On Thu, Apr 03, 2008 at 11:37:40AM +0530, Prasad J Pandit wrote:
> I wanted to use it with my MSVC application, and to start with, there is no
> download link on the `libcurl' section of the.
>
> site: http://curl.haxx.se/libcurl/

It's there, close to the bottom.

> One has to read that stupid message and figure out where to go and what to
> do? Why cann't you have a link to the libcurl*.[gz|zip] or binary files
> right in front of my eyes, when the page loads.

Probably because there are 326 binary files for 29 operating systems. If
those were right in front of your eyes instead, you'd have to scroll
down to see the libcurl information instead and your complaint would be
different.

> Please don't make me read
> and scroll and wander around your site. Second, no windows installer for
> the library. I did download and install one of the binary distribution of
> library, I think it was curlcpp or the one that is available
>
> at: http://curl.haxx.se/download.html

Which one of the 326 files did you download? Sounds like you should have
used the Download Wizard: http://curl.haxx.se/dlwiz/

> All I got was only the library and no headers. So I downloaded the source
> package and compiled the library & installed it but it wouldn't link with my
> application, it said some __imp_curl_easy... symbols were undefined.

That's covered in the FAQ:
http://curl.haxx.se/docs/faq.html#Link_errors_when_building_libcur

> Then I again download the curl source, compiled the library from `lib'
> directory, after defining HTTP_ONLY, and things...I think it's was all too
> much for a library installaion. I mean come-on, it's just the damn library.

It's a sophisticated, highly-configurable library of over 70,000 lines
of code with 16 library dependencies on its own. It's not helloworld.c

> + Reduce that stupid site to some couple of pages like `tcpdump.org'.
> You know, IMO no project needs more that two pages for a website.

Which pages do you suggest dropping? The FAQ entry that shows how to
solve your import problem? The download wizard that would have led you to
the libcurl development library you wanted? The information on using
libcurl? All that information needs to be accessible to people somewhere
or else the mailing list will be inundanted with simple questions
and potential users will give up and find another package.

Having said all that, I agree that the web site is somewhat inconsistent
and navigation could be improved. But it's a community-driven project;
unless someone steps up to the plate to make it better, it won't.

>>> Dan

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