[Bug-ocrad] Re: OCRAD project: library is needed

[Dmitry Katsubo]

Hi Antonio!


On 03.06.2010 16:52, Antonio Diaz Diaz wrote:
> Dear Dmitry,
> 
> Dmitry Katsubo wrote:
>> I am writing to you directly, as I need your feedback concerning the
>> ocrad project. If you feel that I'd better communicate to you (and
>> probably other developers/community) via maillist or forum to bugtracker
>> - feel free to direct me there.
> 
> Your mails are welcome here, but writing to the list makes more probable
> for Miguel to notice.

With your kind permission, I am re-posting your reply to maillist as well.

>> The main reason I write to you, is the request to kindly review and push
>> to mainstream the patch which I supply with this letter (it also
>> includes the usage scenario). The main goal for the changes is to allow
>> a packaging system to build a library to (re-)use ocrad functionality by
>> linking to this library, and not via CLI. Please, refer this bug report
>> for more information:
> 
> Adding the "install-lib" target to Makefile may be useful, but why are
> you installing "lib_hdrs"? "ocradlib.h" is suppossed to contain all the
> library interface. See "ocrcheck.cc" for an example of use.
> 
> Maybe you are using features of ocrad not in "ocradlib.h"? In this case,
> I think the right thing is to add those features to "ocradlib.h".

Yes, you are right. In OSRA module [1] we are using classes Control,
Rectangle, Character, Blob. You are welcome to provide any nice
solution, how to share thee classes. Or maybe you can give an advise,
how to use OCRAD code more correctly.

[1]
http://osra.svn.sourceforge.net/viewvc/osra/trunk/osra_ocr.cpp?view=markup

I am using the following autoconf piece of configuration to detect that
needed types (classes) are present:

AC_CHECK_TYPES([Control, Rectangle, Character, Blob], [], [], [
    #include <stdio.h>
    #include <vector>
    extern "C" {
    #include <ocradlib.h>
    #include <common.h>
    #include <rectangle.h>
    #include <bitmap.h>
    #include <blob.h>
    #include <character.h>
    }
])

I need to include most of the headers, plus some extra ones (as common.h
should include <stdio.h>, character.h should include <vector>, blob.h
should include "bitmap.h", ...). Maybe you can fix this in headers, as I
think, header should be self-contained, no matter how it is included.
Also defining a C++ namespace will not hurt, then I cal replace
AC_CHECK_TYPES with AX_CXX_CHECK_LIB...

>> I cannot contact Miguel Gea Milvaques <address@hidden> - the
>> maintainer of Debian package. Maybe you can suggest me, whom to contact
>> in Debian world, as it would be nice, if somebody pushes v0.19 into
>> experimental repository.
> 
> It seems ocrad in Debian is unmaintained. I'll try to find out how to
> report this. Meanwile, it may be useful if you fill a bug report like
> http://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=566997 but for 0.19.

Well, if it is the case, maybe somebody on the list can maintain the
Debian package for OCRAD? I can potentially make a release, but I am
newbie in Debian package management world. Do you know, how to become a
2nd maintainer of the package?

-- 
With best regards,
Dmitry