Updating top-level autoconf to 2.59

[John Cowan]

Michael Eager scripsit:

> I would much prefer explicitly specifying that the build is cross or
> native.  I want to specify --cross or --native (or the equivalent).
> I'd be happy to discard backward compatibility.

The trouble is that you can't be sure that there aren't really
three different machine architectures -- you might be building a compiler
on a Linux box to run on a Solaris system to generate code for an ARM,
for example.  Is building a compiler on a Linux box to run on Solaris
to generate code for the same Linux box a cross-compiler or not?
How about building a compiler on Solaris to run on Linux for Linux?
And so on.

But I agree that it shouldn't matter whether a build, host, or target
switch is specified or defaulted; what should matter is the equality
or inequality of the value of those switches.

-- 
If you have ever wondered if you are in hell,         John Cowan
it has been said, then you are on a well-traveled     http://www.ccil.org/~cowan
road of spiritual inquiry.  If you are absolutely     cowan@ccil.org
sure you are in hell, however, then you must be
on the Cross Bronx Expressway.          --Alan Feuer, NYTimes, 2002-09-20