Gaim 0.66 from source
 

I am trying to install Gaim v0.66 from source. I installed Gtk+-2.2.2 and deps: glib-2.2.2, atk-1.2.4, and pango-1.2.3, all from source (and all without errors). I then tried to configure gaim, but messages saying that perl, audio, NAS, and spellcheck (aspell), weren't supported. I don't know what NAS is, but I know I want support for the rest.

I installed aspell (without error) and Gtkspell (with following error):

configure: error: You must have the aspell or pspell dev libraries to build gtkspell.

I searched high and low for source and .deb packages for aspell-dev, "dev aspell" and I can't find anything resembling development package for aspell. I thought then "I can live without spellcheck," and installed the other packages (all else went fine). However, when I tried to re-configure gaim, I get:

checking for GLIB - version >= 2.0.0...
*** 'pkg-config --modversion glib-2.0' returned 2.0.1, but GLIB (2.2.2)
*** was found! If pkg-config was correct, then it is best
*** to remove the old version of GLib. You may also be able to fix the error
*** by modifying your LD_LIBRARY_PATH enviroment variable, or by editing
*** /etc/ld.so.conf. Make sure you have run ldconfig if that is
*** required on your system.
*** If pkg-config was wrong, set the environment variable PKG_CONFIG_PATH
*** to point to the correct configuration files
no
configure: error:
*** GLib 2.0 is required to build Gaim; please make sure you have the GLib
*** development headers installed. The latest version of GLib is
*** always available at http://www.gtk.org/.

I don't remember installing any other version of Glib other than 2.2.2, and I didn't uninstall v2.2.2. I don't want to find out the hard way what LD_LIBRARY_PATH and PKG_CONFIG_PATH are/do, so I am asking here.

Please help me configure gaim (with spellcheck support, if possible). Thanks!

By the way, "apt-get install gaim" provides gaim 0.58, and I would prefer the new features of 0.66 (especially gtk2-based GUI).

*** Debian Woody, KDE 3.1.2, custom kernel 2.4.21 ***

your base system probably came with glib 2.0.1 installed. Just hide it to pkg-config in modifying LD_LIBRARY_PATH (echo $LD_LIBRARY_PATH to see it, LD_LIBRARY_PATH="whatever" to set it). editing /etc/ld.so.conf
may help too. The goal is just to make your glib 2.0.1 undected to your system and so to pkg-config.

this is a very common but annoying msg 'bout gnome/gtk things, you'll have to mess deeply inside your lib to fix it (pkg-config is stupid, really, it can be a real pain to pass trought this useless error).

"echo $LD_LIBRARY_PATH" returns nothing:

# echo $LD_LIBRARY_PATH

#

So I tried setting it to /usr/local (didn't work), then /usr/local/lib (also didn't work), and finally /usr/local/glib-2.2.2/ (Gaim still won't configure). I even tried exporting these paths to PKG_CONFIG_PATH.

/etc/ld.so.conf says:

/usr/X11/lib
/usr/local/lib

I added /usr/local/glib-2.2.2 and it still wouldn't configure. I am really at a loss to solve this problem.

you misunderstood me. You don't have to add glib-2.2.2, you have to HIDE glib-2.0.1 you probably has somewhere (find it first of course!).
Just modify ld.so.conf and LD_LIBRARY_PATH to make sure your system (so pkg-config) will NOT find this useless lib, then run ld-config.

oh, btw, pkg-config is stupid enought to give you a "default" error that doesn't make sense, if you don't have ANY remaining glib-2.0.1 on your system (you have to be REALLY sure, a single forgotten links can make pkg-config to think you have it) the error is maybe something else, maybe you are missing some deps, or that something is broken?

I finally got GTK+-2.0.9 to install by doing the combination of what everyone said. First, I editted the /etc/ld.so.conf file and added /usr/local/lib/pkgconfig at the end and saved it. For atk I had to do 'export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=/usr/local/lib' and that made it configure correctly. After setting those two variables I was able to install pango without a problem, and then GTK configured fine.

Hopefully the paths are the same for your system, but there can be come differences, just browse through all the pkg-config problem threads and you'll eventually get there.