i like make primarily as an 'entry point'. there are better tools for dependency management and building, usually language-specific, but as the OP notes, that a

i like make primarily as an 'entry point'. there are better tools for dependency management and building, usually language-specific, but as the OP notes, that also requires remembering each tool's invocation details, and documenting them in the README for anyone else wanting to build your project. it's easier to capture the tool invocation in a Makefile and let that serve as your primary interface.