Re: Why Jam?

From: braden_mcdaniel (braden_at_[hidden])
Date: 2002-02-20 12:24:22

--- In boost_at_y..., "David Abrahams" <david.abrahams_at_r...> wrote:
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "braden_mcdaniel" <braden_at_e...>
> 
> > On the other hand...
> >
> > Though jam may purport to be an improvement over make, automake gives
> > make a significant advantage by providing a number of useful build
> > targets, notably "dist" and "install". Having the latter target
> > available in particular greatly facilitates the creation of
> > installable packages as you find in the popular Linux distributions.
> > There is no doubt in my mind that the lack of these targets in the
> > Boost build setup has hampered Boost's penetration into this space.
> > You don't *have* to use the autotools to fix this problem; it's just a
> > lot more work without them.
> 
> Please read this thread:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/boost/message/18423

I have.

The comparison of Jam to make--while it may put the tools on an even
footing--is not entirely in touch with the current reality: the
availability of automake makes make much more usable. Build targets
that can take days to set up and weeks to tweak by hand take minutes
with automake.

> And then I will ask the same question I asked in this message:
> http://groups.yahoo.com/group/boost/message/18441
> 
> "Are you volunteering? I don't think it's a good idea to have redundant
> build
> systems, but I would be happy if someone would supply a different system
> which satisfies all or most of the goals described at
> http://www.boost.org/tools/build/build_system.htm#design_criteria. I
would
> simply retire Boost.Build if the alternative were easier to use and
> maintain."

Maybe later, but not now. I'm not really using Boost yet, though I
anticipate doing so in the future. A requirement for me is that my
users are able to obtain dependencies for my package easily, and
install those dependencies without having to do things like set
environment variables, install obscure build tools, or do anything
else out of the ordinary. A person compiling my package may not be an
experienced software developer.

So when the time comes, I'll have to see where Boost is and evaluate
my options:

 * Add an install target to the Jam build system.
 * Create a parallel autotools build.
 * Not use Boost.

Braden