creating text files with make?

[Martin Mensch]

Hello,

 

I think about a special job to be done by computer and would like to find out if it can be done by make. So I want to ask if the following things are possible somehow and if yes how to do it:

First what I want to do:

I want to create a textfile or maybe two or three. The contents of those is to be taken from a number of other files while their contents my be changed where there are placeholders, copied several times or partly ommitted. All this is to be controlled by a config file.

Til now I know how to include this config file (with include) and how to create and write to an output file (echo >> filename)

But how do I

- take in the contents of a file named by the config file

- go through this file, change placeholders controled by the config file

- copy parts several times controled by the config file

- leave out parts controled by the config file

- and put the result into an echo command?

 

Is it possible at all?

Are there examples somewhere to get inspired?

 

Thank you for any help

 

Martin