RE: Converting GCC to compilation with C++

["Dave Korn" <dk at artimi dot com>]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: E. Weddington  
> Sent: 14 July 2004 16:28
> To: Mike Stump; Robert Dewar
> Cc: gcc; Florian Weimer; Dave Korn
> Subject: Re: Converting GCC to compilation with C++
> 
> On 13 Jul 2004 at 23:31, Robert Dewar wrote:
> 
> > > Of all the times you've ported gcc to a new platform, 
> what percentage of the
> > > time would it have been harder to cross than to bring up 
> on the target system?
> > >  What were some of the issues that made it hard?
> > 
> > As I think I made clear from my Ada analogy, I basically agree with
> > your (Mike Stump's) viewpoint. An answer to the question is that if
> > you are completely familiar with cross compiling, it's easy to do,
> > but we do have the impression that due to lack of documentation and
> > some inherent complexity, fewer people can successfully negotiate
> > a cross compile than can deal with a native build.
> 
> Witness the development of Dan Kegel's crosstool script (over 
> on the CrossGCC 
> list) just to get a handle on all the complexity and lack of 
> documentation.


  Mm.  Mike's argument that I should show a case where it's caused me great
harm in the past five years isn't really valid, I don't think, because I'm a
computer professional with twenty-odd years experience, I have access to
various different platforms, and I'm fully conversant with building cross
compilers.

  But not everyone is in my position.  Very few, in fact.  And it took me a
LOT of time and pain to learn how to build cross gccs, and to find out the
various gotchas.

  The essence of what I want is that some total newbie, whose experience is
limited to downloading and unpacking tarballs and doing "configure; make;
make install" should be able to download the gcc sources and build them,
assuming that they have any compiler at all.

  It's not a technical thing.  It's about motivating and encouraging people
to use open source by making it easier for them do to so.  I believe that
having to beg around for someone else to build a crosscompiler for them
might discourage newbies.  I believe that as new platforms arise they will
initially have only manufacturers tools available for them - and whether
it's shipped with the system or available at extra cost is a red herring, I
think.

  And I believe that that "Eureka" moment that you get the first time you
ever do a successful configure and make of a downloaded open source project
is a great psychological motivator and one of the best advertisements for
the benefits of open source, and we don't want to lose any opportunity for
people to experience it.


    cheers, 
      DaveK
-- 
Can't think of a witty .sigline today....