[RFC PATCH] Makefile: Turn off the configure target by default

From: Michael J Gruber <git@drmicha.warpmail.net>
Date: Oct 11, 2010, 07:47 UTC
Message-ID: <36e21bdafd75e95f1e13437f81067c71c7390408.1286783121.git.git@drmicha.warpmail.net>

For most software packages, untar-autoconf/make configure-configure-make is the preferred way to build the package; not so for Git. But the presence of the make target makes people believe so.

Try and make people use "make configure" only when they are sure they need to.

Signed-off-by: Michael J Gruber <git@drmicha.warpmail.net>
---
    This does not help with people running autoconf themselves, of course.
    But we keep answering questions about failed configure attempts.
    
    On an annecdotical note: When I decided to switch to a dvcs, I failed building
    Git (with configure) and tried out hg instead. Imagine!

 Makefile |    7 +++++++
 1 files changed, 7 insertions(+), 0 deletions(-)

diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 1f1ce04..430c096 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -1744,11 +1744,18 @@ $(patsubst %.py,%,$(SCRIPT_PYTHON)): % : unimplemented.sh
 endif # NO_PYTHON
 
 configure: configure.ac
+ifdef USEAUTOCONF
 	$(QUIET_GEN)$(RM) $@ $<+ && \
 	sed -e 's/@@GIT_VERSION@@/$(GIT_VERSION)/g' \
 	    $< > $<+ && \
 	autoconf -o $@ $<+ && \
 	$(RM) $<+
+else
+	@echo "Using the Makefile and defining variables in config.mak is the"
+	@echo "preferred way of building Git. Please use"
+	@echo "USEAUTOCONF=1 make configure"
+	@echo "if you are really sure you need configure."
+endif
 
 # These can record GIT_VERSION
 git.o git.spec \

-- 
1.7.3.1.184.g5b1fd