Mail Archives: djgpp/1999/10/19/13:01:29
On 19 Oct 99, Markus Kramer was found to have commented thusly:
> Perhaps, you might think, that this is a stupid question.
> But, does anybody of you have also problems with MAKE?
>
> I got the sources of "lsck073" and tried to compile the demo programs.
> First, it functioned, but after having edited the Makefile, I got an error,
> such as:
>
> "Line 32: *** Missing seperator."
Really? Some people think spelling errors aren't true bugs, but I beg to
differ. ;-)
> What does it mean? I didn't change anything in line 32.
You deleted a tab character in the command line of a make rule. This is a make
utility subtlety. I advise you to read (and to get, if you don't have) the
documentation for make by Stallman & McGrath, then look for the heading "An
Introduction to Makefiles" subheading 'What a Rule Looks Like'.
> I still must say, that I used the MS-DOS editor to change the file.
> Does this editor inserts any control codes, which MAKE doesn't understand?
No, it actually deletes them, converting tabs (control character 'I') to
spaces, I believe.
You can go to first column of the command in the make rule, and press
Ctrl-P Ctrl-I in sequence. I believe just pressing 'TAB' will achieve the same
effect. You need to have all commands of a rule leading with at least one tab
character.
Others may warn you to use a "real" editor when doing anything, let alone
editing makefiles.
> Thanks for your help.
>
> Sincerely, Markus.
>
> P.S.: Sorry for my bad English. :)
Mitch Halloran
Research (Bio)chemist
Duzen Laboratories Group
Ankara TURKEY
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