[Scons-dev] LaTeX changes to env['PATH'] can break builds

[Russel Winder]

On Sun, 2013-01-06 at 12:30 -0500, Gary Oberbrunner wrote:

> Someone at my work recently discovered that updating SCons to 2.2.0 breaks

> his build.  The reason is it now puts /usr/local/bin in the PATH

>  (env['PATH']) before /usr/bin (or sth similar).  He has a bad version of a

> utility in /usr/local/bin, which now gets used instead of the right one.  I

> was worried that this might happen.  He bisected to find the change that

> did it, and I've included his analysis below.

> 

> There are several things we can do:

> 1. do nothing, that's just how it is now.


I have to admit, this is my choice. /usr/local/bin should
precede /usr/bin in the path exactly because it is /usr/local/bin. Can I
argue that the fact that your colleague has a f##### u# system should
not drive SCons development? The solution is for your colleague to
remove the broken system from /usr/local/bin :-)


> 2. make the LaTeX stuff use absolute paths rather than relying on

> env['PATH']

> 3. Somehow set PATH only for that tool, without mucking with the standard

> PATH.

> 

> I don't like #2, it's ugly.  #1 is easiest, but since our goal is to make

> reproducible builds, modifying the path globally is not ideal.  That leaves

> us with #3.  I don't have any ideas off the top of my head for how to

> handle that; does anyone?

> 

> Which leads me to toolchain revamp.  I'm going to write up a message about

> this shortly; I think it should be one of our highest priority projects for

> 2013 (along with several others), and I'm willing to take it on.


I don't have many free cycles for the next three months, but I can chip
in as and when.

-- 
Russel.
=============================================================================
Dr Russel Winder      t: +44 20 7585 2200   voip: sip:russel.winder at ekiga.net
41 Buckmaster Road    m: +44 7770 465 077   xmpp: russel at winder.org.uk
London SW11 1EN, UK   w: www.russel.org.uk  skype: russel_winder
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