configure.info: Using the Host Type

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Using the Host Type

   In almost all cases the host system is the system on which you run
the `configure' script, and on which you build the tools (for the case
when they differ, *note Canadian Cross::).
   If your configure script needs to know the configuration name of the
host system, and the package is not a cross compilation tool and
therefore does not have a target, put `AC_CANONICAL_HOST' in
`configure.in'.  This macro will arrange to define a few shell
variables when the `configure' script is run.
`host'
     The canonical configuration name of the host.  This will normally
     be determined by running the `config.guess' shell script, although
     the user is permitted to override this by using an explicit
     `--host' option.
`host_alias'
     In the unusual case that the user used an explicit `--host' option,
     this will be the argument to `--host'.  In the normal case, this
     will be the same as the `host' variable.
`host_cpu'
`host_vendor'
`host_os'
     The first three parts of the canonical configuration name.
   The shell variables may be used by putting shell code in
`configure.in'.  For an example, see *Note Using Configuration Names::.