Gentoo Archives: gentoo-user

From: Alan McKinnon <alan.mckinnon@×××××.com>
To: gentoo-user@l.g.o
Subject: Re: [gentoo-user] Gentoo is the best linux distro
Date: Wed, 12 Sep 2012 21:00:22
Message-Id: 20120912225725.384d0119@khamul.example.com
In Reply to: Re: [gentoo-user] Gentoo is the best linux distro by Michael Mol
1 On Wed, 12 Sep 2012 11:15:25 -0400
2 Michael Mol <mikemol@×××××.com> wrote:
3
4 > On Wed, Sep 12, 2012 at 10:55 AM, Alan McKinnon
5 > <alan.mckinnon@×××××.com>wrote:
6 >
7 > > On Wed, 12 Sep 2012 16:00:34 +0200
8 > > Alex Schuster <wonko@×××××××××.org> wrote:
9 > >
10 > > > Michael Mol writes:
11 > > >
12 > > > > On Wed, Sep 12, 2012 at 9:33 AM, Neil Bothwick
13 > > > > <neil@××××××××××.uk <mailto:neil@××××××××××.uk>> wrote:
14 > > >
15 > > > > Instead we get, try USE="-*" :P
16 > > > >
17 > > > > "Try MAKEOPTS='-j1'"
18 > > >
19 > > > Which in fact often helps... especially for me, I am using
20 > > > MAKEOPTS="-j --load=4", and I often experience build problems that
21 > > > are not reproducible with a fixed number of jobs, regardless how
22 > > > large.
23 > >
24 > > Yes indeed, and that one is good advice.
25 > >
26 > > Not every Makefile out there is safe for -j > 1, so running it as
27 > > one job is valid debugging. It's the correct thing to do with weird
28 > > build failures as it tests if a specific condition is true or not.
29 > >
30 > >
31 > Yeah, except I've already gone that route, or otherwise ruled it out,
32 > before I ask. That's why it's grating. (Even more grating when I have
33 > to spend the time building a package again, just to convince someone
34 > that, no, it's not MAKEOPTS that's the problem.)
35 >
36 > It's like "Have you tried turning it off and back on again".
37
38 I learned that one the hard way :-)
39
40 Now when I submit support posts, I try emulate what bgo asks:
41
42 1. nature of problem
43 2. what have I tried already
44 3. steps to reproduce
45 4. result gotten
46 5. expected result
47 6. relevant config files and settings
48
49 Tends to weed out a lot of the silly auto-bot style answers
50
51
52 >
53 >
54 > > >
55 > > > > "Turn off distcc"
56 > > >
57 > > > "revdep-rebuild"
58 > > >
59 > > > And "emerge -e world && perl-cleaner --all && python-updater &&
60 > > > lafilefixer --justfixit".
61 > >
62 > > Another example of proper debugging. A wise troubleshooter will
63 > > first verify that all relevant maintenance and consistency factors
64 > > have been done first before doing extensive troubleshooting.
65 > >
66 > > The last one, "lafilefixer --justfixit" is especially valuable as it
67 > > gets right of a huge gigantic steaming pile of crap that a) should
68 > > never have been there at all in the first place and b) if it's
69 > > causing the problem is almost impossible to pin down without lots
70 > > of work. So even if b) is not true, you still get the huge benefit
71 > > of a)
72 > >
73 > >
74 > >
75 > >
76 > >
77 > > --
78 > > Alan McKinnon
79 > > alan.mckinnon@×××××.com
80 > >
81 > >
82 > >
83 >
84 >
85
86
87
88 --
89 Alan McKinnon
90 alan.mckinnon@×××××.com

Replies

Subject Author
Re: [gentoo-user] Gentoo is the best linux distro Michael Mol <mikemol@×××××.com>