Re: Build problem

[<tim...@en...>]

Hardy Griech wrote:
> Ethan A Merritt wrote:
> :
>  =20
>> As a quick work-around, I suggest you try the attached patch.
>> It just deletes all the pkgconfig MACROS from configure.in
>> You may get build errors if the gtk+ libraries are not found, but
>> that's fixable.   Tested and works here, for whatever that's worth.
>>    =20
> :
>
> Many thanks, Ethan!
>
> ./prepare is now running as intended, also my configure
>  =20
Thank you Ethan for pointing out that the pkg-config stuff is faulty.


Ethan A Merritt wrote:
> If you have installed most of your system without pkgconfig, and then
> later on try to install something (let's call it B) that wants it,
> there's a problem. Installing pkgconfig itself is not sufficient to fix
> the problem. You have to instal pkgconfig, and then go back and
> *reinstall* the various other packages so that they register themselves
> with pkgconfig and hence problem package B can query pkgconfig for=20
> their presence. =20
>  =20
I doubt that. The pkgconfig mechanism is based on *.pc files that some=20
package are providing, among them is cairo, pango, and gtk, but many=20
others (try 'pkg-config --list-all' to see how broadly it is used). I am=20
pretty sure those *.pc files are installed unconditionnally, i.e. even=20
when pkg-config is not present in the first place. The contrary would be=20
completely stupid, as you point out.

By the way, the problem Hardy and Juergen are facing is not that the=20
*.pc files are not found, but that the pkg-config macros themselves are=20
not found.
> Bad design all around, as I say.   I'd be in favor of removing all
> the PKG_CHECK_MODULES macros from configure.in, and finding another
> mechanism to look for these features.  I suspect  AC_CHECK_LIB
> would be sufficient, and we already know it works.
>  =20
That would be painful. PKG_CHECK_MODULES checks for a package of the=20
right version and sets the appropriate compiler flags, which are stored=20
the *.pc files. I would prefer to find another approach.

Hardy and Juergen, could you try to apply the attached patch ? It only=20
runs the PKG_CHECK_MODULES macros if the program pkg-config can be found.

Thank you very much.

Timoth=E9e