Re: compile vs binary or package

> On either windows or linux or both, what is the advantage > to compiling PHP versus using a package or binary. I guess > on windows it does not matter much, but on linux I have > heard it is always better to compile your programs. The advantage is you get to include just the libraries and features you want/need. You can build a leaner faster binary that way. Also if you want to build PHP as an Apache module you have to compile Apache and PHP. I had to compile PHP/Apache myself to get Oracle support for PHP3. Under Linux it's not very hard if you follow the docs from http://www.php.net. Lately I've been compiling PHP4 under Windows in an attempt to get the Oracle.DLL to work. So far no luck. The compile process under Windows is pretty easy too. I use VC++ 6.0 and the Cygwin tools and just follow the docs. I'd never used Cygwin or VC++ before and still found it simple enough. Another advantage of compiling from source is the power it gives you. You don't have to wait for someone else to supply a binary when the source is available. Plus you might learn more about your OS and the software that runs on it. The more you know about the systems you depend on the better chance you have of keeping them running. <Yes, I AM an Open Source Zealot> ------------------------------------------------- Created by Zkey.com - http://www.zkey.com Awarded PCMagazine's Editors' Choice