Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

GNU Make VS Buck

Compare GNU Make VS Buck and see what are their differences

GNU Make logo GNU Make

GNU Make is a tool which controls the generation of executables and other non-source files of a program from the program's source files.

Buck logo Buck

A high-performance build tool for Android by Facebook
  • GNU Make Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-03-12
  • Buck Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-03-29

GNU Make features and specs

  • Portability
    GNU Make is highly portable and can be used across various Unix-like operating systems as well as on Windows.
  • Dependency Management
    It efficiently handles complex dependencies between various parts of the software, ensuring that changes are propagated properly.
  • Open Source
    Being open-source software, GNU Make is freely available and can be modified according to user needs.
  • Wide Adoption
    It is widely adopted in the industry, which means that there is extensive documentation and a large community for support.
  • Efficiency
    GNU Make speeds up the build process by only recompiling the necessary parts of the codebase.

Possible disadvantages of GNU Make

  • Complex Syntax
    The syntax of GNU Makefiles can become very complex, especially for large projects, making them hard to read and maintain.
  • Limited Cross-Platform Scripting
    While the tool itself is cross-platform, Makefiles can sometimes include shell commands that are not portable.
  • Steep Learning Curve
    Beginners may find it challenging to grasp the concepts and syntax of GNU Make, leading to a steep learning curve.
  • Debugging Difficulty
    Debugging Makefiles can be difficult, with limited tools available to trace or step through the make process.
  • Performance Bottlenecks
    For extremely large projects, performance can become an issue, as the evaluation of dependencies might become slow.

Buck features and specs

  • Speed
    Buck's advanced dependency graph management allows for fast incremental builds, which can significantly reduce build times compared to other build tools.
  • Deterministic Builds
    Buck ensures that the same input will always produce the same output, which enhances the reliability and consistency across different environments.
  • Reproducibility
    With Buck, you can build the same output from the same source code, ensuring greater confidence in the software you are shipping.
  • Fine-Grained Build Targets
    Buck offers fine-grained control over build rules, which can lead to more efficient builds by minimizing the amount of work needed when small changes are made.
  • Multi-Language Support
    Buck supports multiple programming languages and platforms, making it versatile for diverse project environments.
  • Remote Build Execution
    Buck supports remote build execution, which can speed up the build process by offloading tasks to more powerful servers or distributed environments.

Possible disadvantages of Buck

  • Steep Learning Curve
    The complexity and variety of features in Buck can make it difficult for new users to learn and adopt, especially for those accustomed to simpler build systems.
  • Sparse Documentation
    While there is some documentation available, it can be sparse, and users might struggle to find examples or community support for advanced usage.
  • Limited Ecosystem
    Compared to more established build tools like Maven or Gradle, Buck has a smaller ecosystem of plugins and extensions, which might limit its adaptability for certain projects.
  • Metadata Overhead
    Buck requires the maintenance of a considerable amount of metadata and configuration files, which can increase the complexity of managing large projects.
  • Configuration Complexity
    Setting up Buck and configuring build rules can be complex and time-consuming, requiring a deep understanding of the tool and its intricacies.

GNU Make videos

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Buck videos

Buck HONEST Operator Review | Rainbow Six Siege

More videos:

  • Review - Unbreakable Pocket Knife Destruction Test - Buck 110 review
  • Review - Buck 110 review after carrying for 9 years

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to GNU Make and Buck)
Front End Package Manager
JS Build Tools
77 77%
24% 24
Development
54 54%
46% 46
JavaScript Package Manager

User comments

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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Buck seems to be more popular. It has been mentiond 9 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

GNU Make mentions (0)

We have not tracked any mentions of GNU Make yet. Tracking of GNU Make recommendations started around Mar 2021.

Buck mentions (9)

  • How to effectively work in big codebases
    Many big companies have built their own tools to reign in this complexity and make it easier and faster for developers to work on large, multi-language code bases. Meta has buck, Amazon has brazil, and Google has bazel. But from my experience, especially, with brazil, these tools also have some rough edges, so understanding how they work can go a long way. - Source: dev.to / 9 months ago
  • Compiling a single-file app with csc.dll
    We use Buck company wide. Our packaging / deployment system, for example, expects to be given a Buck target to build, not a pre-built binary - I can’t just build my app with dotnet and upload it. While it is possible for a Buck target to be a simple bash command (i.e dotnet publish), doing so makes the target “opaque” - Buck wouldn’t have any knowledge of my app’s build graph so I’d lose many of the benefits it... Source: almost 2 years ago
  • Just: A Command Runner
    Oh excellent, then better (and more portable!) tools are available: http://pants.build https://ninja-build.org https://buck.build and, if you hate yourself: https://bazel.build. - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago
  • Dev Discussions: Everything You Need to Know about Monorepos with Juri Strumpflohner of Nrwl
    Pioneered by tech giants like Google and Meta with tools like Bazel and Buck, monorepos are seeing widespread adoption across companies of all sizes and industries. - Source: dev.to / almost 3 years ago
  • Using URLs for dependency management
    Buck has a http_file() that you can use this way, and it has first-class support for Java. Source: almost 3 years ago
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What are some alternatives?

When comparing GNU Make and Buck, you can also consider the following products

CMake - CMake is an open-source, cross-platform family of tools designed to build, test and package software.

SCons - SCons is an Open Source software construction tool—that is, a next-generation build tool.

Meson - Meson is an open source build system meant to be both extremely fast, and, even more importantly...

SBT - SBT is a build tool for Scala, like Ant or Maven but with hieroglyphics.

npm - npm is a package manager for Node.

Ninja Build - Ninja is a small build system with a focus on speed.