<refentry id="glib-compiling" revision="17 Jan 2002">
<refmeta>
<refentrytitle>Compiling GLib Applications</refentrytitle>
<manvolnum>3</manvolnum>
<refmiscinfo>GLib Library</refmiscinfo>
</refmeta>

<refnamediv>
<refname>Compiling GLib Applications</refname>
<refpurpose>
How to compile your GLib application
</refpurpose>
</refnamediv>

<refsect1>
<title>Compiling GLib Applications on UNIX</title>

<para>
To compile a GLib application, you need to tell the compiler where to 
find the GLib header files and libraries. This is done with the
<application>pkg-config</application> utility.
</para>
<para>
The following interactive shell session demonstrates how
<application>pkg-config</application> is used (the actual output on
your system may be different):
<programlisting>
$ pkg-config --cflags glib-2.0
 -I/usr/include/glib-2.0 -I/usr/lib/glib-2.0/include 
$ pkg-config --libs glib-2.0
 -L/usr/lib -lm -lglib-2.0  
</programlisting>
</para>
<para>
If your application uses threads or <structname>GObject</structname>
features, it must be compiled and linked with the options returned by the 
following <application>pkg-config</application> invocations: 
<programlisting>
$ pkg-config --cflags --libs gthread-2.0
$ pkg-config --cflags --libs gobject-2.0
</programlisting>
</para>
<para>
If your application uses modules, it must be compiled and linked with the options 
returned by one of the following <application>pkg-config</application> invocations: 
<programlisting>
$ pkg-config --cflags --libs gmodule-no-export-2.0 
$ pkg-config --cflags --libs gmodule-2.0 
</programlisting>
The difference between the two is that gmodule-2.0 adds <option>--export-dynamic</option> 
to the linker flags, which is often not needed.
</para>
<para>
The simplest way to compile a program is to use the "backticks"
feature of the shell. If you enclose a command in backticks
(<emphasis>not single quotes</emphasis>), then its output will be
substituted into the command line before execution. So to compile 
a GLib Hello, World, you would type the following:
<programlisting>
$ cc `pkg-config --cflags --libs glib-2.0` hello.c -o hello
</programlisting>
</para>

<para>
If you want to make sure that your program doesn't use any deprecated
functions, you can define the preprocessor symbol G_DISABLE_DEPRECATED
by using the command line option <literal>-DG_DISABLE_DEPRECATED=1</literal>.
</para>

<para>
The recommended way of using GLib has always been to only include the 
toplevel headers <filename>glib.h</filename>, 
<filename>glib-object.h</filename>, <filename>gio.h</filename>.
Starting with 2.17, GLib enforces this by generating an error
when individual headers are directly included. To help with the 
transition, the enforcement is not turned on by default for GLib 
headers (it <emphasis>is</emphasis> turned on for GObject and GIO).
To turn it on, define the preprocessor symbol G_DISABLE_SINGLE_INCLUDES
by using the command line option <literal>-DG_DISABLE_SINGLE_INCLUDES</literal>.
</para>

</refsect1>

</refentry>
