GeanyPortable 1.24 will not compile FreeBASIC

SUCCESS

Didn't have access to the XP laptop that will be the GeanyPortable machine, but did have access to two Windows 7 desktops.

Downloaded GeanyPortable_DEBUG1.exe into:
E:\PortableApps\GeanyPortable\

then changed GeanyPortable.ini to:
[GeanyPortable]
AdditionalParameters=
DisableSplashScreen=false
ApplicationLanguage=
PathAdditions=E:\PortableApps\FreeBASIC-0.90.1-win32\
AdditionalFonts=

I just don't trust the comment line just above the PathAdditions line in the oem file, so I took it out. Drive E: is what the CPU assigned at this computer, so it's what I typed in. All line endings are LF except last line, which doesn't have any sort of eol command.

Ran GeanyPortable_DEBUG1.exe and it showed the correct FreeBASIC path in a pop-up window. I didn't think to write down the paths in the pop-up window before GeanyPortable started. GeanyPortable loaded the test file and compiled correctly (created the .exe). Wahoo!

Closed GeanyPortable and opened GeanyPortable.exe (without the debugger) from the GeanyPortable directory via Windows Explorer. Success again.

Changed GeanyPortable.ini to:
[GeanyPortable]
AdditionalParameters=
DisableSplashScreen=false
ApplicationLanguage=
PathAdditions=@Drive\PortableApps\FreeBASIC-0.90.1-win32\
AdditionalFonts=

and tried again. Success again.

Changed computers so the OS would change USB drive letter (to F:\ in this case) and tried again. Success again. All this done on desktops with Windows 7 operating systems, and not the XP laptop that will be the primary machine. But it's working the way I want...

FAILURE

Got back to the XP laptop, which will be the primary machine for GeanyPortable. Made no changes to the files. Had the same compile failures as documented in my first post. Ran GeanyPortable_DEBUG1.exe and the pop-up window entitled "Geany Portable (pipe) PortableApps.com" says:

Path:
F:\PortableApps\GeanyPortable\App\Geany\bin;F:\PortableApps\GeanyPortable\App\Geany\bin;F:\PortableApps\GeanyPortable\App\Geany\bin;F:\PortableApps\GeanyPortable\App\Geany\bin;F:\PortableApps\FreeBASIC-0.90.1-win32\;C:\WINDOWS\System32\Wbem;C:\WINDOWS\System32\Wbem

F:\ is the drive letter XP assigned to the USB drive. The last drive assigned was F:\ on the second Windows 7 desktop, so I closed GeanyPortable and changed the LastDriveLetter from F: to M: in this file:

F:\PortableApps\GeanyPortable\Data\settings\GeanyPortableSettings.ini

Ran GeanyPortable.exe again. Failure again in compiling, but the LastDriveLetter did change back to F: when I closed GeanyPortable and checked the GeanyPortableSettings.ini file.

So my initial thought (GeanyPortable.ini wasn't being read) was incorrect. And now I'm really stumped. Is this version of GeanyPortable not ready for XP? Won't be back to the internet for about a week.

Dino

Good ideas are OK. The correct solution will get you a popsicle.

MinGW is now also installed, and tested successfully in C on Windows 7. GeanyPortable will be nice if it will just work on Windows XP.

GeanyPortable.ini file now looks like this:

[GeanyPortable]
AdditionalParameters=
DisableSplashScreen=false
ApplicationLanguage=
PathAdditions=@Drive\PortableApps\FreeBASIC-0.90.1-win32\;@Drive\Progs\MinGW\bin\
AdditionalFonts=

All line endings are LF with the exception of the last line, which has no end-of-line command. All other GeanyPortable files are oem (that is, stock or as originally installed).

Also ran the GeanyPortable_DEBUG1.exe file on Windows 7 with the following results:

Path:
E:\PortableApps\GeanyPortable\App\Geany\bin;E:\PortableApps\GeanyPortable\App\Geany\bin;E:\PortableApps\GeanyPortable\App\Geany\bin;E:\PortableApps\GeanyPortable\App\Geany\bin;E:\PortableApps\FreeBASIC-0.90.1-win32\;E:\Progs\MinGW\bin\;C:\Windows\system32;C:\Windows;C:\Windows\System32\Wbem;C:\Windows\System32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\;C:\Windows\system32;C:\Windows;C:\Windows\System32\Wbem;C:\Windows\System32\WindowsPowerShell\v1.0\

Look at the entries after E:\Progs\MinGW\bin\;
Shouldn't the XP system look similar?

Will be without internet access for two weeks. Might, in the meantime, be able to test on a Windows Vista machine.

I am still stumped,
Dino

p.s. GeanyPortable help files (html and txt) are installed here by default:
\GeanyPortable\App\Geany\doc\

To get the local html help file to open you need to invoke "Edit Preferences Tools" then clear the browser field. Close the dialog box, then close and reopen GeanyPortable. Press F1 and the local Geany html help file opens in the computer's default web browser. This procedure should be stated on the GeanyPortable web page.

Had my oh... moment, took notes and went back to bed. This was about a week and a half ago, and haven't had access to internet until now.

The "problem": FreeBASIC and MinGW look for Microsoft's C Runtime library, aka msvcrt.dll, or a numbered equivalent, such as msvcXX.dll where XX is a number. The workaround solution for now is to put a "generic" path into GeanyPortable.ini. For the 32 bit machines the likely paths are C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32 or C:\WINDOWS.

I don't have enough hours on Geany to tell if the real issue is Geany or GeanyPortable. I can say that both FreeBASIC and MinGW will find the library when a program is compiled from a Command Prompt window, and FreeBASIC will find the library when a program is compiled from a FreeBASIC dedicated IDE called FBIde. This on XP, Vista and 7. GeanyPortable worked for me only when the path to the library was specified, either through GeanyPortable.ini or by setting the Environment path through Windows, and this on XP, Vista and 7. Remember, GeanyPortable user may not have administrative priveledge at somebody else's computer, so a better solution is needed for the average user.

I will also say that it's a bit of insanity to have the GeanyPortable.ini file as a UNIX file when GeanyPortable is meant for Windows, per the GeanyPortable web page. I spun my wheels for a few hours until I figured that one out - my fault for assuming a well thought-out file. And if the comment line can't be properly formatted then get rid of it and redo the web page instructions.

The two above items are show stoppers for GeanyPortable. The idea is great - think of students... and their teachers. GeanyPortable makes it possible for some real learning. But don't assume average high
school teachers are saavy enough to find those problems and their solutions on their own. Been there on the simpler stuff with them. I'm not a teacher - but wrote my first programs on punchcards, a "few"
years before the wonderful Radio Shack and Commodore TV computers. Not old enough to have programmed on plug-boards. Volunteer with programming, electronics, etc.

Last item is a gentle reminder to let the user know that accessing Geany's local help files is possible without assuming the user is on a live internet connection, as I documented on September 9th.

Mr. Haller, you're confused because you didn't read my August 27th very carefully. Then re-read the FAILURE section of my August 29th post. You'll see the correct sequence of events, including the debug
paths before I "messed about" with GeanyPortableSettings.ini. "Messing about" only after I figured out the bad comment line and the foolish UNIX format in the GeanyPortable.ini file, and looking for why
simple programs refused to compile through GeanyPortable on XP. No harm done by changing GeanyPortableSettings.ini last drive line, by the way, since GeanyPortable's start sequence seems to change it if the file's drive letter doesn't match reality. But I won't tell anybody.

At this point the ONLY modified file is GeanyPortable.ini - I forgot how many times I deleted and reinstalled GeanyPortable on that USB drive.

Thanks for the other troubleshooting ideas, even though I didn't use them. They're pretty good ideas. GeanyPortable is not a "normal" program in that it calls another program (the compiler), and I simply
don't have enough internet access to play around with those ideas.

Thanks, and I'm off to a cold climate for their summer. And I'll be using GeanyPortable.

Dino

Good ideas are OK. The correct solution gets you a popsicle.

Summarized as follows for other users:

GeanyPortable1.24 runs the host computer's cmd.exe when the user compiles a program, so a path to cmd.exe must be included somewhere. For portability, that path should be specified in the PathAdditions line of GeanyPortable.ini, which must be located in the same folder as GeanyPortable.exe.

A copy of GeanyPortable.ini is located in the GeanyPortable1.24\Other\Source folder. Best practice is to copy and paste GeanyPortable.ini to the folder where GeanyPortable.exe is located, then edit the pasted GeanyPortable.ini.

Delete the improperly formatted comment line, which begins with #.

Example of PathAdditions line for cmd.exe in the host computer's C:\WINDOWS\System32 folder, and FreeBASIC and MinGW compilers on the usb drive:

PathAdditions=C:\WINDOWS\System32\;@Drive\Progs\Compiler\FreeBASIC\FreeBASIC-1.00.0-win32\;@Drive\Progs\Compiler\MinGW\bin\

GeanyPortable.ini is a UNIX-type file, and it must be saved so that line endings are LF, and not Windows-type CRLF. You may have to use a non-Windows text editor to do this.

******

PortableApps GeanyPortable coders: you can do better. In addition to the above, your code creates multiple copies of modified files. For example, change the toolbar and exit GeanyPortable. Then search for ui_toolbar.xml which is the toolbar settings file. How many copies do you find? I count seven in my version of GeanyPortable1.24, as of this post. Remember, the PortableApps general idea is one user one usb drive, so at best all that is needed is an archive file and a user file.

It is unfortunate that most Windows training starts with just-double-click-it. Perhaps someday GeanyPortable will be usable for the novice and teacher/student user, as I have done with a FreeBASIC specific IDE called FBIde. Imagine for the schoolhouse: class time for learning and non-class time for coding and debugging. It is possible.

******

3D1TOR: thank you. While I was not able to use your ideas in a specific sense, they did get my brain engaged. Summarizing your ideas and questions, after a few hours of testing:

In Geany, putting a compiler path in the Set Build Commands section will not help at this point. Those settings are stored in filetype.language files, and GeanyPortable will create many copies of a particular filetype file, just as is does with ui_toolbar.xml. That is too confusing for the novice or teacher/student user.

Did not try ParameterSpy.

Microsoft's Process Explorer, and its PortableApps version, is phone-home software that needs a live internet connection, so it was of no use to the XP test machine that lives many miles from the internet. The original PATH mentioned in the "FAILURE" section was correct. Minimal paths is a safe computing practice, in my opinion, and GeanyPortable failed at that point on the XP machine because there was no path to cmd.exe, which GeanyPortable needs.

FreeBASIC and MinGW compilers do work as one expects. That is, self-contained and searches relative to the compiler executable for the program language. It is a user created executable (Windows version) that needs msvcrt.dll, provided the user created executable needs something in msvcrt.dll. The original test file did not, as it turned out.

Happy coding,
Dino