[vorbis-dev] Relying on autoconf/configure

[Monty]

> I decided, since nobody else seems to be doing it, to do a new build 
> of the Mac library.
> 
> Unfortunately, things now rely on os_types.h.  No problem, I'll just 
> create an os_types.h in mac/compat.  Except os.h #includes 
> "../include/vorbis/os_types.h" -- in other words, it explicitly wants 
> the os_types.h that was generated from os_types.h.in by configure.

Actually, one can just copy the os_types.h.in to os_types.h.  I'm working on 
an automated way of CVS doing that at checkout.

> And now, a general word of advice.  Every little thing that relies on 
> autoconf/configure makes it harder to port the Vorbis reference 
> implementation to the two platforms that make up 99% of the desktop 
> market.  Please, think very hard about whether what you want to do 
> can be done without platform-specific configuration tools before 
> using them.

This was an oversight and yet another concession to autoconf, a tool I'm 
learning to hate with a passion more and more as the years roll on...  It 
handles 'dealing with types' very poorly and only through convoluted hacks, 
and the change represents a considerable clenliness improvement on the UNIX 
side.  Windows also needs the copy hack.  (simply checking a copied version 
into CVS won't last because when configure runs, it will be modified, and the 
next checkin will blast the copied version if the programmer forgets to delete 
the generated one by accident).

(Also, that was not a troll/invitation to defend autoconf, just my personal 
feelings about it).

Monty

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