Feature-Control (Was: Re: New Alpha)

Fri, 4 Apr 1997 11:15:26 +0000 (GMT)

On Thu, 3 Apr 1997 08:46:55 +0200 (MET DST) Nils Bokermann  
wrote:
[...]
>>In case you haven't done this, can you
>> introduce a .CFG file (like with Borland) where one can
>> put all the command line switches that they want to use?
>> The compiler will read the .CFG file before doing anything
>> else, and will adjust its behaviour accordingly. I personally
>> prefer this approach to using environment variables or the
>> such. You can make many sample .CFG files 
>> (e.g., borland.cfg, extended.cfg, iso.cfg, etc) which people
>> can then rename to GPC.CFG or whatever.
>
>Oh, No! Please don't.
>Why don't we handle this like it is used in the common place way at unixish
>Systems: Take a Makefile and put a line PFLAGS (is this right?) in it. There
>you have all your flags, you think you need. Let's say there is a
>PBORLANDFLAGS=--borland-pascal --what-in-hell-else-is-needed-for-borland
>and a PMYFLAGS=--left-justified --enable-foo-warnings.
>Then you can put them together to the archive your program comes with and
>nobody needs to edit the GPC.CFG. 
>
>What one might do is put sample Makerules-file(s) to the GPC distribution.

Makefiles are probably wonderful. However, I don't know 
much about them - and I am sure that many people from a BP
or Delphi background are in the same boat. I am puzzled
however as to what is so bad about using a .CFG file. Can
you please say what your objection is?

I have seen the Makefiles that come  with GPC and GCC, 
and, frankly speaking, a lot of the contents are like 
Swahili to me (meaning something which people think I 
ought to understand, but which I most certainly do not 
understand). CFG files that contain only command line 
switches  (just as you would pass them at the command 
line) are simple enough for anyone to use. 

Makefiles seem to involve learning yet another scripting 
language. While this may be familiar to unix people (and
I have used them before - long ago, when programming for 
OS/2 with GCC) a lot of Pascal programmers from non-unix
and non-C backgrounds wouldn't want to touch them with
a barge pole - and I am one of them! Surely, GPC could
cater for everybody? (or, at least, meet them half-way).

Any comments? 

Best regards, The Chief 
Dr Abimbola A. Olowofoyeku (The African Chief, and the Great Elephant)
Author of:  Chief's Installer Pro v3.12 for Win16 and Win32.
Homepage:  http://ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/African_Chief/
E-mail: laa12@cc.keele.ac.uk


The African Chief (laa12@cc.keele.ac.uk)