Re: GNOME vs GNU gcc & glibc

[gandalf pobox com]

I wonder if this has been seriously re-evaluated since 2.0 (the Changes
file states that it is based on the 2.0 one)  I have compiled the kernel
with egcs on every system I run (granted all intel) for a while now (like
from sometime in the 2.1.50's) and have never had a problem.  In fact
one of the first things I usually do to a new system is to replace gcc
with the latest egcs.  So _everything_ on my system is compiled with egcs,
and I have yet to have a problem because of this.

-chris

On Wed, 7 Apr 1999, Sergio Brandano wrote:

> > 1. The compiler.
> 
> >>    When using gcc-2.7.2.3 (that is the one recommended by Linus for
> >>    the kernel), GNOME fails with gnome-objc-1.0.2. Spud suggested
> >>    to install egcsobjc, that is to use egcs instead of gcc.
> >
> >My understanding is that this Linus recommendation is obsolete.  The 2.0
> >series of the Linux kernel inadvertantly depended on a BUG in gcc-2.7.2.3,
> >so it wouldn't compile reliably on gcc-2.8.x or egcs.  For the 2.1, 2.2
> >(and presumably the 2.3) series, the recommendation for kernel compiling
> >is gcc-2.8.1, but many people are using egcs or pgcc for it.
> 
>  I would like to use gcc-2.8.1, but ...
>  I quote from /usr/linux/Documentation/Changes of kernel 2.2.5:
> 
> >Gnu C
> >=====
> >
> >   You need at least GCC 2.7.2 to compile the kernel.  If you're
> >upgrading from an earlier release, you might as well get GCC 2.7.2.3,
> >the latest stable public release.  If you already have GCC 2.7.2 on
> >your system, you don't have to upgrade just so the kernel will work
> >(though feel free to upgrade if you want the gcc bug fixes).
> >
> >   Note that the latest compilers (egcs, pgcc, gcc 2.8) may do Bad
> >Things while compiling your kernel, particularly if absurd
> >optimizations (like -O9) are used.  Caveat emptor.  Currently, the only
> >C compiler available in a binary distribution is egcs.  Version 1.0.3
> >seems okay; if you have to have a binary, you may be successful using
> >that.  In general, however, gcc-2.7.2.3 is known to be stable, while
> >egcs and others have not been as thoroughly tested yet.