From: nospam@needed.invalid   
      
   On Sun, 7/20/2025 5:06 AM, Jeff Layman wrote:   
   > On 20/07/2025 03:39, Felix wrote:   
   >>>   
   >>> https://github.com/ondrej-zary/carps-cups   
   >>>   
   >>> Now are these instructions understandable to Felix, the OP?   
   >>   
   >> nope! there has to be simple instructions for me to understand   
   >   
   > It's geekhub - "simple instructions" never seems to apply. :-(   
   >   
      
   The instruction pattern is pretty standard.   
      
      make   
      sudo make install          # These activities have to install in some /bin   
   and /lib   
                                 # On a real build, you may be required to edit   
   the Makefile   
                                 # and change where the install is going.   
   Hammering out these   
                                 # two commands assumes a lot of "default   
   conditions" apply.   
      
   There was also this sort of thing, but not set up for this project.   
      
      ./configure   
      make   
      sudo make install   
      
   When the process fails, you decode what missing -dev file it is asking   
   for, so it has .h header files or it gets the library files it   
   needs for the executable. When "configure" script is provided,   
   it does hint a bit better about possible things you might add   
   to finish the project, but you can kinda figure it out from   
   the make output and any gcc errors that stop the build.   
      
   I looked at the errors I was getting, and said to myself   
   "I guess I'd better read the build instructions to see   
   what I missed". There was a nice list there, and using   
   Synaptic, the items were set up pretty quickly.   
      
   On some projects where you build from source, you   
   the builder, have to convert the needed library names,   
   into names "as found in the distro". This is very wearing,   
   if you were to build something like FFMPEG.   
      
   *******   
      
   You learn how to build from source, from doing it.   
      
   It's not an activity where every package has the level   
   of instructions needed for success.   
      
   Using a ./configure is good, because it can tell you   
   that "gcc" or "make" are missing. It might also check   
   for a certain version of gcc, or a certain capability.   
   The ./configure runs actual test compiles as part of verifying   
   you are ready for the build. A ./configure can tell the   
   difference between someone building under FreeBSD, Solaris,   
   Raspbian, and so on.   
      
   This is a relatively small project, so you would not be   
   overwhelmed by the size. There are things that could go wrong,   
   but you work through them. And you remember the patterns and   
   practices for the next build. Some day, you could build Firefox,   
   Chromium, Thunderbird, FFMPEG (I've done all of those, more   
   than once).   
      
   To do a Make World on Gentoo, might take ten hours on a   
   low end machine. That's when you get to see what compiling   
   is really about. There are Linux distros, where things   
   are built from source, right in front of your eyes.   
   With Gentoo, you can even set up a "DISTCC" machine,   
   as a compiling assistant (I set up a 6 core machine to help   
   my 2 core machine do the work). The distcc (distributed   
   compilation) does not accelerate all aspects of compilation,   
   only some of them. Other parts still remain to be done   
   on the weak machine. The larger machine wastes more electricity   
   than the smaller machine, and when using the Gentoo, only   
   the lower power machine would be running.   
      
      Paul   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)