Subject: Re: [UPLOAD] GNAT - the GNU NYU Ada Translator.

From: [email-masked] (Emilio Lopes)
Date: Wed, 12 Jun 96 13:11 EST

>>>>> "MM" == Michael Meskes <[email-masked]> wrote:

MM> I'm not familiar with the term "diverts" but does that mean a new
MM> gcc and a new libgcc.a are installed? Why? I don't like that at
MM> all.

MM> Are these files supersets of the old one?

I know anything about GNAT, but I have some experience on building
g77, the GNU Fortran 77 compiler, which might be quite similar to
building the Ada compiler.

In these cases you have to substitute the existing gcc with a new one
that is aware of the new compiler you are installing. You must
remember that "gcc" itself is just a front end to "cc1", "cc1plus",
"f771" etc.

Regarding the libraries, I don't know about Ada, but g77 simply
installs a new fortran-specific library.

IMHO, it is fundamental that the gcc maintainer be also the maintainer
of all the GNU compilers packages. If he is not able (or don't have
the time) to maintain the Ada or Fortran compilers, he could have an
"advisor for Ada affairs", to whom the bug reports regarding Ada could
go. Thinks could be cleaner/safer this way.

Again, this is just MHO.

Emilio.

-- 
 Emilio C. Lopes <mailto:[email-masked]>
 FINPE, Instituto de Fisica      E-mail: [email-masked]
 Universidade de Sao Paulo       Phone : (+55 11) 818-6724 (Voice)
 Caixa Postal 66318                      (+55 11) 818-6715 (Fax)
 05389-970  Sao Paulo - SP
 BRAZIL

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From: [email-masked] (Mark W. Eichin)
Date: 12 Jun 1996 00:19:42 -0400

This is just a minimal repackaging - but since it replaces
/usr/bin/gcc and libgcc.a, it's worth packaging it just to be able to
use dpkg-divert :-) If anyone actually ends up using this package for
more than a quick test install, I'd appreciate hearing about it (so I
know if it's worth updating it...)

-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----

Date: 12 Jun 96 02:35 UT
Format: 1.5
Distribution: unstable
Priority: Low
Maintainer: Mark Eichin <[email-masked]>
Source: gnat
Version: 3.04-1
Binary:  gnat
Architecture:  i386 source
Description: 
 gnat: GNAT - the GNU NYU Ada Translator.
 Not to be confused with gnats, the bug tracking system.
 .
 This is packaged directly from gnat-3.04-i486-linux-elf-bin, rather
 than building from source - since gnat is written in ada, and needs
 to be installed to bootstrap itself.
 .
 Producing the package from the -bin file is essentially:
 1) echo 1 | doconfig 
 2) mkdir tmp; copy in the control files to tmp/DEBIAN
 3) make ins-gnatstuff prefix=tmp/usr
 4) dpkg --build tmp
 5) dpkg-name tmp.deb
 .
 Note that this "diverts" gcc and libgcc.a.
Changes: 
 initial debian release.
Files:
 4b25145ae54c92cdb6db1171582b1c9a  2384307  devel  -  gnat-3.04-1.tar.gz
 237a1fab7e0d0cb1ded38420f4d9df58  3047164  devel  extra  gnat-3.04-1.i386.deb

---

From: Michael Meskes <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 12 Jun 1996 08:38:52 +0200 (MET DST)

>  Note that this "diverts" gcc and libgcc.a.

I'm not familiar with the term "diverts" but does that mean a new gcc and a
new libgcc.a are installed? Why? I don't like that at all.

Are these files supersets of the old one?

Michael
-- 
Michael Meskes                   |    _____ ________ __  ____
[email-masked] |   / ___// ____/ // / / __ \___  __________
[email-masked]                  |   \__ \/ /_  / // /_/ /_/ / _ \/ ___/ ___/
[email-masked]                |  ___/ / __/ /__  __/\__, /  __/ /  (__  )
Use Debian Linux!		 | /____/_/      /_/  /____/\___/_/  /____/

---

From: [email-masked] (Mark W. Eichin)
Date: 12 Jun 1996 12:43:48 -0400

> new libgcc.a are installed? Why? I don't like that at all.

See "dpkg-divert" -- it's the same way color-xterm replaces xterm. The
old executables are moved out of the way, but kept around, so that if
you "dpkg --remove gnat" the old ones are restored. When you do the
install, dpkg-divert tells you explicitly what paths it is using (in
this case I've had it add ".orig-gcc" to the end of the original
names.)

> Are these files supersets of the old one?

Yes. gcc (which, remember, is only the top level driver, not a
compiler) simply adds support for the pathnames and passes used by
Ada. libgcc.a adds a few new builtins. It should be noted that the
changes in both are already in place at the FSF - I don't think
they'll be out in 2.7.3, since they're non-critical, but they should
be in 2.8.

If the debian package actually becomes widely used (1) I'll be
surprised :-) (2) I'll look into having the support put into the gcc
package directly. 
			_Mark_ <[email-masked]>
			The Herd of Kittens

---

From: Michael Meskes <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 13 Jun 1996 09:30:18 +0200 (MET DST)

> this case I've had it add ".orig-gcc" to the end of the original

I see.

> compiler) simply adds support for the pathnames and passes used by

Yep, should have thought about that myself. Sorry. 

Michael