Re: emacs-29 2cec78254e: ; * nt/INSTALL.W64: Fix wording.

Re: emacs-29 2cec78254e: ; * nt/INSTALL.W64: Fix wording.

[Arash Esbati]

Eli Zaretskii <eliz@gnu.org> writes:

> branch: emacs-29
> commit 2cec78254ea7f85180748a4fe3fab6eb07982b2f
> Author: Eli Zaretskii <eliz@gnu.org>
> Commit: Eli Zaretskii <eliz@gnu.org>
>
>     ; * nt/INSTALL.W64: Fix wording.
> ---
>  nt/INSTALL.W64 | 37 +++++++++++++++++++++----------------
>  1 file changed, 21 insertions(+), 16 deletions(-)
>
> diff --git a/nt/INSTALL.W64 b/nt/INSTALL.W64
> index b1f5dabaaf..b543034e47 100644
> --- a/nt/INSTALL.W64
> +++ b/nt/INSTALL.W64
> [...]
> -The '--prefix' option specifies a location for the resulting binary files,
> -which 'make install' will use - in this example we set it to C:\emacs\emacs-26.
> -If a prefix is not specified the files will be put in the standard Unix
> -directories located in your C:\msys64 directory, but this is not recommended.
> +The '--prefix' option specifies a location for the resulting binary
> +files, which 'make install' will use - in this example we set it to
> +C:\programs\emacs.  If a prefix is not specified the files will be put
> +in the standard Unix directories located in your C:\msys64 directory,
> +but this is not recommended.

May I ask why the text above talks about "the resulting binary files"?
For me, the '--prefix' option behaves on Windows the same way it does on
Unix systems, as described in the INSTALL file[1]:

  The '--prefix=PREFIXDIR' option specifies where the installation process
  should put emacs and its data files.  This defaults to '/usr/local'.
  - Emacs (and the other utilities users run) go in PREFIXDIR/bin
    (unless the '--exec-prefix' option says otherwise).
  - The architecture-independent files go in PREFIXDIR/share/emacs/VERSION
    (where VERSION is the version number of Emacs, like '23.2').
  - The architecture-dependent files go in
    PREFIXDIR/libexec/emacs/VERSION/CONFIGURATION
    (where CONFIGURATION is the configuration name, like
    i686-pc-linux-gnu), unless the '--exec-prefix' option says otherwise.

Best, Arash

P.S.: I admit I've never used '--exec-prefix' in addition to '--prefix'.

Footnotes:
[1]  http://git.savannah.gnu.org/cgit/emacs.git/tree/INSTALL#n423

Re: emacs-29 2cec78254e: ; * nt/INSTALL.W64: Fix wording.

[Eli Zaretskii]

> From: Arash Esbati <arash@gnu.org>
> Cc: Eli Zaretskii <eliz@gnu.org>
> Date: Wed, 28 Dec 2022 18:10:50 +0100
> 
> > +The '--prefix' option specifies a location for the resulting binary
> > +files, which 'make install' will use - in this example we set it to
> > +C:\programs\emacs.  If a prefix is not specified the files will be put
> > +in the standard Unix directories located in your C:\msys64 directory,
> > +but this is not recommended.
> 
> May I ask why the text above talks about "the resulting binary files"?
> For me, the '--prefix' option behaves on Windows the same way it does on
> Unix systems, as described in the INSTALL file[1]:

As you could have seen, this wording was left unchanged from whoever
wrote them back when this file was added to Emacs.

Personally, I don't think "binary files" is that bad a choice of words
for Windows users, because those aren't expected to be familiar with
Unix-style installation trees.

> P.S.: I admit I've never used '--exec-prefix' in addition to '--prefix'.

There's no --exec-prefix in the text, is there?

Re: emacs-29 2cec78254e: ; * nt/INSTALL.W64: Fix wording.

[Arash Esbati]

Eli Zaretskii <eliz@gnu.org> writes:

>> From: Arash Esbati <arash@gnu.org>
>> Cc: Eli Zaretskii <eliz@gnu.org>
>> Date: Wed, 28 Dec 2022 18:10:50 +0100
>> 
>> May I ask why the text above talks about "the resulting binary files"?
>> For me, the '--prefix' option behaves on Windows the same way it does on
>> Unix systems, as described in the INSTALL file[1]:
>
> As you could have seen, this wording was left unchanged from whoever
> wrote them back when this file was added to Emacs.

Yes, I didn't miss that; my question was more in the direction: Should
this be changed, while we're at it?

> Personally, I don't think "binary files" is that bad a choice of words
> for Windows users, because those aren't expected to be familiar with
> Unix-style installation trees.

Why not taking the part from INSTALL file I sent up-thread, adjust it to
Windows and change this part?  Do you want me to make a suggestion?

>> P.S.: I admit I've never used '--exec-prefix' in addition to '--prefix'.
>
> There's no --exec-prefix in the text, is there?

No, I meant: I know what '--prefix' on Windows does, but can't tell
about '--exec-prefix' since I've never used it.

Best, Arash

Re: emacs-29 2cec78254e: ; * nt/INSTALL.W64: Fix wording.

[Eli Zaretskii]

> From: Arash Esbati <arash@gnu.org>
> Cc: emacs-devel@gnu.org
> Date: Wed, 28 Dec 2022 20:32:52 +0100
> 
> Why not taking the part from INSTALL file I sent up-thread, adjust it to
> Windows and change this part?  Do you want me to make a suggestion?

It's IMO too complicated for no good reason, at least from the POV of
Windows users.

> > There's no --exec-prefix in the text, is there?
> 
> No, I meant: I know what '--prefix' on Windows does, but can't tell
> about '--exec-prefix' since I've never used it.

Neither should you.  It's an option that should be very rarely needed,
if at all.