Experimental Physics and
Industrial Control System

[email protected] (William Lupton) · Fri, 9 Jun 95 08:57:38 HST

Marty,

  Thanks for your comments, ...

> 1) Keep the dialog going. In the end we all have very similar problems.
> 2) The app source/release system designed and implemented at APS had
>    a LOT of discussion before it was built. It is being successfully used.
>    The fact that people are still dissatisfied with it shows that this is
>    a tough problem.
> 3) Johnny Tang looked very hard at what we have done before making changes.
> 4) I hope that the end result is a single (documented) Application
>    Source/Release system that we can all use.

...and your points are well taken. There's no point
in going off and making substantial changes in response to local
requirements if the result is something which will only be used
locally.

  I found it very hard to decide what to propose changing when I was
working on this, but was basically driven by a desire to make
application directories look more like EPICS development directories,
extensions particularly, which is conceptually quite similar, including
with regard to installation of files.  I agonized a _lot_ over moving
stuff down to a sub-directory of src, but do feel that not to do so
would be leaving unnecessary baggage in the top-level directory.

  I am very interested in your plans to do away with default.dctsdr
(which I moved to a "data" installation directory because I couldn't
bring myself to live with having installed files at the top-level). This
would greatly simplify my plans for catting cat_ascii directories and
the suchlike. Is there any way in which we can help here?

  I think that in the short term, Nick and I will continue to iterate
and will document what we have done. Another major challenge of course
is to handle the hooks to local conventions in a very neutral way. I
tried to do that with my EPICS_APPLIC_INSTALL, EPICS_APPLIC_VERSION and
EPICS_APPLIC_EXTERNAL variables.

  If we are to move towards a single system then we all potentially have
to compromise, so it would be useful to know what the major sticking
points might be from your point of view. What are the sacred cows?

  William

> From [email protected] Fri Jun  9 04:24:18 1995
> From: [email protected] (Marty Kraimer)
> To: tech-talk@phoebus
> Subject: Re: application directories and CVS, GNU make etc
> 
> 
> Just a couple of comments.
> 
> 
> At APS, at least for now, we will continue to use the existing system.
> Our Application Developers have adjusted to it. Thus we have the luxury
> of sitting back and seeing what is developed by others.
> 
> One other warning. We have started working on getting rid of default.dctsdr
> and the associated build utilities. All info will be read via ascii files.
> One additional goal is the ability to allow each database and ioc to load
> only the record types, device support, and driver support it uses.
> Thus the existing requirement that all users of an application development
> environment have to share the same set of ascii definition files will
> disappear. In a few weeks there should be a document that gives more details
> about what is being proposed. A lot of thought will have to be given to
> "packaging". Whatever is done will impact App Source/Release systems at least
> to some degree.
> 
> Marty Kraimer
> 

Experimental Physics and Industrial Control System

Experimental Physics and
Industrial Control System