[Plplot-devel] Java examples work with jdk-1.2.2, but still one problem

[Alan W. I. <ir...@be...>]

I purged 1.1.8 from my Debian woody system and downloaded a private copy
of jdk 1.2.2 from Blackdown.

Following Geoffrey's recipe for working from plplot/tmp, I got further, but
ran into problems finding the plplot library. If I set up some symlinks from
files with the wrong name (libplplot.so, etc.,) to the existing files with
the correct name (libplplotd.so, etc.), I overcame this problem (at least to
the point of getting a menu to choose from.  I didn't pursue it further
because I immediately recognized it probably would work if I configured
without my usual --with-double). So I used single-precision next, and indeed
that worked, i.e., I got good results with java plplot/examples/x01, etc.

Geoffrey, have you implemented double precision?  If so, then this problem I
have found may simply be a forgotten LIB_TAG problem so that with double
configured, the libname is incorrectly referred to as libplplot rather than
the correct libplplot.  However, if you have an old single-precision
libplplot kicking around, everything will look rosy. To replicate the
double-precision name trouble I have found (if that is what it is) you have
to start with a clean slate.

I was most impressed with the substantial fraction of the single-precision
examples that have been implemented. Geoffrey, do you have the full PLplot
API accessible from java so the rest of the examples mimicking the x??c
examples would be straightforward to do? I can probably find the time to
fill out the remaining examples if the API is available.

The only other issue I can see is how far back we support java.  It would be
nice for Debian users (who I suspect are some of our keenest users due to
Rafael's packaging efforts) if we could support back to jdk-1.1.8, but that
depends on how difficult it is to drop the current requirement (incompatible
with jdk-1.1.8) that we must have a partial path as part of the class name.
If that is a simple change, Geoffrey, then I strongly encourage you to make
it, but if for some unknown reason it is complicated, then I am willing to
say we just support jdk-1.2.2 and above.

Alan

email: ir...@be...
phone: 250-727-2902	FAX: 250-721-7715
snail-mail:
Dr. Alan W. Irwin
Department of Physics and Astronomy,
University of Victoria, P.O. Box 3055,
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, V8W 3P6
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