The first commit in the source repository is:
commit d5998dcec13c4d3f5efe9584008b8dbfabc28f09
Author: Roland McGrath <[email protected]>
Date: Sat Apr 23 16:12:14 1988 +0000
Initial revision
This version was distributed by RMS in `binutils.tar'.
So this suggests it was previously available as part of a tarball release (but not tracked in source control) some time before Apr 23 1988.
The first copyright date in the GNU Make manual is also 1988.
The GNU's Bulletin, vol. 1 no. 4, February, 1988 says:
The GNU version of Make is now ready, and will be distributed soon.
And the GNU's Bulletin, vol. 1 no. 5, June, 1988 says:
We have been distributing the GNU `make' utility for several months.
So that means the initial release was distributed some time after February 1988.
Answer from Jonathan Wakely on Stack OverflowGNU
lists.gnu.org › archive › html › info-gnu › 2020-01 › msg00004.html
GNU make 4.3 released!
* src/makeint.h: Add a declaration for memrchr() * tests/scripts/features/exec: Don't use $ENV in the description * tests/test_driver.pl: Compute full path to Perl interpreter * tests/scripts/features/patternrules: Use Windows-compatible quoting Support the .EXTRA_PREREQS special variable Update copyright statements for 2020 Release GNU make 4.2.93 * bootstrap: Update to the latest gnulib version Enable compilation with C90 compilers * NEWS: Clarify authorship of new features.
GNU
ftp.gnu.org › gnu › make
Index of /gnu/make
Index of /gnu/make · Apache/2.4.52 (Trisquel_GNU/Linux) Server at ftp.gnu.org Port 443
LWN.net
lwn.net › Articles › 913253
GNU Make 4.4 released [LWN.net]
October 31, 2022 - You can learn more at: ... https://www.gnu.org/order/ftp.html - NEWS -------------------------------------------------------------------- Version 4.4 (31 Oct 2022) A complete list of bugs fixed in this version is available here: https://sv.gnu.org/bugs/index.php?group=m...
Fossies
fossies.org › diffs › make › 4.1_vs_4.2 › NEWS-diff.html
May 22, 2016 - We cannot provide a description for this page right now
GNU
savannah.gnu.org › news
make - News [Savannah]
GNU Make 4.3 Released! posted by psmith, Sun 19 Jan 2020 10:44:44 PM UTC · The next stable version of GNU make, version 4.3, has been released and is available for download from https://ftp.g ...
GNU
lists.gnu.org › archive › html › info-gnu › 2016-05 › msg00013.html
GNU Make 4.2 released!
May 22, 2016 - You can learn more at: http://www.gnu.org/software/make/ -------------------------------------------------------------------- The next stable release of GNU make, 4.2, is available now for download: 85ad14d08766201ffe71efa866f4fb91 make-release/make-4.2.tar.bz2 1141ca815c806a5bfedbbaa1551410f3 make-release/make-4.2.tar.gz You can obtain a copy from: http://ftp.gnu.org/gnu/make/ You can choose a nearby mirror: http://ftpmirror.gnu.org/make/ A list of mirror sites is available: http://www.gnu.org/order/ftp.html - - NEWS ---------------------------------------------------------------- A complete list of bugs fixed in this version is available here: http://sv.gnu.org/bugs/index.php?group=make&report_id=111&fix_release_id=106&set=custom * New variable: $(.SHELLSTATUS) is set to the exit status of the last != or $(shell ...) function invoked in this instance of make.
Fossies
fossies.org › diffs › make › 4.2.1_vs_4.3 › ChangeLog-diff.html
make: ChangeLog - 4.2.1 vs. 4.3 changes | Fossies Diffs
About: GNU make utility is a tool which controls the generation of executables and other non-source files of a program from the program’s source files.
GNU Make
make.mad-scientist.net
GNU Make | A Program for Directing Recompilation
You can visit the GNU Make development resource site for Web-based technical support, bug tracking, patch management, mailing list management, a link to the FTP download site, and information on obtaining the up-to-the-minute version of GNU Make via Git.
Top answer 1 of 2
12
The easiest way would be to run make --version. E.g., on my machine it outputs:
mureinik@computer ~$ make --version
GNU Make 4.0
Built for x86_64-redhat-linux-gnu
Copyright (C) 1988-2013 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
License GPLv3+: GNU GPL version 3 or later <http://gnu.org/licenses/gpl.html>
This is free software: you are free to change and redistribute it.
There is NO WARRANTY, to the extent permitted by law.
2 of 2
3
To display the version, type the following in the terminal:
make -v
Which on my machine gave the following output:
GNU Make 3.81
Copyright (C) 2006 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
This is free software; see the source for copying conditions.
There is NO warranty; not even for MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A
PARTICULAR PURPOSE.
This program built for i386-apple-darwin11.3.0
LinuxReviews
linuxreviews.org › GNU_make_4.3_Is_Released
GNU make 4.3 Is Released - LinuxReviews
January 22, 2020 - The GNU project has very quietly released a major update to the make utility used to compile the vast majority of free software programs. It has been almost four years since make 4.2 was released in May 2016.
Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Make_(software)
Make (software) - Wikipedia
May 23, 2026 - And then a few weeks later I had a user population of about a dozen, most of them friends, and I didn't want to screw up my embedded base. The rest, sadly, is history. ... GNU Make since version 3.82 allows the choice of any symbol (one character) as the recipe prefix using the .RECIPEPREFIX ...
GNU
gnu.org › software › make
Make - GNU Project - Free Software Foundation
GNU Make also has a few simple features that are very convenient. For example, the -o file option which says ``pretend that source file file has not changed, even though it has changed.'' This is extremely useful when you add a new macro to a header file. Most versions of Make will assume they ...
The Fedora Project
fedoraproject.org › wiki › Changes › MAKE43
Changes/MAKE43 - Fedora Project Wiki
Users who have local projects using GNU make, which rely on features only available in older versions of GNU make, may need to tweak their Makefiles before rebuilding.
GNU
lists.gnu.org › archive › html › info-gnu › 2022-10 › msg00008.html
GNU Make 4.4 released!
October 31, 2022 - You can learn more at: ... https://www.gnu.org/order/ftp.html - NEWS -------------------------------------------------------------------- Version 4.4 (31 Oct 2022) A complete list of bugs fixed in this version is available here: https://sv.gnu.org/bugs/index.php?group=m...
LWN.net
lwn.net › Articles › 569832
GNU Make 4.0 released [LWN.net]
October 9, 2013 - More information about make at: http://www.gnu.org/software/make/ Bug reports/announcements at: https://savannah.gnu.org/projects/make/ Some new features available in this release of GNU Make: * New feature: GNU Guile integration This version of GNU make can be compiled with GNU Guile integration.
GNU
savannah.gnu.org › projects › make
In causal connection with that of the one hand, exhibit their abstract.
A determination. But because we have.
CloudBees
cloudbees.com › blog › whats-new-gnu-make-382
What's new in GNU make 3.82
GNU make 3.82 hit the streets last week, the first new release of the workhouse build tool in over four years. Why so long between releases? To me the answer is obvious: the tool Just Works (tm), so there's no need to churn out new releases chasing the latest development fad.
GNU
gnu.org › s › make › manual › make.html
GNU make
The make utility automatically determines which pieces of a large program need to be recompiled, and issues commands to recompile them. This manual describes GNU make, which was implemented by Richard Stallman and Roland McGrath. Development since Version 3.76 has been handled by Paul D.
GNU
gnu.org › prep › maintain › html_node › Old-Versions.html
Old Versions (Information for Maintainers of GNU Software)
An easy way to use many such systems is via the Version Control library in Emacs (see Introduction to Version Control in The GNU Emacs Manual). The history of previous revisions and log entries is very important for future maintainers of the package, so even if you do not make it publicly ...