CentOS gem install of libxml-ruby is failing

I'm trying to do a simple gem install so I can validate some XML files for a project, and the gem install fails as follows on my CentOS system:

[root@miller ~]# uname -a
Linux miller 2.6.18-53.1.4.el5 #1 SMP Fri Nov 30 00:45:16 EST 2007 i686 athlon i386 GNU/Linux
[root@miller ~]# gem install libxml-ruby
Building native extensions. This could take a while...
ERROR: Error installing libxml-ruby:
         ERROR: Failed to build gem native extension.

/usr/bin/ruby extconf.rb install libxml-ruby
checking for socket() in -lsocket... no
checking for gethostbyname() in -lnsl... yes
checking for atan() in -lm... no
checking for atan() in -lm... yes
checking for inflate() in -lz... yes
checking for iconv_open() in -liconv... no
checking for libiconv_open() in -liconv... no
checking for libiconv_open() in -llibiconv... no
checking for iconv_open() in -llibiconv... no
checking for iconv_open() in -lc... yes
checking for xmlParseDoc() in -lxml2... no
checking for xmlParseDoc() in -llibxml2... no
checking for /opt/lib() in -lxml2... no
*** extconf.rb failed ***
Could not create Makefile due to some reason, probably lack of
necessary libraries and/or headers. Check the mkmf.log file for more
details. You may need configuration options.

Provided configuration options:
         --with-opt-dir
         --without-opt-dir
         --with-opt-include
         --without-opt-include=${opt-dir}/include
         --with-opt-lib
         --without-opt-lib=${opt-dir}/lib
         --with-make-prog
         --without-make-prog
         --srcdir=.
         --curdir
         --ruby=/usr/bin/ruby
         --with-iconv-dir
         --without-iconv-dir
         --with-iconv-include
         --without-iconv-include=${iconv-dir}/include
         --with-iconv-lib
         --without-iconv-lib=${iconv-dir}/lib
         --with-xml2-dir
         --without-xml2-dir
         --with-xml2-include
         --without-xml2-include=${xml2-dir}/include
         --with-xml2-lib
         --without-xml2-lib=${xml2-dir}/lib
         --with-zlib-dir
         --without-zlib-dir
         --with-zlib-include
         --without-zlib-include=${zlib-dir}/include
         --with-zlib-lib
         --without-zlib-lib=${zlib-dir}/lib
         --with-socketlib
         --without-socketlib
         --with-nsllib
         --without-nsllib
         --with-mlib
         --without-mlib
         --with-mlib
         --without-mlib
         --with-zlib
         --without-zlib
         --with-iconvlib
         --without-iconvlib
         --with-iconvlib
         --without-iconvlib
         --with-libiconvlib
         --without-libiconvlib
         --with-libiconvlib
         --without-libiconvlib
         --with-clib
         --without-clib
         --with-xml2lib
         --without-xml2lib
         --with-libxml2lib
         --without-libxml2lib
         --with-xml2lib
         --without-xml2lib
  extconf failure: need libxml2.

       Install the library or try one of the following options to extconf.rb:

         --with-xml2-dir=/path/to/libxml2
         --with-xml2-lib=/path/to/libxml2/lib
         --with-xml2-include=/path/to/libxml2/include

Gem files will remain installed in /usr/lib/ruby/gems/1.8/gems/libxml-ruby-0.5.4 for inspection.
Results logged to /usr/lib/ruby/gems/1.8/gems/libxml-ruby-0.5.4/ext/libxml/gem_make.out
---snip---
The only so I seem to have is:

/usr/lib/libxml2.so.2.6.26

Presumably there should be a symbolic link or something, but whatever is missing,...If I go ln -s /usr/lib/libxml2.so.2.6.26 /usr/lib/libxml2.so, then...
Nope, it fails the same way...
I also tried:

Gem files will remain installed in /usr/lib/ruby/gems/1.8/gems/libxml-ruby-0.5.4 for inspection.
Results logged to /usr/lib/ruby/gems/1.8/gems/libxml-ruby-0.5.4/ext/libxml/gem_make.out
[root@miller ~]# gem install --with-xml2-dir=/usr/lib libxml-ruby
ERROR: While executing gem ... (OptionParser::InvalidOption)
     invalid option: --with-xml2-dir=/usr/lib
[root@miller ~]# gem install libxml-ruby --with-xml2-dir=/usr/lib
ERROR: While executing gem ... (OptionParser::InvalidOption)
     invalid option: --with-xml2-dir=/usr/lib
[root@miller ~]# gem --with-xml2-dir=/usr/libinstall libxml-ruby
ERROR: Invalid option: --with-xml2-dir=/usr/libinstall. See 'gem --help'.
[root@miller ~]# gem --with-xml2-dir=/usr/lib install libxml-ruby
ERROR: Invalid option: --with-xml2-dir=/usr/lib. See 'gem --help'.
[root@miller ~]#
----snip----
xc

Xeno Campanoli wrote:

I'm trying to do a simple gem install so I can validate some XML files for a project, and the gem install fails as follows on my CentOS system:

Do you have the libxml development rpm installed?

That's the first thing I'd check when these errors come up:

···

checking for xmlParseDoc() in -lxml2... no
checking for xmlParseDoc() in -llibxml2... no

--
       vjoel : Joel VanderWerf : path berkeley edu : 510 665 3407

Joel VanderWerf wrote:

Xeno Campanoli wrote:

I'm trying to do a simple gem install so I can validate some XML files for a project, and the gem install fails as follows on my CentOS system:

Do you have the libxml development rpm installed?

That's the first thing I'd check when these errors come up:

checking for xmlParseDoc() in -lxml2... no
checking for xmlParseDoc() in -llibxml2... no

Thank you. That appears to have been what I needed. I installed libxml-devel and then retried the gem and it appears to have finished normally, with gem check showing no problems.

xc