stringapi: Use strings for the languages

44 files changed, 246 insertions, 253 deletions

diff --git a/Source/cmComputeLinkInformation.cxx b/Source/cmComputeLinkInformation.cxx
index 6986965..716eb4d 100644
--- a/Source/cmComputeLinkInformation.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmComputeLinkInformation.cxx
@@ -268,7 +268,7 @@ cmComputeLinkInformation
 
   // Get the language used for linking this target.
   this->LinkLanguage = this->Target->GetLinkerLanguage(config, headTarget);
-  if(!this->LinkLanguage)
+  if(this->LinkLanguage.empty())
     {
     // The Compute method will do nothing, so skip the rest of the
     // initialization.
@@ -496,7 +496,7 @@ bool cmComputeLinkInformation::Compute()
     }
 
   // We require a link language for the target.
-  if(!this->LinkLanguage)
+  if(this->LinkLanguage.empty())
     {
     cmSystemTools::
       Error("CMake can not determine linker language for target: ",
diff --git a/Source/cmComputeLinkInformation.h b/Source/cmComputeLinkInformation.h
index 356e6ed..26ee8f0 100644
--- a/Source/cmComputeLinkInformation.h
+++ b/Source/cmComputeLinkInformation.h
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@ public:
   std::vector<std::string> const& GetDirectories();
   std::vector<std::string> const& GetDepends();
   std::vector<std::string> const& GetFrameworkPaths();
-  const char* GetLinkLanguage() const { return this->LinkLanguage; }
+  std::string GetLinkLanguage() const { return this->LinkLanguage; }
   std::vector<std::string> const& GetRuntimeSearchPath();
   std::string const& GetRuntimeFlag() const { return this->RuntimeFlag; }
   std::string const& GetRuntimeSep() const { return this->RuntimeSep; }
@@ -83,7 +83,7 @@ private:
 
   // Configuration information.
   const char* Config;
-  const char* LinkLanguage;
+  std::string LinkLanguage;
   bool LinkDependsNoShared;
 
   // Modes for dealing with dependent shared libraries.
diff --git a/Source/cmCoreTryCompile.cxx b/Source/cmCoreTryCompile.cxx
index 7b52069..1e8e4d0 100644
--- a/Source/cmCoreTryCompile.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmCoreTryCompile.cxx
@@ -249,7 +249,8 @@ int cmCoreTryCompile::TryCompileCode(std::vector<std::string> const& argv)
         si != sources.end(); ++si)
       {
       std::string ext = cmSystemTools::GetFilenameLastExtension(*si);
-      if(const char* lang = gg->GetLanguageFromExtension(ext.c_str()))
+      std::string lang = gg->GetLanguageFromExtension(ext.c_str());
+      if(!lang.empty())
         {
         testLangs.insert(lang);
         }
diff --git a/Source/cmDepends.cxx b/Source/cmDepends.cxx
index 1a0e93f..51150f2 100644
--- a/Source/cmDepends.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmDepends.cxx
@@ -297,7 +297,7 @@ bool cmDepends::CheckDependencies(std::istream& internalDepends,
 }
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-void cmDepends::SetIncludePathFromLanguage(const char* lang)
+void cmDepends::SetIncludePathFromLanguage(const std::string& lang)
 {
   // Look for the new per "TARGET_" variant first:
   const char * includePath = 0;
diff --git a/Source/cmDepends.h b/Source/cmDepends.h
index d787edd..b293c5b 100644
--- a/Source/cmDepends.h
+++ b/Source/cmDepends.h
@@ -41,7 +41,7 @@ public:
   void SetLocalGenerator(cmLocalGenerator* lg) { this->LocalGenerator = lg; }
 
   /** Set the specific language to be scanned.  */
-  void SetLanguage(const char* lang) { this->Language = lang; }
+  void SetLanguage(const std::string& lang) { this->Language = lang; }
 
   /** Set the target build directory.  */
   void SetTargetDirectory(const char* dir) { this->TargetDirectory = dir; }
@@ -114,7 +114,7 @@ protected:
   // The include file search path.
   std::vector<std::string> IncludePath;
 
-  void SetIncludePathFromLanguage(const char* lang);
+  void SetIncludePathFromLanguage(const std::string& lang);
 
 private:
   cmDepends(cmDepends const&); // Purposely not implemented.
diff --git a/Source/cmDependsC.cxx b/Source/cmDependsC.cxx
index 4fc5efb..585f959 100644
--- a/Source/cmDependsC.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmDependsC.cxx
@@ -37,7 +37,7 @@ cmDependsC::cmDependsC()
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 cmDependsC::cmDependsC(cmLocalGenerator* lg,
                    const char* targetDir,
-                   const char* lang,
+                   const std::string& lang,
                    const std::map<std::string, DependencyVector>* validDeps)
 : cmDepends(lg, targetDir)
 , ValidDeps(validDeps)
diff --git a/Source/cmDependsC.h b/Source/cmDependsC.h
index 16dfad7..cd1e7a4 100644
--- a/Source/cmDependsC.h
+++ b/Source/cmDependsC.h
@@ -25,7 +25,8 @@ public:
   /** Checking instances need to know the build directory name and the
       relative path from the build directory to the target file.  */
   cmDependsC();
-  cmDependsC(cmLocalGenerator* lg, const char* targetDir, const char* lang,
+  cmDependsC(cmLocalGenerator* lg, const char* targetDir,
+             const std::string& lang,
              const std::map<std::string, DependencyVector>* validDeps);
 
   /** Virtual destructor to cleanup subclasses properly.  */
diff --git a/Source/cmExtraCodeBlocksGenerator.cxx b/Source/cmExtraCodeBlocksGenerator.cxx
index 548c88b..8d4cf85 100644
--- a/Source/cmExtraCodeBlocksGenerator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmExtraCodeBlocksGenerator.cxx
@@ -411,7 +411,8 @@ void cmExtraCodeBlocksGenerator
 
             // check whether it is a C/C++ implementation file
             bool isCFile = false;
-            if ((*si)->GetLanguage() && (*(*si)->GetLanguage() == 'C'))
+            std::string lang = (*si)->GetLanguage();
+            if (lang == "C" || lang == "CXX")
               {
               for(std::vector<std::string>::const_iterator
                   ext = mf->GetSourceExtensions().begin();
diff --git a/Source/cmExtraCodeLiteGenerator.cxx b/Source/cmExtraCodeLiteGenerator.cxx
index ff84fb7..028d3d5 100644
--- a/Source/cmExtraCodeLiteGenerator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmExtraCodeLiteGenerator.cxx
@@ -220,7 +220,8 @@ void cmExtraCodeLiteGenerator
             {
             // check whether it is a C/C++ implementation file
             bool isCFile = false;
-            if ((*si)->GetLanguage() && (*(*si)->GetLanguage() == 'C'))
+            std::string lang = (*si)->GetLanguage();
+            if (lang == "C" || lang == "CXX")
               {
               for(std::vector<std::string>::const_iterator
                   ext = mf->GetSourceExtensions().begin();
diff --git a/Source/cmExtraSublimeTextGenerator.cxx b/Source/cmExtraSublimeTextGenerator.cxx
index 604bfcc..1c9ac02 100644
--- a/Source/cmExtraSublimeTextGenerator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmExtraSublimeTextGenerator.cxx
@@ -369,8 +369,8 @@ cmExtraSublimeTextGenerator::ComputeFlagsForObject(cmSourceFile* source,
   std::string flags;
 
   cmMakefile *makefile = lg->GetMakefile();
-  const char* language = source->GetLanguage();
-  if (language == NULL)
+  std::string language = source->GetLanguage();
+  if (language.empty())
    {
    language = "C";
    }
@@ -423,11 +423,7 @@ ComputeDefines(cmSourceFile *source, cmLocalGenerator* lg, cmTarget *target,
 {
   std::set<std::string> defines;
   cmMakefile *makefile = lg->GetMakefile();
-  const char* language = source->GetLanguage();
-  if (language == NULL)
-   {
-   language = "";
-   }
+  const std::string& language = source->GetLanguage();
   const char* config = makefile->GetSafeDefinition("CMAKE_BUILD_TYPE");
 
   // Add the export symbol definition for shared library objects.
diff --git a/Source/cmGeneratorExpressionEvaluator.cxx b/Source/cmGeneratorExpressionEvaluator.cxx
index c27c03f..d12a66d 100644
--- a/Source/cmGeneratorExpressionEvaluator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmGeneratorExpressionEvaluator.cxx
@@ -990,8 +990,7 @@ static const struct TargetPropertyNode : public cmGeneratorExpressionNode
             "link libraries for a static library");
         return std::string();
         }
-      const char *lang = target->GetLinkerLanguage(context->Config);
-      return lang ? lang : "";
+      return target->GetLinkerLanguage(context->Config);
       }
 
     cmGeneratorExpressionDAGChecker dagChecker(context->Backtrace,
diff --git a/Source/cmGeneratorTarget.cxx b/Source/cmGeneratorTarget.cxx
index d9885b9..4e7c71e 100644
--- a/Source/cmGeneratorTarget.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmGeneratorTarget.cxx
@@ -168,7 +168,7 @@ struct TagVisitor
         this->BadObjLibFiles.push_back(sf);
         }
       }
-    else if(sf->GetLanguage())
+    else if(!sf->GetLanguage().empty())
       {
       DoAccept<IsSameTag<Tag, ObjectSourcesTag>::Result>::Do(this->Data, sf);
       }
diff --git a/Source/cmGetSourceFilePropertyCommand.cxx b/Source/cmGetSourceFilePropertyCommand.cxx
index 3d85e6d..a6e4fcc 100644
--- a/Source/cmGetSourceFilePropertyCommand.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmGetSourceFilePropertyCommand.cxx
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ bool cmGetSourceFilePropertyCommand
     {
     if(args[2] == "LANGUAGE")
       {
-      this->Makefile->AddDefinition(var, sf->GetLanguage());
+      this->Makefile->AddDefinition(var, sf->GetLanguage().c_str());
       return true;
       }
     const char *prop = sf->GetPropertyForUser(args[2].c_str());
diff --git a/Source/cmGlobalGenerator.cxx b/Source/cmGlobalGenerator.cxx
index f76c6d1..7e93676 100644
--- a/Source/cmGlobalGenerator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmGlobalGenerator.cxx
@@ -722,7 +722,7 @@ cmGlobalGenerator::EnableLanguage(std::vector<std::string>const& languages,
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmGlobalGenerator::PrintCompilerAdvice(std::ostream& os,
-                                            std::string lang,
+                                            std::string const& lang,
                                             const char* envVar) const
 {
   // Subclasses override this method if they do not support this advice.
@@ -744,7 +744,7 @@ void cmGlobalGenerator::PrintCompilerAdvice(std::ostream& os,
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmGlobalGenerator::CheckCompilerIdCompatibility(cmMakefile* mf,
-                                                     std::string lang) const
+                                                std::string const& lang) const
 {
   std::string compilerIdVar = "CMAKE_" + lang + "_COMPILER_ID";
   const char* compilerId = mf->GetDefinition(compilerIdVar.c_str());
@@ -817,17 +817,18 @@ void cmGlobalGenerator::CheckCompilerIdCompatibility(cmMakefile* mf,
 }
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-const char*
+std::string
 cmGlobalGenerator::GetLanguageOutputExtension(cmSourceFile const& source) const
 {
-  if(const char* lang = source.GetLanguage())
+  const std::string& lang = source.GetLanguage();
+  if(!lang.empty())
     {
     std::map<cmStdString, cmStdString>::const_iterator it =
                                   this->LanguageToOutputExtension.find(lang);
 
     if(it != this->LanguageToOutputExtension.end())
       {
-      return it->second.c_str();
+      return it->second;
       }
     }
   else
@@ -840,7 +841,7 @@ cmGlobalGenerator::GetLanguageOutputExtension(cmSourceFile const& source) const
       {
       if(this->OutputExtensions.count(ext))
         {
-        return ext.c_str();
+        return ext;
         }
       }
     }
@@ -848,7 +849,7 @@ cmGlobalGenerator::GetLanguageOutputExtension(cmSourceFile const& source) const
 }
 
 
-const char* cmGlobalGenerator::GetLanguageFromExtension(const char* ext) const
+std::string cmGlobalGenerator::GetLanguageFromExtension(const char* ext) const
 {
   // if there is an extension and it starts with . then move past the
   // . because the extensions are not stored with a .  in the map
@@ -860,9 +861,9 @@ const char* cmGlobalGenerator::GetLanguageFromExtension(const char* ext) const
                                         = this->ExtensionToLanguage.find(ext);
   if(it != this->ExtensionToLanguage.end())
     {
-    return it->second.c_str();
+    return it->second;
     }
-  return 0;
+  return "";
 }
 
 /* SetLanguageEnabled() is now split in two parts:
@@ -877,13 +878,15 @@ files could change the object file extension
 (CMAKE_<LANG>_OUTPUT_EXTENSION) before the CMake variables were copied
 to the C++ maps.
 */
-void cmGlobalGenerator::SetLanguageEnabled(const char* l, cmMakefile* mf)
+void cmGlobalGenerator::SetLanguageEnabled(const std::string& l,
+                                           cmMakefile* mf)
 {
   this->SetLanguageEnabledFlag(l, mf);
   this->SetLanguageEnabledMaps(l, mf);
 }
 
-void cmGlobalGenerator::SetLanguageEnabledFlag(const char* l, cmMakefile* mf)
+void cmGlobalGenerator::SetLanguageEnabledFlag(const std::string& l,
+                                               cmMakefile* mf)
 {
   this->LanguageEnabled[l] = true;
 
@@ -895,7 +898,8 @@ void cmGlobalGenerator::SetLanguageEnabledFlag(const char* l, cmMakefile* mf)
   this->FillExtensionToLanguageMap(l, mf);
 }
 
-void cmGlobalGenerator::SetLanguageEnabledMaps(const char* l, cmMakefile* mf)
+void cmGlobalGenerator::SetLanguageEnabledMaps(const std::string& l,
+                                               cmMakefile* mf)
 {
   // use LanguageToLinkerPreference to detect whether this functions has
   // run before
@@ -969,7 +973,7 @@ void cmGlobalGenerator::SetLanguageEnabledMaps(const char* l, cmMakefile* mf)
 
 }
 
-void cmGlobalGenerator::FillExtensionToLanguageMap(const char* l,
+void cmGlobalGenerator::FillExtensionToLanguageMap(const std::string& l,
                                                    cmMakefile* mf)
 {
   std::string extensionsVar = std::string("CMAKE_") +
@@ -986,14 +990,14 @@ void cmGlobalGenerator::FillExtensionToLanguageMap(const char* l,
 
 bool cmGlobalGenerator::IgnoreFile(const char* l) const
 {
-  if(this->GetLanguageFromExtension(l))
+  if(!this->GetLanguageFromExtension(l).empty())
     {
     return false;
     }
   return (this->IgnoreExtensions.count(l) > 0);
 }
 
-bool cmGlobalGenerator::GetLanguageEnabled(const char* l) const
+bool cmGlobalGenerator::GetLanguageEnabled(const std::string& l) const
 {
   return (this->LanguageEnabled.find(l)!= this->LanguageEnabled.end());
 }
@@ -1958,7 +1962,7 @@ cmGlobalGenerator::GetEnabledLanguages(std::vector<std::string>& lang) const
     }
 }
 
-int cmGlobalGenerator::GetLinkerPreference(const char* lang) const
+int cmGlobalGenerator::GetLinkerPreference(const std::string& lang) const
 {
   std::map<cmStdString, int>::const_iterator it =
                                    this->LanguageToLinkerPreference.find(lang);
diff --git a/Source/cmGlobalGenerator.h b/Source/cmGlobalGenerator.h
index b66f01e..2f23fd5 100644
--- a/Source/cmGlobalGenerator.h
+++ b/Source/cmGlobalGenerator.h
@@ -77,8 +77,8 @@ public:
   /**
    * Set/Get and Clear the enabled languages.
    */
-  void SetLanguageEnabled(const char*, cmMakefile* mf);
-  bool GetLanguageEnabled(const char*) const;
+  void SetLanguageEnabled(const std::string&, cmMakefile* mf);
+  bool GetLanguageEnabled(const std::string&) const;
   void ClearEnabledLanguages();
   void GetEnabledLanguages(std::vector<std::string>& lang) const;
   /**
@@ -182,13 +182,13 @@ public:
   bool GetToolSupportsColor() const { return this->ToolSupportsColor; }
 
   ///! return the language for the given extension
-  const char* GetLanguageFromExtension(const char* ext) const;
+  std::string GetLanguageFromExtension(const char* ext) const;
   ///! is an extension to be ignored
   bool IgnoreFile(const char* ext) const;
   ///! What is the preference for linkers and this language (None or Prefered)
-  int GetLinkerPreference(const char* lang) const;
+  int GetLinkerPreference(const std::string& lang) const;
   ///! What is the object file extension for a given source file?
-  const char* GetLanguageOutputExtension(cmSourceFile const&) const;
+  std::string GetLanguageOutputExtension(cmSourceFile const&) const;
 
   ///! What is the configurations directory variable called?
   virtual const char* GetCMakeCFGIntDir() const { return "."; }
@@ -332,9 +332,9 @@ protected:
   bool IsRootOnlyTarget(cmTarget* target) const;
   void AddTargetDepends(cmTarget const* target,
                         TargetDependSet& projectTargets);
-  void SetLanguageEnabledFlag(const char* l, cmMakefile* mf);
-  void SetLanguageEnabledMaps(const char* l, cmMakefile* mf);
-  void FillExtensionToLanguageMap(const char* l, cmMakefile* mf);
+  void SetLanguageEnabledFlag(const std::string& l, cmMakefile* mf);
+  void SetLanguageEnabledMaps(const std::string& l, cmMakefile* mf);
+  void FillExtensionToLanguageMap(const std::string& l, cmMakefile* mf);
 
   virtual bool ComputeTargetDepends();
 
@@ -420,9 +420,10 @@ private:
   void WriteSummary(cmTarget* target);
   void FinalizeTargetCompileInfo();
 
-  virtual void PrintCompilerAdvice(std::ostream& os, std::string lang,
+  virtual void PrintCompilerAdvice(std::ostream& os, std::string const& lang,
                                    const char* envVar) const;
-  void CheckCompilerIdCompatibility(cmMakefile* mf, std::string lang) const;
+  void CheckCompilerIdCompatibility(cmMakefile* mf,
+                                    std::string const& lang) const;
 
   cmExternalMakefileProjectGenerator* ExtraGenerator;
 
diff --git a/Source/cmGlobalVisualStudioGenerator.h b/Source/cmGlobalVisualStudioGenerator.h
index 9186d65..4b73118 100644
--- a/Source/cmGlobalVisualStudioGenerator.h
+++ b/Source/cmGlobalVisualStudioGenerator.h
@@ -114,7 +114,8 @@ protected:
 
 private:
   virtual std::string GetVSMakeProgram() = 0;
-  void PrintCompilerAdvice(std::ostream&, std::string, const char*) const {}
+  void PrintCompilerAdvice(std::ostream&, std::string const&,
+                           const char*) const {}
   void ComputeTargetObjects(cmGeneratorTarget* gt) const;
 
   void FollowLinkDepends(cmTarget const* target,
diff --git a/Source/cmGlobalXCodeGenerator.cxx b/Source/cmGlobalXCodeGenerator.cxx
index ab92c6e..3f24167 100644
--- a/Source/cmGlobalXCodeGenerator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmGlobalXCodeGenerator.cxx
@@ -696,12 +696,8 @@ cmGlobalXCodeGenerator::CreateXCodeSourceFile(cmLocalGenerator* lg,
     flags += flagsBuild.GetString();
     }
 
-  const char* lang =
+  std::string lang =
     this->CurrentLocalGenerator->GetSourceFileLanguage(*sf);
-  if (!lang)
-    {
-    lang = "";
-    }
 
   cmXCodeObject* buildFile =
     this->CreateXCodeSourceFileFromPath(sf->GetFullPath(), cmtarget, lang);
@@ -906,12 +902,8 @@ cmXCodeObject*
 cmGlobalXCodeGenerator::CreateXCodeFileReference(cmSourceFile* sf,
                                                  cmTarget& cmtarget)
 {
-  const char* lang =
+  std::string lang =
     this->CurrentLocalGenerator->GetSourceFileLanguage(*sf);
-  if (!lang)
-    {
-    lang = "";
-    }
 
   return this->CreateXCodeFileReferenceFromPath(
     sf->GetFullPath(), cmtarget, lang);
@@ -1036,7 +1028,7 @@ cmGlobalXCodeGenerator::CreateXCodeTargets(cmLocalGenerator* gen,
         // Include this file in the build if it has a known language
         // and has not been listed as an ignored extension for this
         // generator.
-        if(this->CurrentLocalGenerator->GetSourceFileLanguage(**i) &&
+        if(!this->CurrentLocalGenerator->GetSourceFileLanguage(**i).empty() &&
            !this->IgnoreFile((*i)->GetExtension().c_str()))
           {
           sourceFiles.push_back(xsf);
@@ -1241,8 +1233,8 @@ void cmGlobalXCodeGenerator::ForceLinkerLanguage(cmTarget& cmtarget)
     return;
     }
 
-  const char* llang = cmtarget.GetLinkerLanguage("NOCONFIG");
-  if(!llang) { return; }
+  std::string llang = cmtarget.GetLinkerLanguage("NOCONFIG");
+  if(llang.empty()) { return; }
 
   // If the language is compiled as a source trust Xcode to link with it.
   cmTarget::LinkImplementation const* impl =
@@ -1270,7 +1262,7 @@ void cmGlobalXCodeGenerator::ForceLinkerLanguage(cmTarget& cmtarget)
   }
   if(cmSourceFile* sf = mf->GetOrCreateSource(fname.c_str()))
     {
-    sf->SetProperty("LANGUAGE", llang);
+    sf->SetProperty("LANGUAGE", llang.c_str());
     cmtarget.AddSourceFile(sf);
     }
 }
@@ -1714,12 +1706,12 @@ void cmGlobalXCodeGenerator::CreateBuildSettings(cmTarget& target,
                  (target.GetType() == cmTarget::EXECUTABLE) ||
                  shared);
 
-  const char* lang = target.GetLinkerLanguage(configName);
+  std::string lang = target.GetLinkerLanguage(configName);
   std::string cflags;
-  if(lang)
+  if(!lang.empty())
     {
     // for c++ projects get the c flags as well
-    if(strcmp(lang, "CXX") == 0)
+    if(lang == "CXX")
       {
       this->CurrentLocalGenerator->AddLanguageFlags(cflags, "C", configName);
       this->CurrentLocalGenerator->AddCMP0018Flags(cflags, &target,
@@ -2178,7 +2170,7 @@ void cmGlobalXCodeGenerator::CreateBuildSettings(cmTarget& target,
   const char* debugStr = "YES";
   // We can't set the Xcode flag differently depending on the language,
   // so put them back in this case.
-  if( (lang && strcmp(lang, "CXX") == 0) && gflag != gflagc )
+  if( (lang == "CXX") && gflag != gflagc )
     {
     cflags += " ";
     cflags += gflagc;
@@ -2201,7 +2193,7 @@ void cmGlobalXCodeGenerator::CreateBuildSettings(cmTarget& target,
                               this->CreateString("NO"));
   buildSettings->AddAttribute("GCC_INLINES_ARE_PRIVATE_EXTERN",
                               this->CreateString("NO"));
-  if(lang && strcmp(lang, "CXX") == 0)
+  if(lang == "CXX")
     {
     flags += " ";
     flags += defFlags;
@@ -3800,12 +3792,13 @@ cmGlobalXCodeGenerator
 }
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-std::string cmGlobalXCodeGenerator::LookupFlags(const char* varNamePrefix,
-                                                const char* varNameLang,
-                                                const char* varNameSuffix,
-                                                const char* default_flags)
+std::string cmGlobalXCodeGenerator::LookupFlags(
+                                              const std::string& varNamePrefix,
+                                              const std::string& varNameLang,
+                                              const std::string& varNameSuffix,
+                                              const std::string& default_flags)
 {
-  if(varNameLang)
+  if(!varNameLang.empty())
     {
     std::string varName = varNamePrefix;
     varName += varNameLang;
diff --git a/Source/cmGlobalXCodeGenerator.h b/Source/cmGlobalXCodeGenerator.h
index 31c2cfb..15f1363 100644
--- a/Source/cmGlobalXCodeGenerator.h
+++ b/Source/cmGlobalXCodeGenerator.h
@@ -190,10 +190,10 @@ private:
   void CreateReRunCMakeFile(cmLocalGenerator* root,
                             std::vector<cmLocalGenerator*> const& gens);
 
-  std::string LookupFlags(const char* varNamePrefix,
-                          const char* varNameLang,
-                          const char* varNameSuffix,
-                          const char* default_flags);
+  std::string LookupFlags(const std::string& varNamePrefix,
+                          const std::string& varNameLang,
+                          const std::string& varNameSuffix,
+                          const std::string& default_flags);
 
   class Factory;
   class BuildObjectListOrString;
@@ -215,7 +215,8 @@ protected:
   std::vector<cmXCodeObject*> XCodeObjects;
   cmXCodeObject* RootObject;
 private:
-  void PrintCompilerAdvice(std::ostream&, std::string, const char*) const {}
+  void PrintCompilerAdvice(std::ostream&, std::string const&,
+                           const char*) const {}
   void ComputeTargetObjects(cmGeneratorTarget* gt) const;
 
   std::string GetObjectsNormalDirectory(
diff --git a/Source/cmLocalGenerator.cxx b/Source/cmLocalGenerator.cxx
index 476c95d..0b4f94b 100644
--- a/Source/cmLocalGenerator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmLocalGenerator.cxx
@@ -572,7 +572,7 @@ void cmLocalGenerator::GenerateTargetManifest()
 }
 
 void cmLocalGenerator::AddCustomCommandToCreateObject(const char* ofname,
-                                                    const char* lang,
+                                                    const std::string& lang,
                                                     cmSourceFile& source,
                                                     cmGeneratorTarget& target)
 {
@@ -604,7 +604,7 @@ void cmLocalGenerator::AddCustomCommandToCreateObject(const char* ofname,
   std::vector<std::string> commands;
   cmSystemTools::ExpandList(rules, commands);
   cmLocalGenerator::RuleVariables vars;
-  vars.Language = lang;
+  vars.Language = lang.c_str();
   vars.Source = sourceFile.c_str();
   vars.Object = objectFile.c_str();
   vars.ObjectDir = objectDir.c_str();
@@ -653,7 +653,7 @@ void cmLocalGenerator::AddCustomCommandToCreateObject(const char* ofname,
     );
 }
 
-void cmLocalGenerator::AddBuildTargetRule(const char* llang,
+void cmLocalGenerator::AddBuildTargetRule(const std::string& llang,
                                           cmGeneratorTarget& target)
 {
   cmStdString objs;
@@ -703,7 +703,7 @@ void cmLocalGenerator::AddBuildTargetRule(const char* llang,
                        &target);
   linkLibs = frameworkPath + linkPath + linkLibs;
   cmLocalGenerator::RuleVariables vars;
-  vars.Language = llang;
+  vars.Language = llang.c_str();
   vars.Objects = objs.c_str();
   vars.ObjectDir = ".";
   vars.Target = targetName.c_str();
@@ -776,8 +776,8 @@ void cmLocalGenerator
       case cmTarget::MODULE_LIBRARY:
       case cmTarget::EXECUTABLE:
         {
-        const char* llang = target.Target->GetLinkerLanguage();
-        if(!llang)
+        std::string llang = target.Target->GetLinkerLanguage();
+        if(llang.empty())
           {
           cmSystemTools::Error
             ("CMake can not determine linker language for target: ",
@@ -1290,10 +1290,11 @@ cmLocalGenerator::ConvertToIncludeReference(std::string const& path,
 std::string cmLocalGenerator::GetIncludeFlags(
                                      const std::vector<std::string> &includes,
                                      cmGeneratorTarget* target,
-                                     const char* lang, bool forResponseFile,
+                                     const std::string& lang,
+                                     bool forResponseFile,
                                      const char *config)
 {
-  if(!lang)
+  if(lang.empty())
     {
     return "";
     }
@@ -1415,7 +1416,7 @@ void cmLocalGenerator::AddCompileDefinitions(std::set<std::string>& defines,
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmLocalGenerator::AddCompileOptions(
   std::string& flags, cmTarget* target,
-  const char* lang, const char* config
+  const std::string& lang, const char* config
   )
 {
   std::string langFlagRegexVar = std::string("CMAKE_")+lang+"_FLAG_REGEX";
@@ -1463,7 +1464,7 @@ void cmLocalGenerator::AddCompileOptions(
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmLocalGenerator::GetIncludeDirectories(std::vector<std::string>& dirs,
                                              cmGeneratorTarget* target,
-                                             const char* lang,
+                                             const std::string& lang,
                                              const char *config,
                                              bool stripImplicitInclDirs
                                             )
@@ -1689,8 +1690,8 @@ void cmLocalGenerator::GetTargetFlags(std::string& linkLibs,
         linkFlags += this->Makefile->GetSafeDefinition(build.c_str());
         linkFlags += " ";
         }
-      const char* linkLanguage = target->Target->GetLinkerLanguage();
-      if(!linkLanguage)
+      std::string linkLanguage = target->Target->GetLinkerLanguage();
+      if(linkLanguage.empty())
         {
         cmSystemTools::Error
           ("CMake can not determine linker language for target: ",
@@ -1813,7 +1814,7 @@ void cmLocalGenerator::OutputLinkLibraries(std::string& linkLibraries,
   // Collect library linking flags command line options.
   std::string linkLibs;
 
-  const char* linkLanguage = cli.GetLinkLanguage();
+  std::string linkLanguage = cli.GetLinkLanguage();
 
   std::string libPathFlag =
     this->Makefile->GetRequiredDefinition("CMAKE_LIBRARY_PATH_FLAG");
@@ -1943,7 +1944,7 @@ void cmLocalGenerator::OutputLinkLibraries(std::string& linkLibraries,
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmLocalGenerator::AddArchitectureFlags(std::string& flags,
                                             cmGeneratorTarget* target,
-                                            const char *lang,
+                                            const std::string& lang,
                                             const char* config)
 {
   // Only add Mac OS X specific flags on Darwin platforms (OSX and iphone):
@@ -1969,7 +1970,7 @@ void cmLocalGenerator::AddArchitectureFlags(std::string& flags,
       std::string("CMAKE_") + lang + "_OSX_DEPLOYMENT_TARGET_FLAG";
     const char* deploymentTargetFlag =
       this->Makefile->GetDefinition(deploymentTargetFlagVar.c_str());
-    if(!archs.empty() && lang && (lang[0] =='C' || lang[0] == 'F'))
+    if(!archs.empty() && !lang.empty() && (lang[0] =='C' || lang[0] == 'F'))
       {
       for(std::vector<std::string>::iterator i = archs.begin();
           i != archs.end(); ++i)
@@ -2000,7 +2001,7 @@ void cmLocalGenerator::AddArchitectureFlags(std::string& flags,
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmLocalGenerator::AddLanguageFlags(std::string& flags,
-                                        const char* lang,
+                                        const std::string& lang,
                                         const char* config)
 {
   // Add language-specific flags.
@@ -2112,7 +2113,7 @@ bool cmLocalGenerator::GetRealDependency(const char* inName,
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmLocalGenerator::AddSharedFlags(std::string& flags,
-                                      const char* lang,
+                                      const std::string& lang,
                                       bool shared)
 {
   std::string flagsVar;
@@ -2128,7 +2129,8 @@ void cmLocalGenerator::AddSharedFlags(std::string& flags,
 }
 
 static void AddVisibilityCompileOption(std::string &flags, cmTarget* target,
-                                       cmLocalGenerator *lg, const char *lang)
+                                       cmLocalGenerator *lg,
+                                       const std::string& lang)
 {
   std::string l(lang);
   std::string compileOption = "CMAKE_" + l + "_COMPILE_OPTIONS_VISIBILITY";
@@ -2182,7 +2184,7 @@ static void AddInlineVisibilityCompileOption(std::string &flags,
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmLocalGenerator
 ::AddVisibilityPresetFlags(std::string &flags, cmTarget* target,
-                            const char *lang)
+                            const std::string& lang)
 {
   int targetType = target->GetType();
   bool suitableTarget = ((targetType == cmTarget::SHARED_LIBRARY)
@@ -2194,13 +2196,13 @@ void cmLocalGenerator
     return;
     }
 
-  if (!lang)
+  if (lang.empty())
     {
     return;
     }
   AddVisibilityCompileOption(flags, target, this, lang);
 
-  if(strcmp(lang, "CXX") == 0)
+  if(lang == "CXX")
     {
     AddInlineVisibilityCompileOption(flags, target, this);
     }
@@ -2396,11 +2398,11 @@ void cmLocalGenerator::AppendDefines(std::set<std::string>& defines,
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmLocalGenerator::JoinDefines(const std::set<std::string>& defines,
                                    std::string &definesString,
-                                   const char* lang)
+                                   const std::string& lang)
 {
   // Lookup the define flag for the current language.
   std::string dflag = "-D";
-  if(lang)
+  if(!lang.empty())
     {
     std::string defineFlagVar = "CMAKE_";
     defineFlagVar += lang;
@@ -2460,7 +2462,7 @@ void cmLocalGenerator::JoinDefines(const std::set<std::string>& defines,
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmLocalGenerator::AppendFeatureOptions(
-  std::string& flags, const char* lang, const char* feature)
+  std::string& flags, const std::string& lang, const char* feature)
 {
   std::string optVar = "CMAKE_";
   optVar += lang;
@@ -3140,7 +3142,8 @@ cmLocalGenerator
     bool replaceExt = this->NeedBackwardsCompatibility_2_4();
     if(!replaceExt)
       {
-      if(const char* lang = source.GetLanguage())
+      std::string lang = source.GetLanguage();
+      if(!lang.empty())
         {
         std::string repVar = "CMAKE_";
         repVar += lang;
@@ -3174,7 +3177,7 @@ cmLocalGenerator
 }
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-const char*
+std::string
 cmLocalGenerator
 ::GetSourceFileLanguage(const cmSourceFile& source)
 {
diff --git a/Source/cmLocalGenerator.h b/Source/cmLocalGenerator.h
index 80a1421..74303f4 100644
--- a/Source/cmLocalGenerator.h
+++ b/Source/cmLocalGenerator.h
@@ -137,14 +137,14 @@ public:
 
 
   void AddArchitectureFlags(std::string& flags, cmGeneratorTarget* target,
-                            const char *lang, const char* config);
+                            const std::string&lang, const char* config);
 
-  void AddLanguageFlags(std::string& flags, const char* lang,
+  void AddLanguageFlags(std::string& flags, const std::string& lang,
                         const char* config);
   void AddCMP0018Flags(std::string &flags, cmTarget* target,
                        std::string const& lang, const char *config);
   void AddVisibilityPresetFlags(std::string &flags, cmTarget* target,
-                                const char *lang);
+                                const std::string& lang);
   void AddConfigVariableFlags(std::string& flags, const std::string& var,
                               const char* config);
   ///! Append flags to a string.
@@ -153,7 +153,8 @@ public:
   ///! Get the include flags for the current makefile and language
   std::string GetIncludeFlags(const std::vector<std::string> &includes,
                               cmGeneratorTarget* target,
-                              const char* lang, bool forResponseFile = false,
+                              const std::string& lang,
+                              bool forResponseFile = false,
                               const char *config = 0);
 
   /**
@@ -175,10 +176,10 @@ public:
    */
   void JoinDefines(const std::set<std::string>& defines,
                    std::string &definesString,
-                   const char* lang);
+                   const std::string& lang);
 
   /** Lookup and append options associated with a particular feature.  */
-  void AppendFeatureOptions(std::string& flags, const char* lang,
+  void AppendFeatureOptions(std::string& flags, const std::string& lang,
                             const char* feature);
 
   /** \brief Get absolute path to dependency \a name
@@ -223,16 +224,17 @@ public:
   /** Get the include flags for the current makefile and language.  */
   void GetIncludeDirectories(std::vector<std::string>& dirs,
                              cmGeneratorTarget* target,
-                             const char* lang = "C", const char *config = 0,
+                             const std::string& lang = "C",
+                             const char *config = 0,
                              bool stripImplicitInclDirs = true);
   void AddCompileOptions(std::string& flags, cmTarget* target,
-                         const char* lang, const char* config);
+                         const std::string& lang, const char* config);
   void AddCompileDefinitions(std::set<std::string>& defines,
                              cmTarget const* target,
                              const char* config);
 
   /** Compute the language used to compile the given source file.  */
-  const char* GetSourceFileLanguage(const cmSourceFile& source);
+  std::string GetSourceFileLanguage(const cmSourceFile& source);
 
   // Fill the vector with the target names for the object files,
   // preprocessed files and assembly files.
@@ -389,10 +391,11 @@ protected:
 
   /** Convert a target to a utility target for unsupported
    *  languages of a generator */
-  void AddBuildTargetRule(const char* llang, cmGeneratorTarget& target);
+  void AddBuildTargetRule(const std::string& llang,
+                          cmGeneratorTarget& target);
   ///! add a custom command to build a .o file that is part of a target
   void AddCustomCommandToCreateObject(const char* ofname,
-                                      const char* lang,
+                                      const std::string& lang,
                                       cmSourceFile& source,
                                       cmGeneratorTarget& target);
   // Create Custom Targets and commands for unsupported languages
@@ -473,7 +476,8 @@ private:
                                                std::string const& result,
                                                OutputFormat format);
 
-  void AddSharedFlags(std::string& flags, const char* lang, bool shared);
+  void AddSharedFlags(std::string& flags, const std::string& lang,
+                      bool shared);
   bool GetShouldUseOldFlags(bool shared, const std::string &lang) const;
   void AddPositionIndependentFlags(std::string& flags, std::string const& l,
                                    int targetType);
diff --git a/Source/cmLocalUnixMakefileGenerator3.cxx b/Source/cmLocalUnixMakefileGenerator3.cxx
index 93722d1..11b89f4 100644
--- a/Source/cmLocalUnixMakefileGenerator3.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmLocalUnixMakefileGenerator3.cxx
@@ -2198,7 +2198,7 @@ cmLocalUnixMakefileGenerator3::GetImplicitDepends(cmTarget const& tgt)
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void
 cmLocalUnixMakefileGenerator3::AddImplicitDepends(cmTarget const& tgt,
-                                                  const char* lang,
+                                                  const std::string& lang,
                                                   const char* obj,
                                                   const char* src)
 {
diff --git a/Source/cmLocalUnixMakefileGenerator3.h b/Source/cmLocalUnixMakefileGenerator3.h
index 703369e..b0ccf52 100644
--- a/Source/cmLocalUnixMakefileGenerator3.h
+++ b/Source/cmLocalUnixMakefileGenerator3.h
@@ -217,7 +217,7 @@ public:
     public std::map<cmStdString, ImplicitDependLanguageMap> {};
   ImplicitDependLanguageMap const& GetImplicitDepends(cmTarget const& tgt);
 
-  void AddImplicitDepends(cmTarget const& tgt, const char* lang,
+  void AddImplicitDepends(cmTarget const& tgt, const std::string& lang,
                           const char* obj, const char* src);
 
   void AppendGlobalTargetDepends(std::vector<std::string>& depends,
@@ -358,7 +358,7 @@ private:
     cmTarget* Target;
     std::string Language;
     LocalObjectEntry(): Target(0), Language() {}
-    LocalObjectEntry(cmTarget* t, const char* lang):
+    LocalObjectEntry(cmTarget* t, const std::string& lang):
       Target(t), Language(lang) {}
   };
   struct LocalObjectInfo: public std::vector<LocalObjectEntry>
diff --git a/Source/cmLocalVisualStudio6Generator.cxx b/Source/cmLocalVisualStudio6Generator.cxx
index a5e8294..ff217c3 100644
--- a/Source/cmLocalVisualStudio6Generator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmLocalVisualStudio6Generator.cxx
@@ -413,19 +413,16 @@ void cmLocalVisualStudio6Generator
       compileFlags += cflags;
       }
 
-    const char* lang = this->GetSourceFileLanguage(*(*sf));
-    if(lang)
+    const std::string& lang = this->GetSourceFileLanguage(*(*sf));
+    if(lang == "CXX")
       {
-      if(strcmp(lang, "CXX") == 0)
-        {
-        // force a C++ file type
-        compileFlags += " /TP ";
-        }
-      else if(strcmp(lang, "C") == 0)
-        {
-        // force to c file type
-        compileFlags += " /TC ";
-        }
+      // force a C++ file type
+      compileFlags += " /TP ";
+      }
+    else if(lang == "C")
+      {
+      // force to c file type
+      compileFlags += " /TC ";
       }
 
     // Add per-source and per-configuration preprocessor definitions.
@@ -469,7 +466,7 @@ void cmLocalVisualStudio6Generator
       }
 
     bool excludedFromBuild =
-      (lang && (*sf)->GetPropertyAsBool("HEADER_FILE_ONLY"));
+      (!lang.empty() && (*sf)->GetPropertyAsBool("HEADER_FILE_ONLY"));
 
     // Check for extra object-file dependencies.
     const char* dependsValue = (*sf)->GetProperty("OBJECT_DEPENDS");
@@ -1255,8 +1252,8 @@ void cmLocalVisualStudio6Generator
   if(targetBuilds)
     {
     // Get the language to use for linking.
-    const char* linkLanguage = target.GetLinkerLanguage();
-    if(!linkLanguage)
+    const std::string& linkLanguage = target.GetLinkerLanguage();
+    if(linkLanguage.empty())
       {
       cmSystemTools::Error
         ("CMake can not determine linker language for target: ",
@@ -1677,8 +1674,8 @@ void cmLocalVisualStudio6Generator
     if(target.GetType() >= cmTarget::EXECUTABLE &&
        target.GetType() <= cmTarget::OBJECT_LIBRARY)
       {
-      const char* linkLanguage = target.GetLinkerLanguage();
-      if(!linkLanguage)
+      const std::string& linkLanguage = target.GetLinkerLanguage();
+      if(linkLanguage.empty())
         {
         cmSystemTools::Error
           ("CMake can not determine linker language for target: ",
@@ -1745,11 +1742,11 @@ void cmLocalVisualStudio6Generator
     std::string minsizeDefines = " ";
     std::string debugrelDefines = " ";
 
-    this->JoinDefines(definesSet, defines, 0);
-    this->JoinDefines(debugDefinesSet, debugDefines, 0);
-    this->JoinDefines(releaseDefinesSet, releaseDefines, 0);
-    this->JoinDefines(minsizeDefinesSet, minsizeDefines, 0);
-    this->JoinDefines(debugrelDefinesSet, debugrelDefines, 0);
+    this->JoinDefines(definesSet, defines, "");
+    this->JoinDefines(debugDefinesSet, debugDefines, "");
+    this->JoinDefines(releaseDefinesSet, releaseDefines, "");
+    this->JoinDefines(minsizeDefinesSet, minsizeDefines, "");
+    this->JoinDefines(debugrelDefinesSet, debugrelDefines, "");
 
     flags += defines;
     flagsDebug += debugDefines;
diff --git a/Source/cmLocalVisualStudio7Generator.cxx b/Source/cmLocalVisualStudio7Generator.cxx
index d11bf55..f93a7aa 100644
--- a/Source/cmLocalVisualStudio7Generator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmLocalVisualStudio7Generator.cxx
@@ -687,17 +687,18 @@ void cmLocalVisualStudio7Generator::WriteConfiguration(std::ostream& fout,
   std::string flags;
   if(strcmp(configType, "10") != 0)
     {
-    const char* linkLanguage = (this->FortranProject? "Fortran":
+    const std::string& linkLanguage = (this->FortranProject?
+                                       std::string("Fortran"):
                                 target.GetLinkerLanguage(configName));
-    if(!linkLanguage)
+    if(linkLanguage.empty())
       {
       cmSystemTools::Error
         ("CMake can not determine linker language for target: ",
          target.GetName());
       return;
       }
-    if(strcmp(linkLanguage, "C") == 0 || strcmp(linkLanguage, "CXX") == 0
-      || strcmp(linkLanguage, "Fortran") == 0)
+    if(linkLanguage == "C" || linkLanguage == "CXX"
+      || linkLanguage == "Fortran")
       {
       std::string baseFlagVar = "CMAKE_";
       baseFlagVar += linkLanguage;
@@ -709,11 +710,11 @@ void cmLocalVisualStudio7Generator::WriteConfiguration(std::ostream& fout,
       flags += this->Makefile->GetRequiredDefinition(flagVar.c_str());
       }
     // set the correct language
-    if(strcmp(linkLanguage, "C") == 0)
+    if(linkLanguage == "C")
       {
       flags += " /TC ";
       }
-    if(strcmp(linkLanguage, "CXX") == 0)
+    if(linkLanguage == "CXX")
       {
       flags += " /TP ";
       }
@@ -1081,7 +1082,7 @@ void cmLocalVisualStudio7Generator::OutputBuildTool(std::ostream& fout,
       return;
       }
     cmComputeLinkInformation& cli = *pcli;
-    const char* linkLanguage = cli.GetLinkLanguage();
+    std::string linkLanguage = cli.GetLinkLanguage();
 
     // Compute the variable name to lookup standard libraries for this
     // language.
@@ -1177,7 +1178,7 @@ void cmLocalVisualStudio7Generator::OutputBuildTool(std::ostream& fout,
       return;
       }
     cmComputeLinkInformation& cli = *pcli;
-    const char* linkLanguage = cli.GetLinkLanguage();
+    std::string linkLanguage = cli.GetLinkLanguage();
 
     bool isWin32Executable = target.GetPropertyAsBool("WIN32_EXECUTABLE");
 
@@ -1546,14 +1547,14 @@ cmLocalVisualStudio7GeneratorFCInfo
         }
       }
 
-    const char* lang =
+    std::string lang =
       lg->GlobalGenerator->GetLanguageFromExtension
       (sf.GetExtension().c_str());
-    const char* sourceLang = lg->GetSourceFileLanguage(sf);
-    const char* linkLanguage = target.GetLinkerLanguage(i->c_str());
+    const std::string& sourceLang = lg->GetSourceFileLanguage(sf);
+    const std::string& linkLanguage = target.GetLinkerLanguage(i->c_str());
     bool needForceLang = false;
     // source file does not match its extension language
-    if(lang && sourceLang && strcmp(lang, sourceLang) != 0)
+    if(lang != sourceLang)
       {
       needForceLang = true;
       lang = sourceLang;
@@ -1569,16 +1570,15 @@ cmLocalVisualStudio7GeneratorFCInfo
 
     // if the source file does not match the linker language
     // then force c or c++
-    if(needForceLang || (linkLanguage && lang
-                         && strcmp(lang, linkLanguage) != 0))
+    if(needForceLang || (linkLanguage != lang))
       {
-      if(strcmp(lang, "CXX") == 0)
+      if(lang == "CXX")
         {
         // force a C++ file type
         fc.CompileFlags += " /TP ";
         needfc = true;
         }
-      else if(strcmp(lang, "C") == 0)
+      else if(lang == "C")
         {
         // force to c
         fc.CompileFlags += " /TC ";
diff --git a/Source/cmMakefile.cxx b/Source/cmMakefile.cxx
index ff0576e..8274b13 100644
--- a/Source/cmMakefile.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmMakefile.cxx
@@ -2361,10 +2361,10 @@ bool cmMakefile::PlatformIs64Bit() const
   return false;
 }
 
-const char* cmMakefile::GetSONameFlag(const char* language) const
+const char* cmMakefile::GetSONameFlag(const std::string& language) const
 {
   std::string name = "CMAKE_SHARED_LIBRARY_SONAME";
-  if(language)
+  if(!language.empty())
     {
     name += "_";
     name += language;
diff --git a/Source/cmMakefile.h b/Source/cmMakefile.h
index 044324e..331a064 100644
--- a/Source/cmMakefile.h
+++ b/Source/cmMakefile.h
@@ -608,7 +608,7 @@ public:
   bool PlatformIs64Bit() const;
 
   /** Retrieve soname flag for the specified language if supported */
-  const char* GetSONameFlag(const char* language) const;
+  const char* GetSONameFlag(const std::string& language) const;
 
   /**
    * Get a list of preprocessor define flags.
diff --git a/Source/cmMakefileExecutableTargetGenerator.cxx b/Source/cmMakefileExecutableTargetGenerator.cxx
index 1802054..b827363 100644
--- a/Source/cmMakefileExecutableTargetGenerator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmMakefileExecutableTargetGenerator.cxx
@@ -160,11 +160,11 @@ void cmMakefileExecutableTargetGenerator::WriteExecutableRule(bool relink)
                   cmLocalGenerator::SHELL);
 
   // Get the language to use for linking this executable.
-  const char* linkLanguage =
+  std::string linkLanguage =
     this->Target->GetLinkerLanguage(this->ConfigName);
 
   // Make sure we have a link language.
-  if(!linkLanguage)
+  if(linkLanguage.empty())
     {
     cmSystemTools::Error("Cannot determine link language for target \"",
                          this->Target->GetName(), "\".");
@@ -348,7 +348,7 @@ void cmMakefileExecutableTargetGenerator::WriteExecutableRule(bool relink)
   cmLocalGenerator::RuleVariables vars;
   vars.RuleLauncher = "RULE_LAUNCH_LINK";
   vars.CMTarget = this->Target;
-  vars.Language = linkLanguage;
+  vars.Language = linkLanguage.c_str();
   vars.Objects = buildObjs.c_str();
   std::string objectDir = this->Target->GetSupportDirectory();
   objectDir = this->Convert(objectDir.c_str(),
diff --git a/Source/cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator.cxx b/Source/cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator.cxx
index 10418d0..96159f9 100644
--- a/Source/cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator.cxx
@@ -131,13 +131,10 @@ void cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator::WriteObjectLibraryRules()
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator::WriteStaticLibraryRules()
 {
-  const char* linkLanguage =
+  std::string linkLanguage =
     this->Target->GetLinkerLanguage(this->ConfigName);
   std::string linkRuleVar = "CMAKE_";
-  if (linkLanguage)
-    {
-    linkRuleVar += linkLanguage;
-    }
+  linkRuleVar += linkLanguage;
   linkRuleVar += "_CREATE_STATIC_LIBRARY";
 
   if(this->GetFeatureAsBool("INTERPROCEDURAL_OPTIMIZATION") &&
@@ -160,13 +157,10 @@ void cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator::WriteSharedLibraryRules(bool relink)
     this->WriteFrameworkRules(relink);
     return;
     }
-  const char* linkLanguage =
+  std::string linkLanguage =
     this->Target->GetLinkerLanguage(this->ConfigName);
   std::string linkRuleVar = "CMAKE_";
-  if (linkLanguage)
-    {
-    linkRuleVar += linkLanguage;
-    }
+  linkRuleVar += linkLanguage;
   linkRuleVar += "_CREATE_SHARED_LIBRARY";
 
   std::string extraFlags;
@@ -187,13 +181,10 @@ void cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator::WriteSharedLibraryRules(bool relink)
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator::WriteModuleLibraryRules(bool relink)
 {
-  const char* linkLanguage =
+  std::string linkLanguage =
     this->Target->GetLinkerLanguage(this->ConfigName);
   std::string linkRuleVar = "CMAKE_";
-  if (linkLanguage)
-    {
-    linkRuleVar += linkLanguage;
-    }
+  linkRuleVar += linkLanguage;
   linkRuleVar += "_CREATE_SHARED_MODULE";
 
   std::string extraFlags;
@@ -213,13 +204,10 @@ void cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator::WriteModuleLibraryRules(bool relink)
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator::WriteFrameworkRules(bool relink)
 {
-  const char* linkLanguage =
+  std::string linkLanguage =
     this->Target->GetLinkerLanguage(this->ConfigName);
   std::string linkRuleVar = "CMAKE_";
-  if (linkLanguage)
-    {
-    linkRuleVar += linkLanguage;
-    }
+  linkRuleVar += linkLanguage;
   linkRuleVar += "_CREATE_MACOSX_FRAMEWORK";
 
   std::string extraFlags;
@@ -248,11 +236,11 @@ void cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator::WriteLibraryRules
   this->AppendLinkDepends(depends);
 
   // Get the language to use for linking this library.
-  const char* linkLanguage =
+  std::string linkLanguage =
     this->Target->GetLinkerLanguage(this->ConfigName);
 
   // Make sure we have a link language.
-  if(!linkLanguage)
+  if(linkLanguage.empty())
     {
     cmSystemTools::Error("Cannot determine link language for target \"",
                          this->Target->GetName(), "\".");
@@ -589,7 +577,7 @@ void cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator::WriteLibraryRules
 
   vars.RuleLauncher = "RULE_LAUNCH_LINK";
   vars.CMTarget = this->Target;
-  vars.Language = linkLanguage;
+  vars.Language = linkLanguage.c_str();
   vars.Objects = buildObjs.c_str();
   std::string objectDir = this->Target->GetSupportDirectory();
   objectDir = this->Convert(objectDir.c_str(),
@@ -786,7 +774,7 @@ void cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator::WriteLibraryRules
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void
 cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator
-::AppendOSXVerFlag(std::string& flags, const char* lang,
+::AppendOSXVerFlag(std::string& flags, const std::string& lang,
                    const char* name, bool so)
 {
   // Lookup the flag to specify the version.
diff --git a/Source/cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator.h b/Source/cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator.h
index 4873516..68980c3 100644
--- a/Source/cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator.h
+++ b/Source/cmMakefileLibraryTargetGenerator.h
@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ protected:
   // Store the computd framework version for OS X Frameworks.
   std::string FrameworkVersion;
 
-  void AppendOSXVerFlag(std::string& flags, const char* lang,
+  void AppendOSXVerFlag(std::string& flags, const std::string& lang,
                         const char* name, bool so);
 };
 
diff --git a/Source/cmMakefileTargetGenerator.cxx b/Source/cmMakefileTargetGenerator.cxx
index bf0dc51..3ba5a77 100644
--- a/Source/cmMakefileTargetGenerator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmMakefileTargetGenerator.cxx
@@ -422,8 +422,9 @@ cmMakefileTargetGenerator::MacOSXContentGeneratorType::operator()
 void cmMakefileTargetGenerator::WriteObjectRuleFiles(cmSourceFile& source)
 {
   // Identify the language of the source file.
-  const char* lang = this->LocalGenerator->GetSourceFileLanguage(source);
-  if(!lang)
+  const std::string& lang =
+    this->LocalGenerator->GetSourceFileLanguage(source);
+  if(lang.empty())
     {
     // don't know anything about this file so skip it
     return;
@@ -523,7 +524,7 @@ cmMakefileTargetGenerator
 void
 cmMakefileTargetGenerator
 ::WriteObjectBuildFile(std::string &obj,
-                       const char *lang,
+                       const std::string& lang,
                        cmSourceFile& source,
                        std::vector<std::string>& depends)
 {
@@ -552,7 +553,7 @@ cmMakefileTargetGenerator
     cmSystemTools::UpperCase(this->LocalGenerator->ConfigurationName);
 
   // Add Fortran format flags.
-  if(strcmp(lang, "Fortran") == 0)
+  if(lang == "Fortran")
     {
     this->AppendFortranFormatFlags(flags, source);
     }
@@ -664,7 +665,7 @@ cmMakefileTargetGenerator
   cmLocalGenerator::RuleVariables vars;
   vars.RuleLauncher = "RULE_LAUNCH_COMPILE";
   vars.CMTarget = this->Target;
-  vars.Language = lang;
+  vars.Language = lang.c_str();
   vars.Target = targetOutPathReal.c_str();
   vars.TargetPDB = targetOutPathPDB.c_str();
   vars.TargetCompilePDB = targetOutPathCompilePDB.c_str();
@@ -689,8 +690,7 @@ cmMakefileTargetGenerator
 
   vars.Defines = definesString.c_str();
 
-  bool lang_is_c_or_cxx = ((strcmp(lang, "C") == 0) ||
-                           (strcmp(lang, "CXX") == 0));
+  bool lang_is_c_or_cxx = ((lang == "C") || (lang == "CXX"));
 
   // Construct the compile rules.
   {
@@ -1709,8 +1709,8 @@ void cmMakefileTargetGenerator
 }
 
 void cmMakefileTargetGenerator::RemoveForbiddenFlags(const char* flagVar,
-                                                     const char* linkLang,
-                                                     std::string& linkFlags)
+                                                const std::string& linkLang,
+                                                std::string& linkFlags)
 {
   // check for language flags that are not allowed at link time, and
   // remove them, -w on darwin for gcc -w -dynamiclib sends -w to libtool
@@ -1943,7 +1943,7 @@ cmMakefileTargetGenerator
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmMakefileTargetGenerator::AddIncludeFlags(std::string& flags,
-                                                const char* lang)
+                                                const std::string& lang)
 {
   std::string responseVar = "CMAKE_";
   responseVar += lang;
@@ -2113,7 +2113,7 @@ bool cmMakefileTargetGenerator::GetFeatureAsBool(const char* feature)
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 void cmMakefileTargetGenerator::AddFeatureFlags(
-  std::string& flags, const char* lang
+  std::string& flags, const std::string& lang
   )
 {
   // Add language-specific flags.
diff --git a/Source/cmMakefileTargetGenerator.h b/Source/cmMakefileTargetGenerator.h
index f960afc..8ab65bf 100644
--- a/Source/cmMakefileTargetGenerator.h
+++ b/Source/cmMakefileTargetGenerator.h
@@ -93,7 +93,7 @@ protected:
 
   // write the build rule for an object
   void WriteObjectBuildFile(std::string &obj,
-                            const char *lang,
+                            const std::string& lang,
                             cmSourceFile& source,
                             std::vector<std::string>& depends);
 
@@ -173,10 +173,10 @@ protected:
                          bool useResponseFile, std::string& buildObjs,
                          std::vector<std::string>& makefile_depends);
 
-  void AddIncludeFlags(std::string& flags, const char* lang);
+  void AddIncludeFlags(std::string& flags, const std::string& lang);
 
   virtual void CloseFileStreams();
-  void RemoveForbiddenFlags(const char* flagVar, const char* linkLang,
+  void RemoveForbiddenFlags(const char* flagVar, const std::string& linkLang,
                             std::string& linkFlags);
   cmTarget *Target;
   cmGeneratorTarget* GeneratorTarget;
@@ -260,7 +260,7 @@ protected:
   void AddModuleDefinitionFlag(std::string& flags);
 
   // Add language feature flags.
-  void AddFeatureFlags(std::string& flags, const char* lang);
+  void AddFeatureFlags(std::string& flags, const std::string& lang);
 
   // Feature query methods.
   const char* GetFeature(const char* feature);
diff --git a/Source/cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator.cxx b/Source/cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator.cxx
index 73ba815..b81fbeb 100644
--- a/Source/cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator.cxx
@@ -35,7 +35,7 @@ cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator(cmGeneratorTarget* target)
   , TargetNameReal()
   , TargetNameImport()
   , TargetNamePDB()
-  , TargetLinkLanguage(0)
+  , TargetLinkLanguage("")
 {
   this->TargetLinkLanguage = target->Target
                                    ->GetLinkerLanguage(this->GetConfigName());
@@ -72,7 +72,7 @@ cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator::~cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator()
 
 void cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator::Generate()
 {
-  if (!this->TargetLinkLanguage) {
+  if (this->TargetLinkLanguage.empty()) {
     cmSystemTools::Error("CMake can not determine linker language for "
                          "target: ",
                          this->GetTarget()->GetName());
@@ -140,7 +140,7 @@ std::string
 cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator
 ::LanguageLinkerRule() const
 {
-  return std::string(this->TargetLinkLanguage)
+  return this->TargetLinkLanguage
     + "_"
     + cmTarget::GetTargetTypeName(this->GetTarget()->GetType())
     + "_LINKER";
@@ -163,7 +163,7 @@ cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator
     cmLocalGenerator::RuleVariables vars;
     vars.RuleLauncher = "RULE_LAUNCH_LINK";
     vars.CMTarget = this->GetTarget();
-    vars.Language = this->TargetLinkLanguage;
+    vars.Language = this->TargetLinkLanguage.c_str();
 
     std::string responseFlag;
     if (!useResponseFile) {
diff --git a/Source/cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator.h b/Source/cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator.h
index c7a089c..556ed5e 100644
--- a/Source/cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator.h
+++ b/Source/cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator.h
@@ -47,7 +47,7 @@ private:
   std::string TargetNameReal;
   std::string TargetNameImport;
   std::string TargetNamePDB;
-  const char *TargetLinkLanguage;
+  std::string TargetLinkLanguage;
 };
 
 #endif // ! cmNinjaNormalTargetGenerator_h
diff --git a/Source/cmNinjaTargetGenerator.cxx b/Source/cmNinjaTargetGenerator.cxx
index 00b0441..1c43cb3 100644
--- a/Source/cmNinjaTargetGenerator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmNinjaTargetGenerator.cxx
@@ -110,7 +110,7 @@ bool cmNinjaTargetGenerator::GetFeatureAsBool(const char* feature)
 
 // TODO: Picked up from cmMakefileTargetGenerator.  Refactor it.
 void cmNinjaTargetGenerator::AddFeatureFlags(std::string& flags,
-                                             const char* lang)
+                                             const std::string& lang)
 {
   // Add language-specific flags.
   this->LocalGenerator->AddLanguageFlags(flags, lang, this->GetConfigName());
diff --git a/Source/cmNinjaTargetGenerator.h b/Source/cmNinjaTargetGenerator.h
index 43f2279..e8ac81c 100644
--- a/Source/cmNinjaTargetGenerator.h
+++ b/Source/cmNinjaTargetGenerator.h
@@ -72,7 +72,7 @@ protected:
 
   const char* GetFeature(const char* feature);
   bool GetFeatureAsBool(const char* feature);
-  void AddFeatureFlags(std::string& flags, const char* lang);
+  void AddFeatureFlags(std::string& flags, const std::string& lang);
 
   /**
    * Compute the flags for compilation of object files for a given @a language.
diff --git a/Source/cmSourceFile.cxx b/Source/cmSourceFile.cxx
index f052044..0d37205 100644
--- a/Source/cmSourceFile.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmSourceFile.cxx
@@ -39,7 +39,7 @@ std::string const& cmSourceFile::GetExtension() const
 }
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-const char* cmSourceFile::GetLanguage()
+std::string cmSourceFile::GetLanguage()
 {
   // If the language was set explicitly by the user then use it.
   if(const char* lang = this->GetProperty("LANGUAGE"))
@@ -76,7 +76,7 @@ const char* cmSourceFile::GetLanguage()
 }
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-const char* cmSourceFile::GetLanguage() const
+std::string cmSourceFile::GetLanguage() const
 {
   // If the language was set explicitly by the user then use it.
   if(const char* lang = this->GetProperty("LANGUAGE"))
@@ -87,11 +87,11 @@ const char* cmSourceFile::GetLanguage() const
   // If the language was determined from the source file extension use it.
   if(!this->Language.empty())
     {
-    return this->Language.c_str();
+    return this->Language;
     }
 
   // The language is not known.
-  return 0;
+  return "";
 }
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -267,7 +267,8 @@ void cmSourceFile::CheckLanguage(std::string const& ext)
   // Try to identify the source file language from the extension.
   cmMakefile const* mf = this->Location.GetMakefile();
   cmGlobalGenerator* gg = mf->GetLocalGenerator()->GetGlobalGenerator();
-  if(const char* l = gg->GetLanguageFromExtension(ext.c_str()))
+  std::string l = gg->GetLanguageFromExtension(ext.c_str());
+  if(!l.empty())
     {
     this->Language = l;
     }
diff --git a/Source/cmSourceFile.h b/Source/cmSourceFile.h
index b362c98..17c96ac 100644
--- a/Source/cmSourceFile.h
+++ b/Source/cmSourceFile.h
@@ -79,8 +79,8 @@ public:
   /**
    * Get the language of the compiler to use for this source file.
    */
-  const char* GetLanguage();
-  const char* GetLanguage() const;
+  std::string GetLanguage();
+  std::string GetLanguage() const;
 
   /**
    * Return the vector that holds the list of dependencies
diff --git a/Source/cmSourceFileLocation.cxx b/Source/cmSourceFileLocation.cxx
index 832a6a7..30a53cb 100644
--- a/Source/cmSourceFileLocation.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmSourceFileLocation.cxx
@@ -93,7 +93,7 @@ void cmSourceFileLocation::UpdateExtension(const std::string& name)
   cmMakefile const* mf = this->Makefile;
   const std::vector<std::string>& srcExts = mf->GetSourceExtensions();
   const std::vector<std::string>& hdrExts = mf->GetHeaderExtensions();
-  if(gg->GetLanguageFromExtension(ext.c_str()) ||
+  if(!gg->GetLanguageFromExtension(ext.c_str()).empty() ||
      std::find(srcExts.begin(), srcExts.end(), ext) != srcExts.end() ||
      std::find(hdrExts.begin(), hdrExts.end(), ext) != hdrExts.end())
     {
diff --git a/Source/cmTarget.cxx b/Source/cmTarget.cxx
index 34d92fa..6782822 100644
--- a/Source/cmTarget.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmTarget.cxx
@@ -2884,13 +2884,11 @@ private:
 };
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
-const char* cmTarget::GetLinkerLanguage(const char* config,
+std::string cmTarget::GetLinkerLanguage(const char* config,
                                         cmTarget const* head) const
 {
   cmTarget const* headTarget = head ? head : this;
-  const char* lang = this->GetLinkClosure(config, headTarget)
-                                                    ->LinkerLanguage.c_str();
-  return *lang? lang : 0;
+  return this->GetLinkClosure(config, headTarget)->LinkerLanguage;
 }
 
 //----------------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -2924,7 +2922,7 @@ public:
     this->Makefile = this->Target->GetMakefile();
     this->GG = this->Makefile->GetLocalGenerator()->GetGlobalGenerator();
     }
-  void Consider(const char* lang)
+  void Consider(const std::string& lang)
     {
     int preference = this->GG->GetLinkerPreference(lang);
     if(preference > this->Preference)
@@ -3530,7 +3528,8 @@ void cmTarget::GetFullNameInternal(const char* config,
   const char* suffixVar = this->GetSuffixVariableInternal(implib);
 
   // Check for language-specific default prefix and suffix.
-  if(const char* ll = this->GetLinkerLanguage(config, this))
+  std::string ll = this->GetLinkerLanguage(config, this);
+  if(!ll.empty())
     {
     if(!targetSuffix && suffixVar && *suffixVar)
       {
@@ -3867,7 +3866,8 @@ bool cmTarget::NeedRelinkBeforeInstall(const char* config) const
     }
 
   // Check for rpath support on this platform.
-  if(const char* ll = this->GetLinkerLanguage(config, this))
+  std::string ll = this->GetLinkerLanguage(config, this);
+  if(!ll.empty())
     {
     std::string flagVar = "CMAKE_SHARED_LIBRARY_RUNTIME_";
     flagVar += ll;
@@ -4825,7 +4825,8 @@ void cmTarget::GetLanguages(std::set<cmStdString>& languages) const
   for(std::vector<cmSourceFile*>::const_iterator
         i = this->SourceFiles.begin(); i != this->SourceFiles.end(); ++i)
     {
-    if(const char* lang = (*i)->GetLanguage())
+    const std::string& lang = (*i)->GetLanguage();
+    if(!lang.empty())
       {
       languages.insert(lang);
       }
@@ -4876,7 +4877,8 @@ bool cmTarget::IsChrpathUsed(const char* config) const
 #if defined(CMAKE_USE_ELF_PARSER)
   // Enable if the rpath flag uses a separator and the target uses ELF
   // binaries.
-  if(const char* ll = this->GetLinkerLanguage(config, this))
+  std::string ll = this->GetLinkerLanguage(config, this);
+  if(!ll.empty())
     {
     std::string sepVar = "CMAKE_SHARED_LIBRARY_RUNTIME_";
     sepVar += ll;
diff --git a/Source/cmTarget.h b/Source/cmTarget.h
index 9f7b811..205c81c 100644
--- a/Source/cmTarget.h
+++ b/Source/cmTarget.h
@@ -347,7 +347,7 @@ public:
   GetTargetVersion(bool soversion, int& major, int& minor, int& patch) const;
 
   ///! Return the preferred linker language for this target
-  const char* GetLinkerLanguage(const char* config = 0,
+  std::string GetLinkerLanguage(const char* config = 0,
                                 cmTarget const* head = 0) const;
 
   /** Get the full name of the target according to the settings in its
diff --git a/Source/cmVisualStudio10TargetGenerator.cxx b/Source/cmVisualStudio10TargetGenerator.cxx
index 2d21a3d..aa721b7 100644
--- a/Source/cmVisualStudio10TargetGenerator.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmVisualStudio10TargetGenerator.cxx
@@ -1012,18 +1012,18 @@ void cmVisualStudio10TargetGenerator::WriteAllSources()
         si = objectSources.begin();
       si != objectSources.end(); ++si)
     {
-    const char* lang = (*si)->GetLanguage();
+    const std::string& lang = (*si)->GetLanguage();
     const char* tool = NULL;
-    if (strcmp(lang, "C") == 0 || strcmp(lang, "CXX") == 0)
+    if (lang == "C"|| lang == "CXX")
       {
       tool = "ClCompile";
       }
-    else if (strcmp(lang, "ASM_MASM") == 0 &&
+    else if (lang == "ASM_NASM" &&
              this->GlobalGenerator->IsMasmEnabled())
       {
       tool = "MASM";
       }
-    else if (strcmp(lang, "RC") == 0)
+    else if (lang == "RC")
       {
       tool = "ResourceCompile";
       }
@@ -1108,29 +1108,28 @@ bool cmVisualStudio10TargetGenerator::OutputSourceSpecificFlags(
     {
     defines += cdefs;
     }
-  const char* lang =
+  std::string lang =
     this->GlobalGenerator->GetLanguageFromExtension
     (sf.GetExtension().c_str());
-  const char* sourceLang = this->LocalGenerator->GetSourceFileLanguage(sf);
-  const char* linkLanguage = this->Target->GetLinkerLanguage();
+  std::string sourceLang = this->LocalGenerator->GetSourceFileLanguage(sf);
+  const std::string& linkLanguage = this->Target->GetLinkerLanguage();
   bool needForceLang = false;
   // source file does not match its extension language
-  if(lang && sourceLang && strcmp(lang, sourceLang) != 0)
+  if(lang != sourceLang)
     {
     needForceLang = true;
     lang = sourceLang;
     }
   // if the source file does not match the linker language
   // then force c or c++
-  if(needForceLang || (linkLanguage && lang
-                       && strcmp(lang, linkLanguage) != 0))
+  if(needForceLang || (linkLanguage != lang))
     {
-    if(strcmp(lang, "CXX") == 0)
+    if(lang == "CXX")
       {
       // force a C++ file type
       flags += " /TP ";
       }
-    else if(strcmp(lang, "C") == 0)
+    else if(lang == "C")
       {
       // force to c
       flags += " /TC ";
@@ -1341,17 +1340,17 @@ bool cmVisualStudio10TargetGenerator::ComputeClOptions(
   // collect up flags for
   if(this->Target->GetType() < cmTarget::UTILITY)
     {
-    const char* linkLanguage =
+    const std::string& linkLanguage =
       this->Target->GetLinkerLanguage(configName.c_str());
-    if(!linkLanguage)
+    if(linkLanguage.empty())
       {
       cmSystemTools::Error
         ("CMake can not determine linker language for target: ",
          this->Name.c_str());
       return false;
       }
-    if(strcmp(linkLanguage, "C") == 0 || strcmp(linkLanguage, "CXX") == 0
-       || strcmp(linkLanguage, "Fortran") == 0)
+    if(linkLanguage == "C" || linkLanguage == "CXX"
+       || linkLanguage == "Fortran")
       {
       std::string baseFlagVar = "CMAKE_";
       baseFlagVar += linkLanguage;
@@ -1365,11 +1364,11 @@ bool cmVisualStudio10TargetGenerator::ComputeClOptions(
         Target->GetMakefile()->GetRequiredDefinition(flagVar.c_str());
       }
     // set the correct language
-    if(strcmp(linkLanguage, "C") == 0)
+    if(linkLanguage == "C")
       {
       flags += " /TC ";
       }
-    if(strcmp(linkLanguage, "CXX") == 0)
+    if(linkLanguage == "CXX")
       {
       flags += " /TP ";
       }
@@ -1525,9 +1524,9 @@ cmVisualStudio10TargetGenerator::ComputeLinkOptions(std::string const& config)
                 cmVSGetLinkFlagTable(this->LocalGenerator), 0, this));
   Options& linkOptions = *pOptions;
 
-  const char* linkLanguage =
+  const std::string& linkLanguage =
     this->Target->GetLinkerLanguage(config.c_str());
-  if(!linkLanguage)
+  if(linkLanguage.empty())
     {
     cmSystemTools::Error
       ("CMake can not determine linker language for target: ",
diff --git a/Source/cmVisualStudioGeneratorOptions.cxx b/Source/cmVisualStudioGeneratorOptions.cxx
index 6aca787..f48c593 100644
--- a/Source/cmVisualStudioGeneratorOptions.cxx
+++ b/Source/cmVisualStudioGeneratorOptions.cxx
@@ -222,7 +222,7 @@ cmVisualStudioGeneratorOptions
 ::OutputPreprocessorDefinitions(std::ostream& fout,
                                 const char* prefix,
                                 const char* suffix,
-                                const char* lang)
+                                const std::string& lang)
 {
   if(this->Defines.empty())
     {
@@ -270,7 +270,7 @@ cmVisualStudioGeneratorOptions
       {
       define = cmVisualStudio10GeneratorOptionsEscapeForXML(define.c_str());
 
-      if(0 == strcmp(lang, "RC"))
+      if(lang == "RC")
         {
         cmSystemTools::ReplaceString(define, "\"", "\\\"");
         }
diff --git a/Source/cmVisualStudioGeneratorOptions.h b/Source/cmVisualStudioGeneratorOptions.h
index 90f7667..214b893 100644
--- a/Source/cmVisualStudioGeneratorOptions.h
+++ b/Source/cmVisualStudioGeneratorOptions.h
@@ -55,7 +55,7 @@ public:
   void OutputPreprocessorDefinitions(std::ostream& fout,
                                      const char* prefix,
                                      const char* suffix,
-                                     const char* lang);
+                                     const std::string& lang);
   void OutputFlagMap(std::ostream& fout, const char* indent);
   void OutputAdditionalOptions(std::ostream& fout,
                                const char* prefix,
diff --git a/Source/cmXCodeObject.h b/Source/cmXCodeObject.h
index 0761136..ad1533e 100644
--- a/Source/cmXCodeObject.h
+++ b/Source/cmXCodeObject.h
@@ -123,7 +123,7 @@ public:
   void CopyAttributes(cmXCodeObject* );
 
   void AddDependLibrary(const char* configName,
-                        const char* l)
+                        const std::string& l)
     {
       if(!configName)
         {