Bug#397216: libastro-fits-cfitsio-perl: FTBFS: wrong byteswap on mipsel and arm

[Niko Tyni]

Package: libastro-fits-cfitsio-perl
Version: 1.05-1
Severity: serious
Justification: fails to build from source

The libastro-fits-cfitsio-perl package version 1.05-1 fails
to build from source on the mipsel [1] and arm [2] architectures
because some of the tests fail:

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 Byteswapping is not being done correctly on this system.
 Check the MACHINE and BYTESWAPPED definitions in fitsio2.h
 Please report this problem to the author at
     pence at tetra.gsfc.nasa.gov
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
make[1]: *** [test_dynamic] Error 255
make[1]: Leaving directory `/build/buildd/libastro-fits-cfitsio-perl-1.05'
make: *** [build-stamp] Error 2

This issue has already been reported as #339758 [3] against the cfitsio
package. It was reportedly fixed in cfitsio3 3.006-1, but unfortunately
the fix doesn't seem to work, as libastro-fits-cfitsio-perl is currently
using cfitsio3 and still gets the same error.

I'm Ccing the cfitsio library author, Dr. William Pence
<pence at tetra.gsfc.nasa.gov>, as the error message suggests.

Unfortunately I don't have access to an arm or mipsel box myself, so
I can't suggest a fix. I hope somebody else can. The current cfitsio3
version in Debian is 3.006, but the code in fitsio2.h looks the same in
the latest version, 3.02.

I'm also Ccing the #339758 submitter, Rafael Laboissiere
<rafael at debian.org>, who provided the patch for this earlier.

If the byteswapping problem makes cfitsio unusable on mipsel and arm,
which seems probable given that a function called fits_create_file()
is apparently affected, then I suppose #339758 should be considered
release-critical against both cfitsio and cfitsio3. I'll leave that
for the cfitsio Debian maintainer, Gopal Narayanan, and the release
team to judge.

Finally, I note that the libastro-fits-cfitsio-perl tests have failed
on mipsel and arm all the time, including the current version in stable
(1.03-1). The errors were just ignored earlier.

[1] http://buildd.debian.org/fetch.cgi?pkg=libastro-fits-cfitsio-perl;ver=1.05-1;arch=arm;stamp=1161173632
[2] http://buildd.debian.org/fetch.cgi?pkg=libastro-fits-cfitsio-perl;ver=1.05-1;arch=mipsel;stamp=1161177886
[3] http://bugs.debian.org/339758

Cheers,
-- 
Niko Tyni	ntyni at iki.fi