I don't get it either. This is the second build system done in python I come across (the other would be SCons) and both are utter failures. Make has its quirks

I don't get it either. This is the second build system done in python I come across (the other would be SCons) and both are utter failures. Make has its quirks, lots of them. But it wouldn't be the most popular build-tool in the world if it was all wrong. So, my hint to the next guy trying to reinvent it: Take a very close look at Make first and then improve on it. Don't start in a clean-room because then you're doomed to repeat build-system history, including all the past mistakes (edit: unless you're Linus Torvalds, perhaps). Also the build-system is an area where a sane DSL makes perfect sense. Don't make me write procedural code by default. I don't want to see lines like the following in my build-scripts: objects = ' '.join(s + '.o' for s in sources)