Prototype buildsystem "Drake"

[Jacob Carlborg]

On 2011-07-19 15:48, Ulrik Mikaelsson wrote:
> 2011/7/19 Jacob Carlborg<doob at me.com>:
>>> Apperently some projects need to have their buildsystem check for the
>>> existance of, locations of, and details about certain things on the local
>>> system before building. So...that stuff.
>>
>> Isn't that to check what libraries, and so on, are present? That is the
>> whole point of a package manager. A package specifies what dependencies it
>> has, then the package manager makes sure the dependencies are met, or else
>> it can't be installed.
>
> All "dependencies" aren't always mandatory. It's not uncommon for some
> software to adapt itself to the environment, say enabling certain
> features IF certain other packages can be found, otherwise just
> disable the functionality. Also it might adapt itself on other
> conditions, say auto-detecting checking what OS-kernel we are building
> for, and pass along D versions-keywords accordingly, including
> allowing the user to override, to do cross-platform or cross-version
> builds. Also, most build-systems offers options for whomever is
> building, such as --use-test-codeX, much like Tango now allows you to
> build with the regular, or the less tested concurrent GC.

Ok, I see.

>> Don't know what locations it would check for. The package as no saying in
>> where it should be installed, the package manger decides that.
> Same here. You may have multiple builds of the same package, and want
> to cross test a dependent package against two different installs to do
> regression-testing. (Or the classic i386/x86_64 debacle)
>
>> Oh, now I mixing package manager and build tool and assume the build tool
>> will be used with the package manager.
> I think the build-tool and package manager must be independent, but
> well integrated. Otherwise, you risk making it difficult for
> D-software to come by default in Linux-distros, and you make it
> difficult for the D-package-manager to carry a package with a
> different build-system (even a D based package with different
> build-system).

The package manager and build system will be independent. I just got 
confuse and it was a mess in my head :). Was unsure if what I wrote 
would make any sense.

-- 
/Jacob Carlborg