[Tux4kids-tuxtype-dev] TuxMath + libt4kcommon maiden linkage

[Brendan Luchen]

Hi all,

It's been a great day of hacking for a change, and libt4kcommon is
looking good. I spent today getting it to link, but only with TuxMath,
using CMake, under Linux (and technically MinGW too, but that's an act
of masochism as usual). More delightful combinations to come with
TuxType, autotools and OSX...as soon as I wrap my head around libtool,
that is.

Here's how to try out linking with t4kcommon:
git clone git://git.debian.org/git/tux4kids/t4kcommon.git && cd t4kcommon
mkdir build && cd build
cmake ..
make
sudo make install

For TuxMath
git clone git://git.debian.org/git/tux4kids/tuxmath.git && cd t4kcommon
git checkout commonification
mkdir build && cd build
cmake .. #ensure libt4kcommon is found - should show up in config.h
make
sudo make install
tuxmath

Bam! libt4kcommon linkage, like magic. You can't exactly tell, because
the game runs just as normal, but it's there, using the shiny new
T4K_DrawButton() instead of DrawButton(). If you have any doubt, try
running the game after removing the library, and it should complain.

Some remarks:
The T4K_FuncName() prefix - These have been added to all functions
that have so far made it into the library. I was a bit hesitant to do
this mainly because it's a *lot* of renaming, but upon reflection, I
think using them will not only be "good form," but also make the
eventual transition period (where the functionality in question will
be split between TuxMath, TuxType and libt4kcommon) a little less
nightmarish: fewer name clashes, at the very least. Does anyone have
strong feelings to the contrary?

Tux4Kids-common vs. T4k-common vs. t4kcommon - a relatively minor
issue, but one that's causing a few problems. For example, the CMake
installation step currently takes t4k-common.h and renames it to
t4kcommon.h when copied over. It seems to me we should stick with the
first and third options--the first for things like titles and package
naming, the third for files and shorthand. Not sure what kind of
standards are in place here, or whether it matters at all, besides
aesthetics. Any strong feelings either way?

Build stability - hahaha! It's very flaky right now, both in terms of
building libt4kcommon and linking to it from TuxMath. I have the
feeling that builds on other environments will be still quite
temperamental. Hopefully, by following the steps above, folks can help
uncover a few things I've overlooked. (If not, though, I won't
complain!) Thanks, and apologies for the long message.

Best,
Brendan