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@@ -0,0 +1,115 @@ +This is AutoGen, an automated text file generator. It was inspired out of +frustration and hassle with maintaining syncronization between option flag +lists, global variables and usage information. The desire for more than +#define macros came about when it became apparent that macros alone were +insufficient for reducing the maintenance into a single option list. The +impetus to actually start something finally came when I had to maintain a +large callout procedure table and associated lookup tables. + +Rev 1 of this utility was a set of #define macro expansions. +Rev 2 was a shell script that sort-of did a prototype. + Much better than just #defines, but still clearly lacking. +Rev 3 had a very kludgy macro definition syntax. +Rev 4 a reworking and simplification of the declarations +Rev 5 the addition of Guile expression processing + +Mailing lists can be found on SourceForge: + + autogen-users@lists.sourceforge.net + + +*** AutoGen requires: *** + +1. POSIX regular expression library. If not available by default, use + the --with-regex-* options to specify how to find, use and link to it. +2. an ANSI C compiler +3. The Guile version of a Scheme processing language. + + +*** Installation note: *** + +AutoGen does *NOT* contain any compiled-in configuration information. +Therefore, in order to use the templates that come bundled with it, +you must tell AutoGen how to find those templates when you build +applications that use those templates. + +1. by doing nothing. If you do not alter the default data directory, + AutoGen will search for templates in the directory ../share/autogen, + relative to the executable directory. That should generally work. + +2. You can tell AutoGen where to look with an environment variable: + + export AUTOGEN_TEMPL_DIR=$prefix/share/autogen + +3. You can use an RC file: + + autogen -L $prefix/share/autogen --save=$HOME/.autogenrc + +4. If you have an old Guile library, you will find that its error reporting + does not work so well. Consequently, you will see "make check" failures + in the output text where you would expect to find file name and line + number references for the invalid input. Please upgrade your Guile lib. + +5. You can build and install AutoGen, ensuring you have the + automake/autoconf/libtool-s needed, and then editing + agen5/opts.def thus: + + echo "homerc = $prefix/share/autogen;" >> agen5/opts.def + +and then rebuilding AutoGen. However, if you do this latter +"fix", you will have an immobile product. I hate that, others +like it. It is, however, up to you. + + +*** Build note: *** + +Sometimes, configure believes it has done a good job when it really hasn't. +It is possible to configure a system in such a way that the Guile headers and +libguile are linked against correctly, but the loader cannot find +libguile.so.xxx. This is because GCC will silently find the library for +linking, but not set the library dependencies correctly. The consequence is +that the configure script believes that standard links will produce working +executables. It won't. The simplest solution is: + + .../configure --disable-shared + +the best solution is to examine the output of ``guile-config link'', +duplicate the ``-L/path/to/lib'' argument, but changing the "-L" to +"-R" or "-Wl,-rpath," or "-rpath" or whatever it happens to be that +works for your platform, and hand that off to configure as the argument +to ``--with-libguile-link''. "libtool" won't fix it and it's too hard +for me. Sorry. Anyway, for example, assume: + + guile-config link + +produces: + + -L/opt/sfw/lib -lguile -lm + +now run configure as follows: + + .../configure \ + --with-libguile-link='-L/opt/sfw/lib -lguile -lm -R/opt/sfw/lib' + +Isn't that special? + + +*** Bootstrap note: *** + +I have some private tools referenced in the various bootstrap scripts. +Unless you have these tools, bootstrap won't work for you. I intend +to fix this as time permits. Meanwhile, there is also a tarball in CVS +of all the bootstrap-generated files: + noag-boot.sh + +*** Licensing: *** + + autogen is under GPL, but that does not cause the output produced by + autogen to be under GPL. The reason is that the output contains next to + nothing that comes directly from autogen's source code. Thus, the output + is not a "derivative work" of autogen (in the sense of U.S.@: copyright + law). The output is primarily a derivative of the input templates. + + On the other hand, the output produced by autogen contains essentially all + of the input template. Therefore the output is under the same license, + with the same copyright holder, as the input that was passed to autogen. |