GNU make NEWS -- history of user-visible changes.  13 January 1993

Copyright (C) 1992, 1993 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
See the end for copying conditions.

Please send GNU make bug reports to bug-gnu-utils@prep.ai.mit.edu.

Version 3.63

* Make now uses a standard GNU `configure' script.  See the new file
  INSTALL for the new (and much simpler) installation procedure.

* There is now a shell script to build Make the first time, if you have no
  other `make' program.  `build.sh' is created by `configure'; see README.

* GNU Make now completely conforms to the POSIX.2 specification for `make'.

* Elements of the `$^' and `$?' automatic variables that are archive
  member references now list only the member name, as in Unix and POSIX.2.

* You should no longer ever need to specify the `-w' switch, which prints
  the current directory before and after Make runs.  The `-C' switch to
  change directory, and recursive use of Make, now set `-w' automatically.

* Multiple double-colon rules for the same target will no longer have their
  commands run simultaneously under -j, as this could result in the two
  commands trying to change the file at the same time and interfering with
  one another.

* The `SHELL' variable is now never taken from the environment.
  Each makefile that wants a shell other than the default (/bin/sh) must
  set SHELL itself.  SHELL is always exported to child processes.
  This change was made for compatibility with POSIX.2.

* Make now accepts long options.  There is now an informative usage message
  that tells you what all the options are and what they do.  Try `make --help'.

* There are two new directives: `export' and `unexport'.  All variables are
  no longer automatically put into the environments of the commands that
  Make runs.  Instead, only variables specified on the command line or in
  the environment are exported by default.  To export others, use:
	export VARIABLE
  or you can define variables with:
	export VARIABLE = VALUE
  or:
	export VARIABLE := VALUE
  You can use just:
	export
  or:
	.EXPORT_ALL_VARIABLES:
  to get the old behavior.  See the node `Variables/Recursion' in the manual
  for a full description.

* The commands from the `.DEFAULT' special target are only applied to
  targets which have no rules at all, not all targets with no commands.
  This change was made for compatibility with Unix make.

* All fatal error messages now contain `***', so they are easy to find in
  compilation logs.

* Dependency file names like `-lNAME' are now replaced with the actual file
  name found, as with files found by normal directory search (VPATH).
  The library file `libNAME.a' may now be found in the current directory,
  which is checked before VPATH; the standard set of directories (/lib,
  /usr/lib, /usr/local/lib) is now checked last.
  See the node `Libraries/Search' in the manual for full details.

* A single `include' directive can now specify more than one makefile to
  include, like this:
	include file1 file2
  You can also use shell file name patterns in an `include' directive:
	include *.mk 

* The default directories to search for included makefiles, and for
  libraries specified with `-lNAME', are now set by configuration.

* You can now use blanks as well as colons to separate the directories in a
  search path for the `vpath' directive or the `VPATH' variable.

* You can now use variables and functions in the left hand side of a
  variable assignment, as in "$(foo)bar = value".

* The `MAKE' variable is always defined as `$(MAKE_COMMAND) $(MAKEOVERRIDES)'.
  The `MAKE_COMMAND' variable is now defined to the name with which make
  was invoked.

* The built-in rules for C++ compilation now use the variables `$(CXX)' and
  `$(CXXFLAGS)' instead of `$(C++)' and `$(C++FLAGS)'.  The old names had
  problems with shells that cannot have `+' in environment variable names.

* The value of a recursively expanded variable is now expanded when putting
  it into the environment for child processes.  This change was made for
  compatibility with Unix make.

* A rule with no targets before the `:' is now accepted and ignored.
  This change was made for compatibility with SunOS 4 make.
  We do not recommend that you write your makefiles to take advantage of this.

* The `-I' switch can now be used in MAKEFLAGS, and are put there
  automatically just like other switches.

Version 3.61

* Built-in rules for C++ source files with the `.C' suffix.
  We still recommend that you use `.cc' instead.

* If commands are given too many times for a single target,
  the last set given is used, and a warning message is printed.

* Error messages about makefiles are in standard GNU error format,
  so C-x ` in Emacs works on them.

* Dependencies of pattern rules which contain no % need not actually exist
  if they can be created (just like dependencies which do have a %).

Version 3.60

* A message is always printed when Make decides there is nothing to be done.
  It used to be that no message was printed for top-level phony targets
  (because "`phony' is up to date" isn't quite right).  Now a different
  message "Nothing to be done for `phony'" is printed in that case.

* Archives on AIX now supposedly work.

* When the commands specified for .DEFAULT are used to update a target,
  the $< automatic variable is given the same value as $@ for that target.
  This is how Unix make behaves, and this behavior is mandated by POSIX.2.

Version 3.59

* The -n, -q, and -t options are not put in the `MAKEFLAGS' and `MFLAG'
  variables while remaking makefiles, so recursive makes done while remaking
  makefiles will behave properly.

* If the special target `.NOEXPORT' is specified in a makefile,
  only variables that came from the environment and variables
  defined on the command line are exported.

Version 3.58

* Suffix rules may have dependencies (which are ignored).

Version 3.57

* Dependencies of the form `-lLIB' are searched for as /usr/local/lib/libLIB.a
  as well as libLIB.a in /usr/lib, /lib, the current directory, and VPATH.

Version 3.55

* There is now a Unix man page for GNU Make.  It is certainly not a replacement
for the Texinfo manual, but it documents the basic functionality and the
switches.  For full documentation, you should still read the Texinfo manual.
Thanks to Dennis Morse of Stanford University for contributing the initial
version of this.

* Variables which are defined by default (e.g., `CC') will no longer be put
into the environment for child processes.  (If these variables are reset by the
environment, makefiles, or the command line, they will still go into the
environment.)

* Makefiles which have commands but no dependencies (and thus are always
  considered out of date and in need of remaking), will not be remade (if they
  were being remade only because they were makefiles).  This means that GNU
  Make will no longer go into an infinite loop when fed the makefiles that
  `imake' (necessary to build X Windows) produces.

* There is no longer a warning for using the `vpath' directive with an explicit
pathname (instead of a `%' pattern).

Version 3.51

* When removing intermediate files, only one `rm' command line is printed,
listing all file names.

* There are now automatic variables `$(^D)', `$(^F)', `$(?D)', and `$(?F)'.
These are the directory-only and file-only versions of `$^' and `$?'.

* Library dependencies given as `-lNAME' will use "libNAME.a" in the current
directory if it exists.

* The automatic variable `$($/)' is no longer defined.

* Leading `+' characters on a command line make that line be executed even
under -n, -t, or -q (as if the line contained `$(MAKE)').

* For command lines containing `$(MAKE)', `${MAKE}', or leading `+' characters,
only those lines are executed, not their entire rules.
(This is how Unix make behaves for lines containing `$(MAKE)' or `${MAKE}'.)

Version 3.50

* Filenames in rules will now have ~ and ~USER expanded.

* The `-p' output has been changed so it can be used as a makefile.
(All information that isn't specified by makefiles is prefaced with comment
characters.)

Version 3.49

* The % character can be quoted with backslash in implicit pattern rules,
static pattern rules, `vpath' directives, and `patsubst', `filter', and
`filter-out' functions.  A warning is issued if a `vpath' directive's
pattern contains no %.

* The `wildcard' variable expansion function now expands ~ and ~USER.

* Messages indicating failed commands now contain the target name:
	make: *** [target] Error 1

* The `-p' output format has been changed somewhat to look more like
makefile rules and to give all information that Make has about files.

Version 3.48

Version 3.47

* The `-l' switch with no argument removes any previous load-average limit.

* When the `-w' switch is in effect, and Make has updated makefiles,
it will write a `Leaving directory' messagfe before re-executing itself.
This makes the `directory change tracking' changes to Emacs's compilation
commands work properly.

Version 3.46

* The automatic variable `$*' is now defined for explicit rules,
as it is in Unix make.

Version 3.45

* The `-j' switch is now put in the MAKEFLAGS and MFLAGS variables when
specified without an argument (indicating infinite jobs).
The `-l' switch is not always put in the MAKEFLAGS and MFLAGS variables.

* Make no longer checks hashed directories after running commands.
The behavior implemented in 3.41 caused too much slowdown.

Version 3.44

* A dependency is NOT considered newer than its dependent if
they have the same modification time.  The behavior implemented
in 3.43 conflicts with RCS.

Version 3.43

* Dependency loops are no longer fatal errors.

* A dependency is considered newer than its dependent if
they have the same modification time.

Version 3.42

* The variables F77 and F77FLAGS are now set by default to $(FC) and
$(FFLAGS).  Makefiles designed for System V make may use these variables in
explicit rules and expect them to be set.  Unfortunately, there is no way to
make setting these affect the Fortran implicit rules unless FC and FFLAGS
are not used (and these are used by BSD make).

Version 3.41

* Make now checks to see if its hashed directories are changed by commands.
Other makes that hash directories (Sun, 4.3 BSD) don't do this.

Version 3.39

* The `shell' function no longer captures standard error output.

Version 3.32

* A file beginning with a dot can be the default target if it also contains
a slash (e.g., `../bin/foo').  (Unix make allows this as well.)

Version 3.31

* Archive member names are truncated to 15 characters.

* Yet more USG stuff.

* Minimal support for Microport System V (a 16-bit machine and a
brain-damaged compiler).  This has even lower priority than other USG
support, so if it gets beyond trivial, I will take it out completely.

* Revamped default implicit rules (not much visible change).

* The -d and -p options can come from the environment.

Version 3.30

* Improved support for USG and HPUX (hopefully).

* A variable reference like `$(foo:a=b)', if `a' contains a `%', is
equivalent to `$(patsubst a,b,$(foo))'.

* Defining .DEFAULT with no deps or commands clears its commands.

* New default implicit rules for .S (cpp, then as), and .sh (copy and make
executable).  All default implicit rules that use cpp (even indirectly), use
$(CPPFLAGS).

Version 3.29

* Giving the -j option with no arguments gives you infinite jobs.

Version 3.28

* New option: "-l LOAD" says not to start any new jobs while others are
running if the load average is not below LOAD (a floating-point number).

* There is support in place for implementations of remote command execution
in Make.  See the file remote.c.

Version 3.26

* No more than 10 directories will be kept open at once.
(This number can be changed by redefining MAX_OPEN_DIRECTORIES in dir.c.)

Version 3.25

* Archive files will have their modification times recorded before doing
anything that might change their modification times by updating an archive
member.

Version 3.20

* The `MAKELEVEL' variable is defined for use by makefiles.

Version 3.19

* The recursion level indications in error messages are much shorter than
they were in version 3.14.

Version 3.18

* Leading spaces before directives are ignored (as documented).

* Included makefiles can determine the default goal target.
(System V Make does it this way, so we are being compatible).

Version 3.14.

* Variables that are defaults built into Make will not be put in the
environment for children.  This just saves some environment space and,
except under -e, will be transparent to sub-makes.

* Error messages from sub-makes will indicate the level of recursion.

* Hopefully some speed-up for large directories due to a change in the
directory hashing scheme.

* One child will always get a standard input that is usable.

* Default makefiles that don't exist will be remade and read in.

Version 3.13.

* Count parentheses inside expansion function calls so you can
have nested calls: `$(sort $(foreach x,a b,$(x)))'.

Version 3.12.

* Several bug fixes, including USG and Sun386i support.

* `shell' function to expand shell commands a la `

* If the `-d' flag is given, version information will be printed.

* The `-c' option has been renamed to `-C' for compatibility with tar.

* The `-p' option no longer inhibits other normal operation.

* Makefiles will be updated and re-read if necessary.

* Can now run several commands at once (parallelism), -j option.

* Error messages will contain the level of Make recursion, if any.

* The `MAKEFLAGS' and `MFLAGS' variables will be scanned for options after
makefiles are read.

* A double-colon rule with no dependencies will always have its commands run.
(This is how both the BSD and System V versions Make do it.)

Version 3.05

----------------------------------------------------------------------
Copyright information:

Copyright (C) 1992, 1993 Free Software Foundation, Inc.

   Permission is granted to anyone to make or distribute verbatim copies
   of this document as received, in any medium, provided that the
   copyright notice and this permission notice are preserved,
   thus giving the recipient permission to redistribute in turn.

   Permission is granted to distribute modified versions
   of this document, or of portions of it,
   under the above conditions, provided also that they
   carry prominent notices stating who last changed them.

Local variables:
version-control: never
end:
