Re: Lua 5.1w4 rearrangement

[Luiz Henrique de Figueiredo <lhf@...>]

> Yes. The layout in 5.0x and earlier is easy to comprehend and one can setup
> a workspace in VC++ on Windows in less than 10 minutes. So I too wonder what
> strong motivations exist other than to simplify the make file which works
> anyways currently as is for (most) *nix users.

The motivations are the following: simplification, flexibility, and more power.
You may recognize these are the familiar Lua goals...

Simplification comes from having only two Makefiles, with clearly separated
jobs and possible customization. Just two things to edit and maintain. And
for those who care, to read and understand.

Flexibility comes from having two clearly separate process: a build process
and an install process. You can run the build process independently, by running
make inside src. This is good for those changing the Lua core or libraries.
The install process first makes sure (no pun) that Lua is built, by running
make inside src, and then proceeds to its business.

The power comes from the fact that the previous Makefiles did *not* include
all dependencies, not even the one in src/ . The dependencies in the Makefiles
in src/lua/ and src/luac were lame at best. (Our fault but the Makefiles
were getting too complicated.) The new Makefile in src contains complete
dependencies and should be much more efficient and effective than the old ones
combined.

I agree that the previous layout made it clear what went where, but the
Makefiles were a mess. (Probably our fault and the desire to use very plain
Makefiles.) On the other hand, the new Makefile in src is very clear. But then
I'm biased. :-)

Perhaps what some people are missing are project files for Windows compilers.
This is an ideal candidate for an add-on, like the ones already in the Wiki.

Like all changes, this one will take a little time to sink in. But we hope
it's for the best. Plus it's not a big deal anyway.
--lhf