diff --git a/CMakeLists.txt b/CMakeLists.txt
index c9aedce8..3cbfa3d6 100644
--- a/CMakeLists.txt
+++ b/CMakeLists.txt
@@ -85,7 +85,8 @@ IF(WIN32)
 	SET(CMAKE_CXX_FLAGS_DEBUG "${CMAKE_CXX_FLAGS_DEBUG} ${VS_ARGS}")
 	SET(CMAKE_C_FLAGS_DEBUG "${CMAKE_C_FLAGS_DEBUG} ${VS_ARGS}")
 
-	# this line removes "/D NDEBUG" from release, we want them in order to find bugs even on release builds.
+	# this line removes "/D NDEBUG" from release, we want them in order to
+	# find bugs even on release builds.
 	SET(CMAKE_CXX_FLAGS_RELEASE "/MD /O2 /Ob2")
 
 ENDIF(WIN32)
diff --git a/build/commands.py b/build/commands.py
index 029f262e..045618c0 100644
--- a/build/commands.py
+++ b/build/commands.py
@@ -161,6 +161,9 @@ class InternalCommands:
 		
 		# for non-vs always specify a build type (debug, release, etc)
 		if not generator.startswith('Visual Studio'):
+			# default is default for non-vs
+			if target == '':
+				target = 'debug'
 			cmake_args = ' -DCMAKE_BUILD_TYPE=' + target.capitalize()
 		
 		# if not visual studio, use parent dir