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[netCDF #RFH-499721]: NetCDF C

Hi Dominikus,

> I am not sure whether this is the right address to complain about latest
> developments in netcdf-c. Between the first builds of netcdf-4.3.0.tar.gz
> and current netcdf-c-…4.3.0.tar.gz the build system was replaced and
> now entirely depends on cmake. That is not very convenient for people
> operating on systems that do not offer these tools (I am trying to
> compile NetCDF on a Bluegene/Q and cmake is not available there). Can't
> we just keep the good old ./configure, make, make check, make install
> method? Can I get the previous build of netcdf-4.3.0.tar.gz with the
> old system to keep working?

Sure, we actually haven't changed netcdf-4.3.0.tar.gz since May 9, and it's
still available from either of these two places:

  ftp://ftp.unidata.ucar.edu/pub/netcdf/netcdf-4.3.0.tar.gz
  https://github.com/Unidata/netcdf-c/releases/tag/netcdf-4.3.0

On the latter page, you need to scroll down to the bottom of the page, 
below the Release Notes, and click on the button labeled "Source code (tar.gz)".

It's not as easy as it should be to find the proper download on the GitHub
site, but we're still working on giving the download of the latest stable
release more prominence.  Sorry about that.

We actually have no intention of replacing the traditional build system that
uses autoconf tools with a cmake-based build.  Instead, we are maintaining and
providing both build systems, so you can use whichever you're used to.

Part of the problem was caused by the move from hosting our own svn repository
to using GitHub.  The configure file didn't survive the move, because it's a
generated file (from configure.ac via autoreconf -i -f) rather than a source
file.  We found a way to fix that in the latest release candidates, versions
later than 4.3.1-rc2, but we warn users on the GitHub site that to build from
earlier release candidates, they will need to run autoreconf -i -f to get back
the configure file.

We also still need to do some work on our Unidata-hosted Downloads web page, as
it doesn't make clear enough which releases are for users versus developers.

I hope these problems will be fixed soon, so people who just want to use netCDF
will have a less frustrating experience downloading the latest stable release.

Anyway, thanks for reporting the problems!

--Russ

> Thank you for your understanding.
> 
> Best regards
> 
> Dominikus
> 
Russ Rew                                         UCAR Unidata Program
address@hidden                      http://www.unidata.ucar.edu



Ticket Details
===================
Ticket ID: RFH-499721
Department: Support netCDF
Priority: Normal
Status: Closed