GNU Make Makefiles

The cluster centers on debates about GNU Makefiles, including their syntax limitations, best practices, potential improvements to Make itself, and reactions to opinionated approaches or perceived reinventions.

📉 Falling 0.3x DevOps & Infrastructure
3,246
Comments
20
Years Active
5
Top Authors
#4186
Topic ID

Activity Over Time

2007
4
2008
2
2009
20
2010
28
2011
32
2012
90
2013
146
2014
161
2015
238
2016
190
2017
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2018
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2019
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2020
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2021
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2022
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2023
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2024
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2025
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2026
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Keywords

e.g BSD github.io CFLAGS LIBOBJECTS CPPFLAGS foo.java MAKE I.e maintainer.mk makefile files file flags dependencies output tabs java foo build

Sample Comments

IncRnd Aug 21, 2022 View on HN

2019: An opinionated approach to GNU Make, https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21812656

lloydatkinson Jul 16, 2023 View on HN

This is a poor take. MAKE files have existed for decades.

baby Sep 14, 2022 View on HN

Honestly Makefiles that are more than 10 lines should not exist

flukus Sep 9, 2016 View on HN

How does this differ from what make files have been doing for decades?

thiht Jul 1, 2020 View on HN

Because make doesn't do this?

listic Feb 12, 2012 View on HN

What's wrong with makefiles and why is new Go convention better?

ksjskskskkk Dec 23, 2023 View on HN

makefiles are awesome but misunderstood and widely abused.

JonChesterfield Apr 28, 2024 View on HN

This might be worth building into the makefile interpreter. Doing it in the makefiles themselves is quite difficult to get right and very messy.

dewey Apr 26, 2024 View on HN

Makefiles are still going strong!

m463 Feb 6, 2025 View on HN

Why doesn't someone just build good syntax into make itself?just put some coded comment at the top of the file like "#makev2" and below have variables, arrays, lists, ignore tabs vs spaces, etc