7.5.2.1 AutoOpt-ed Library for AutoOpt-ed Program

The library source code must provide an option definition file that consists of only the flag entries. The first flag entry must contain the following attributes:

`name'

This name is used in the construction of a global pointer of type tOptDesc const*. It is always required.

`documentation'

It tells AutoOpts that this option serves no normal purpose. It will be used to add usage clarity and to locate option descriptors in the library code.

`descrip'

This is a string that is inserted in the extended usage display before the options specific to the current library. It is always required.

`lib-name'

This should match the name of the library. This string is also used in the construction of the option descriptor pointer name. In the end, it looks like this:

extern tOptDesc const* <<lib-name>>_<<name>>_optDesc_p;

and is used in the macros generated for the library's .h file.

In order to compile this AutoOpts using library, you must create a special header that is not used by the client program. This is accomplished by creating an option definition file that contains essentially exactly the following:

AutoGen definitions options;
prog-name  = does-not-matter;  // but is always required
prog-title = 'also does not matter';  // also required
config-header = 'config.h'; // optional, but common
library;
#include library-options-only.def

and nothing else. AutoGen will produce only the .h file. You may now compile your library, referencing just this .h file. The macros it creates will utilize a global variable that will be defined by the AutoOpts-using client program. That program will need to have the following #include in its option definition file:

#include library-options-only.def

All the right things will magically happen so that the global variables named <<lib-name>>_<<name>>_optDesc_p are initialized correctly. For an example, please see the AutoOpts test script: `autoopts/test/library.test'.

This document was generated by Bruce Korb on September, 30 2006 using texi2html 1.76.