RE: [Plplot-devel] Java examples don't work for me

[Geoffrey F. <fu...@ga...>]

Alan W. Irwin writes:
 > Geoffrey, you may have misunderstood me since you talk about eliminating
 > packages which is a phrase I certainly did not use.  I am actually asking
 > for something quite simple.
 > 
 > > Then you would run this (from anywhere) via "java x/y/z".
 > >
 > > I think you should be able to do things like that with simple java
 > > code in your jdk 118 without trouble.
 > >
 > 
 > That was one of my points.  I did such experiments with my hello_world
 > programme and it empirically appears that you cannot have slashes in the
 > name of the class file you invoke in java 1.1.8. For that version it appears
 > you *must*
 > 
 > setenv CLASSPATH x/y; java z
 > 
 > rather than
 > 
 > setenv CLASSPATH .; java x/y/z.
 > 
 > Why can't we set things up so our examples are invoked the first way (which
 > is also the way I have seen all classic java demo programmes invoked).
 > 
 > That is all I am asking.

My point is that I believe your request is synonymous with eliminating
packages.  Perhaps I am mistaken, but I don't have information to
persuade me otherwise at this time.

CLASSPATH is supposed to point to the /root/ of your java package
system.  If a Java class file lives in package x.y, then you point
CLASSPATH to the parent of x, and reference the class as x/y/z.  If
you want to eliminate the string "x/y/z", I believe this effectively
means eliminating the package structure.  

I admit the conceivability that I may be wrong.  But I haven't seen
the evidence yet.  I realize you've done some tests, but I'm saying
they don't convince me, at least not yet.  The package system has been
in Java since the beginning.  My active Java programming status has
been only for two months, using JDK 1.3.  So yes, it is possible that
my assumptions about how Java used to work may be wrong.  It is also
possible that there are some nuances of precise techniques for working
with older JDK's, that both you and me, don't know.  Before I agree to
some substantial restructuring of the code, which I believe is well
structured now, I want to be certain that I understand the true and
complete semantics of class usage in older JDK's.  Right now I don't
have this clear understanding.  Right now the only thing I feel I know
clearly, is that "it don't work".  But I don't feel we've identified
/why/ it doesn't work, or /how/ things do work in the old JDK's.  I
want to get through that clearly, rather than just initating reactive
efforts at restructuring the PLplot code.

In other words, I'd rather do the experiments with HelloWorld class
things, than with PLplot.