Re: [Mingw-msys] Re: MinGW libtool DLL failure

[Albert Chin]

On Tue, Oct 15, 2002 at 10:43:08AM -0500, Bob Friesenhahn wrote:
> On Tue, 15 Oct 2002, Max Bowsher wrote:
> >
> > >> The idea of supporting a --bindir option is tempting, but then
> > >> 'libtool --mode=install' stops looking like a simple install program,
> > >> and in fact, the --bindir option would need to be passed for several
> > >> different phases of libtool operation since it would influence the
> > >> content of the library.la file.  Since Windows may be the only OS
> > >> benefiting from this, we could have a case of the tail wagging the
> > >> dog.
> >
> > So we conditionalize all this so it only activates on Windows.
> 
> There is a fundamental flaw with this logic.  Sorry to dissapoint you,
> but most open source software using libtool does not originate from
> the Windows environment. :-)
> 
> If you rely on a feature which only takes effect under Windows, then
> packages will neglect to enable or test that feature, resulting in
> packages which do not build properly (or misbehave) under Windows.

Doesn't this conflict with the libtool option -no-undefined:
 - Macro: AC_LIBTOOL_WIN32_DLL
     This macro should be used if the package has been ported to build
     clean dlls on win32 platforms.  Usually this means that any
     library data items are exported with `__declspec(dllexport)' and
     imported with `__declspec(dllimport)'.  If this macro is not used,
     libtool will assume that the package libraries are not dll clean
     and will build only static libraries on win32 hosts.

     This macro must be called *before* `AC_PROG_LIBTOOL', and
     provision must be made to pass `-no-undefined' to `libtool' in
     link mode from the package `Makefile'.  Naturally, if you pass
     `-no-undefined', you must ensure that all the library symbols
     *really are* defined at link time!

It seems that CYGWIN needs -no-undefined but this might be problematic
on other unices.

-- 
albert chin (address@hidden)