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Introducing Autoperl
From: |
mark |
Subject: |
Introducing Autoperl |
Date: |
Tue, 29 Mar 2005 23:10:14 -0500 |
User-agent: |
Mutt/1.3.28i |
Hello,
I'd like to let the Autoconf developers know about a related project I'm
working on. It's called Autoperl, and it's a partial reimplementation of
Autoconf/Automake but written in Perl. It tries to be 100% syntax
compatible with the GNU toolchain, and uses the same terminology and
concepts.
"Why would anyone do such a stupid thing?", you might ask...
I am a veteran Perl programmer, but I have always admired the Autoconf
configuration system and wanted something similar for my Perl programs.
Autoconf is *really* geared towards C/C++ development, and doesn't mesh
well with Perl, IMHO. (Yes, I know about the bin_SCRIPTS macro)
What Autoperl does differently is:
* Automatically checks for Perl library dependencies
* Validates the syntax of all Perl source code files during the
compilation phase
* Combines all Perl modules into a single file like ld(1)
* Creates a "config.h" in pure Perl and exports the
configuration variables into the application.
"But this is the Autoconf list; I don't care about Autoperl!" you may
say...
I wanted the Autoconf developers to be aware of this new project and to
think of ways of connecting Autoperl with Autoconf. It should be
possible to implement the Autoperl-specific macros as native Autoconf
macros. My goal is for Autoperl to work silently in the background and
do as little as possible, while Autoconf/Automake calls upon Autoperl as
needed.
One final thought: the next version of Autoperl will support a 'make
package' target that will run 'make install DESTDIR=/tmp/foo' and
package the results as a native binary package (RPM,DEP,TGZ,etc.) This
would enable developers to build native packages for many different
systems and architectures without any extra effort.
It would be great if Autoperl and Autoconf could cooperate!
The Autoperl home page is:
http://heily.com/~mark/projects/autoperl
You can reach me at:
address@hidden
Regards,
Mark Heily
Chief Autoperl hacker
- Introducing Autoperl,
mark <=