Re: srcdir == objdir build issues [SC take note]

[Ian Lance Taylor <ian@airs.com>]

DJ Delorie <dj@delorie.com> writes:

> > Did anybody not like this approach? I was surprised this did not go in.
> 
> I had misgivings about a setup where you tell the software to do one
> thing, and it does something completely different.  It also added a
> maintenance headache for the "synthetic" top-level Makefile, since
> every target in the real Makefile would have to be replicated (and
> maintained - for ever).  It's far easier to just tell the user to
> build elsewhere.

For what it's worth, I agree.

Personally, I think the only reasonable choices are:

1) Have ./configure work in the expected and normal fashion; that is,
   put .o files next to the .c files, and only create new
   subdirectories for unusual cases like multilib.  This obviously
   requires regular testing, which is simple, and a commitment to keep
   it working, which is harder but should be doable.

or

2) Have ./configure simply fail with an error message directing the
   user to acquire GNU make and build in a different directory.

I think that having ./configure do something else is an increase in
complexity for no clear benefit.  I believe the point of having
./configure work is to make gcc behave like most other programs.  That
is, I think the goal ``./configure must work'' is incomplete.  The
right goal is ``./configure must behave as expected.''  Either
implement that goal, or have it fail in an obvious and straightforward
fashion.

Ian