Re: Logging --version

[Alexandre Oliva]

On Apr  4, 2001, Akim Demaille <address@hidden> wrote:

> This is what I fear.  What could happen?

Hmm...  How about Or getting a file named `--version' created in the
current directory, when testing for touch.  Or getting this blank file
printed, when testing for lpr later on?  Or getting a shell script
named --version, that happens to be in your PATH, to be run, when
testing for some particular shell?  Or getting an error message in
your mail box saying that there's no mailbox named --version, when
testing for mail delivery programs?  I'm sure someone could come up
with more terrifying examples.

Alexandre> I'd rather special-case --version so that we only do it
Alexandre> when we know it's a reasonable safe thing to do.

> Say, compilers?

Yep.  Perhaps tools in general (as in AC_CHECK/PATH_TOOL, as opposed
to AC_CHECK/PATH_PROG).

-- 
Alexandre Oliva   Enjoy Guarana', see http://www.ic.unicamp.br/~oliva/
Red Hat GCC Developer                  address@hidden, redhat.com}
CS PhD student at IC-Unicamp        address@hidden, gnu.org}
Free Software Evangelist    *Please* write to mailing lists, not to me