On Tue, Jan 08, 2002 at 11:01:15PM +0800, Andy Sy wrote (wyy sez): > > OK I'll bite. My take on it is that development depends on the user > > application. Since I do network-side apps, I prefer developing on Linux > > (or any Unix with the proper tools) since the network apps are easier to > > manage there. Now if I were developing graphics games for a mass > audience, > > then I'd have to either target for and develop under Windows. > > Perfectly reasonable answer, Migs ;-) > > > Therefore, for me, Linux is not an 'absolute' choice, but it's also an > easier > > decision to make since what I do is really hosted under Unix. I also > prefer > > the command line and the tool chain. > > The GNU toolchain... <shudder>... it's hard! Configure is awesome in > terms of what it can do... but veeeeery complex. > > I've been fiddling with it for years, and I'm still barely a newbie... > the autotools are really something else... you gotta know m4, perl, make, > etc... super steep learning curve, but they're virtually de rigueur for > anyone wanting to fiddle with anything beyond a small size open source > project though. > > I find the barrier for entry is not even the source code for the > program itself, but understanding what the 'make' source does! > the GNU toolchain i have to say has a very steep learning curve. however, you do not really need to know all of them. for everyday develop most developers get away with simply make. however, for larger projects here comes autoconf, automake and m4.
but, for those of you who would like to benefit from all the power of the GNU toolchain but do not have the time to learn 'make', 'autoconf', 'automake' and 'm4'. you have two tools that could possibly help you generate the proper files for your 'software distribution'. anjunta - i just tried this recently and it has a wizard that walks you through the creation of a software distribution using the GNU toolchain. it is quite functional. it comes with a debugger interface and an IDE with all the bells and whistles. kdevelop - so far this is the hands down champion of OSS IDE's. it has a wizard for starting any type of app from KDE, QT, GNOME and console applications. it has all the features of anjunta which means it also uses the GNU toolchain. this is a developer with everything but the kitchen sink. http://www.kdevelop.org/. i just learned from some friends in MIT (the one in the states) that they use kdevelop extensively there as their IDE of choice for new students. of course, the oldbies still use vi/emacs. these apps and some more i have probably missed do really help flatten that 'learning curve'. -------------------------------------- William Emmanuel S. Yu Ateneo Cervini-Eliazo Networks (ACENT) email : wyy at admu dot edu dot ph web : http://sysads.ateneo.net/wyu/ phone : 63(2)4266001-4186 GPG : http://sysads.ateneo.net/wyu/wyy.pgp War spares not the brave, but the cowardly. -- Anacreon
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