Debian Bug report logs - #375349
autoconf: puts |#_!!_#| in output files

Toggle useless messages

Message #5 received at submit@bugs.debian.org (full text, mbox, reply):

From: "Steinar H. Gunderson" <sgunderson@bigfoot.com>

To: Debian Bug Tracking System <submit@bugs.debian.org>

Subject: autoconf: puts |#_!!_#| in output files

Date: Sun, 25 Jun 2006 14:31:21 +0200

Package: autoconf
Version: 2.59.cvs.2006.05.13-1
Severity: important

Newer autoconf versions seem to use |#_!!_#| as an internal separator
during the AC_OUTPUT phase; this is supposed to be sedded away again at
the very end, but for some reason it doesn't; see for instance #373953,
where it's creeping into PREFIX and whatnot.

I've verified that this doesn't happen in 2.59a-9; it surfaced in the
first CVS version in the archive (2.59.cvs.2006.05.13-1).

-- System Information:
Debian Release: testing/unstable
  APT prefers unstable
  APT policy: (500, 'unstable'), (500, 'testing'), (1, 'experimental')
Architecture: amd64 (x86_64)
Shell:  /bin/sh linked to /bin/bash
Kernel: Linux 2.6.16trofastxen
Locale: LANG=en_DK.UTF-8, LC_CTYPE=en_DK.UTF-8 (charmap=UTF-8)

Versions of packages autoconf depends on:
ii  debianutils                   2.16.1     Miscellaneous utilities specific t
ii  m4                            1.4.4-1    a macro processing language
ii  perl                          5.8.8-6    Larry Wall's Practical Extraction 

Versions of packages autoconf recommends:
ii  automake1.4 [automaken]      1:1.4-p6-10 A tool for generating GNU Standard
ii  automake1.7 [automaken]      1.7.9-8     A tool for generating GNU Standard
ii  automake1.8 [automaken]      1.8.5-4     A tool for generating GNU Standard
ii  automake1.9 [automaken]      1.9.6-4     A tool for generating GNU Standard

-- debconf-show failed

Message #10 received at 375349@bugs.debian.org (full text, mbox, reply):

From: Ralf Wildenhues <Ralf.Wildenhues@gmx.de>

To: "Steinar H. Gunderson" <sgunderson@bigfoot.com>, 375349@bugs.debian.org

Cc: bug-autoconf@gnu.org

Subject: Re: Bug#375349: autoconf: puts |#_!!_#| in output files

Date: Sun, 25 Jun 2006 16:17:29 +0200

[ http://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=375349 ]

Hi Steinar,

Thanks much for reporting this.

* Steinar H. Gunderson wrote on Sun, Jun 25, 2006 at 02:31:21PM CEST:
> Package: autoconf
> Version: 2.59.cvs.2006.05.13-1
> Severity: important
> 
> Newer autoconf versions seem to use |#_!!_#| as an internal separator
> during the AC_OUTPUT phase; this is supposed to be sedded away again at
> the very end, but for some reason it doesn't; see for instance #373953,
> where it's creeping into PREFIX and whatnot.
> 
> I've verified that this doesn't happen in 2.59a-9; it surfaced in the
> first CVS version in the archive (2.59.cvs.2006.05.13-1).

Confirmed with 2.59.cvs.2006.05.13-1.  I'll follow up on #373953.
Have you seen this or a similar issue with any other packages?

Cheers,
Ralf

Message #15 received at 375349@bugs.debian.org (full text, mbox, reply):

From: "Steinar H. Gunderson" <sgunderson@bigfoot.com>

To: 375349@bugs.debian.org, bug-autoconf@gnu.org

Subject: Re: Bug#375349: autoconf: puts |#_!!_#| in output files

Date: Sun, 25 Jun 2006 16:26:24 +0200

On Sun, Jun 25, 2006 at 04:17:29PM +0200, Ralf Wildenhues wrote:
> Confirmed with 2.59.cvs.2006.05.13-1.  I'll follow up on #373953.
> Have you seen this or a similar issue with any other packages?

I checked this, and it's not a bug in autoconf, IMO.

mkconfig.rb parses config.status for s,,, lines, duplicating them to create
another configuration file, but it doesn't understand the |#_!!_#| trick.
I simply made it sed it away itself, and the package was fixed.

Decide for yourself if you want to close this as "not a bug", or if you
actually think it should be changed back in autoconf.

/* Steinar */
-- 
Homepage: http://www.sesse.net/

Message #20 received at 375349-done@bugs.debian.org (full text, mbox, reply):

From: Ralf Wildenhues <Ralf.Wildenhues@gmx.de>

To: "Steinar H. Gunderson" <sgunderson@bigfoot.com>, 375349-done@bugs.debian.org

Cc: bug-autoconf@gnu.org

Subject: Re: Bug#375349: autoconf: puts |#_!!_#| in output files

Date: Sun, 25 Jun 2006 18:12:30 +0200

* Steinar H. Gunderson wrote on Sun, Jun 25, 2006 at 04:26:24PM CEST:
> 
> I checked this, and it's not a bug in autoconf, IMO.
> 
> mkconfig.rb parses config.status for s,,, lines, duplicating them to create
> another configuration file, but it doesn't understand the |#_!!_#| trick.
> I simply made it sed it away itself, and the package was fixed.

Which is just another hack on top of the existing hacks, but oh well, I
guess that's ok for a NMU.

> Decide for yourself if you want to close this as "not a bug", or if you
> actually think it should be changed back in autoconf.

Definitely not a bug.

It would be nice if ruby upstream could fix this and remove usage of
Autoconf internals.  Otherwise you'll keep having to "fix" this again
and again...

Cheers,
Ralf

Message #21 received at 375349-done@bugs.debian.org (full text, mbox, reply):

From: Ben Pfaff <blp@cs.stanford.edu>

To: "Steinar H. Gunderson" <sgunderson@bigfoot.com>

Cc: 375349-done@bugs.debian.org, bug-autoconf@gnu.org

Subject: Re: Bug#375349: autoconf: puts |#_!!_#| in output files

Date: Sun, 25 Jun 2006 11:50:24 -0700

Closing this bug, because it is not a bug in Autoconf, in my
opinion.

-- 
On Perl: "It's as if H.P. Lovecraft, returned from the dead and speaking by
seance to Larry Wall, designed a language both elegant and terrifying for his
Elder Things to write programs in, and forgot that the Shoggoths didn't turn
out quite so well in the long run." --Matt Olson

Send a report that this bug log contains spam.