Re: [Gnu-arch-users] Re: arch and autotools projects.

[Jan Hudec]

On Mon, Aug 23, 2004 at 13:48:40 -0400, Stefan Monnier wrote:
> [ Warning: I've never actually had the occasion to try it. ]
> 
> I think the way it *should* work could be something like:
> 
> 1 - Call the autoconf-generated makefile autoconf.mk (and autoconf.mk.in).
> 2 - Use a Makefile that includes autoconf.mk (but doesn't fail if it
>     doesn't exist) and add a `prepare' rule which describes how to
>     run autoconf and friends.

Automake is designed not to depend on GNU Make. Old sysv make does NOT
have include and bsd make has include with different syntax :-(.

> Ideally I'd replace the
> 
>         ./configure --foo=bar
>         make
>         make install
> 
> with
> 
>         make config foo=bar
>         make
>         make install

Is there really that much difference??

> Or maybe I'd lobby for autoconf to come with a /usr/bin/configure
> program which runs directly off of the autoconf files, so you can say
> 
>         configure --foo=bar

You can make it yourself. It's really trivial:

#!/bin/sh
./configure "$@"

> instead of
> 
>         ./configure --foo=bar
> 
> It could work by running autoheader/autoconf/automake/... for you
> in a standard way and then running the generated `configure' file.

The user does not want to have autotools installed because of space,
incompatibility of different automake versions and thousands of other
reasons.

> In any case, an important goal is to have in your repository all the
> required information (ideally in executable form, but otherwise in
> a README or INSTALL file) to rebuild the code at a later date.

... but no redundant information whatsoever. Which means, that a normal
user, who does not have autotools, will NOT be able to build it. The
dist target shall build the generated sources, including configure
script, for distribution.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                 Jan 'Bulb' Hudec 
<address@hidden>

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