Re: Ugliness in the Learning Manual

[Phil Holmes]

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Graham Percival" <address@hidden>
To: "Phil Holmes" <address@hidden>
Cc: "Jean-Charles Malahieude" <address@hidden>; "David Kastrup" 
<address@hidden>; <address@hidden>
Sent: Sunday, August 07, 2011 11:37 PM
Subject: Re: Ugliness in the Learning Manual


> On Sun, Aug 07, 2011 at 11:22:48AM +0100, Phil Holmes wrote:
> > ----- Original Message ----- From: "Jean-Charles Malahieude"
> > <address@hidden>
> > >(./usage.texi (/home/jcharles/GIT/Mentors/tex/texinfo.tex
>
> That looks good.
>
> > git grep TEXINPUTS gives:
> >
> > make/lilypond-vars.make:TEXINPUTS=$(top-src-dir)/tex/::
> >
> > So we're setting the location of the texinfo.tex file explicitly
> > during make.
> >
> > Think this makes the issue invalid, but the "feature" is probably
> > worth documenting with other make stuff - Graham?
>
> What's the '"feature"' ?

Just that, in make, we set the TEXINPUTS, so you would also need to do this 
if compiling from command line.

> I don't think it's worth discussing this specific environment
> variable on its own.  However, I'd quite like to see either:
>
> 1) change the build system to avoid using environment variables --
> or rather, print the exact env vars on each line.  i.e. instead of
> make(1) producing:
>  export TEXINPUTS=$(top-src-dir)/tex/::
>  texi2pdf blah.texi
> it would produce
>  TEXINPUTS=$(top-src-dir)/tex/:: texi2pdf blah.texi
>
> Advantage: when investigating a failing command, you can actually
> copy&paste the command you see make(1) running, and it should fail
> in exactly the same way because there's no environment variable
> garbage.
> Disadvantage: I'm not 100% certain that all shells handle
> environment variables in the same way.  I know that non-bash
> shells don't use "export" to set an env var.  This would involve
> more research about unix shell portability, and/or en email from
> somebody knowledgeable about such matters.

In theory, it also means you only have one line to change if a directory 
structure shanges.

> 2) list all environment variables used (both internally and
> externally) in the build system in the CG.
>
> Advantage: at least this knowledge is written down somewhere.
> Disadvantage: the list will not be kept up-to-date.  (don't argue;
> there's absolutely nothing you can say that will make me believe
> that everybody will keep it up-to-date over the next 20 years)

Think it's quite a bit of work, too.

Think I'll put the information I found in the bug report and mark it 
invalid.

--
Phil Holmes