GNU bug report logs - #66679
automake: error: undefined condition 'TRUE' for 'info_TEXINFOS'

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Message #5 received at submit <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Eric Gallager <egall <at> gwmail.gwu.edu>
To: bug-automake <at> gnu.org
Subject: automake: error: undefined condition 'TRUE' for 'info_TEXINFOS'
Date: Sun, 22 Oct 2023 08:54:05 -0400

[Message part 1 (text/plain, inline)]

In my attached `Makefile.am`, I have been trying to modify it so that
it only rebuilds the documentation when explicitly asked to.
Otherwise, the distributed copy should just get used instead. However,
my modifications have led to the following error:
doc/Makefile.am:23: warning: user target 'gaa.dvi' defined here ...
/opt/local/share/automake-1.16/am/texibuild.am: ... overrides Automake
target 'gaa.dvi' defined here
automake: error: undefined condition 'TRUE' for 'info_TEXINFOS'
automake: info_TEXINFOS:
automake:   {
automake:     BUILD_DOCS => {
automake:       type: =
automake:       where: doc/Makefile.am:75:
automake:       comment:
automake:       value: gaa.texi
automake:       owner: Makefile
automake:     }
automake:   }
automake:
automake: Please contact <bug-automake <at> gnu.org>.
 at /opt/local/share/automake-1.16/Automake/Channels.pm line 655.
    Automake::Channels::msg("automake", "", "undefined condition
'TRUE' for 'info_TEXINFOS'\x{a}info_TEXINFOS:"...) called at
/opt/local/share/automake-1.16/Automake/ChannelDefs.pm line 226
    Automake::ChannelDefs::prog_error("undefined condition 'TRUE' for
'info_TEXINFOS'\x{a}info_TEXINFOS:"...) called at
/opt/local/share/automake-1.16/Automake/Item.pm line 98
    Automake::Item::rdef(Automake::Variable=HASH(0x7fbdb2139bc0),
Automake::Condition=HASH(0x7fbdb3a9a0a0)) called at
/opt/local/bin/automake line 7851
    Automake::require_conf_file_with_macro(Automake::Condition=HASH(0x7fbdb3a9a0a0),
"info_TEXINFOS", 0, "mdate-sh") called at /opt/local/bin/automake line
3432
    Automake::handle_texinfo_helper(Automake::Variable=HASH(0x7fbdb2139bc0))
called at /opt/local/bin/automake line 3540
    Automake::handle_texinfo() called at /opt/local/bin/automake line 8023
    Automake::generate_makefile("doc/Makefile.am", "doc/Makefile.in")
called at /opt/local/bin/automake line 8321
    Automake::handle_makefile("doc/Makefile.in") called at
/opt/local/bin/automake line 8333
    Automake::handle_makefiles_serial() called at
/opt/local/bin/automake line 8465
autoreconf: error: /opt/local/bin/automake failed with exit status: 255

The error message said to report it, so that's what I'm doing. Plus
that whole backtrace doesn't exactly look like your normal automake
error. Anyways, here's my version info:

$ automake --version
automake (GNU automake) 1.16.5
Copyright (C) 2021 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
License GPLv2+: GNU GPL version 2 or later
<https://gnu.org/licenses/gpl-2.0.html>
This is free software: you are free to change and redistribute it.
There is NO WARRANTY, to the extent permitted by law.

Written by Tom Tromey <tromey <at> redhat.com>
       and Alexandre Duret-Lutz <adl <at> gnu.org>.

[Makefile.am (application/octet-stream, attachment)]

Message #8 received at 66679 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Karl Berry <karl <at> freefriends.org>
To: egall <at> gwmail.gwu.edu
Cc: 66679 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#66679: automake: error: undefined condition 'TRUE' for
 'info_TEXINFOS'
Date: Sun, 22 Oct 2023 15:28:33 -0600

    automake: Please contact <bug-automake <at> gnu.org>.
     at /opt/local/share/automake-1.16/Automake/Channels.pm line 655.
        Automake::Channels::msg("automake", "", "undefined condition

Thanks for the report. I (or someone else ... Bogdan?) will look into it
as soon as we have a chance.

Looking at the backtrace, I guess you have subdirectories.
Could you send or point me to a snapshot of your whole tree?
I fear the Makefile.am on its own won't be enough to reproduce.

    In my attached `Makefile.am`, I have been trying to modify it so that
    it only rebuilds the documentation when explicitly asked to.
    Otherwise, the distributed copy should just get used instead. 

I wish I had some idea for you, but I just don't. Maybe someone else
here can advise better. --thanks again, karl.

Message #11 received at 66679 <at> debbugs.gnu.org (full text, mbox):

From: Eric Gallager <egall <at> gwmail.gwu.edu>
To: Karl Berry <karl <at> freefriends.org>
Cc: 66679 <at> debbugs.gnu.org
Subject: Re: bug#66679: automake: error: undefined condition 'TRUE' for
 'info_TEXINFOS'
Date: Sun, 22 Oct 2023 22:34:50 -0400

On Sun, Oct 22, 2023 at 5:28 PM Karl Berry <karl <at> freefriends.org> wrote:
>
>     automake: Please contact <bug-automake <at> gnu.org>.
>      at /opt/local/share/automake-1.16/Automake/Channels.pm line 655.
>         Automake::Channels::msg("automake", "", "undefined condition
>
> Thanks for the report. I (or someone else ... Bogdan?) will look into it
> as soon as we have a chance.
>
> Looking at the backtrace, I guess you have subdirectories.
> Could you send or point me to a snapshot of your whole tree?
> I fear the Makefile.am on its own won't be enough to reproduce.
>
>     In my attached `Makefile.am`, I have been trying to modify it so that
>     it only rebuilds the documentation when explicitly asked to.
>     Otherwise, the distributed copy should just get used instead.
>
> I wish I had some idea for you, but I just don't. Maybe someone else
> here can advise better. --thanks again, karl.

So, I actually already worked past the issue in my repository where
this occurred:
In this commit, it was broken:
https://github.com/cooljeanius/gaa/commit/8e2e78b844c530360893f359603b5d317f507ead
...and then in this commit, I fixed it:
https://github.com/cooljeanius/gaa/commit/ae6404d7c9a1eb7c517b9712e874dade61a457e2
I think it was a genuine user error in my code, but still, genuine
user errors shouldn't cause internal-looking backtraces to be
displayed like that, or request that they be reported upstream to
automake... Some sort of fix-it hint like "Note: move this variable
outside of the conditional, and then append to it from within the
conditional" would probably help make the error message a bit more
helpful.

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