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On Sunday 06 February 2005 7:52 pm, Julian Hall wrote:
Why would it allow me to run the 'configure' *and* the 'make' as the normal user if I had to run the 'make install' as root?
The answer is actually very simple. The make install ONLY needs to be as root if you are installing it system-wide. As this is what is used to create all the packages, .deb's, RPM's etc., then system-wide is the default. I compile my software in many, many, different forms and under all sorts of test conditions. I don't want it in system-wide folders because it's in development and it'll break things. :-) So I use a prefix. It's easy stuff, most often it's: ./configure --prefix /opt/ Then make, make check, make install will all work as a normal user. It's ONLY the destination folders for system-wide use that require root access - installing it for one user does not.
As far as I can see, 'configure', 'make' and 'make install' are all part of the SAME installation process.
No, sorry, that's misleading. Most installations are done with packages. Source code and CVS are MEANT for those who are developing or maintaining the code. When you make that leap from rpm -i or apt-get install to ./configure - you really ought to read the README and INSTALL files.
That's like a Windows installer allowing the user to make the directories and choose what parts of the program to install and then bombing out saying the rest has to be done logged in as Administrator.
It's NOTHING like that. This is SOURCE code - not a package. You can compare a Windows installer to apt-get or rpm -i - that's fine. You would have to compare a CVS tarball with downloading a DevStudio Project file and building it in the IDE - once you've figured out how to change the settings to your own and got the IDE working long enough that it doesn't bomb out on you, and suffered the dozen reboots it takes to install the IDE in the first place . . . . . . .
It makes more logical (and intuitive) sense to me for the './configure' command to produce an error right at the beginning stating "packages must be installed as root user"
No, no, no, because packages are installed using apt-get or rpm -i. Applications can be installed anywhere and there is absolutely NO need for root access IF you don't need system-wide access.
to begin with, not allow me to get half-way through and then throw up what are (to a non-Linux expert) a list of impenetrable errors.
That's why the README and INSTALL files are there!
This wastes my time, AND the time of you all who have to answer daft questions from the likes of me, when if it was designed with the end-user in mind to start with, we'd all have an easier life.
Oh stop whining and RTM.
I'm sure there is a reason the developers designed the system to work this way, but in my humble opinion, for novice users it is counter intuitive and likely to make those less stubborn than I am (g) run back to Windows.
Novices aren't usually installing from CVS. Novices nearly always stick with packages. When you move to CVS, you should READ the documentation. -- Neil Williams ============= http://www.dcglug.org.uk/ http://www.nosoftwarepatents.com/ http://sourceforge.net/projects/isbnsearch/ http://www.neil.williamsleesmill.me.uk/ http://www.biglumber.com/x/web?qs=0x8801094A28BCB3E3
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