title: Are fortran library required if using only modules?
body: <p>I'm trying to clean up a fortran <code>make</code> process for distribution. Currently, two libraries are made, and then the executable is compiled linking to the libraries and including the module files. I see from previous answers (<a href="https://stackoverflow.com/questions/13700315/distribute-compiled-fortran-library-with-module-files">Distribute compiled fortran library with module files</a>) that you can't get rid of the module files and that they can be different for every machine and compiler. This is very annoying. </p>
  
  <p>However, the code in my libraries are made up entirely of modules. It seems like I don't need the library part at all; I can just include the modules. I've tried this and it does compile and run on small examples.</p>
  
  <p>Will this always work (when all I have are modules in the libraries)? Is it best practice? Should I instead consider rewriting my libraries NOT to use modules so I can avoid all these compiler dependencies and only distribute the lib*.a files? Is that what <a href="ftp://ftp.nag.co.uk/sc22wg5/N1601-N1650/N1602.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">this document</a> is referring to by using submodules (which no one supports <a href="https://stackoverflow.com/questions/10081846/static-lib-with-many-modules">static lib with many modules</a>) </p>