[news.software.b] Imake

gwollman@jhunix (Garrett A Wollman) (02/02/90)

(I lost the references because RN died on followup... ah well...)

Henry was saying something about how he needs tools to reliably build on a
wide variety of machines, in response to Peter's comment about Imake.

Imake is a tool which was developed (I believe) by MIT to make
machine-independent source releases.  I have never compiled the Imake
program myself, but as far as I have seen, it does provide a very good
capability to separate the machine-dependent definitions of a Makefile from
the actual dependencies.

I believe it's distributed under the same deal as the Athena software.

-GAWollman

news@uhura.cc.rochester.edu (Network News) (02/02/90)

In article <4100@jhunix.HCF.JHU.EDU> gwollman@jhunix (Garrett A Wollman) writes:
}(I lost the references because RN died on followup... ah well...)

	Something about that article ... anyway

}In article <5695@videovax.tv.tek.com> Bart Massey writes:
}}The X11 people have a configuration system based on a makefile generator
}}called 'imake', which is distributed with the X11R4 stuff.  This system is
}}already fairly general and *very* portable, and does most of what most
}}people seem to want for configuring C News.  I wonder if it wouldn't be
}}worthwhile for Henry and Geoff to use 'imake' as well?
}
}Henry was saying something about how he needs tools to reliably build on a
}wide variety of machines, in response to Peter's comment about Imake.

	I want to publicly support Messrs Spencer and Collyer in their decision
_not_ to use Imake.  We (U of Rochester Computing Center Unix systems support
group) install all non-licensed software into a separate directory tree.  All
the software written at MIT using Imake has been significantly more difficult
for us to "retarget".  I appreciate your effort in writing software for the
most-common-denominator.
--
Scott Leadley - leadley@uhura.cc.rochester.edu

bin@primate.wisc.edu (Brain in Neutral) (02/03/90)

From article <5024@ur-cc.UUCP>, by news@uhura.cc.rochester.edu (Network News):
> 	I want to publicly support Messrs Spencer and Collyer in their decision
> _not_ to use Imake.  We (U of Rochester Computing Center Unix systems support
> group) install all non-licensed software into a separate directory tree.  All
> the software written at MIT using Imake has been significantly more difficult
> for us to "retarget".  I appreciate your effort in writing software for the
> most-common-denominator.

Is this experience with the X11R3 or X11R4 imake?  Some work has gone into
the latter to address the concern you raise above, I think.

Paul DuBois
dubois@primate.wisc.edu