"Split" libraries?

[Fergus Henderson]

On 19-Apr-1999, Warwick Harvey <wharvey at cs.monash.edu.au> wrote:
> 
> Are "split" libraries (i.e. libraries built with --split-c-files) a 
> currently supported feature,

Yes.

> Is building them documented anywhere?

Yes.  Instructions on how to install the standard Mercury libraries
using that option (and why you might want to do so) are in the file INSTALL.
Instructions on how to build your own libraries using that option are
in the Mercury User's Guide in the "Using Mmake" and "Overall
Optimization Options" sections.

> I had a bit of a play with them on the weekend (they seemed like they'd 
> solve a problem I had), but a few weird things happened so I left them alone.
> 
> I've discovered that one has to make sure all the interface files are built 
> before attempting to use a `.split' target, and that the `clean' targets 
> don't clean up the `*.dir' directories.  Are there likely to be only minor 
> problems such as the above if I try to use this feature, or would I be 
> better off leaving it alone until I can spend some time to mess with it?

Our automatic nightly tests do install and test the "split" versions of
the Mercury libraries on a couple of our machines here.  However, they
probably don't get much testing apart from that, and our automatic
testing might not catch problems such as the ones you mention above.
So yes, "split" libraries do work; if there are problems, they should
be minor ones.  If you do find any such problems, please report them
to mercury-bugs at cs.mu.oz.au, preferably with detailed instructions on
how to duplicate the problem.

Thanks,
	Fergus.

-- 
Fergus Henderson <fjh at cs.mu.oz.au>  |  "I have always known that the pursuit
WWW: <http://www.cs.mu.oz.au/~fjh>  |  of excellence is a lethal habit"
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