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Date: Tue, 12 Mar 2002 00:37:35 -0500
From: "Peter J. Farley III" <pjfarley AT dorsai DOT org>
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To: djgpp-workers AT delorie DOT com
Subject: Re: Simpler restructured dir.txi
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Reply-To: djgpp-workers AT delorie DOT com

As Eli requested, I created a new DIR file using makeinfo and my
candidate dir.txi, and then ran the following install-info commands, all
while in the DJGPP info directory:

install-info textutils.info
install-info automake.info
install-info autoconf.info

As I thought, the result is not pretty.  Here is what happened to the
textutils section in the resulting DIR file:

From txtNNb.zip				GNU text utilities.


Output of entire files

Formatting file contents

Output of parts of files

Summarizing files

Operating on sorted files

Operating on fields within a line

Operating on characters


That is, the section was completely emptied out.  All of the
textutils.info entries wound up in a new section entitled just
"Miscellaneous" at the end of the DIR file, sorted by name:

Miscellaneous
* Text utilities: (textutils).          GNU text utilities.
* cat: (textutils)cat invocation.               Concatenate and write
files.
* cksum: (textutils)cksum invocation.           Print POSIX CRC
checksum.
* comm: (textutils)comm invocation.             Compare sorted files by
line.
* csplit: (textutils)csplit invocation.         Split by context.
* cut: (textutils)cut invocation.               Print selected parts of
lines.
* expand: (textutils)expand invocation.         Convert tabs to spaces.
* fmt: (textutils)fmt invocation.               Reformat paragraph text.
* fold: (textutils)fold invocation.             Wrap long input lines.
* head: (textutils)head invocation.             Output the first part of
files.
* join: (textutils)join invocation.             Join lines on a common
field.
* md5sum: (textutils)md5sum invocation.         Print or check
message-digests.
* nl: (textutils)nl invocation.                 Number lines and write
files.
* od: (textutils)od invocation.                 Dump files in octal,
etc.
* paste: (textutils)paste invocation.           Merge lines of files.
* pr: (textutils)pr invocation.                 Paginate or columnate
files.
* ptx: (textutils)ptx invocation.               Produce permuted
indexes.
* sort: (textutils)sort invocation.             Sort text files.
* split: (textutils)split invocation.           Split into fixed-size
pieces.
* sum: (textutils)sum invocation.               Print traditional
checksum.
* tac: (textutils)tac invocation.               Reverse files.
* tail: (textutils)tail invocation.             Output the last part of
files.
* tr: (textutils)tr invocation.                 Translate characters.
* tsort: (textutils)tsort invocation.           Topological sort.
* unexpand: (textutils)unexpand invocation.     Convert spaces to tabs.
* uniq: (textutils)uniq invocation.             Uniquify files.
* wc: (textutils)wc invocation.                 Byte, word, and line
counts.


The automake and autoconf entries were also deleted from the section
they were in ("Maintaining source") and two new sections were created at
the end (immediately after the new "Miscellaneous" section):

GNU programming tools
* automake: (automake).		Making Makefile.in's

Individual utilities
* aclocal: (automake)Invoking aclocal.          Generating aclocal.m4
* autoconf: (autoconf)autoconf Invocation.
                                How to create configuration scripts
* autoreconf: (autoconf)autoreconf Invocation.
                                Remaking multiple `configure' scripts
* autoscan: (autoconf)autoscan Invocation.
                                Semi-automatic `configure.ac' writing
* config.status: (autoconf)config.status Invocation.
                                Recreating a configuration
* configure: (autoconf)configure Invocation.
                                Configuring a package
* ifnames: (autoconf)ifnames Invocation.
                                Listing the conditionals in source code

GNU admin
* Autoconf: (autoconf).         Create source code configuration scripts


I believe that any package whose texinfo file uses only "@format" and
"START-INFO-DIR-ENTRY" will have all of its entries sorted by name into
the "Miscellaneous" section.  Similarly, any package that uses
"@dircategory" and "@direntry" will create or add to those named
sections, again at the end of the DIR file.

I can see where this will be a problem for those who build packages from
source, since a "make install" will frequently run install-info as part
of that process.

The only solutions to the problem that I can see would be to (a) submit
patches to bring the GNU source into line with DJGPP's categories, or
(b) to disable DJGPP's install-info or rename it so that it must be
manually invoked if the user really, really wants to run it.  With
instructions on how to enable or un-rename it if that is what they wish
to do.

------------------------------------------------------
Peter J. Farley III (pjfarley AT dorsai DOT org)