Re: [boost] Experience with Boost.Build

From: David Abrahams (david.abrahams_at_[hidden])
Date: 2002-02-22 00:13:14

----- Original Message -----
From: "Dan Nuffer" <dnuffer_at_[hidden]>

> - I got the Boost.Jam rpm, but what is the Boost.Build rpm for?  Do I
> need it?

AFAIK it's in case you want to use Boost.Build on another project. If you
have a boost installation, then no, you don't need it.

> - The line that says to build the boost libraries actually built
> examples and tests also.  I wasn't expecting nor wanting to do that.
>  How do I build *only* the libraries?

If that's the case then a bug crept into the system. I'm not sure that
there's an easy way to do what you want right now. We'll have to address
that.

> - The Boost.Python build failed.  I don't know for sure since Jam
> doesn't print the command it's running, but judging from the gcc error
> messages, the Python headers were not found (they are in a standard
> place - /usr/include/python1.5, so why weren't they found?)  It would be
> nice if Jam would print out the command it invoked so I could tell what
> was happening.

See my other post for the answers.

> - The documentation does not mention anywhere where the libraries end
> up.  After looking around a little, I couldn't see any obvious place, so
> I ended up having to search for *.so files.
>
> - The only library that appears to have sucessfully built was regex.
>  It's the only .so file.  There are some .o files for the thread
> library, but no .so or .a.  Searching back through the ton of error
> messages I found this:
> libs/thread/build/../src/once.cpp:138: parse error at end of input
> Is there a way to get Jam to stop once an error happens?  It would make
> it a lot easier to find any errors!

AFAIK there is not. I usually compile from within emacs and use next-error
to find the errors.

> Boost.Python failed because the build didn't look in the right place for
> the headers.
> How do I fix either of these problems?
>
> BTW, I am using boost 1.27.0 with gcc 2.95.2 on Linux.
>
> Also, one final comment: I've been reading the discussion of Jam vs.
> auto tools.  And I echo the same sentiment as others have expressed: it
> would be really nice if all I had to do to build boost was the old
> familiar './configure; make; make install'.  But, I can live with
> rebuilding and installing the Boost.Jam rpm

You shouldn't need to do that except when we update it (and we haven't in
quite some time).