As for
if (ac > 1000) {
return *av[0];
}
return 0;
And then for CHECK_FUNCTION_EXISTS();, there are a few rare compilers that do not throw an error at compile-time if said function does not exist.
Also, I have been told that cmake-generated Makefiles invoke cmake itself, so you can't really generate portable Makefiles with it. In addition to that, I have been told that cmake takes ages to compile.
> meaning that in my code I don't need to do stuff like [0] in my code to detect features
I find that much better honestly.
I dont know, I'm not going to defend it. Imnot going to do a line by line review of the file you picked, as I said I'm sure I can find awful code in bazel, meson, etc.
> Also, I have been told that cmake-generated Makefiles invoke cmake itself, so you can't really generate portable Makefiles with it.
Cmake generates a target for makefile that will re run cmake if your cmake file changes. If you're bukldong with cmake, you distribute the cmakelists txt, and treat the makefiles, ninja files etc as build intermediates
> In addition to that, I have been told that cmake takes ages to compile.
Do you compile your own make regularly? I've compiled cmake once or twice and it's not quick, but it's definitely doable (maybe 5 or so minutes?)
> I find that much better honestly.
The reason to use a build tool is to avoid hacks like that in user code. I would rather have cmake or meson or whatever my meta build tool is handle and test that logic, so I can focus on my library or application code.
Oh, you have proof that person X murdered someone? I am sure I can find awful stuff that person Y and Z did!
[back in 2014] OpenSSL has heartbleed? Well, I am sure that I can find issues in libsodium if I looked.
> Do you compile your own make regularly?
No, my users however might need to once they have to deal with a cmake project.
> but it's definitely doable (maybe 5 or so minutes?)
I was told that it takes hours, though I might be misremembering.
> so I can focus on my library or application code.
This kind of thing does not really distract you from anything. Adding something like that takes as long as it does to add a cmake check. Then the person who is compiling has to do -DENABLE_FEATURE=1.
No - that's not what I'm saying at all. I'm saying that if you're holding X to a standard, you should hold Y and Z to the same standard.
> No, my users however might need to once they have to deal with a cmake project.
cmake is available from the package manager on basically every system imaginable, or as a binary (or source) download for a whole host of platforms. It's also widely used, so chances are a user is going to have it installed.
> I was told that it takes hours, though I might be misremembering.
If you're going to dogmatically claim that cmake is inferior, then you should at least verify the grounds of your claims are true. I ran
git clone https://github.com/Kitware/CMake.git && cd cmake && cmake -H. -Bbuild && cmake --build build
> This kind of thing does not really distract you from anything. Adding something like that takes as long as it does to add a cmake check. Then the person who is compiling has to do -DENABLE_FEATURE=1.
This isn't unique to cmake but a meta build system does more than just let you add defines.
Funny enough I was trying to build a library yesterday that used check_function_exists() to detect the presence of some library functions. The project was set up to output a static library so check_function_exists() returned true for all the missing functions since it linked the test program without issue. https://gitlab.kitware.com/cmake/cmake/-/issues/18121
> I don't think that I have ever been able to successfully compile a project that uses CMake.
That's quite the statement. In practice, I've found cmake -h. -Bbuild && cmake --build build
to work about 90% of the time. Far more luck than I've had with autotools.
> Its code is horrifying too, for example:
1) I'm sure I could find some horriffic code in meson too if I went digging. 2) The alternative to this is you having to write something equivalent in your own code, meaning that in my code I don't need to do stuff like [0] in my code to detect features; my build system handles it for me. 3) CMake supports more platforms and targets than I've ever seen in my life, and likely supports more compilers than are necessary. that's a blessing and a curse, but it means that if I write simple program to run on some crufty microcontroller with a bastardised gcc toolchain from the 90s, it's fairly likely that cmake supports it out of the box. Code like that is the price to pay for that level of support.
[0] https://github.com/boostorg/beast/blob/b7344b0d501f23f763a76...