Re: [PATCH] bootstrap: add bootstrap_sync option.

[Gary V. Vaughan]

On 19 Oct 2010, at 12:19, Paul Eggert wrote:
> On 10/18/2010 08:34 PM, Gary V. Vaughan wrote:
>> I would prefer your "boot" script to be called "bootstrap", and rename
>> the current "bootstrap" to something else, maybe "autoconfiscate"
> 
> Yes, that would be even better.  "autoconfiscate" is a bit long, though.
> 
> How about "cobble" instead?  "cobble" is a nice word, since it falls
> between "bootstrap" and "make", and it has all the right connotations:
> a cobbler makes (and repairs) boots, and a programmer cobbles together a hack.

LOL.  Works for me.  And we have too many filenames that begin with auto-
already, which makes for more typing even with TAB completion.

I do think that bootstrap.conf is still a perfectly fine name for the file
that holds package specific bootstrap-time customizations, however.  In the
typical case, I suppose it will look something like this shortly after
running ./bootstrap:

  pkg-maj.min.mic/
    +-- Makefile.am
    +-- Makefile.in
    +-- README
    ...
    +-- build-aux/
    |     +-- cobble*
    |     +-- compile*
    |     ...
    +-- bootstrap*
    +-- bootstrap.conf
    +-- config-h.in
    +-- configure*
    +-- configure.ac
    ...

...so having cobble.conf at the top-level might be surprising and confusing,
and tucking bootstrap.conf away in $build_aux gives the impression that the
file is managed outside of the package, when it is actually quite the
opposite.  And it's easy enough to add comments in bootstrap.conf, bootstrap
and cobble to explain their relationship to the other files while people
are still getting used to this improvement.

Cheers,
-- 
Gary V. Vaughan (address@hidden)

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