James G. Sack (jim) wrote:
Ralph Shumaker wrote:
Gus Wirth wrote:
Ralph Shumaker wrote:
My goal is to get gnumeric 1.7.91 installed and working. If I have to
learn more than I ever wanted to know about ./configure and ./make and
./make install, then so be it. I may forget parts of it later, but it
will be easier the next time I need to do it.
You have a long road ahead.
That's not quite so encouraging. :-\
;)
I think it's neat you are interested in this stuff. The 'comfort' I can
offer is that you are jumping into some of the more complicated parts of
the puzzle. If the standard ./configure, make # make install don't
work, there _may_ be a good opportunity to learn something by trying to
figure out what's wrong -- up to a point(!). But if you start to feel
buried, it may be just one of those cases where you have too big a
problem for your experience level (or that of <heh> many of the others
of us here, too).
I normally try to figure things out on my own. Usually, I try not to
bother the list with things until I'm at a loss.
On this particular case, it may be that it's just not very easy to
compile the later release in the earlier environment -- a clue might be
it it were, why isn't it already available? The reasons for it not being
easy are worth asking about. It may be that you are looking at changes
that were done as part of an all-or-nothing change to a major part of
the system -- a bunch of inter-operating libraries and other system
components may have changed all at once (sort of what often happens with
each distribution major version jump). When that happens, it's
relatively rare for anyone to spend much time back-porting pieces of
that total package deal.
Yep, that's pretty much what Andreas (gnumeric developer) said about
version 1.6.3 and that it was basically being abandoned for the 1.7.xx
version.
If you still find it interesting, as Gus says, it helps to read some of
the docs specifically about packaging. One thought I have is that the
rpm stuff is worth looking at in 2 passes: one to get a feel for what
packagers do, and what things they worry about. Then after some
hard-time with the configure stuff (and friends), a re-reading of rpm
will probably start to make real sense.
So far, I'm in chapter 5, and it feels like review, for the most part.
I'm sure it will get meaty soon.
The configure step is just one part of a approach to building
lower-level "packages", called the "gnu autoconf approach" (or
something close to that). Some of this is hard slogging. And this hard
part is built on top of other non-trivial things, including (eventually)
make which has books of its own. I would be glad to take some lectures
on this general subject, 'cause what part of it I do know is only
self-taught in bits and pieces.
I've done ./configure and make and make install before, thankfully
without problems, other than having to install dependency files first.
Thankfully, the web page with the instructions also included the files
or links to them.
But this one is so far on the bleeding edge that at least one of the
dependencies isn't even available in FC8 (namely goffice04-0.5.3). I've
been looking for goffice04-0.5.3, and next libgsf 1.14.6, so I can
download them and try to ./configure, make, and make install those, and
see if that is only the beginning of the avalanche. But so far, I
haven't even been able to find them. I am almost ready to throw up my
hands and ask kplug for help with that too.
Then you are probably also aware that rpm and other common packaging
systems all add their contributions on top of the "upstream sources"
(the output of originating software authors) which is (usually) in this
configure-arrangement. Why it's done that way is worth another question.
Whether it works as well as it should -- well, you've already seen some
of that discussion, eh? ;-)
Yes, RPM generally handles ./configure, make, and make install. Each of
those in turn handle many other things, and so on. And yum makes RPM
installs that much easier because you don't have to know where to find
the files. Yes, it's a complicated assembly line.
It probably sounds like I am trying to discourage you, but my point is
it's a tall drink, and you can't get it all in one swallow. I believe it
_is_ possible to pick up a lot of useful things even in small steps, so
long as it really interests you and you keep at it.
Regards,
..jim (anybody still awake?)
Actually, I've been "at" various parts of it for quite some time and
haven't been discouraged yet (in parts yes, but not as a whole). I
never waded out much past the ankles before and now I feel like I'm
nearly up to my waist. I'm kind of ok with the workaround I have in
gnumeric 1.6.3, but it sure would be nice to not have to load a second
program to print what gnumeric should be able to print itself. I'm
eager to install version 1.7.91, if I can manage to do so.
--
Ralph
--------------------
The spelling of words is subordinate. Morbidness for nice spelling and tenacity
for or against one letter or so means dandyism and impotence in literature.
--Walt Whitman
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