# Libiconv: iconv\_open is missing? **URL:** \ **Category:** Ruby\ **Created:** [October 20, 2006, 1:13am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/libiconv-iconv-open-is-missing/72948 "2006-10-20T01:13:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mwalsh](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/91b2a8/32.png) [@mwalsh](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/mwalsh)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 1:13am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/libiconv-iconv-open-is-missing/72948/1 "2006-10-20T01:13:43Z")
I’m relatively new to unix/osx/ruby so please be as gentle as you can…! I’m running Mac OSX Tiger. When I run ruby extconf.rb to try and install net-geoip-0.06 I keep getting the error ‘extconf failure: need libiconv.’ I’m pretty stuck with this. I have un-installed ruby and libiconv then reinstalled, all using DarwinPorts. If I run port installed i see the following: Vigor10:~/Documents/Downloads/net-geoip-0.06 matt$ port installed The following ports are currently installed: libiconv @1.11\_0+darwin\_8 (active) openssl @0.9.8b\_0+darwin\_8 (active) readline @5.1.004\_0 (active) ruby @1.8.5\_0 (active) sqlite2 @2.8.17\_0+darwin\_8 (active) sqlite3 @3.3.7\_0+darwin\_8 (active) swig @1.3.29\_0+darwin\_8 (active) zlib @1.2.3\_0 (active) So that looks OK, right? In irb, if I require(‘mkmf’) first, I can call have\_library(‘iconv’,‘libiconv’) and return true, but the line that fails in extconf.rb is looking for a function ‘iconv\_open’, and indeed if i call find\_library(‘iconv’,‘iconv\_open’) in that same irb session, I get back false. I saw another discussion on here[1] about the lib-xml component that also requires this iconv\_open function, and someone who seemed to have it missing, though I couldn’t see a resolution on that thread (at least not one that I understood!) Any help immensely appreciated, this is my brick wall right now. cheers, Matt [1][LibXML-Ruby 0.3.6 - Ruby - Ruby-Forum](http://www.ruby-forum.com/topic/55709#39835) ---
**Author:** ![mwalsh](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/91b2a8/32.png) [@mwalsh](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/mwalsh)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 1:30am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/libiconv-iconv-open-is-missing/72948/2 "2006-10-20T01:30:04Z")
From: “Matt W.” [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) > In irb, if I require(‘mkmf’) first, I can call > have\_library(‘iconv’,‘libiconv’) and return true, but the line that > fails in extconf.rb is looking for a function ‘iconv\_open’, and indeed > if i call find\_library(‘iconv’,‘iconv\_open’) in that same irb session, I > get back false. Sorry, I don’t know the answer, but - have you tried just commenting out that line in the extconf.rb, and seeing if it might build anyway? (The thinking was, if you’re lucky, if just might build anyway; otherwise it may fail later in the build, possibly giving additional clues about why it won’t build…) Regards, Bill ---
**Author:** ![mwalsh](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/91b2a8/32.png) [@mwalsh](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/mwalsh)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 2:58am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/libiconv-iconv-open-is-missing/72948/3 "2006-10-20T02:58:19Z")
Hi, At Fri, 20 Oct 2006 08:13:46 +0900, Matt W. wrote in [ruby-talk:220713]: > In irb, if I require(‘mkmf’) first, I can call > have\_library(‘iconv’,‘libiconv’) and return true, but the line that have\_library(‘iconv’, ‘iconv’) fails, right? > fails in extconf.rb is looking for a function ‘iconv\_open’, and indeed > if i call find\_library(‘iconv’,‘iconv\_open’) in that same irb session, I > get back false. Then try find\_library(‘iconv’,‘libiconv’) or find\_library(‘iconv’,‘libiconv\_open’) find\_library should take headers parameter as well as have\_library, but it’d be too late. ---
**Author:** ![mwalsh](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/91b2a8/32.png) [@mwalsh](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/mwalsh)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 8:34am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/libiconv-iconv-open-is-missing/72948/4 "2006-10-20T08:34:42Z")
thanks Nobuyoshi, > Then try > find\_library(‘iconv’,‘libiconv’) > or > find\_library(‘iconv’,‘libiconv\_open’) yes, both of those work. Does this mean the extconf.rb file for net-geoip-0.06[1] is incorrect then? If I hack it to change the ‘iconv\_open’ in that file to ‘libiconv\_open’ instead, will the program still build ok? > find\_library should take headers parameter as well as have\_library, > but it’d be too late. I’m sorry I don’t understand what you’ve said here - are you saying it would be nice to change find\_library to have this extra functionality? cheers, Matt ---
**Author:** ![mwalsh](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/91b2a8/32.png) [@mwalsh](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/mwalsh)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 8:58am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/libiconv-iconv-open-is-missing/72948/5 "2006-10-20T08:58:50Z")
> Sorry, I don’t know the answer, but - have you tried just commenting > out that line in the extconf.rb, and seeing if it might build anyway? > > (The thinking was, if you’re lucky, if just might build anyway; > otherwise > it may fail later in the build, possibly giving additional clues about > why > it won’t build…) Hey Bill, thanks, I kindof did that by taking Nobuyoshi’s suggestion and hacking the extconf.rb file, which now runs. The make fails though, like this: Vigor10:~/Documents/Downloads/net-geoip-0.06 matt$ make gcc -I. -I. -I/opt/local/lib/ruby/1.8/i686-darwin8.8.1 -I. -DRUBY\_EXTCONF\_H=“extconf.h” -O -pipe -I/opt/local/include -fno-common -g -Wall-O -pipe -I/opt/local/include -fno-common -pipe -fno-common -I/opt/local/include -c geoip.c cc1: error: unrecognized command line option “-Wall-O” make: \*\*\* [geoip.o] Error 1 bummer. I don’t expect anyone here on the ruby forums to help me with this, the link to ruby is rather tenuous now! I’m guessing maybe MaxMind haven’t tried building this on OSX. I’ve emailed MaxMind support so I’ll see what they say. Any tips on where else I might be able to ask for help with this gcc issue? cheers, Matt ---
**Author:** ![mwalsh](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/91b2a8/32.png) [@mwalsh](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/mwalsh)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 9:29am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/libiconv-iconv-open-is-missing/72948/6 "2006-10-20T09:29:18Z")
From: “Matt W.” [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) > cc1: error: unrecognized command line option “-Wall-O” > make: \*\*\* [geoip.o] Error 1 It looks like part of your compiler flags string was appended to itself, for some reason. Or sort of, anyway: See how “-O -pipe -I/opt/local/include -fno-common” appears twice? But it was appended the second time without a space, so that the “-O” is touching the “-Wall”. At the very least, you’d want a space between the “-Wall” and the “-O”, to prevent them from touching and combining to form an unrecognized option. Hard to guess from here how that compiler command line string is being generated… it contains a fair amount of duplication. But anyway, the immediate problem is that the “-O” is touching the “-Wall”, instead of being separated by a space. HTH, Bill ---
**Author:** ![mwalsh](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/91b2a8/32.png) [@mwalsh](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/mwalsh)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2006, 9:29pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/libiconv-iconv-open-is-missing/72948/7 "2006-10-20T21:29:54Z")
> See how “-O -pipe -I/opt/local/include -fno-common” appears twice? > But it was appended the second time without a space, so that the “-O” > is touching the “-Wall”. > > At the very least, you’d want a space between the “-Wall” and the “-O”, > to prevent them from touching and combining to form an unrecognized > option. Very sharp Bill, I should have spotted that myself. It turns out I don’t need this component for my project after all, so I’m just dropping the problem. Thanks again for your friendly assistance though guys! cheers, Matt