Re: [OctDev] xlread in 3.6.1

[Philip Nienhuis]

<help-octave ML added in so others can follow>

Please don't top post. Answer below the mail

Swift, Ted J. wrote:
> -----Original Message-----
> From: address@hidden [mailto:address@hidden
> Sent: Thursday, September 13, 2012 1:41 AM
> To: Swift, Ted J.
> Subject: FWD: Re: [OctDev] xlread in 3.6.1
>
> <resent, reply to your personal e-mail bounced as that was shielded by Nabble>
>
> TedSwift [via Octave] wrote:
> > > I've followed this thread, but am still not able to get
> > > chk_spreadsheet_support to check out right. After putting Java in
> > > what I thought was the right place, these are the results of my last
> > > check:
> > >
> > > octave:5>  chk_spreadsheet_support ('', 3)
> > >
> > > Checking Excel/ActiveX/COM... not working.
> > >
> > > Checking Java support...
> > > 1. Checking Java JRE presence.... OK, found one.
> > > 2. Checking Octave Java support... error: No Java support found:
> > > `java_invoke' undefined near line 49 column 16.
> =>  no or improperly installed Java package.
>
> > > error: called from:
> > > error:
> > > C:/Octave/Octave3.6.1_gcc4.6.2/share/octave/packages\io-1.0.18\chk_s
> > > preadsheet_support.m
> > > at line 176, column 3
> > >
> > > Something fundamental is still missing, or I don't have the setenv
> > > path set right. Are there any other diagnostic tools that will help
> > > me figure out where the breakdown is? Thanks, all.
> Try to run the newest Java package preinstall.m before your next attempt to 
> install the Java package (any version).
> This file is in the svn repo here:
>
> http://octave.svn.sourceforge.net/viewvc/octave/trunk/octave-forge/extra/java/pre_install.m?sortby=rev&view=log
> (watch for line wrap, take revision 10760, "download" or "as text", be sure to 
> save it as a .m-file, and run it in Octave)
>
> I've only recently committed it in an attempt to avoid half-baked Java package 
> installations.
> It'll check where Octave should look for the jvm lib and the executables and 
> will complain if any of them is not found.
>
> I think the fact that the Java package installer not being able to find the 
> Java executables (java, jar, javac) in the place it expects them to be was the 
> creepy showstopper in many frustrating cases.
> You might make symlinks to them in your $PATH (in my Mageia 2 linux 
> installation they seem to be silently created in /usr/bin by urpmi).
>
> Please copy preinstall.m's error msg (if any) in a reply mail. For me that's 
> handy to have, because I might decide to implement (parts of) preinstall.m's 
> functionality in chk_spreadsheet_support as well.
>
> BTW I've also recently updated the Octave wiki on exactly this subject:
> http://wiki.octave.org/Java_package#Make_sure_that_the_build_environment_is_configured_properly
> (line wrap!)
>
> Philip,
> Thank you very much for the advice and pointers. And sorry for the
> delay in replying; I was busy last week being part of the
> organizing team for a scientific conference.
> Thanks for writing pre_install.m. I downloaded it and tried it,
> but it didn't provide any new insight: It did not return any errors.
> However, after I ran pre_install, I immediately ran
> chk_spreadsheet_support, and received the same error I've received
> before. Here's the transcript:
>
>> GNU Octave, version 3.6.1
<snip>
>> octave:1>  pwd
>> ans = C:\Users\tswift
>> octave:2>  run pre_install.m                    %<--------- NOTE: No
>> error returned

You should have just typed:

preinstall

and watch the output. No "run", no ".m" suffix. Just:
preinstall

Note: scripts and function files seem to run better if invoked with just 
their file name w/o suffix.

Philip