Re: Including foreign makefiles

[Tom Tromey]

>>>>> "Adam" == Adam C Powell IV <address@hidden> writes:

Adam>    * hard-code the variable I had hoped to get from the foreign
Adam>    makefile, which will break if it differs from platform to
Adam>    platform or machine to machine.

Adam>    * give up on cross-platform and hand-create .la files for the
Adam>    Debian packages of the foreign libs (I maintain that
Adam>    package), which will only allow linking against the
Adam>    Debian-packaged version of the toolkit.

You forgot some options.  For instance you could handle this in
configure.in by scanning the Makefile and generating a series of
AC_SUBSTs.

Adam> Given that upstream (of the foreign library package with the
Adam> makefile I'd like to include) is reluctant to even *version*
Adam> their libraries, or to install anything in standard places, I'm
Adam> quite certain they'd never accept the enormous patch required to
Adam> automake/libtoolize their tree.

This kind of thing says "configure" to me.

Remember, the automake `include' is compile-time -- it happens when
you run automake.  But what you really want is something
platform-specific, meaning a "runtime" (when the user types "make")
test.  Runtime test == configure.

Tom