Meson vs Autoconf

Struggling to choose between Meson and Autoconf? Both products offer unique advantages, making it a tough decision.

Meson is a Development solution with tags like build-system, compiler, open-source.

It boasts features such as Fast build times, Intuitive syntax, Cross-platform support, Integration with popular build tools and languages, Dependency management, Support for tests and benchmarks, Customizable build configuration and pros including Very fast compared to other build systems, Simple configuration using Python DSL, Easy to use and learn, Detects changes quickly to avoid unnecessary rebuilds, Good error messages, Lightweight with few dependencies.

On the other hand, Autoconf is a Development product tagged with configuration, portability, automation.

Its standout features include Portability, Extensibility, Automatic dependency tracking, Support for conditional compilation, Built-in caching, Macro language, and it shines with pros like Makes software portable across Unix-like systems, Allows customization through macros, Automates tedious configuration tasks, Avoids manual editing of configuration files, Reuses previous configuration results.

To help you make an informed decision, we've compiled a comprehensive comparison of these two products, delving into their features, pros, cons, pricing, and more. Get ready to explore the nuances that set them apart and determine which one is the perfect fit for your requirements.

Meson

Meson

Meson is an open-source build system focused on speed and ease of use. It is designed to optimize the build process by detecting changes in projects faster and providing useful error messages. Meson supports many languages and build tools.

Categories:
build-system compiler open-source

Meson Features

  1. Fast build times
  2. Intuitive syntax
  3. Cross-platform support
  4. Integration with popular build tools and languages
  5. Dependency management
  6. Support for tests and benchmarks
  7. Customizable build configuration

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Very fast compared to other build systems

Simple configuration using Python DSL

Easy to use and learn

Detects changes quickly to avoid unnecessary rebuilds

Good error messages

Lightweight with few dependencies

Cons

Limited adoption outside C/C++ projects

Less flexibility than some other build tools

Lacks some advanced features of tools like CMake

Less third-party integration compared to older systems


Autoconf

Autoconf

Autoconf is an extensible package of M4 macros that produce shell scripts to automatically configure software source code packages. It can adapt the software to many kinds of Unix-like systems without manual user intervention.

Categories:
configuration portability automation

Autoconf Features

  1. Portability
  2. Extensibility
  3. Automatic dependency tracking
  4. Support for conditional compilation
  5. Built-in caching
  6. Macro language

Pricing

  • Open Source

Pros

Makes software portable across Unix-like systems

Allows customization through macros

Automates tedious configuration tasks

Avoids manual editing of configuration files

Reuses previous configuration results

Cons

Complex macro language has steep learning curve

Hard to debug issues

Can produce convoluted configuration scripts

Limited support on non-Unix platforms