RE: [Axiom-developer] differences wh-sandbox andbuild-improvements

[Bill Page]

On April 15, 2007 5:28 PM Gaby wrote:
> 
> Quoting Bill Page:
> 
> > On April 15, 2007 5:56 AM Gaby wrote:
> > ...
> > > my frustration with windows is only growing.
> > >
> >
> > I think it best to avoid the trap that most linux
> > developers fall into when working with Windows. As
> > far as I am concerned it is just another operating
> > system ...
> >
> 
> Maybe -- I don't know what trap it is.

The "trap" to which I was referring has been called "Linux
chauvinism", see for example:

http://www.softpanorama.org/OSS/Bla_faq/raymondism.shtml

by Nikolai Bezroukov

In my own words its something like this: Assuming that because
one is having trouble in an environment with which one is less
familiar, that it is therefore inferior and a unnecessary source
of frustration - sort of opposite to the slogan: "familiarity
breeds contempt". It is a trap because believing this tends to
make it seem true.

But I did *not* intend to accuse you of this even by implication.
Sorry. It's just that I see this statement made very often in
different ways and I think it tends to perpetuate views that I
think are undesirable. However frustration, is of course quite
natural. 

> ...
> I'm using m4-1.4.9 and ActivePerl-5.8.9 build 820.
>
> > ...
> > I have:
> >
> > $ perl --version
> >
> > This is perl, v5.6.1 built for msys

I suppose you meant ActivePerl-5.8.8.820?

http://www.activestate.com/Products/ActivePerl/more_information.plex

Perl comes in two flavours from ActiveState the 5.6.x track and the
5.8.x track. Both are considered current releases. I have 5.8.8 in
my Windows installation but 5.6.1 in MSYS.

> Bill Page wrote:
> >
> > My first guess is that your problem might have something to do
> > with be the version of Perl that you are using. I have never
> > used ActivePerl for buidling MSYS/MinGW apps.
> >
> 
> Maybe.  But, again, the idea of using ActivePerl for msys/mingw
> came from mingw website.  I did not pull it out of my hat.
> 

Well, it was only my first guess. But just be sure I renamed my
MSYS /bin/perl to /bin/old_perl and restarted MSYS so that it
picks up ActivePerl-5.8.8.820 from my Windows installation. Now
I can reproduce the error that you reported:

$ perl --version

This is perl, v5.8.8 built for MSWin32-x86-multi-thread

$ cd autoconf-2.61

$ make clean

$ ./configure
...
$ make
...
autom4te_perllibdir='..'/lib AUTOM4TE_CFG='../lib/autom4te.cfg'
         ../bin/autom4te -B '..'/lib -B '..'/lib
         --language M4sh --cache '' --melt ./autoconf.as -o autoconf.in
The system cannot find the path specified.
autom4te: need GNU m4 1.4 or later: /usr/local/bin/m4
make[1]: *** [autoconf.in] Error 1
make[1]: Leaving directory `/home/Administrator/autoconf-2.61/bin'
make: *** [all-recursive] Error 1

address@hidden ~/autoconf-2.61


> >
> >>
> >> > Apparently you can also install autoconf-2.61 and m4-1.4.7
> >> > binaries from:
> >> >
> >> > http://sourceforge.net/project/showfiles.php?group_id=148008
> >> >
> >>
> >> yes, i donwloaded the autoconf package from there last night;
> >> I've not tried that version yet.
> >
> > Let me know how it turns out.
> >
> 
> not well -- my Perl is not /bin/perl.
>

Do you mean that they assume that perl is in /bin/perl?
 
> >> ...
> >> > Is there any particular reason you want to continue using
> >> > the older version autoconf-2.60?
> >> >
> >>
> >> my three main linux boxes are running that version,
> >>
> >
> > I recommend that we go to autoconf-2.61 for all Axiom builds.
> >
> 
> As long as you prepare and commit all my patches, I'm fine with
> that.
> 

Gee, that sounds familiar. Where did I hear that before? Oh,
sorry. I forgot. This is the Axiom open source project - the
one where each developer chooses there own flavor and version
of the basic tools ... I with draw my recommendation. Let's
just all continue to do it our own way. ;)

Regards,
Bill Page.