Re: autoconf-WIP branch (update)

Hi Kevin.

On Wed, Jul 24, 2013 at 08:00:49PM +0800, Kevin Zheng wrote:
> Instead of making irregular mega-commits, I think it's a better idea to
> make small commits and push them as soon as you're sure they're okay.
> This is a WIP branch; there is no guarantee for stability. If you commit
> often more people have a chance to work on it.

the commits lined up in *WIP branches are meant for discussion, until
final state has been reached. i see it the other way: if i don't publish
my workbench, nobody has a chance to work on it. but: i'll try to
incorporate anything you email me.

> Most users expect a configure script in a file called 'configure,' let's
> keep it that way.

i don't have a problem with "configure" i just announced the move to
configure.gnu some hours ago.

> And attached is a patch to fix it on FreeBSD, which generates an extra
> 'aclocal.m4' file.

i must have missed aclocal.m4, thanks. theres an unfortunate lot of
cruft in my srcdir...

> > i have moved m4 to .autotools/m4. i will keep trying to move more stuff
> > into .autotools. maybe, if i come across something.
> 
> Most of the projects I've seen use autotools keep the macros in a folder
> called 'm4' (the default) or 'macros'. Personally, I see no reason to
> hide them in a hidden folder.

it's not just about the macros, i'm just trying to approximate what Al
proposed. Probably it just complicates things.

> From what I've seen, autotools doesn't like doing separate build
> directories.

?! i've always been seperating build from src since i know about it.
FWIW: "distcheck" highly depends on it.

regards
felix