Off to compile gDesklets, I run the config script, it comes back saying:

configure: error: Library requirements (glib-2.0 gdk-pixbuf-2.0 gtk+-2.0 pygtk-2.0 >= 2.4.0) not met; consider adjusting the PKG_CONFIG_PATH environment variable if your libraries are in a nonstandard prefix so pkg-config can find them.

So, of I go to ftp.gtk.org I download GLIB 2.6.2 & GTK+ 2.0. I install GLIB like so:

./configure
make
make install

No errors there. So I move on to GTK and get this error:

configure: error: Library requirements (glib-2.0 >= 2.6.0 atk >= 1.0.1 pango >= 1.8.0) not met; consider adjusting the PKG_CONFIG_PATH environment variable if your libraries are in a nonstandard prefix so pkg-config can find them.
debian:/home/rixth/gtk+-2.6.2#

So, once again, I goto ftp.gtk.org and download Pango & Atk.

I try to compile atk:

checking for GLIB - version >= 2.5.7... no
*** Could not run GLIB test program, checking why...
*** The test program failed to compile or link. See the file config.log for the
*** exact error that occured. This usually means GLIB is incorrectly installed.
configure: error:
*** GLIB 2.5.7 or better is required. The latest version of
*** GLIB is always available from ftp://ftp.gtk.org/. If GLIB is installed
*** but not in the same location as pkg-config add the location of the file
*** glib-2.0.pc to the environment variable PKG_CONFIG_PATH.

I try to compile pango:

checking for fontconfig >= 1.0.1... Package fontconfig was not found in the pkg-config search path.
Perhaps you should add the directory containing `fontconfig.pc'
to the PKG_CONFIG_PATH environment variable
No package 'fontconfig' found
configure: WARNING: No fontconfig found, skipping tests for FreeType and Xft
configure: error: *** Didn't find any of FreeType, X11, or Win32.
*** Must have at least one backend to build Pango.

How am I going to get GTK to compile?! This is driving me nuts!

Altec_

(I'm probably missing something obvious...)

I have endured this pkgconfig s**t so damn many times that it drives me nuts too :E

A whole range of programs don't come with pkgconfig's required .pc files & a whole range of even dumber programs rely on those f*****g files ((

What could be more frustrating that seeing that you have the latest version of the needed s/w & just 'cause you don't have the corresponding .pc file, you are totally stuck during compile ??!!!

Sorry Altec_, I just had to blow my steam... I wish I had a solution 4u...

I went through something similar yesterday when compiling the new Gimp. I compiled glib like you did and it ended up in /usr/local/lib (check if it's there). To get gtk+ to compile I had to set these two environment variables:

export PKG_CONFIG_PATH=/usr/local/lib/pkgconfig
export LD_LIBRARY_PATH=/usr/local/lib

Good luck !

to build gnome libs (or anything that depends on pkg-config) you need to know a little on how it works.

First, you are building libs that you probably already have on your system and installing them in parallel with what's on your system. In the end, you can expect even more errors once you get this compiled and installed.

Really, you need to upgrade what you have on your system where it's installed on your system ( or at the least remove the old system installed glib, atk, pango, gtk once you build the new ones).

the way pkg-config basically works is it searches for .pc files in */lib/pkgconfig. so for example, if gtk+2.4 is installed in /usr, /usr/lib/pkgconfig will contain gtk+-2.0.pc which pkg-config will use to pass parameters back to gcc telling it where to find the headers and libraries (as well as version numbers and other things) to build against and link to. to manipulate this path, like if you did a basic configure, make, make install, (the .pc file will end up in /usr/local/lib/pkgconfig) you will have to add the new directory to your PKG_CONFIG_PATH:

export PKG_CONFIG_PATH=/usr/local/lib/pkgconfig:$PKG_CONFIG_PATH

But, as I said above, since you probably already have these libs on your system ( and most likely earlier versions of them) theres a decent chance that when you invoke the program the dynamic linker will bail on you with errors. you could get around this with LD_LIBRARY_PATH as posted above, but sooner or later if you keep this up it will be hell to manage your system with all the different paths and such.

Thanks alot LasseW for providing the solution and ___I for letting me know WHY it happened. Should be sticky, considering things go wrong if you install with defualt options!

Thanks again,

Altec_

Edit: Now it complains about FreeType problems (when compiling Pango, ATK worked fine). I got FreeType from SF, install it no problems, can't find it! When I compile FreeType I have a feeling I have to ./confidure XXXdir= but I'm not sure where to compile to.

what complains about freetype (make sure you don't already have one in /usr, and make sure if you have one installed, you have freetype-devel installed) and is it complaining about freetype or xft?

checking for pkg-config... /usr/bin/pkg-config
checking for fontconfig >= 1.0.1... Package fontconfig was not found in the pkg-config search path.
Perhaps you should add the directory containing `fontconfig.pc'
to the PKG_CONFIG_PATH environment variable
No package 'fontconfig' found
configure: WARNING: No fontconfig found, skipping tests for FreeType and Xft
configure: error: *** Didn't find any of FreeType, X11, or Win32.
*** Must have at least one backend to build Pango.
debian:/home/rixth/pango-1.6.0# apt-get install fontconfig
Reading Package Lists... Done
Building Dependency Tree... Done
fontconfig is already the newest version.
0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 0 to remove and 0 not upgraded.
debian:/home/rixth/pango-1.6.0#

Search for file fontconfig.pc = zero results.

(Unrelated, but anoter g____ problem)

checking for glib-2.0 >= 2.0.0 gmodule-2.0 >= 2.0.0 gthread-2.0 >= 2.0.0 gconf-2.0 >= 1.1.1... Package gconf-2.0 was not found in the pkg-config search path.
Perhaps you should add the directory containing `gconf-2.0.pc'
to the PKG_CONFIG_PATH environment variable
No package 'gconf-2.0' found

Running apt-get install gconf brings back saying I have the latest version. But 'gconf-2.0 >= 1.1.1' Huh? Apparently Debian thinks the latest version is 1.1.1.

Search for gconf-2.0.pc = Nada results.

I'm beginning to think apt--get isn't all its hyped up to be.

Edit: What a f***ing mess all the gXXX files are. They all interlock, I goto install GConf, it wants ORBit, I go to install ORBit, it wants something.

I can't use apt-get becasue the only sources I have are from the Sarge ISOs 1-7 I need some HTTP/FTP sources if someone would be kind enoguh to send me the contens of their cources.list

I think more than apt-get (or yum which I use on my fedora) is not to be blamed. They are excellent tools & do exactly what they are supposed to do.

I have tried setting PKG_CONFIG_PATH & LD_LIBRARY_PATH & everything else ad infinitum. But if the .pc file is not installed as part of the dependency program, pkgconfig is always going to crib. It's about ensuring that all the programs which are part of the dependency tree have proper .pc files which are put in sane locations. And that is something we as end users cannot ensure.

So where can I get the .pc files? Do I have to compile GConf myself?

Someone on the Debian IRC server told me about apt-setup so that sources problem is fixed.

stuff like .pc files and header files are probably in the corresponding -devel package for that library for distro's that split up their packages.