Autoconf 2.52h

[Akim Demaille]

Autoconf 2.52h is ready for your tests.  It is mainly a bug fix
version of 2.52g.  This message is also a call for help, especially on
the documentation.  Please, send proposals to complete it in all the
useful ways you can think of.  Major contributions, such as
documentation of M4sugar, M4sh, autom4te etc. are _most_ welcome.
Contribution of updated specific macros, new specific macros, are also
wanted for 2.53.

  ftp://alpha.gnu.org/gnu/autoconf/autoconf-2.52h.tar.gz   (958 kB)
  ftp://alpha.gnu.org/gnu/autoconf/autoconf-2.52h.tar.bz2  (733 kB)

And here are xdelta-style diffs

  ftp://alpha.gnu.org/gnu/autoconf/autoconf-2.52g-2.52h.xdelta   (18 kB)

Here are the MD5 and SHA1 signatures for the compressed tar files:

a80858a4a81de2a726e23283dff54638  autoconf-2.52h.tar.gz
e940e217b9c14945fdf148f74cf6195d  autoconf-2.52h.tar.bz2
06e6894314c35872068f0b9c8030282737cd62eb  autoconf-2.52h.tar.gz
e73f6f07cbf3180ce3a143a63753aaeac63c12e8  autoconf-2.52h.tar.bz2

NEWS:

* Major changes in Autoconf 2.52h                       -*- outline -*-

** Requirements

  Perl 5.005_03 or later is required: autom4te is written in Perl and is
  needed by autoconf.  autoheader, autoreconf, ifnames, and autoscan are
  rewritten in Perl.

** Documentation

- AC_INIT
  Argument requirements, output variables, defined macros.
- M4sugar, M4sh, Autotest
  First sketch.
- Double quoting macros
  AC_TRY_CPP, AC_TRY_COMPILE, AC_TRY_LINK and AC_TRY_RUN.
- Licensing
  The Autoconf manual is now distributed under the terms of the GNU FDL.

** configure

- $LINENO
  Now used instead of hard coded line numbers.
  This eases the comparison of `configure's, and diminishes the
  pressure over control version archives.
  Automatic replacement for shells that don't support this feature.
- New output variables
  @builddir@, @top_builddir@, @abs_srcdir@, @abs_top_srcdir@, @abs_builddir@,
  @address@hidden

** Emacs

  Autoconf and Autotest modes are provided.

** Executables

- autom4te
  New, used by the Autoconf suite to cache and speed up most processing.
- --force, -f
  Supported by autom4te, autoconf and autoheader.
- --include, -I
  Replaces --autoconf-dir and --localdir in autoconf, autoheader,
  autoupdate, and autoreconf.
- autoreconf
  No longer passes --cygnus, --foreign, --gnits, --gnu, --include-deps:
  automake options are to be given via AUTOMAKE_OPTIONS.
- autoreconf
  Runs gettextize and libtoolize when appropriate.
- autoreconf
  --m4dir is no longer supported.
- autoreconf
  Now runs only in the specified directories, defaulting to `.',
  but understands AC_CONFIG_SUBDIRS for dependent directories.
  Before, it used to run on all the `configure.ac' found in the
  current tree.
  Independent packages are properly updated.

** Bug fixes

- The top level $prefix is propagated to the AC_CONFIG_SUBDIRS configures.
- AC_TRY_RUN
  Under the user pressure, $? is finally available.  Probably a mistake.
- AC_F77_LIBRARY_LDFLAGS now supports the HP/UX f90 compiler.
- Precious variables accumulation
  config.status could stack several copies of the precious variables
  assignments.
- AC_PATH_PROG and family.
  Works properly when given a literal path.

** C Macros

- AC_C_BIGENDIAN supports the cross-compiling case.
- AC_C_BIGENDIAN accepts ACTION-IF-TRUE, ACTION-IF-FALSE, and
  ACTION-IF-UNKNOWN arguments.  All are facultative, and the default
  for ACTION-IF-TRUE is to define WORDS_BIGENDIAN like AC_C_BIGENDIAN
  always did.
- AC_C_LONG_DOUBLE now succeeds only if `long double' has more range or
  precision than `double'.

** Generic macros

- AC_INIT
  It now defines the preprocessor symbols PACKAGE_NAME,
  PACKAGE_TARNAME, PACKAGE_VERSION, PACKAGE_STRING, and
  PACKAGE_BUGREPORT.

- AC_INIT
  Admits a fourth optional parameter: the tar name.

- AC_CONFIG_COMMANDS, HEADERS, FILES, LINKS.
  Provide the user with srcdir, ac_srcdir, ac_top_srcdir, ac_builddir,
  ac_top_builddir, ac_abs_srcdir, ac_abs_top_srcdir, ac_abs_builddir,
  ac_abs_top_builddir.

- AC_CONFIG_COMMANDS, HEADERS, FILES, LINKS and AC_OUTPUT.
  Are much less expensive when using long lists of files.

- AC_PREFIX_PROGRAM
  Works with shell variables, and non alphanumeric names.

** Library macros

- AC_FUNC_STRERROR_R now sets STRERROR_R_CHAR_P, not HAVE_WORKING_STRERROR_R,
  because POSIX 1003.1-200x draft 7 says strerror_r returns int, not char *.

- AC_FUNC_STRTOD substitutes POW_LIB.

- AC_FUNC_STRNLEN
  New.

ChangeLog entries:

**********************************************************************
ChangeLog       7 Feb 2002 18:31:27 -0000       1.1849
**********************************************************************
2002-02-07  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        Version 2.52h.

2002-02-07  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        Fix Autoconf PR/209.
        Also reported by Frank Denis.

        * lib/m4sugar/m4sh.m4 (_AS_PATH_WALK): Don't over quote.

2002-02-07  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        Fix Autoconf PR/207:
        AC_PREFIX_PROGRAM fails with dashed program names

        * lib/autoconf/general.m4 (AC_PREFIX_PROGRAM): Just use a fresh
        variable when looking for the prefix program.
        Now it also works for shell variables.

2002-02-07  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * doc/autoconf.texi (Limitations of Builtins): More about
        case/esac.

2002-02-06  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoconf/status.m4 (_AC_OUTPUT_COMMANDS): Don't output empty
        case/esac, some shells don't support it.
        Reported by Zack Weinberg.
        * tests/torture.at (AC_CONFIG_COMMANDS with empty commands): New.

2002-02-06  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autotest/general.m4 (AT_INIT): When handling --keywords, be
        sure not to introduce newlines in at_groups.
        * lib/autotest/Makefile.am (autotest.m4f): Typo.

2002-02-06  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * tests/torture.at (Configuring subdirectories): Skip if aclocal
        is not available.

2002-02-05  Paul Eggert  <address@hidden>

        * doc/autoconf.texi (Specific Compiler Characteristics):
        Describe HP-UX cc bug workaround more accurately.
        * lib/autoconf/types.m4 (AC_CHECK_SIZEOF): Cast to long,
        not unsigned long.
        * tests/semantics.at (AC_CHECK_SIZEOF): Check non-GCC
        cross-compilers, too.  This undoes some of the most recent change
        to this file.

2002-02-05  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * tests/Makefile.am (check_SCRIPTS): Use it, instead of WRAPPERS,
        to make sure they are up to date when `check' is run.

2002-02-05  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * doc/autoconf.texi (Making testsuite Scripts): Document
        package.m4.

2002-02-05  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/freeze.mk: New.

2002-02-05  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        Implement `autom4te --freeze'.

        * bin/autom4te.in (&freeze): New.
        * lib/autoconf/autoconf.m4, lib/autotest/general.m4,
        * lib/m4sugar/m4sh.m4: Don't include files given by autom4te.

2002-02-05  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * bin/autom4te.in (&parse_args): Implement `frozen files are
        optional are the sum of the previous files on the command line'.
        Also, pass `--reload-state=' on them, so...
        (handle_m4): don't.
        * lib/autom4te.in (Autotest, Autoconf): Rely on M4sh.
        (M4sh): Rely on M4sugar.
        (Autotest, M4sh, M4sugar): Use frozen files.

2002-01-31  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoconf/general.m4 (_AC_INIT_PACKAGE): Accept $4.
        * doc/autoconf.texi (Initializing configure): Adjust.

2002-01-30  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoconf/general.m4 (_AC_INIT_PACKAGE): Map non
        alphanumeric to `-' instead of `_'.

2002-01-30  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * tests/semantics.at (AC_CHECK_SIZEOF): Split into two tests: one
        for plain code, the other for cross-compilation code.  The latter
        is now run with GCC only.
        * doc/autoconf.texi (Compilers and Preprocessors): New.

2002-01-30  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autoconf/general.m4 (_AC_INIT_PACKAGE): Support pre-defined
        values.
        * doc/autoconf.texi (Initializing configure): Explain how to
        change AC_INIT default values.

2002-01-29  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * tests/torture.at (Configuring subdirectories): Use configure.in,
        so that aclocal 1.4 works.
        Reported by Alexandre Duret-Lutz and Larry Schmitt.

2002-01-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * doc/autoconf.texi (Writing testsuite.at): AT_CLEANUP no longer
        needs an argument.

2002-01-28  Akim Demaille  <address@hidden>

        * lib/autotest/general.m4 (AT_INIT): Don't be ridiculous: adjust
        AUTOTEST_PATH *after* it was set.
        Don't put `.' in the PATH: the user should be precise and `./' if
        needed.  In addition, given that the test suite does some `cd', if
        `.' is in the path, the `tested programs' sections will report
        programs found in the test suite's directory, while during the
        tests (performed in their own directory), these programs are no
        longer visible.  In other words, the results is confusing and
        useless.
        * tests/m4sh.at: Adjust: don't rely on `.' being in the PATH.