How do I configure the source code for my system? (or... Where are the Makefiles hiding?)

GNOME uses configure (generated by Autoconf) to set up the source code to compiler properly on your system. Configure will investigate how your system is set up, and define compiler constants to add or remove various pieces of code as needed.

Configure accepts a variety of options, type ./configure --help for the full list. The most important one is --prefix, which tells the system where GNOME is to be installed. If you omit the prefix, configure assumes you want /usr/local. Most RPMs use a prefix of /usr. Many users prefer to use a prefix of /opt/gnome, which requires a little advance preparation, described below.

Configure also checks certain environment variables. Set your CFLAGS to equal whatever compiler options you want to make sure get passed, for example -O6 will maximize optimization, -g will include debugging symbols, etc.