Re: --with-foo= vs. FOO=${FOO:-foo_default}

[Bruce Korb]

Ben Pfaff wrote:

> In my experience, a cryptic configuration file is almost always
> an improvement over a configure switch.

You're at Stanford.  You must be a student.
Hand editing configure or config.status are completely
insufferable as alternatives.  I am bold enough to say
that if you don't think so, then you are wrong.  With/without/
enable/disable are adequate until you get to the fuzzy level
of "too many".  Then you have a variety of alternatives,
but any you choose *MUST* be simple to understand, documented
and clearly isolated from chaff.  The hand editing fails
these tests miserably.

Options:

1.  Rename the AC_ARG_WITH:  this separates it from GNU dogma
    about --with usage, but still suffers from too many options

2.  Create a "configure.options" file that you distribute,
    includes lots of comments and is sourced at the start of
    the configure run, ala the Apache or Elm config files,
    except likely using shell variable assignment syntax.

3.  You're creative.  Think of something.  Just document the
    heck out of it.