On Tue, 2011-07-19 at 14:55 +0200, Jacob Carlborg wrote: > On 2011-07-19 11:28, Nick Sabalausky wrote: > > Granted, I've never used this sort of feature from any buildsystem, but I > > thought we were talking about something like the "configure" command in Waf. > > My understanding is that it's like the "./configure" from autotool's > > "./configure&& make&& make install", (except hopefully without needing to > > check quite so much stuff or needing the user to manually run the configure > > command). > > I would hope D never had to use something like "./configure". It checks > for C language features and similar (probably other things as well). I > don't think that that belongs in a build system for D.
Well Autoconf, Waf and SCons check for a whole lot more than C features, there are C++, Fortran, Python, . . . but yes one part of configuration is (not unreasonably) which version of which languages are available in order to build from source. > > Apperently some projects need to have their buildsystem check for the > > existance of, locations of, and details about certain things on the local > > system before building. So...that stuff. > > Isn't that to check what libraries, and so on, are present? That is the > whole point of a package manager. A package specifies what dependencies > it has, then the package manager makes sure the dependencies are met, or > else it can't be installed. There is clearly a string coupling between configuration and package management. Autoconf, Waf and SCons have to be portable across package management since they are not dedicated to one scheme -- springing up as they did from before package management as standard. > Don't know what locations it would check for. The package as no saying > in where it should be installed, the package manger decides that. > > Oh, now I mixing package manager and build tool and assume the build > tool will be used with the package manager. There are some potentially tricky issues here. Ruby gets round it by having a language specific package and build system which therefore causes Debian, Fedora, FreeBSD, Macports, Fink, etc. packagers massive headaches. Haskell/Cabal, Python/Eggs, etc. The conflict between language packaging and platform packaging is central. Having a D language packaging system that was in some way harmonious with Apt/Deb, Yum/RPM, Ports, etc. would make a lot of people very happy. Indirectly it would make traction a whole lot easier. As evidence I present Java, Ruby, Python, Haskell, etc. > When I was talking about "config file" I was thinking something more > like Rebuild's config files, example: http://pastebin.com/rYc47wXQ > -- Russel. ============================================================================= Dr Russel Winder t: +44 20 7585 2200 voip: sip:russel.win...@ekiga.net 41 Buckmaster Road m: +44 7770 465 077 xmpp: rus...@russel.org.uk London SW11 1EN, UK w: www.russel.org.uk skype: russel_winder
signature.asc
Description: This is a digitally signed message part