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To: "Robert Collins" <robert DOT collins AT itdomain DOT com DOT au>
Cc: "Alexandre Oliva" <oliva AT lsd DOT ic DOT unicamp DOT br>,
        <cygwin-apps AT sources DOT redhat DOT com>, <autoconf AT gnu DOT org>
Subject: Re: updated win32 macro
References: <035401c0ac91$3ba21fd0$0200a8c0 AT lifelesswks>
	<022001c0accf$29b724d0$0200a8c0 AT lifelesswks>
	<orelvz60mr DOT fsf AT guarana DOT lsd DOT ic DOT unicamp DOT br>
	<007f01c0ad2e$f3dc5d20$0200a8c0 AT lifelesswks>
	<00a301c0ad32$57ad0220$0200a8c0 AT lifelesswks>
	<mv4elvz5pma DOT fsf AT nostromo DOT lrde DOT epita DOT fr>
	<00c801c0ad36$01ec3370$0200a8c0 AT lifelesswks>
From: Akim Demaille <akim AT epita DOT fr>
Date: 15 Mar 2001 11:13:15 +0100
In-Reply-To: <00c801c0ad36$01ec3370$0200a8c0@lifelesswks>
Message-ID: <mv466hb5ohw.fsf@nostromo.lrde.epita.fr>
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>>>>> "Robert" == Robert Collins <robert DOT collins AT itdomain DOT com DOT au> writes:

>> Then it seems to me that the interface is not right.  Maybe
>> something like
>> 
>> AC_HEADER_WINDOWS

Robert> Good suggestion. Then the developer can simply check for
Robert> HAVE_WINDOWS_H afterwards.. I like :] What about the language
Robert> specific issues? Or should AC_HEADER_WINDOWS look for _every_
Robert> compiler that it knows how to set WIN32 on?

Nope, I'd say the current compiler, adn you should provide a variable
that contains the needed switch.  Then it is up to the user to give it
to her CXX if it is G++ etc.

Or maybe give two interfaces, one being low level computing this
switch for the current compiler (and *no caching*), so that the low
level user can test all her compilers, and a high level one: that
above.

>> which would do the whole thing might be what you need.  Also, why
>> do you set CC and not CFLAGS (and maybe LDFLAGS)?  This is a tricky
>> question, I often wondered, not only in the present case.

Robert> Because I misunderstood the ac_* variable vs the CAPITALISED
Robert> ONES.  Does this mean I get to set CC again?

There are two things.  One is that the interface with the user is
typically in capitals, but that is not really required.  It makes
sense in the present case to capitalize it (the difference is more or
less, lower case variables are shell variables only, and upper case
denotes values which might escape configure, eg, be AC_SUBST'd in a
Makefile etc.).

The second thing is that in any case ac_/AC_ etc. variables are
private to Autoconf, no user should ever have to use them.