[Octave-bug-tracker] [bug #34667] Doc command can't find info files

[Clem]

Follow-up Comment #7, bug #34667 (project octave):

Jordi brings up an excellent point, so here's some thoughts:

The last binary build was 3.4.0 as you can see here:
http://sourceforge.net/projects/octave/files/Octave%20MacOSX%20Binary/

It seems like binary builds were pretty consistently done until after 3.4.0
(3.4.1-3 and the current 3.6.0 where skipped.)  My (naive) suggestions are:

a. try to replicate what was done back then.  Perhaps you need some new
volunteers.  I would consider volunteering myself, except I haven't been able
to build Octave 3.6.0.  I'm willing to learn but I'm missing some important
bits of information.  (Probably a 32bit and 64bit would need to be made.  I
don't know if additional versions need to be made for each current and most
recent OS.  It's probably safe to abandon the PowerPC version of Octave at
this time.)

b. The documentation in ./etc/README.MacOS needs to be updated and expanded.
It doesn't seem to be because the 3.6.0 version as there is still a reference
to 3.4.0.

There needs to be a step by step detail for somebody to build the latest
version from scratch.  Especially useful would be a list of libraries that
don't come with the stock mac that need to be downloaded and built.  What's
frustrating is that every build stops because some library is missing.  I have
to figure out where it is and then download it and try to build it.  It's a
good thing that the developers of Octave are use a lot of libraries instead of
reinventing the wheel, but that does suggest that each build come a note about
which libraries and programs were used to make a binary.

Could the ./configure program be made report the missing required and optional
libraries?

In particular, I was able to download and build GNU Readline 6.2 but I don't
understand what needs to be done to get it to link with Octave.  (Something
about "you may need to run ldconfig" which doesn't exist on the Mac but
apparently dyld is the equivalent, but I don't know what needs to be done...)

I think if a builder knows that there is some fixed N number of libraries
missing, s/he can feel progress is being made, but if there is an unknown
number, it's unsettling because there seems to be no end.

I know it would be a lot of work to make a step by step list, but once it's
made then binaries could be made by almost anyone and distributed.

c. Finally, I turned off Readline in order to continue with the 3.6.0 build
but it failed here:

/Users/me/build/octave-3.6.0/doc/interpreter//linalg.texi:1134: Unknown
command `leq'.
/Users/me/build/octave-3.6.0/doc/interpreter//linalg.texi:1134: Misplaced {.
/Users/me/build/octave-3.6.0/doc/interpreter//linalg.texi:1134: Misplaced }.
/Users/me/build/octave-3.6.0/doc/interpreter//linalg.texi:1137: Unknown
command `geq'.
/Users/me/build/octave-3.6.0/doc/interpreter//linalg.texi:1137: Misplaced {.
/Users/me/build/octave-3.6.0/doc/interpreter//linalg.texi:1137: Misplaced }.
(and many more similar errors)

line 1134 contains:
= small: leading block has all |lambda| @leq{} 1
line 1137 contains:
= big: leading block has all |lambda| @geq{} 1

I'm guessing this is why 3.4.0 was built without docs, so I'm guessing there's
a bug with doc generation (may be Mac only?)

I don't know what this code is, but perhaps this is now an actionable bug?

d. I know making a .dmg is an extra step that would also need to be worked out
when making a mac binary.

In any case, I am appreciative of Octave since it has been very useful to
know.  I also know that making Octave is a lot of work and there's lots more
to do:  I grep'ed for FIXME in the Octave sources and see there are 451
instances of it in the 3.6.0 code base.

Thanks for all the hard work and listening.


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