path: root/readline/INSTALL

Basic Installation
==================

These are installation instructions for Readline-6.2.

The simplest way to compile readline is:

  1. `cd' to the directory containing the readline source code and type
     `./configure' to configure readline for your system.  If you're
     using `csh' on an old version of System V, you might need to type
     `sh ./configure' instead to prevent `csh' from trying to execute
     `configure' itself.

     Running `configure' takes some time.  While running, it prints some
     messages telling which features it is checking for.

  2. Type `make' to compile readline and build the static readline
     and history libraries.  If supported, the shared readline and history
     libraries will be built also.  See below for instructions on compiling
     the other parts of the distribution.  Typing `make everything' will
     cause the static and shared libraries (if supported) and the example
     programs to be built.

  3. Type `make install' to install the static readline and history
     libraries, the readline include files, the documentation, and, if
     supported, the shared readline and history libraries.

  4. You can remove the created libraries and object files from the
     build directory by typing `make clean'.  To also remove the
     files that `configure' created (so you can compile readline for
     a different kind of computer), type `make distclean'.  There is
     also a `make maintainer-clean' target, but that is intended mainly
     for the readline developers, and should be used with care.

The `configure' shell script attempts to guess correct values for
various system-dependent variables used during compilation.  It
uses those values to create a `Makefile' in the build directory,
and Makefiles in the `doc', `shlib', and `examples'
subdirectories.  It also creates a `config.h' file containing
system-dependent definitions.  Finally, it creates a shell script
`config.status' that you can run in the future to recreate the
current configuration, a file `config.cache' that saves the
results of its tests to speed up reconfiguring, and a file
`config.log' containing compiler output (useful mainly for
debugging `configure'). 

If you need to do unusual things to compile readline, please try
to figure out how `configure' could check whether to do them, and
mail diffs or instructions to <bug-readline@gnu.org> so they can
be considered for the next release.  If at some point
`config.cache' contains results you don't want to keep, you may
remove or edit it. 

The file `configure.in' is used to create `configure' by a
program called `autoconf'.  You only need `configure.in' if you
want to change it or regenerate `configure' using a newer version
of `autoconf'.  The readline `configure.in' requires autoconf
version 2.50 or newer. 

Compilers and Options
=====================

Some systems require unusual options for compilation or linking that
the `configure' script does not know about.  You can give `configure'
initial values for variables by setting them in the environment.  Using
a Bourne-compatible shell, you can do that on the command line like
this:

     CC=c89 CFLAGS=-O2 LIBS=-lposix ./configure

Or on systems that have the `env' program, you can do it like this:

     env CPPFLAGS=-I/usr/local/include LDFLAGS=-s ./configure

Compiling For Multiple Architectures
====================================

You can compile readline for more than one kind of computer at the
same time, by placing the object files for each architecture in their
own directory.  To do this, you must use a version of `make' that
supports the `VPATH' variable, such as GNU `make'.  `cd' to the
directory where you want the object files and executables to go and run
the `configure' script.  `configure' automatically checks for the
source code in the directory that `configure' is in and in `..'.

If you have to use a `make' that does not supports the `VPATH'
variable, you have to compile readline for one architecture at a
time in the source code directory.  After you have installed
readline for one architecture, use `make distclean' before
reconfiguring for another architecture. 

Installation Names
==================

By default, `make install' will install the readline libraries in
`/usr/local/lib', the include files in
`/usr/local/include/readline', the man pages in `/usr/local/man',
and the info files in `/usr/local/info'.  You can specify an
installation prefix other than `/usr/local' by giving `configure'
the option `--prefix=PATH' or by supplying a value for the
DESTDIR variable when running `make install'. 

You can specify separate installation prefixes for
architecture-specific files and architecture-independent files. 
If you give `configure' the option `--exec-prefix=PATH', the
readline Makefiles will use PATH as the prefix for installing the
libraries.  Documentation and other data files will still use the
regular prefix. 

Specifying the System Type
==========================

There may be some features `configure' can not figure out
automatically, but need to determine by the type of host readline
will run on.  Usually `configure' can figure that out, but if it
prints a message saying it can not guess the host type, give it
the `--host=TYPE' option.  TYPE can either be a short name for
the system type, such as `sun4', or a canonical name with three
fields: CPU-COMPANY-SYSTEM (e.g., i386-unknown-freebsd4.2). 

See the file `config.sub' for the possible values of each field.

Sharing Defaults
================

If you want to set default values for `configure' scripts to share,
you can create a site shell script called `config.site' that gives
default values for variables like `CC', `cache_file', and `prefix'.
`configure' looks for `PREFIX/share/config.site' if it exists, then
`PREFIX/etc/config.site' if it exists.  Or, you can set the
`CONFIG_SITE' environment variable to the location of the site script.
A warning: the readline `configure' looks for a site script, but not
all `configure' scripts do.

Operation Controls
==================

`configure' recognizes the following options to control how it
operates.

`--cache-file=FILE'
     Use and save the results of the tests in FILE instead of
     `./config.cache'.  Set FILE to `/dev/null' to disable caching, for
     debugging `configure'.

`--help'
     Print a summary of the options to `configure', and exit.

`--quiet'
`--silent'
`-q'
     Do not print messages saying which checks are being made.

`--srcdir=DIR'
     Look for the package's source code in directory DIR.  Usually
     `configure' can determine that directory automatically.

`--version'
     Print the version of Autoconf used to generate the `configure'
     script, and exit.

`configure' also accepts some other, not widely useful, options.

Optional Features
=================

The readline `configure' recognizes a single `--with-PACKAGE' option:

`--with-curses'
    This tells readline that it can find the termcap library functions
    (tgetent, et al.) in the curses library, rather than a separate
    termcap library.  Readline uses the termcap functions, but does not
    link with the termcap or curses library itself, allowing applications
    which link with readline the to choose an appropriate library.
    This option tells readline to link the example programs with the
    curses library rather than libtermcap.

`configure' also recognizes two `--enable-FEATURE' options:

`--enable-shared'
    Build the shared libraries by default on supported platforms.  The
    default is `yes'.

`--enable-static'
    Build the static libraries by default.  The default is `yes'.
 
Shared Libraries
================

There is support for building shared versions of the readline and
history libraries.  The configure script creates a Makefile in
the `shlib' subdirectory, and typing `make shared' will cause
shared versions of the readline and history libraries to be built
on supported platforms.

If `configure' is given the `--enable-shared' option, it will attempt
to build the shared libraries by default on supported platforms.

Configure calls the script support/shobj-conf to test whether or
not shared library creation is supported and to generate the values
of variables that are substituted into shlib/Makefile.  If you
try to build shared libraries on an unsupported platform, `make'
will display a message asking you to update support/shobj-conf for
your platform.

If you need to update support/shobj-conf, you will need to create
a `stanza' for your operating system and compiler.  The script uses
the value of host_os and ${CC} as determined by configure.  For
instance, FreeBSD 4.2 with any version of gcc is identified as
`freebsd4.2-gcc*'.

In the stanza for your operating system-compiler pair, you will need to
define several variables.  They are:

SHOBJ_CC	The C compiler used to compile source files into shareable
		object files.  This is normally set to the value of ${CC}
		by configure, and should not need to be changed.

SHOBJ_CFLAGS	Flags to pass to the C compiler ($SHOBJ_CC) to create
		position-independent code.  If you are using gcc, this
		should probably be set to `-fpic'.

SHOBJ_LD	The link editor to be used to create the shared library from
		the object files created by $SHOBJ_CC.  If you are using
		gcc, a value of `gcc' will probably work.

SHOBJ_LDFLAGS	Flags to pass to SHOBJ_LD to enable shared object creation.
		If you are using gcc, `-shared' may be all that is necessary.
		These should be the flags needed for generic shared object
		creation.

SHLIB_XLDFLAGS	Additional flags to pass to SHOBJ_LD for shared library
		creation.  Many systems use the -R option to the link
		editor to embed a path within the library for run-time
		library searches.  A reasonable value for such systems would
		be `-R$(libdir)'.

SHLIB_LIBS	Any additional libraries that shared libraries should be
		linked against when they are created.

SHLIB_LIBPREF	The prefix to use when generating the filename of the shared
		library.  The default is `lib'; Cygwin uses `cyg'.

SHLIB_LIBSUFF	The suffix to add to `libreadline' and `libhistory' when
		generating the filename of the shared library.  Many systems
		use `so'; HP-UX uses `sl'.

SHLIB_LIBVERSION The string to append to the filename to indicate the version
		of the shared library.  It should begin with $(SHLIB_LIBSUFF),
		and possibly include version information that allows the
		run-time loader to load the version of the shared library
		appropriate for a particular program.  Systems using shared
		libraries similar to SunOS 4.x use major and minor library
		version numbers; for those systems a value of
		`$(SHLIB_LIBSUFF).$(SHLIB_MAJOR)$(SHLIB_MINOR)' is appropriate.
		Systems based on System V Release 4 don't use minor version
		numbers; use `$(SHLIB_LIBSUFF).$(SHLIB_MAJOR)' on those systems.
		Other Unix versions use different schemes.

SHLIB_DLLVERSION The version number for shared libraries that determines API
		compatibility between readline versions and the underlying
		system.  Used only on Cygwin.  Defaults to $SHLIB_MAJOR, but
		can be overridden at configuration time by defining DLLVERSION
		in the environment.

SHLIB_DOT	The character used to separate the name of the shared library
		from the suffix and version information.  The default is `.';
		systems like Cygwin which don't separate version information
		from the library name should set this to the empty string.

SHLIB_STATUS	Set this to `supported' when you have defined the other
		necessary variables.  Make uses this to determine whether
		or not shared library creation should be attempted.  If
		shared libraries are not supported, this will be set to
		`unsupported'.

You should look at the existing stanzas in support/shobj-conf for ideas.

Once you have updated support/shobj-conf, re-run configure and type
`make shared' or `make'.  The shared libraries will be created in the
shlib subdirectory.

If shared libraries are created, `make install' will install them. 
You may install only the shared libraries by running `make
install-shared' from the top-level build directory.  Running `make
install' in the shlib subdirectory will also work.  If you don't want
to install any created shared libraries, run `make install-static'.