newbie looking to add include files

[Rupert Wood]

Mark Petryk wrote:

> I would like to add some files to the list of standard include (*.h) 
> files, kind of like a library, to the standard search path of include 
> files.  I see that there are many include files in /usr/include with 
> many sub directories.  Copying my files into yet another sub directory

> under /usr/include did not see to make those files available to the 
> compiler using:

Agree with Eljay, but as an aside: you don't want to do that. Usually:

    * /usr/include (and /usr/lib) belong to the operating system. They
      should come only from the original OS install. You do not mess
      with these files.

      (In particular, some of them may be overridden by GCC's
      "fixincluded" versions and your changes will never be used.)

    * /usr/local/include and /usr/local/lib are for system-wide
      header and library installation. They should be picked up
      automatically (especially on linux distribution installs) but
      you may need to verify that /usr/local/lib is in the
      LD_LIBRARY_PATH environment and that you pass -I and -L
      if necessary.

    * ~/include and ~/lib (i.e. in your home directory) - or
      sometimes ~/local/include and ~/local/lib - are for headers
      and libraries you want to install in your own build
      environment. You will have to add these with -I and -L and
      to LD_LIBRARY_PATH, etc.

If you want to see GCC's built in header search paths, etc., try
compiling something with GCC's -v switch.

> #include <myfile.h>

If you added the subdirectory name, i.e.

    #include <myfiles/myfile.h>

it should have worked.

Rup.