Re: RFE: configure -> dependency list on exit.

[Hugh Sasse Staff Elec Eng]

On Tue, 22 Feb 2005, Bob Friesenhahn wrote:

> On Tue, 22 Feb 2005, Hugh Sasse Staff Elec Eng wrote:
>
> > > configure script simply record that the function is not available and 
> > > the app
> >
> > record it to announce at the end and move on...
>
> More often than not, if something important is missing, the configure script 
> will continue to crater through its remaining tests.  The remaining tests are 
> then invalid.  In this case, it is more useful for the configure script to 
> issue an error message and quit.

With dependency infomartion the pointless tests can be pruned.
Clearly earlier results will be more reliable, and when a human has
to check the resulting message they can make a judgement about how
much to address at once.  If the information is truncated
prematurely they cannot.  People are familiar with consequential
errors from compilers.
> > That is still possible: I'm only trying to get existing known
> > dependecies expressed.  If compiler directives in the code like
> > #ifdef HAS_VNSPRINTF
> > #endif
> > can do useful work, by all means do that.  I'm saying that the
> > author is likely to know where to get vnsprintf, and if they do they
> > should say so.  The fallback case is things fail, like they would
> > now.
>
> I agree that it would be useful if the configure script displayed a 
> warning/error message which suggests that a particular package should be 
> installed if it can be known that the missing functionalty comes from a 
> particular package.  Many configure scripts do this already. It may be that 
> some additional autoconf smarts would help make this reporting more 
> consistent.

Thank you. I'd be grateful for any improvements I can get.
> Bob

        Hugh