Re: [jamboost] Request for timing feature (V2)

From: Vladimir Prus (ghost_at_[hidden])
Date: 2002-08-12 06:01:53

Beman Dawes wrote:
> At 06:24 AM 8/9/2002, Vladimir Prus wrote:
> >Beman Dawes wrote:
> >> When bjam is used for reporting purposes (presumably using using
> >> testing.jam) there is a need to report timings.
> >>
[ snip ]
> >like this
> >
> > test_report --start-compiling something.cpp
> > test_report --end-compiling something.cpp
> >
> >Would that be OK? It would be very easy to add such pre/postamble to all
> >compiler invocation in V2.
>
> No, it really wouldn't be OK. The reporting of compile/link/lib/run
> results, including capturing output, timing, time-stamps, etc, needs to be
> seamless and hidden from the person setting up and running a test.

Do you mean that everything should be done by jam? That would be hard!

> Leaving a bunch of disconnected residue in multiple files is one of the key
> reasons why V1 is such a trial and tribulation for use in regression
> testing. Having to run post-jam analysis programs to figure out what jam
> has done is bad enough. It sounds like you are suggesting that during a
> jam runt more external programs will be needed to somehow capture what jam
> is doing.

Let's backtrack a little. I guess you'd want bjam run to create a single XML 
file with the structure you want. Frankly, I'm not sure bjam is the right 
tool for that. If I were doing test result generation, I would have a signle 
executable (Python script, actually), which would be given a set of "events", 
like, "starting compiling of XXX", "finished compiling of XXX", "compiler 
messages for XXX are YYY", etc. The script would create XML tree from those 
calls and them dump it. 

Alternatively, maybe jam can produce a single file, containing a log of 
actions that it does -- in more usable form that now. Still some scripts 
would be needed to produce XML.

In either case, how to handle time? In the first case, the script will record 
the time itself. In other, jam should either run external "time" program, or 
output time for each action. Do you prefer the latter option? 

I actually would not like to add a core feature to jam unless it's really 
needed. 

- Volodya