./configure

./configure

[Mattias Ahnberg]

I just[1] downloaded gnus via CVS, got all files nicely enough and
started looking around a little. What struck me strange is that I
didn't get a "configure" file with it, something changed recently
that I missed, or is something wrong?

/ahnberg.

[1]: Thu Jul 19 22:58:14 CEST 2001 (GMT+2).

Re: ./configure

[David Z. Maze]

Mattias Ahnberg <mattias@ahnberg.pp.se> writes:
Ahn> I just[1] downloaded gnus via CVS, got all files nicely enough and
Ahn> started looking around a little. What struck me strange is that I
Ahn> didn't get a "configure" file with it, something changed recently
Ahn> that I missed, or is something wrong?

That's pretty typical for stuff in CVS; you don't actually want to
store the configure script proper, because it's generated from
configure.in and depends on basically nothing beyond that file and the 
version of autoconf you're using.  You can generate configure from
configure.in by running 'autoconf'.

-- 
David Maze             dmaze@mit.edu          http://www.mit.edu/~dmaze/
"Theoretical politics is interesting.  Politicking should be illegal."
	-- Abra Mitchell

Re: ./configure

[ShengHuo ZHU]

"David Z. Maze" <dmaze@mit.edu> writes:

> Mattias Ahnberg <mattias@ahnberg.pp.se> writes:
>Ahn> I just[1] downloaded gnus via CVS, got all files nicely enough and
>Ahn> started looking around a little. What struck me strange is that I
>Ahn> didn't get a "configure" file with it, something changed recently
>Ahn> that I missed, or is something wrong?
> 
> That's pretty typical for stuff in CVS; you don't actually want to
> store the configure script proper, because it's generated from
> configure.in and depends on basically nothing beyond that file and the 
> version of autoconf you're using.  You can generate configure from
> configure.in by running 'autoconf'.

In the Gnus CVS, configure.in isn't changed as often as in some other
projects, so "configure" is stored in the CVS. I just checked out a
new copy.  "configure" was there.

ShengHuo

Re: ./configure

[Didier Verna]

"David Z. Maze" <dmaze@MIT.EDU> wrote:

> Mattias Ahnberg <mattias@ahnberg.pp.se> writes:
>Ahn> I just[1] downloaded gnus via CVS, got all files nicely enough and
>Ahn> started looking around a little. What struck me strange is that I
>Ahn> didn't get a "configure" file with it, something changed recently
>Ahn> that I missed, or is something wrong?
> 
> That's pretty typical for stuff in CVS; you don't actually want to
> store the configure script proper, because it's generated from
> configure.in and depends on basically nothing beyond that file and the 
> version of autoconf you're using.  You can generate configure from
> configure.in by running 'autoconf'.

        Well, you actually *want* to keep configure in CVS because it is no
different from people to people, and it's somewhat insane to make thousands of
people regenerate the *same* file. It also has the advantage that CVS simple
users (not developers) don't have to know autoconf and friends to build gnus.

"What goes in a distro goes to CVS" -- I can't remember who said that :-)

-- 
Didier Verna, didier@lrde.epita.fr, http://www.lrde.epita.fr/~didier

EPITA / LRDE, 14-16 rue Voltaire   Tel.+33 (1) 53 14 59 47
94276 Le Kremlin-Bicêtre, France   Fax.+33 (1) 44 08 01 99   didier@xemacs.org

Re: ./configure

[Stainless Steel Rat]

* Didier Verna <didier@lrde.epita.fr>  on Mon, 30 Jul 2001
|         Well, you actually *want* to keep configure in CVS because it is no
| different from people to people, and it's somewhat insane to make
| thousands of people regenerate the *same* file. It also has the advantage
| that CVS simple users (not developers) don't have to know autoconf and
| friends to build gnus.

"CVS versions" and "simple user" do not go together.  If you are using
something out of a CVS tree then you are either a) an advanced user, b) a
developer, or c) a tester, all three of which should have at least a basic
understanding of how automake work.  If you are none of the above then you
probably should not be using anything out of a CVS tree.

Besides "./autogen.sh" is not that difficult, and it runs configure for you
automatically.  That is how most of the projects that I use out of CVS
trees handle things.  The only one I don't is Mozilla, which has its own
config mechanism.
-- 
Rat <ratinox@peorth.gweep.net>    \ If Happy Fun Ball begins to smoke, get
Minion of Nathan - Nathan says Hi! \ away immediately. Seek shelter and cover
PGP Key: at a key server near you!  \ head.

Re: ./configure

[ShengHuo ZHU]

Stainless Steel Rat <ratinox@peorth.gweep.net> writes:

> * Didier Verna <didier@lrde.epita.fr>  on Mon, 30 Jul 2001
>|         Well, you actually *want* to keep configure in CVS because it is no
>| different from people to people, and it's somewhat insane to make
>| thousands of people regenerate the *same* file. It also has the advantage
>| that CVS simple users (not developers) don't have to know autoconf and
>| friends to build gnus.
> 
> "CVS versions" and "simple user" do not go together.  If you are using
> something out of a CVS tree then you are either a) an advanced user, b) a
> developer, or c) a tester, all three of which should have at least a basic
> understanding of how automake work.  If you are none of the above then you
> probably should not be using anything out of a CVS tree.
> 
> Besides "./autogen.sh" is not that difficult, and it runs configure for you
> automatically.  That is how most of the projects that I use out of CVS
> trees handle things.  The only one I don't is Mozilla, which has its own
> config mechanism.

Making ./autogen.sh is not difficult and some projects use that, but
Gnus is different, because we don't change configure.in frequently,
four times in 3.5 years.  In addition, we don't use automake, some
Gnus users don't have autoconf installed, and ./configure is in both
the Emacs CVS and the XEmacs CVS.  Why we bother?

ShengHuo

Re: ./configure

[Karl Eichwalder]

ShengHuo ZHU <zsh@cs.rochester.edu> writes:

> Stainless Steel Rat <ratinox@peorth.gweep.net> writes:
> 
>> * Didier Verna <didier@lrde.epita.fr>  on Mon, 30 Jul 2001
>>|         Well, you actually *want* to keep configure in CVS because it is no
>>| different from people to people, and it's somewhat insane to make
>>| thousands of people regenerate the *same* file. It also has the advantage
>>| that CVS simple users (not developers) don't have to know autoconf and
>>| friends to build gnus.

Worse: Users/developers might have different version installed.  If
you'll not check in automatically generated files you ought to put _all_
devel tools into the CVS -- otherwise you're not able to rebuild stuff
properly.

>> Besides "./autogen.sh" is not that difficult, and it runs configure
>> for you automatically.

Often ./autogen.sh scripts do much to much (calling gettextize every
time).

> Making ./autogen.sh is not difficult and some projects use that, but
> Gnus is different, because we don't change configure.in frequently,
> four times in 3.5 years.  In addition, we don't use automake, some
> Gnus users don't have autoconf installed, and ./configure is in both
> the Emacs CVS and the XEmacs CVS.  Why we bother?

For quite some time I thought the same.  gettext CVS is another
"exception".

-- 
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