[boost] How do I use bjam?

From: Daryle Walker (darylew_at_[hidden])
Date: 2006-01-05 09:10:02

I want to try out the documentation run described by the message archived at
<http://article.gmane.org/gmane.comp.lib.boost.documentation/1472>.  I
downloaded bjam for Mac OS X from our SourceForge download area.  I placed
it in my grand Boost directory in my user directory.  (I have separate
sub-directories for Boost-1.33.1-from-a-ZIP, Boost CVS, and the sandbox
CVS.)  I made a link from bjam to ~/bin.  When I ran bjam, I got:

Unable to load Boost.Build: could not find "boost-build.jam"
---------------------------------------------------------------
Attempted search from /Users/daryle up to the root
and in these directories from BOOST_BUILD_PATH and BOOST_ROOT:
/usr/share/SOMETHING-I-FORGOT.
Please consult the documentation at 'http://www.boost.org'.

Now, I said I have the Boost files within my user directory, _not_ in a
system level directory like Boost.Build assumes.  I tried exporting a value
for BOOST_BUILD_PATH to my CVS version of Boost, and it didn't do anything:

Unable to load Boost.Build: could not find "boost-build.jam"
---------------------------------------------------------------
Attempted search from /Users/daryle up to the root
and in these directories from BOOST_BUILD_PATH and BOOST_ROOT:
~/Documents/Programming/Boost/main-cvs/boost/.
Please consult the documentation at 'http://www.boost.org'.

It doesn't matter if I put "bjam --v2" instead, nor any other command line
option.  Why can't it lock on to my Boost files?

When I say "ran bjam," I just entered "bjam" as a command within a random
directory, like my home directory, with no special Boost files within it.  I
also ran it like the Gmane message, but it still couldn't start up.

A related question: is the regular Boost.Build set-up useful for someone
that creates Boost libraries using the regular and sandbox CVSes?  After
all, any installed headers and (static and/or dynamic) libraries would get
stale after any CVS update.

-- 
Daryle Walker
Mac, Internet, and Video Game Junkie
darylew AT hotmail DOT com