(autoconf.info.gz) Why GNU m4

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 Why Require GNU M4?
 ===================
 
      Why does Autoconf require GNU M4?
 
    Many M4 implementations have hard-coded limitations on the size and
 number of macros that Autoconf exceeds.  They also lack several builtin
 macros that it would be difficult to get along without in a
 sophisticated application like Autoconf, including:
 
      m4_builtin
      m4_indir
      m4_bpatsubst
      __file__
      __line__
 
    Autoconf requires version 1.4 or above of GNU M4 because it uses
 frozen state files.
 
    Since only software maintainers need to use Autoconf, and since GNU
 M4 is simple to configure and install, it seems reasonable to require
 GNU M4 to be installed also.  Many maintainers of GNU and other free
 software already have most of the GNU utilities installed, since they
 prefer them.
 

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