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wtf is makefile-parser-pm?

agentzh/makefile-parser-pm — explained in plain English

Analysis updated 2026-07-17 · repo last pushed 2016-01-03

★ 12PerlAudience · developerComplexity · 2/5DormantSetup · easy

TL;DR

A Perl library that parses simple Makefiles to extract variables, targets, and build commands for use in other tools.

Mindmap

mindmap
  root((repo))
    What it does
      Parses Makefile syntax
      Extracts variables and targets
      Reads build dependencies
    Tech stack
      Perl
      Makefile parsing
    Use cases
      Build visualization tools
      Makefile linters
      IDE project plugins
    Audience
      Developers

Code map

Detail Auto

An interactive map of this repo's files and how they connect — its source is parsed live in your browser. Click Visualize to build it.

filefunction / class

Why would anyone build with this?

REASON 1

Build a Makefile visualization tool using GraphViz

REASON 2

Write a Makefile linter that checks for common mistakes

REASON 3

Create an IDE plugin that understands a project's build targets

REASON 4

Automate analysis of simple Makefiles in a Perl script

What's in the stack?

Perl

How it stacks up

agentzh/makefile-parser-pmrobinpie/fontliberatorjordansissel/sysadvent
Stars121618
LanguagePerlPerlPerl
Last pushed2016-01-03—2012-12-25
MaintenanceDormant—Dormant
Setup difficultyeasymoderatemoderate
Complexity2/54/52/5
Audiencedeveloperdeveloperops devops

Figures from each repo's GitHub metadata at analysis time.

How do you spin it up?

Difficulty · easy Time to first run · 30min

Experimental and designed for simple Makefiles only, not all GNU make features are supported.

No license information was found in the explanation.

Yoink these prompts

Prompt 1
Show me how to parse a simple Makefile with makefile-parser-pm and list its targets
Prompt 2
Help me extract the dependencies for a specific target using this Perl library
Prompt 3
Write a Perl script that reads the CC variable from a Makefile using this parser
Prompt 4
Explain the limits of this parser compared to GNU make and when I'd need Makefile::Parser::GmakeDB instead

Frequently asked questions

wtf is makefile-parser-pm?

A Perl library that parses simple Makefiles to extract variables, targets, and build commands for use in other tools.

What language is makefile-parser-pm written in?

Mainly Perl. The stack also includes Perl.

Is makefile-parser-pm actively maintained?

Dormant — no commits in 2+ years (last push 2016-01-03).

What license does makefile-parser-pm use?

No license information was found in the explanation.

How hard is makefile-parser-pm to set up?

Setup difficulty is rated easy, with roughly 30min to a first successful run.

Who is makefile-parser-pm for?

Mainly developer.

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