creating Makefile
     mv: Makefile: set owner/group (was: 1357/0): Operation not permitted

  could be issued.  This is fixed.

- Parallel Builds
  Simultaneous executions of config.status are possible again.

- Precious variables accumulation

  config.status could stack several copies of the precious variables
  assignments.


** Plans for 2.56

- ./configure <host>

  The compatibility hooks with the old scheme will be completely
  removed.  Please, advice/use `--build', `--host', and `--target'
  only.

- AC_CHECK_HEADER, AC_CHECK_HEADERS

  The tests will be stricter, please make sure your invocations are
  valid.

- shell functions

  Shell functions will gradually be introduced, probably starting with
  Autotest.  If you know machines which are in use that you suspect
  *not* to support shell functions, please run the test suite of
  Autoconf 2.55 on it, and report the results to
  address@hidden

ChangeLog entries:

2002-10-25  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        Version 2.54a.

        * Makefile.maint: Update from the Coreutils.
        (AMTAR): Remove, obsolete.
        (automake_repo): Update to redhat.com.
        (cvs_file): New.
        Adjust to the fact that ansi2knr is now hosted by Automake.
        * Makefile.am (cvs_files): Add install-sh and mkinstalldirs.
        * config/config.guess, config/mkinstalldirs, config/texinfo.tex:
        Update from masters.
        * lib/autoscan/Makefile.am (EXTRA_DIST, nodist_autoscanlib_DATA):
        autoscan.pre is not to be installed, and autoscan.list is not to
        be shipped.
        (CLEANFILES): Add autoscan.list.
        (autoscan.list): Disable the cache.
        * bin/Makefile.am: Include freeze.mk.

2002-10-25  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * bin/autom4te.in (&load_configuration): Take the file as
        argument.
        (&parse_args): Handle -C, --cache.
        ($help): Adjust.
        (MAIN): Load ~/.autom4te.cfg and ./.autom4te.cfg.
        * lib/autom4te.in (Autoconf): Pass --cache=autom4te.cache.
        * doc/autoconf.texi (Invoking autom4te): Document --cache.
        Now a subsection of...
        (Using autom4te): This new section.
        (Customizing autom4te): New.
        (autom4te.cache): Adjust.

2002-10-25  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * doc/autoconf.texi (Generic Headers): More information on how to
        use AC_CHECK_HEADERS.

2002-10-25  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * bin/autoconf.as, bin/autoconf.in, bin/autoupdate.in ($help):
        Space changes.

2002-10-25  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * bin/autoscan.in (output): Output AC_PREREQ.
        (%needed_macros): Add AC_PREREQ so that configure.ac without one
        be reported.

2002-10-23  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * doc/autoconf.texi (Particular Headers): In AC_HEADER_STDBOOL,
        document _Bool.

2002-10-23  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * bin/autom4te.in (handle_traces): Handle @&t@ in traces.
        Reported by Peter Eisentraut.

2002-10-23  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoconf/headers.m4 (AC_HEADER_STDBOOL): Also look for the
        type _Bool.
        Fix a typo.
        * doc/autoconf.texi (Particular Headers): Adjust according to Paul
        Eggert's recommandations.

2002-10-22  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoconf/headers.m4 (AC_HEADER_STDBOOL): New, based on CVS
        Bison, by Paul Eggert.
        * doc/autoconf.texi (Particular Headers): Document it.

2002-10-22  Aaron M. Ucko  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoconf/general.m4 (_AC_INIT_PREPARE): Avoid duplicates in
        `$ac_configure_args'.

2002-10-22  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * doc/autoconf.texi: Use AC_CONFIG_HEADERS in examples.
        (AC_ST_BLKSIZE, AC_ST_RDEV): Directly point to AC_CHECK_MEMBERS.
        From Art Haas.

2002-10-22  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        Restore the 2002-10-11  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden> patch:

        * lib/autoconf/headers.m4 (_AC_CHECK_HEADER_MONGREL)
        (AC_CHECK_HEADER, _AC_CHECK_HEADER_NEW,_AC_CHECK_HEADER_OLD): Restore.
        (_AC_CHECK_HEADER_NEW): Rename as...
        (AC_CHECK_HEADER): this.

2002-10-22  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * doc/autoconf.texi (Limitations of Usual Tools): Remove incorrect
        words about HP-UX cmp: it was actually a user-written cmp.

2002-10-22  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * tests/foreign.at (Libtool): Don't check autoconf's stderr: there
        are a few warnings.
        * lib/autoconf/autoheader.m4 (AH_VERBATIM, _AH_VERBATIM_OLD):
        Quote for Perl '' strings, not "".
        * bin/autoheader.in: Invoke autoconf to get '' strings, not ""
        strings.

2002-10-22  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/m4sugar/m4sh.m4 (_AS_QUOTE): The warning about quoted
        characters is a syntax warning now.
        (_AS_QUOTE): Accept $2 as list of characters to quote.
        * lib/autoconf/autoheader.m4 (AH_VERBATIM, _AH_VERBATIM_OLD):
        Quote for Perl, not sh.
        * bin/autoheader.in: When $debug, report the file which is
        `do'ne.
        * tests/tools.at (autom4te, autoheader): Exercise @bar, not merely
        `@', to tickle Perl's lists.
        Reported by Carlos Velasco.

2002-10-18  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * bin/autom4te.in (handle_m4): Pass --fatal-warning to m4, so that
        missing included files _are_ errors.
        Thanks to Alexandre Duret-Lutz.
        * tests/tools.at (autom4te cache): Adjust.
        * tests/atspecific.m4 (AT_CHECK_AUTOM4TE): New.
        (AT_CHECK_M4SUGAR): Use it.
        * tests/m4sugar.at (m4_warn, m4_require: circular dependencies):
        Adjust.
        * tests/tools.at (autom4te): Now it does exit 1.

2002-10-17  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoconf/general.m4 (AC_CACHE_SAVE): Don't use cmp.
        Fixes the `AC_ARG_VAR' test failures.
        * lib/autoconf/status.m4 (_AC_OUTPUT_FILES): Don't use cmp.
        * lib/freeze.mk (check-forbidden-patterns): New.
        * lib/autoconf/Makefile.am, lib/autotest/Makefile.am
        * lib/m4sugar/Makefile.am (check-local): Use it to catch `cmp'.
        * doc/autoconf.texi (Limitations of Usual Tools): HP-UX' cmp and
        /dev/null.
        Reported months ago by H. Merijn Brand.

2002-10-17  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * tests/tools.at (autoheader): Put randoms `@' to stress Perl.

2002-10-16  Paul Eggert  <address@hidden>

        * Makefile.maint (wget_files): Remove ansi2knr.c.
        (ansi2knr.c-url_prefix): Remove.

2002-10-16  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        Because of caching, some files that no longer exist and are no
        longer required can still cause errors.
        Reported by Alexandre Duret-Lutz.

        * bin/autom4te.in (&parse_args): Do not prepend `--reload-state'
        to frozen files in @ARGV, as @ARGV must remain being a list of
        files.  Rather, at M4 call sites, use this...
        (&files_to_options): New function.
        (&freeze): Use &error.
        (&up_to_date): If a file that was included according to the cache
        is no longer there, then the output is out dated.
        (&main): Don't even check whether a file is up to date is anyway
        --force is given.
        * tests/tools.at (autom4te cache): New.

2002-10-16  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * bin/autoconf.as: Kill dead options.
        * bin/autoupdate.in (&parse_args): Kill old options.
        * bin/autoreconf.in (&parse_args): Remove dead options.
        Factor some code.
        (&autoreconf): Report the directories we enter *and leave*, so
        that error messages can be easily located, and use GNU Make
        format, so that Emacs' compile mode understands us.
        * lib/Autom4te/General.pm (&update_file): Use `verbose' to report
        if some file was changed instead of `print'.
        * bin/autoheader.in: Suggest AC_DEFINE with 3 args when needed.
        (&parse_args): Remove the dead options.
        * tests/atspecific.m4 (AT_CHECK_AUTOHEADER): Adjust to the new
        autoheader's quiet mode.
        (AT_CHECK_AUTOUPDATE): Likewise.
        * tests/tools.at (autoupdate): Adjust.
        * tests/semantics.at (AC_C_BIGENDIAN): Likewise.

2002-10-11  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        No longer use CPP to check for the existing of headers: use CC to
        check for compilability.

        * lib/autoconf/headers.m4 (_AC_CHECK_HEADER_MONGREL)
        (AC_CHECK_HEADER, _AC_CHECK_HEADER_OLD): Remove.
        (_AC_CHECK_HEADER_NEW): Rename as...
        (AC_CHECK_HEADER): this.

        * lib/autotest/general.m4 (AT_INIT): Include the failed test
        numbers in the Subject suggestion.

2002-10-11  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoconf/specific.m4 (AC_DECL_SYS_SIGLIST): Obsolete.
        Suggest using AC_CHECK_DECLS instead.

2002-10-11  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * tests/torture.at (AC_ARG_VAR): Have configure report the value
        of `precious'.

2002-10-11  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/m4sugar/m4sh.m4 (_AS_PATH_SEPARATOR_PREPARE): Use $$ in the
        file name to enable parallel executions.
        From Sam Varshavchik.

2002-10-08  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * bin/autoreconf.in (&autoreconf): Run autopoint before the first
        aclocal invocation, as Gettext macros might not be visible to
        aclocal.
        Instead of blindly running autopoint, scan configure.ac (not the
        traces) for AM_GNU_GETTEXT_VERSION uses, as autopoint does.
        Reported by Paul D. Smith.

2002-10-08  Paul Eggert  <address@hidden>

        Work around problems found when POSIXLY_CORRECT=1 is set.
        None of this seems to have anything to do with POSIX, really,
        but it's how Perl getopt works.
        * bin/autom4te.in (parse_args): Configure GetOpt with
        "permute", too.
        * doc/autoconf.texi (Invoking autom4te):
        --warning -> --warnings.
        * lib/autom4te.in: --warning -> --warnings.

2002-09-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * doc/autoconf.texi (autom4te.cache): New section.

2002-09-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autom4te.in (Autoscan-preselections, Autoreconf-preselections)
        (Automake-preselections): Update.
        * bin/autoreconf.in, bin/autoheader.in: Comment changes.

2002-09-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoscan/autoscan.pre: Move all the remaining rules to...
        * lib/autoconf/c.m4, lib/autoconf/functions.m4,
        * lib/autoconf/headers.m4, lib/autoconf/libs.m4,
        * lib/autoconf/specific.m4, lib/autoconf/types.m4: here.

2002-09-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * tests/torture.at (Configuring subdirectories): Be robust to
        users who use config.site to require for a cache: in this case,
        the two last configure runs, using two different sets of
        arguments, trigger a legitimate error.

2002-09-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * tests/m4sh.at (Functions Support, Functions and return Support):
        New.

2002-09-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * bin/Makefile.am (ETAGS_SH, ETAGS_PERL): Update: ifnames and
        autoheader are Perl programs.
        (autoconf, autoheader, autoreconf, autoupdate, ifnames, autoscan)
        (autom4te): Specify that the sources are in the $srcdir.
        * doc/autoconf.texi (Installation Directory Variables): Adjust.

2002-09-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoscan/autoscan.pre (st_blksize, st_blocks, st_rdev)
        (tm_zone): Move their rules to...
        * lib/autoconf/types.m4: here, using AN_ macros.
        * lib/autoscan/autoscan.pre (AWK, BISON, INSTALL, LEX, LN, MAKE)
        (RANLIB, YACC, awk, bison, byacc, flex, gawk, install, lex, ln)
        (make, mawk, nawk, ranlib, yacc): Similarly, move to...
        * lib/autoconf/programs.m4: here.
        * lib/freeze.mk (ETAGS_FOR_M4, ETAGS_FOR_M4SUGAR)
        (ETAGS_FOR_AUTOCONF): New.
        Use it.

2002-09-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoconf/autoscan.m4: New file.
        * lib/autoconf/autoconf.m4: Include it.
        * lib/autoconf/functions.m4: Use AN_FUNCTION for all the functions
        that were listed in the original autoscan.list.
        * lib/autoconf/headers.m4: Similarly with headers.
        * lib/freeze.mk (autoconf_m4f_dependencies): Add autoscan.m4.
        (.m4.m4f): Don't pass --prepend-include, since that's done by
        tests/autom4te itself.
        * lib/autoscan/Makefile.am: Include freeze.mk.
        (autoscan.list): New target --this file is no longer a source.
        (autoscan.pre): New file.

2002-09-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * bin/autoscan.in (@kinds): Make them singular.
        Adjust all uses.
        (&init_tables): When --debug, report the list of rules to ease
        tracking changes in autoscan.list.
        * lib/autoscan/autoscan.list (function): Strip comments, sort.

2002-09-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoscan/functions, lib/autoscan/headers,
        * lib/autoscan/identifiers, lib/autoscan/makevars,
        * lib/autoscan/programs: Merge into...
        * lib/autoscan/autoscan.list: this.
        * bin/autoscan.in (&init_tables): Adjust.

2002-09-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoscan/functions, lib/autoscan/headers,
        * lib/autoscan/identifiers, lib/autoscan/makevars,
        * lib/autoscan/programs: Make the `kind' explicit, i.e., each
        `functions' line is now prefixed with `function:'.
        * bin/autoscan.in (&init_tables): Adjust.

2002-09-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        From now on, autoscan files must always map a macro name to a
        word: there is no `default' macro for autoscan.

        * bin/autoscan.in (&init_tables): Reject entries with no macro at
        all.
        * lib/autoscan/functions, lib/autoscan/headers: Make the macro
        explicit.

2002-09-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * bin/autoscan.in (%c_keywords): Remove.
        (&used): Keep only track of the words we might be interested in.
        (&output_kind): It is no longer needed to look for non active
        checks.

2002-09-27  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoconf/functions.m4 (AC_FUNC_MBRTOWC): New, stolen from
        jm_FUNC_MBRTOWC, by Paul Eggert, from the Coreutils 4.5.1.
        * lib/autoscan/functions: Adjust.
        * doc/autoconf.texi (Particular Functions): Adjust.

2002-09-27  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * doc/autoconf.texi (Limitations of Usual Tools): Some about mv
        from /tmp.
        Thanks to Bill Moseley and Paul Eggert.
        * lib/m4sugar/m4sh.m4 (AS_TMPDIR): $2 is the directory into which
        the tmpdir must be created.
        * lib/autoconf/status.m4 (_AC_OUTPUT_CONFIG_STATUS): Have the tmp
        dir be in the build tree, instead of $TMPDIR.

2002-09-27  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * bin/autoscan.in: Improve the comments.
        (&parse_args): Drop obsolete undocumented options.
        (&output_kind): Output warnings.
        * lib/autoscan/functions: (dcgettext): Now trigger AM_GNU_GETTEXT.
        (getwd): Trigger a warning.

2002-09-26  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * bin/autoreconf.in: Clarify that -s is meaningless without -i.
        Reported by Ralf Corsepius.
        * doc/autoconf.texi (autoreconf Invocation): Likewise.

2002-09-26  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        Single suffix rules and seperated dependencies are not portable.

        * doc/autoconf.texi (Installation Directory Variables): Update.
        (Limitations of Make): Some about `Single Suffix Rules and
        Separated Dependencies'.
        * bin/Makefile.am (autoconf, autoheader, autoreconf, autoupdate)
        (ifnames, autoscan, autom4te): Un-factor into several rules.

2002-09-25  Paul Eggert  <address@hidden>

        * BUGS (Interoperability bugs): New section.  Mention libtool
        1.4.2, configure.ac, and AC_CONFIG_AUX_DIR interoperability bug.

2002-09-24  Paul Eggert  <address@hidden>

        Fix a portability bug reported by Alexandre Duret-Lutz: Solaris 8
        make handles suffix-rules differently from GNU make.

        * bin/Makefile.am (SUFFIXES, .in): Remove.
        (autoconf autoheader autoreconf autoupdate ifnames autoscan autom4te):
        Move the body of the old .in rule here.

2002-09-16  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        i960 compilers create `b.out' files by default.
        Reported by Ralf Corsepius.

        * lib/autoconf/lang.m4 (_AC_COMPILER_EXEEXT): Remove b.out files.
        (_AC_COMPILER_EXEEXT_DEFAULT): Adjust to b.out.

2002-09-13  Paul Eggert  <address@hidden>

        * doc/autoconf.texi (Particular Headers): Remove obsolete
        reference to `struct timezone' in the description of
        AC_HEADER_TIME.