Re: [Mingw-users] Cannot find lib file

[Keith M. <kei...@us...>]

On 31/12/12 01:29, Keith Marshall wrote:
> This is not correct.  The OP specified "-l/libfl.a"; ld will interpret
> this as 'search for the RELATIVE library path name "lib/libfl.a.a"',

Actually, to give the complete picture, as described in:
http://sourceware.org/binutils/docs-2.23.1/ld/WIN32.html#WIN32

with the OP's spec, ld will search for each of the following, in turn:

1)   lib/libfl.a.dll.a
2)   /libfl.a.dll.a            [1]
3)   lib/libfl.a.a
4)   /libfl.a.lib              [1]
5)   <prefix>/libfl.a.dll      [2]
6)   lib/libfl.a.dll
7)   /libfl.a.dll              [1]

> in any of the search paths specified with -L, or the default paths.

[1] Notice that these resolve as ABSOLUTE path names; thus, in these 
cases the library search paths will NOT be consulted, but rather the 
MSYS path translation, (for a default installation prefix), will map 
these, (somewhat as LRN has noted), to:

2)   C:/MinGW/MSYS/1.0/libfl.a.dll.a
4)   C:/MinGW/MSYS/1.0/libfl.a.lib
7)   C:/MinGW/MSYS/1.0/libfl.a.dll

[2] This case is intended specifically for CygWin, with <prefix> defined by:

      --dll-search-prefix=cyg

so resolving to:

5)   cyg/libfl.a.dll

However, in default MinGW usage, --dll-search-prefix is undefined; thus 
<prefix> reduces to NOTHING, and case (5) becomes identical to case (7),
which has the effect of promoting case (7) ahead of case (6) in the 
search order.

Of course, none of the above alters the outcome; none of these search 
patterns matches the OP's intent.

-- 
Regards,
Keith.