Re: Installation of PDF/PS/DVI and HTML files

[Chet Ramey]

On 12/3/15 6:05 AM, Ludovic Courtès wrote:
> Hello,
> 
> Akira of Debian noticed that ‘make all’ rebuilds and install
> PDF/PS/DVI/HTML documentation by default, which prevents default Bash
> builds from being bit-reproducible¹.

This isn't completely accurate, since `make all' doesn't install anything.
So is it the building in the build directory or the installation not
being minimal enough that is the problem?

> 
> Given that the GCS suggests installing only the Info version of the
> manual by default (info "(standards) Standard Targets"), what about a
> change along the lines of the patch below?

That's not quite what it says.  It suggests that the `install' target
install the info file, but leaves other files up to the discretion of
the package maintainer.


> --- a/doc/Makefile.in
> +++ b/doc/Makefile.in
> @@ -146,9 +146,9 @@ BASHREF_FILES = $(srcdir)/bashref.texi $(srcdir)/fdl.texi 
> $(srcdir)/version.texi
>       ${RM} $@
>       -${DVIPS} $<
>  
> -all: ps info dvi text html
> +all: info
>  nodvi: ps info text html
> -everything: all pdf
> +everything: all pdf dvi text html
>  
>  PSFILES = bash.ps bashbug.ps article.ps builtins.ps rbash.ps 
>  DVIFILES = bashref.dvi bashref.ps

So the problem is that bash builds too much by default?  And it's the build
output that needs to be bit-for-bit reproducible?  In general, this is
impossible, since the version string changes with each new `build version'.

This patch doesn't have anything to do with the install target, which
installs the info file, man pages, and html files by default.  (And if you
don't want the html files installed, run make install with `htmldir' set
to the empty string.)


> In addition, the ‘install’ rule in doc/Makefile.in would need to be
> split in ‘install-info’, ‘install-pdf’, etc. (as explained in the GCS),
> with ‘install’ depending only on ‘install-info’.

Again, that's not quite what the coding standards say.  The standards say
to make sure to install the info file when you run `make install', using
the `install-info' program to do so.

> What do you think?

It's hard to say, since the proposed patch has little to do with the
subject of the message.

-- 
``The lyf so short, the craft so long to lerne.'' - Chaucer
                 ``Ars longa, vita brevis'' - Hippocrates
Chet Ramey, ITS, CWRU    chet@case.edu    http://cnswww.cns.cwru.edu/~chet/