apt-3.90 build error

[Panu Matilainen]

On Sun, 10 Dec 2006, Richard Bos wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I tried to build apt-3.90 for suse, but I get the following build error:
> --------------------------
> make[1]: Entering directory `/var/tmp/apt/BUILD/apt-0.5.15lorg3.90/doc'
> make[1]: *** No rule to make target `apt.8', needed by `all-am'.  Stop.
> make[1]: Leaving directory `/var/tmp/apt/BUILD/apt-0.5.15lorg3.90/doc'
> make: *** [all-recursive] Error 1
> error: Bad exit status from /tmp/rpm-tmp.79897 (%build)
> ---------------------------
>
> The previous version (3.2) just build fine.  What might be wrong here, does
> anyone have a clue, with only the small error msg above?

Are you getting this error when building from the tarball unmodified? I'd 
be a bit surprised, as the doc make doesn't actually do anything now, if 
you look at the list of changes in 3.90:
* a big man page overhaul: docbook/sgml tools aren't needed for building
   them and contents have been revised for apt-rpm (Vincent Danen, Ralf
   Corsepius)

> To make a sidestep, debian apt does have there documentation in sgml nowadays
> (actually already for a long time (2 years or more, I guess)).  The docu is
> distributed in xml.  See:
>
> apt/BUILD> ls apt-0.6.46.4/doc/*xml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/apt-cache.8.xml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/apt-cdrom.8.xml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/apt.conf.5.xml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/apt-config.8.xml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/apt-extracttemplates.1.xml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/apt-ftparchive.1.xml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/apt-get.8.xml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/apt-key.8.xml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/apt_preferences.5.xml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/apt-secure.8.xml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/apt-sortpkgs.1.xml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/sources.list.5.xml
>
>
> apt/BUILD> ls -1 apt-0.6.46.4/doc/*sgml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/cache.sgml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/design.sgml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/dpkg-tech.sgml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/files.sgml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/guide.it.sgml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/guide.sgml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/method.sgml
> apt-0.6.46.4/doc/offline.sgml
>
>
> As you can determine from the list above all manpages are distributed in xml.
> These are easily processed with xmlto, that is I think available by default
> in most distributions (just an assumption btw).
>
> Would it possible to use the xml sources in apt-rpm as well instead of the
> sgml sources?  If so, I don't need to have the build error solved ;)

See above, after a lengthy discussion in May-June this year we ditched the 
sgml/xml stuff completely, the man pages are now written as man pages 
instead of converting them between formats.

 	- Panu -