OpenEuphoria

1. Windows7 Euphoria3 opening files problem

• Posted by AndyDrummond Mar 16, 2011
• 2034 views

I have just transferred my work to a Windows 7 laptop, and am having a problem which maybe someone can answer.

I have a PIM (written in Euphoria3) which opens a few files on the root of drive C:. Well, it tries to, but it fails. The file handle is always returned as -1. The files are present, not RO, and all the permission boxes have been set for all types of user. In any case, they fail just opening to read. The program and the files are precisely the ones I have copied from WinXP and which have been working A-OK for literally years.

Is it possible that programs are no longer allowed to access files in the root of C: ? It seems possible, but that is a real so-and-so if true.

Also I am having trouble binding a program - I am getting a fail in seek in file.e - "file not open". Seems that a similar thing is happening.

This is getting to be a real problem. I am going off Win7 somewhat! Any of you worthy gentlemen have any relevant ideas?

Andy

3. Re: Windows7 Euphoria3 opening files problem

• Posted by DerekParnell (admin) Mar 16, 2011
• 1978 views

I think that this is the case in Windows 7. Can't you move your files to a directory rather than use the root?

I have access to a Win7 machine so I'll do some testing too.

5. Re: Windows7 Euphoria3 opening files problem

• Posted by AndyDrummond Mar 17, 2011
• 1916 views

Two things have materialized: one is that binding suddenly began to work. I copied bindw.bat into my working folder, edited it with actual parameters, and it crashed. Over and over. Then suddenly without apparent reason it worked. And so does binding within Judith's IDE. So I put that one on the back burner and pray it never re-emerges. The other is that I have moved my data files into \ProgramData\Euphoria and again it works. I still find that if I try and open a file in the root of C: it fails. Solidly. I don't know why, and I'd like to know. Euphoria was copied across from my XP machine in toto, maybe that is a problem. I had to put in the environment variables, of course, too.

If you want a code snippet, try this (after creating gash.txt in C:\ with notepad or similar):

fh = open("C:\\gash.txt", "r") 
trace(1) 

I find fh always returns -1. If I can't access files in the root of C: then I won't put them there, and I expect someone will say that that is a good thing anyway; it isn't a good place to leave odd data files lying about. It is just that I can find them there easily.

Otherwise, yes, I find Euphoria 3 just works on Windows 7, no trouble. I haven't yet migrated to Eu 4 because Eu 3 does what I want, and I still await a version of IDE which really works fully in Eu 4; the last modified one did but not fully, and as a man working on other things and using Euphoria as simply a tool to do jobs I just don't have the time or skill to fool with it and try sorting it out. If I buy a car it must run A-OK "from the box"; when I shift to Eu4 and IDE then they must work like that. Long gone it seems are the days when Judith and I exchanged ideas on enhancements and bugs on IDE.

Many thanks for your ideas, though.

7. Re: Windows7 Euphoria3 opening files problem

• Posted by AndyDrummond Mar 17, 2011
• 1847 views

I am struggling here, after all. I have tried Dell support and that is very hard work; Microshaft is also hard work. Maybe one of you experts can point me in the right direction.

I find I cannot write files in the root of C:. I can create them there, move them there, move them out - but edit & save? Nope. I created a folder called Root and moved my files there. Still can't save from Notepad. Moved them to Users\Andy and same result. I checked all the permissions and turned them all on. I am administrator so that should be OK - though Win7 keeps on telling me I can only do this or that if I am an administrator - doesn't it KNOW if I am or not? I seem to have no bothers except saving to files. Anything else is fine.

I looked at UAC but that only seems to dictate how long before the screen dims to ask permission for new installs. What I am getting is that in Notepad I click Save and it says "Do you want to replace this file?" to which I reply yes; then it just bongs and says "Access in Denied!".

I have created a folder in Users\Andy called Private, and I can edit & save files there. I have a batch file which runs an editor there, and that can edit & save files there. But if I put a shortcut to that batch file from Startup (so it runs when I start my day) then that canNOT save the file. Worse - it zaps the file contents. It is as if it is creating a new file OK, then getting inhibited from writing to it so it becomes null. What the !&*$@' is going on?

I am getting very frustrated with this; it must be something trivial but what? I have no ideas. Gentlemen - can you help? Please! I shouldn't ask Win7 problems here, so unless there is a simple answer don't worry; I will try and dig my way into either Dell or Microsoft. There could have been at least SOME documentation with a new PC, but nothing. Nada. Zilch.

Andy

9. Re: Windows7 Euphoria3 opening files problem

• Posted by AndyDrummond Mar 17, 2011
• 1839 views

I put UAC down one level, with possibly a small change. What I have found is that when I save a file from Notepad, it says Access Denied, but if I save again, it saves. It looks like the first save copies the file to a backup, then the write truncates the file but can't write to it. The NEXT save finds a null file, so it can write to it. Now this is surmising, and it seems very odd, but I have found a similar case with our NAS when writing from a Mac. The Mac creates a unique filename, which is null, then (seems to write to it) but can't rename it to the proper name. The NAS - and the Mac, with OSX - is based around Unix, as it appears Win7 is. It is all very odd. I'm looking at Microsoft docs for progammer's guide to Win7 but that is largely irrelevant.

Bring back DOS - all is forgiven!

11. Re: Windows7 Euphoria3 opening files problem

• Posted by AndyDrummond Mar 17, 2011
• 1859 views

Sorry, Jay, I only demonstrate my appaling ignorance.

I found that thread interesting though most of it seemed to be from other aggrieved users! I followed the rather vague instructions to give myself full access rights but I still found my program couldn't write the file. That was only a first and rather vestigial test. It certainly seemed that although I, as Andy, have adminstrator rights, that isn't the same as giving Andy, per se, those rights. But I feel in my water that I may be forced to rewrite all my code to access data in folders in my documents folder; that, at least, should give me full RWX rights.

So thank you. If anyone else has an idea, that's great, but I think I am being caught up by the "Let's protect Windows from the user" syndrome, which does have its merits. But it is my PC, my C: drive, and if I want to write files there I really think I should have the right. Rights? What are they?? Ah well, Bill Gates wins again.

13. Re: Windows7 Euphoria3 opening files problem

• Posted by AndyDrummond Mar 18, 2011
• 1816 views

Yes, if you have any more information I would love to know. Some programs seem to work fine, others fail. But it changes with time! I have Eu3 installed as normal, and today I began to work on my FolderCopy program which I use for backup to my server. Using IDE. I clicked to bind the program, and it ran fine, but the FolderCopy program failed. OK, that's what I was trying to find. I did some mods, and it seemed right, so I tried to bind again. This time the bind failed:

C:\Euphoria\include\file.e:37 in function seek() 
bad file number (-1) 
    fn = -1 
 

It fails consistently - for now! Actually, it is binding within IDE which has failed to work; if I use bindw.bat itself it is OK. Another oddity. I don't mind tracking down problems, but if they won't stay fixed when they are fixed, I am just lost. And why has this formatting suddenly got fouled up? Windows7 isn't involved somewhere is it?

I'm sure some of you guys are running on Win7 quite happily - and I'd love to know how you achieved that. I can't even make code do the same thing on two consecutive minutes. "The advantage of digital systems over analog us that they are consistent" - oh yeah? Not since computers got involved!

I do a lot of work on PIC microcontrollers. All my project folders are off the root of C:. And there is no bother editing, compiling, working on PCB layouts, everything normal, in fact, in those folders. But when I create a folder C:\Root, I couldn't even get Notepad to save to a file there. I can create and delete files - but not modify them. Except all the work folders which seem quite unfazed by the shift to Win7.

We need to call an end to this thread - Euphoria isn't the right place to air my Win7 problems, though I greatly value the input of so many knowledgeable guys. But if you DO have any more suggestions, I will be very pleased indeed to entertain them. Please ignore my ramblings - I am just getting very frustrated. Maybe I should buy a book like "Windows7 for Dummies".

Andy

15. Re: Windows7 Euphoria3 opening files problem

• Posted by ne1uno Mar 19, 2011
• 1780 views

are there too many files in the root dir?

you might try including a manifest file with either the translated program or bin/eu*.exe, in the same directory, prog.ext.manifest

do a search on your system for other manifest files, I notice some of them have permissions and security sections that may be help, although I have no specific information about how. for ex: a manifest may make the problem worse! if running in some automatically imposed compatibility mode the manifest may simply be ignored. that coupled with the intermittent nature of the problem is a powerful time sink.

you would think someone would have created a manifest editor by now, but I have not seen one mentioned anywhere.

17. Re: Windows7 Euphoria3 opening files problem

• Posted by jaygade Mar 19, 2011
• 1730 views

Glad to help.

Just remember, on Windows 7 even if you are logged in as an Administrator, you are still usually running programs as a regular user if you have UAC on. So you still have to right-click the program and choose "run as administrator" or select that in the properties dialog, even Notepad, if you need to write to areas of the disk where normal users cannot write.

It's in the properties dialog for the executable file under either "advanced" button or "compatability" tab depending on the program. There's a checkbox that says "run as administrator" or something. I'll check.

Well, yes and no. While I understand the reasons for it I don't completely understand the mechanism either. Maybe I should buy a Windows 7 book too! Even though I mostly use Linux, I have to be able to solve these kinds of issues when they crop up at work or at home on Windows too.

19. Re: Windows7 Euphoria3 opening files problem

• Posted by AndyDrummond Mar 20, 2011
• 1699 views

Just like before: for a short-cut you select properties & advanced. For the program executable you select properties and compatibility. In both places you can set "run as administrator" which looks like it gets around the problems. I must do some tests and see about writing to the root etc. But so far you seem to have identified the fix. It may seem simple, it's usually the case that when you see how to do something, it immediately becomes obvious and simple to anybody. Until then - it's a mystery only open to the cognoscenti!

I didn't realise that when I run things, being administrator, the actually running is still under full restriction.

Hoepfully this thread will be of some value to other people who to transit to Windows 7. I hope this is an end to it - until something else wraps around our faces. One thing I have found is that accessing my server by FTP using wininet.dll works fine; I thought this was most likely to be a source of trouble. Ah well.

21. Re: Windows7 Euphoria3 opening files problem

• Posted by AndyDrummond Mar 21, 2011
• 1684 views

Thanks, Jay, but I'll let you update it if you feel that what I have said is of use to other people. All seems well here now, and there are fewer and fewer annoyances. I still get Win7 going through all this lark asking if I want to let this program or that change settings on this computer; but those GUI programs I have which I have set to run under administrator privileges seem to work fine.
So many many thanks for your help, everyone, and let's hope this has it all under control.