[CMake] Auto re-configuring until cache stops changing

[David Cole]

On Tue, Sep 7, 2010 at 11:44 AM, Michael Wild <themiwi at gmail.com> wrote:

>
> On 7. Sep, 2010, at 17:30 , David Cole wrote:
>
> > On Tue, Sep 7, 2010 at 11:23 AM, David Doria <daviddoria at gmail.com>
> wrote:
> >
> >> On Mon, Sep 6, 2010 at 9:18 AM, David Cole <david.cole at kitware.com>
> wrote:
> >>
> >>> The "Generate" button should be enabled after the first configure.
> >>>
> >>> It's not enabled because the prevailing theory of the day was that you
> >>> shouldn't allow generate unless there were *no* *new* cache entries
> after
> >>> the most recent configure... -- force users to pay attention to those
> new
> >>> red entries -- in other words, it's just history and reluctance to
> change
> >>> behavior that's "always been that way"...
> >>>
> >>> I've always thought that you should be allowed to generate whenever you
> >>> want to: I'd go so far as to say that "Generate" should be enabled as
> soon
> >>> as you open cmake-gui, and that, if there have not been *any* configure
> >>> steps, it would do the same thing as command line cmake: configure once
> and
> >>> generate, all in one click.
> >>>
> >>> Please reply with more feedback:
> >>>
> >>> How many of you would:
> >>> - keep the current behavior exactly as is, it's good
> >>> - enable "Generate" unconditionally
> >>> - something in between
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> Thanks,
> >>> David
> >>>
> >>
> >> David C.,
> >>
> >> I fear all of the votes for "enable generate unconditionally" will never
> be
> >> cast because the users that really want/need it are not on the CMake
> mailing
> >> list. I'd like to cast 32 votes by proxy in favor of the unconditional
> >> generate button!
> >>
> >> Thanks,
> >>
> >> David D.
> >>
> >
> >
> > :-)
> >
> > OK. So far, we have these votes: 32 - 0 - 0
> >
> > Anybody else?
>
>
> I'd say CMake should re-configure automatically until it is able to
> generate, then stop let the user take action (modify the cache and then
> re-configure, or generate). I could also live with no separate "generate"
> step, like when using "cmake" from the command line. Perhaps this would be
> the most transparent for new users, but for large projects it could be a
> nuisance.
>
> Not sure in which bin my vote goes :-)
>
> --
> There is always a well-known solution to every human problem -- neat,
> plausible, and wrong.
> H. L. Mencken
>
>
"Configure" is always going to make exactly one configure pass.

Any "auto-reconfigure until there are no more new options" behavior is iffy
at best, because you *could* write code (likely accidentally...) that always
adds a new option on a configure pass... and then the user would wonder why
it's taking forever... when it literally would take forever.

The pause in between configure steps is why we have a gui. It's essential to
make things red and let people inspect the new things that just popped up in
case they do want to change the newly introduced options. If they do,
they're responsible for making the changes and configuring one last time
again before generate.

But...... if they're happy with the values (as most newbies are) then we
should let them click generate right away.

Michael, your vote goes with David's proxy votes as far as I can tell. 33-0
in favor of enabling generate so far.

Any other votes?
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