[bug#32634] RFC: Process build output

[Nils Gillmann]

Hi,

Ricardo Wurmus transcribed 2.1K bytes:
> Hi Guix,
> 
> this patch set is a first draft to stylize (potentially confusing) build
> output when using “guix package” and “guix build”.
> 
> This is done by adding a soft port that matches on lines in the build
> output and colorizes them (unless INSIDE_EMACS or NO_COLOR are set, or
> when output is redirected).  For “guix package” the default behaviour is

So far I have one comment:

Would it make sense to use 'GUIX_UI_NO_COLOR' instead? This makes it
clear what it is for (use clear function names), and it does not
impose using "no colors" in other terminal applications if you
permanently export it.

> to also hide all build output that does not announce progress (unless
> “--verbose” is passed) and to let a spinner show progress instead.  For
> “guix build” all build output is still printed.
> 
> Honestly, I’m not really happy with the results, but I think it’s enough
> to start a discussion about where this should lead.
> 
> One thing I don’t like is that I had to set the “print-build-trace?”
> default option to be able to display what build is currently happening.
> Unfortunately, for small derivations this leads to output like this:
> 
> --8<---------------cut here---------------start------------->8---
> Building /gnu/store/2x5xmvimja0pbkvvr8rym91q0249ajiv-fonts-dir.drv - 
> x86_64-linux
> Built /gnu/store/2x5xmvimja0pbkvvr8rym91q0249ajiv-fonts-dir.drv
> Building /gnu/store/diz3pmgrqibvp2pyvgh4wyr4nx5vlx0y-glib-schemas.drv - 
> x86_64-linux
> Built /gnu/store/diz3pmgrqibvp2pyvgh4wyr4nx5vlx0y-glib-schemas.drv
> Building /gnu/store/ss70j6lf8xxiiykdys92iw92khx68ix9-info-dir.drv - 
> x86_64-linux
> Built /gnu/store/ss70j6lf8xxiiykdys92iw92khx68ix9-info-dir.drv
> Building /gnu/store/rh92rslbj4x9abyna6lc11jqifbavx13-librsvg-2.40.20.drv - 
> x86_64-linux
> Built /gnu/store/rh92rslbj4x9abyna6lc11jqifbavx13-librsvg-2.40.20.drv
> --8<---------------cut here---------------end--------------->8---
> 
> I would prefer:
> 
>     Building /gnu/store/rh92rslbj4x9abyna6lc11jqifbavx13-librsvg-2.40.20.drv 
> … DONE
> 
> or similar.
> 
> I don’t know about whether the colours are any good; I think the bold
> green is hard to read on a bright terminal, while the black is hard to
> read on a dark terminal.
> 
> Lastly: the spinner.  It’s a bit boring, I think.
> 
> What do you think?  Is this a step in the right direction?
> 
> --
> Ricardo
> 
> 
> 
>