Re: RE:Q about unistd.h/getopt.h

["Robert Collins" <robert dot collins at itdomain dot com dot au>]

Ralf, please keep replies cc'd to the list.

I'm not saying it can't be done. I'm saying that the fix for KDE is to
test fot getopt.h in autoconf, and then
#if HAVE_GETOPT_H
#include <getopt.h>
#endif

As for changing cygwin, I'm sure that if you look up a reasonable source
for standards, and it shows getopt always included by unistd.h then
cygwin may change. However I don't have the time just now to do that
research - maybe someone else will.

Cygwin changes when one of three things occurs:
* a stakeholder - thats any cygwin user - wants a particular thing
changed, and provides a patch that meets code quality review. This
includes confirmance to standards and the like. (I recommend the single
unix specification as a good starting point
(http://www.opengroup.org/onlinepubs/007908799)).
* one of the "core team" is piqued enough by a stakeholders request that
they follow through and do the research and coding for the stakeholder.
* A redhat client pays for development to occur.

So the real answer to "can cygwin include getopt.h from within unistd.h"
is

1) I don't know what the standards say. As cygwin doesn't I presume that
one of the existing unix's cygwin has inherited features from doesn't
include getopt automatically.
2) Not knowing, and not being affected by it, I'm not about to look it
up until/unless spare time happens to me. (This may sound harsh, but if
every developer looked up every user inquiry, we'd not be developers any
more :] )
3) I can offer you a workaround (done).
4) If you want to invest the time in finding out what the unix standards
suggest, and or expand your list of other os to some O/S names then the
amount of work for a developer to change this and commit it will have
been significantly reduced. With that reduction you may well find that
it gets changed.

Rob

----- Original Message -----
From: "Ralf Habacker" <Ralf.Habacker@saght.tessag.com>
To: "Robert Collins" <robert.collins@itdomain.com.au>
Sent: Tuesday, April 17, 2001 8:50 PM
Subject: AW: RE:Q about unistd.h/getopt.h


> Hi,
> I have placed the question in this list because other os have placed
> getopt.h in unistd.h. Why should this not be done for cygwin too ?
>
> Ralf
>
>