Build system (was Re: Future of KDE Development)

[Alexander Neundorf]

On Monday 14 February 2005 20:09, Peter Rockai (mornfall) wrote:
> On Monday 14 February 2005 17:46, Alexander Neundorf wrote:
> > On Monday 14 February 2005 17:50, Stephan Kulow wrote:
> > ...
>
> [snip]
>
> > cmake not only supports out-of-source-builds, it explicitely encourages
> > them. Just go into any directory, and enter
> > # cmake ~/src/kde3/kdebase/ <return>
> >
> > After this run make and you're done.
> >
> > And you can write arbitrary complicated configure tests with cmake.
>
> That's true of pretty much any system that has no hardcoded limits... The
> question is how scalable and easy that is. Looking at CMake source, it is
> NOT anything i would want to deal with (it looks like a homebrewn
> macrolanguage, 

Well, cmake is no general purpose programming language, so it has to be a 
homebrewn language.
I consider this not an disadvantage compared to using a full programming 
language.

> in the vein of IF(X11_X11_INCLUDE_PATH) SET(X11_INCLUDE_DIR
> ${X11_INCLUDE_DIR} ${X11_X11_INCLUDE_PATH})
> ENDIF(X11_X11_INCLUDE_PATH)...). Also, CMake has a nasty habit of littering
> your source with dozens of helper files like CMakeError.log,
> CMakeCache.txt, cmake.check_cache,
> CMakeSystem.cmake, CMakeCXXCompiler.cmake et cetera et cetera...). 

Well, at least autotools do the same. With out-of-source builds, it doesn't 
matter after all.

> It also uses unix make to do the build. 

IMO this is an advantage. Everybody knows makefiles, so everybody will feel 
kind of comfortable. You can still enter make on the command line.
./configure; make; make install will stay the same (with ./configure being a 
script calling cmake).

> I suggest we forget it now. 

Ok, why ?
I mean, I haven't seen any real arguments (like: cmake can't do this or that) 
against cmake. The main weak point of cmake seems to be that the commands are 
all upper-case :-P

Bye
Alex
-- 
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