autoconf
<software, tool> The {GNU project}'s tool that configures a
source code distribution to compile and run on a different
platform.
Among {open source} {hackers}, a mere running {binary} of a
program is not considered a full release; what's interesting
is a source tree that can be built into binaries using
standard tools. Since the mid-1990s, autoconf, {automake},
and {libtools} have been the standard way to make a
distribution portable so that it can be built on multiple
{operating systems} without change.
(2002-09-20)