libstdc++/6827: Unreasonable dependencies on ctype.h

[Phil Edwards]

On Wed, May 29, 2002 at 12:42:23AM +1200, Tony Bryant wrote:
> How valid is the assumption that we'll be using always be using newlib on 
> cross compilers? 

It's not so much an assumption, rather it's nobody has contributed support
for any other embedded C library to libstdc++-v3.

"Embedded" isn't actually a requirement here, of course.  It's just that
newlib also makes a darn good portable C library, sort of as a byproduct
of being targeted to embedded platforms.  /That's/ why we use it.

If another portable C library were available and popular (heck, even if
it weren't popular), we would cheerfully support it for cross-compilers.


> Is is reasonable for configure to check if newlib is installed, and if 
> not, resort to the generic interface?

Checking whether it's /installed/ isn't reasonable, because we may be
building newlib in the same tree as libstdc++-v3, at the same time.
I do this, and libstdc++-v3 gets built before newlib.

But it probably would be useful to check for --with-newlib or
--without-newlib, and change os_include_dir appropriately.  The top-level
configue.in tests for those options, but I don't seem them documented
anywhere else.  The only question is the default setting.


Phil

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