Subject: bug#7773: closed (Re: bug#7773: (lack of) config.h description in manual)

From: [email-masked] (GNU bug Tracking System)
Date: Mon, 03 Jan 2011 02:37:02 +0000

Your bug report

#7773: (lack of) config.h description in manual

which was filed against the automake package, has been closed.

The explanation is attached below, along with your original report.
If you require more details, please reply to [email-masked].

-- 
7773: http://debbugs.gnu.org/cgi/bugreport.cgi?bug=7773
GNU Bug Tracking System
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Subject: Re: bug#7773: (lack of) config.h description in manual
From: Ralf Wildenhues <[email-masked]>
To: Karl Berry <[email-masked]>
Cc: [email-masked]
Date: Mon, 3 Jan 2011 03:43:10 +0100
List-Id: <debbugs-submit.debbugs.gnu.org>

Hi Karl,

* Karl Berry wrote on Mon, Jan 03, 2011 at 01:17:00AM CET:
> Following up to my own mail,

No.  :-)  This opened a new bug report.  I'm closing it, for reasons
explained below.

> it seems I have been missing something
> basic all these years, since it's never come up in my own packages: in
> order to use the directory variables like $(LIBDIR) in the code, it
> seems each package has to hack them in to config.h, e.g., via gnulib's
> "configmake" module.  Right?

Well, the configmake module is an application of the technique described
in
  info Autoconf "Defining Directories"

> This is surprising.  A programmer coming to the autotools would hardly
> expect to have to write their own glue script merely to get access to
> the standard directories in the code.

All discussed in above node.

> I strongly suggest explicitly discussing this in the manual.  Maybe even
> showing an example of how to do it,

All done above.  No, I do not think that automake.info should repeat all
of autoconf.info information.

> or at least referring to gnulib's configmake.

Feel free to send a patch to autoconf-patches to amend that (or just
write there, and one of us will get to it).  Thanks.

> (It'd be even better IMHO to just make them standardly available in
> config.h somehow, e.g., as #define AM_LIBDIR and the like, but I can't
> wrap my mind around a real spec, sorry ...)

That does not work, and the above node explains why: the GNU Coding
Standards forbid it, implicitly.

Cheers,
Ralf

Subject: Re: (lack of) config.h description in manual
From: [email-masked] (Karl Berry)
To: [email-masked]
Date: Mon, 3 Jan 2011 00:17:00 GMT
List-Id: <debbugs-submit.debbugs.gnu.org>

Following up to my own mail, it seems I have been missing something
basic all these years, since it's never come up in my own packages: in
order to use the directory variables like $(LIBDIR) in the code, it
seems each package has to hack them in to config.h, e.g., via gnulib's
"configmake" module.  Right?

This is surprising.  A programmer coming to the autotools would hardly
expect to have to write their own glue script merely to get access to
the standard directories in the code.

I strongly suggest explicitly discussing this in the manual.  Maybe even
showing an example of how to do it, or at least referring to gnulib's
configmake.

(It'd be even better IMHO to just make them standardly available in
config.h somehow, e.g., as #define AM_LIBDIR and the like, but I can't
wrap my mind around a real spec, sorry ...)

Thanks,
k