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From: dca@toylnd.UUCP
Newsgroups: comp.sys.att,comp.unix.wizards,comp.unix.questions
Subject: Re: Problems with ld
Message-ID: <173@toylnd.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 14-Sep-87 01:33:27 EDT
Article-I.D.: toylnd.173
Posted: Mon Sep 14 01:33:27 1987
Date-Received: Sat, 19-Sep-87 08:36:01 EDT
References: <1@vanvleck.MATH.WISC.EDU>
Organization: Dave & Anne in Charlottesville, VA
Lines: 29
Keywords: ld loader linker
Xref: utgpu comp.sys.att:1081 comp.unix.wizards:3985 comp.unix.questions:3701
Summary: Why not prelink?

> We (the programmers for the University of Wisconsin/Madison Math department) are
> trying to bring up Cayley on our AT&T 3B15.  Cayley is a program that helps
> solve problems in group theory; it consists of about 2000 object files,
> all but a few in FORTRAN 77, the rest in C.  We can compile each of the pieces
> but haven't been able to get ld to link them.  
> 
> ld can't handle an argument list that contains 2000 file names, so we've
> collected the object files into 16 or 17 libraries.  Unfortunately, ld tells
> us that it can't read the .data section of one of our libraries, despite the
> fact that, as far as we can tell, it's OK.  
> 
I'm a little confused why you took this approach to a solution.  If the
loader you have supports pre-linking it is usually vastly preferable to
using libraries to link together large subsystems.  In libraries, you still
have to do all the work as if you were relinking the entire module even when
you change a single bit of code.  If you use prelinks you only have to re-link
the required pre-link and then relink the prelinks together which is usually
less time consuming.  Mind you I don't have a 3b15 (I have a 3b1) and I
haven't tried prelinks using 'ld' but from my manual that if you just divide
your object modules (hopefully in some semi-logical fashion) and link
them into a prelink by using the -r option you should then be able to
link the prelinks together to make a complete system.  It's possible
linking the resulting prelinks could also be less stressful on 'ld' in
terms of memory since it is not having to worry about references internal
to the prelinks, only externals.

Just a thought.

David Albrecht