Re: [boost] Boost building with CMake

From: Rene Rivera (grafikrobot_at_[hidden])
Date: 2007-05-09 14:36:26

Stefan Seefeld wrote:
> Larry Evans wrote:
> 
>> To build with just cmake change directory into where you want the 
>> binaries to be placed.
>>
>> which implies to me that the user would have to create
>> those build directories himself and then specify in,
>> I guess, a CMakeList.txt file, what compiler to use.
>>
>> Is that right?
> 
> FWIW, that's the typical GNU (autotools) build system procedure:
> You create a build directory, run $(srcdir)/configure from there,
> specifying any build options, and then 'make'.
> 
> Thus, different build variants would all end up in distinct
> build directories, outside the source directory they were build from
> (and are dependent on).
> 
> This approach is very natural for people working with autoconf / make.

The problem with that approach is that it creates extra work that 
"users" must do to build. And any extra work the build system doesn't 
have control over raises the likelihood something will go wrong. For 
example, someone may forget that they need different dirs and 
accidentally reuse an existing one. Which could create all kinds of 
collisions and hard to diagnose errors.

In the same sense that Boost.Build is written on top of Boost.Jam, it 
might make sense to treat cmake as a backend to a slim build description 
and control front end.

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