Windows XP issues and workarounds

[axoman]

Aha!

No, time is not correct cause I remember now, I need a new BIOS backup battery!
Thanks, I'll give it a go, fingers crossed!

[axoman]

Hey Mark, check it out ...

Repo initialised Successfully : factory (1.0.12,anon)
Sync Successful : factory (1.0.12,anon)
Repo initialised Successfully : community (1.0.12,anon)
Sync Successful : community (1.0.12,anon)

Thanks so much to all who helped out, this is great!

[axoman]

Damn, it still isn't working, I thought it was!

The patcher is working, it connects and disconnects perfectly, recognises the Axoloti etc. But I just tried to upload a patch to it and it keeps throwing up an error, the part highlighted in red basically telling me that it cannot find the file "xpatch.bin". I've checked the directory it says it's looking for it, and the file is there!

Any idea what's causing this?

I thought I was finally in a position to take a look at that Sample Scrubber and VHS patch Lokki and Krikor made, and now this, damn stubborn thing!

[thetechnobear]

You'll need to post the whole log , perhaps more clues there

[axoman]

Cheers Mark, I'll split it into two parts so you can see what happens when I first start the Axoloti Patcher, and then what happens when I try to upload a patch to it.

When I first start the Axoloti Patcher I get this ...

Axoloti version : 1.0.12-0-g80370d2 build time : 02/02/2017 20:39:14 CET
Link to firmware CRC E95BAC96
Status: factory (1.0.12,anon) : OK ( 1.0.12,clean )
Status : home : OK
Status: community (1.0.12,anon) : OK ( 1.0.12,clean )
USB device found
connected
Authentic Axoloti Core

But when I try to upload a patch to it, I get this, and it disconnects ...

search path : C:\Documents and Settings\User 1\Documents\axoloti\axoloti-factory\objects
file error: FR_NO_FILE, filename:"/START.BIN"
search path : C:\Documents and Settings\User 1\Documents\axoloti\objects
search path : C:\Documents and Settings\User 1\Documents\axoloti\axoloti-contrib\objects
Firmware version: 1.0.0.1, crc=0xE95BAC96, entrypoint=0x20011000
finished loading objects
Generate code complete
Creating directory on sdcard : /untitled
Done creating directory
Changing working directory on sdcard : /untitled
Done changing working directory
Start compiling patch
BDIR = C:\DOCUME~1\USER1~1\DOCUME~1\axolotiments\axoloti/build
FIRMWARE = .
make: *** No rule to make target C:\DOCUME~1\USER1~1\DOCUME~1\axolotiments\axoloti/build/xpatch.cpp', needed byC:\DOCUME~1\USER1~1\DOCUME~1\axolotiments\axoloti/build/xpatch.bin'. Stop.
Done compiling patch
Start uploading patch
bin path: C:\Documents and Settings\User 1\Documents\axoloti\build\xpatch.bin
FileNotFoundException,java.io.FileNotFoundException: C:\Documents and Settings\User 1\Documents\axoloti\build\xpatch.bin (The system cannot find the file specified)
java.io.FileNotFoundException: C:\Documents and Settings\User 1\Documents\axoloti\build\xpatch.bin (The system cannot find the file specified)
at java.io.FileInputStream.open0(Native Method)
at java.io.FileInputStream.open(Unknown Source)
at java.io.FileInputStream.(Unknown Source)
at qcmds.QCmdUploadPatch.Do(QCmdUploadPatch.java:65)
at axoloti.USBBulkConnection$Transmitter.run(USBBulkConnection.java:885)
at java.lang.Thread.run(Unknown Source)

Disconnect request
Done uploading patch

[thetechnobear]

C:\DOCUME~1\USER1~1\DOCUME~1\axolotiments\axoloti/build/xpatch.cpp'

so it cant find the generated source file.
is it there?
(path looks incorrect to me)

I guess something to do with the spaces in the filenames and xp...
one possibility is to move the home directory to somewhere else, without spaces in it.
the override the environment variable HOME_DIR AXOLOTI_HOME to point to the new location.

[axoman]

Wow, that's really odd. I've absolutely no idea why it made a folder called "axolotiments", and I assure you, it certainly wasn't me

Regards the space in the path name, that part is my fault cause when I installed Windows XP, I called the default user "User 1". But ok then, I'll look into changing that variable, and if it works I'll reinstall Windows XP again and use a name without spaces next time. Tell you what though, that "axolotiments" path was not there last time, because I followed the path it was complaining about, and yes, the file is there.

I think I've aquired an Axoloti with a mind of her own - she wants to play games?
Right, I'll give her games, I'll tame her ...

[thetechnobear]

Don't bother with the username, that's probably not going to help

Use axoloti_home variable this is what it's for, to be able to override the default home directory.

As for the oddity, could be any number of things, I can't know for sure without running it myself - this is why we test software on different versions of OSs, and why we don't support older versions.

also bare in mind , older OSs do have bugs that have been fixed in newer versions, and behavior that has been altered - hence compatibility issues.

[axoman]

It has happened, I have tamed her, she's on her knees begging for patches now!

That was the first time I ever had anything to do with a system variable. I found the panel where all the variables are handled, but neither of those variables were listed, they simply were not there to start with, so nothing to edit. Anyway, I added a new one and named it AXOLOTI_HOME, and gave it the value by copy/pasting the correct path.

After that, I had to remove, reconnect, reset all, sync libraries again, and now it works. I've even tested the card this time by uploading that formatter object to it, and even that works.

Thanks again for sticking with me on this

[Gavin]

Maybe a 'How to install on XP" user guide is in order.

[wincent]

Hello,

just installed Axoloti patcher in a Windows XP VM using this thread as a reference.
Everything seems to work fine.

[thetechnobear]

Did you also have to set axoloti_home to make it work? or did it work without?

[wincent]

It seems to work without. At least I did not get any error messages.

[axoman]

@Gavin
No point really, cause this thread serves to cover the various scenarios. I could write a step-by-step but it still wouldn't work for some - so might as well just use what is here.

@thetechnobear
Wouldn't it be up to the Axoloti installer to setup that variable? If so, bear in mind I only copied the folders across cause it was originally installed on the Windows 7 machine. If it were up to the installer to set-up that variable, that might explain it not being there on the Windows XP machine (cause the Axoloti Patcher installer was never run on that machine).

@wincent
I'm curious which version of Windows XP you're using, is it SP1, 2, or 3?
I used the offline SP3 installer on my system before attempting this.

[thetechnobear]

Wouldn't it be up to the Axoloti installer to setup that variable? If so, bear in mind I only copied the folders across cause it was originally installed on the Windows 7 machine. If it were up to the installer to set-up that variable, that might explain it not being there on the Windows XP machine (cause the Axoloti Patcher installer was never run on that machine).

no, as I stated, these are override variables... to allow users to change the default behaviour.
within the code, we already use defaults.. but that defaulting appeared to not work in your scenario (and is one of the reasons we are not support XP, since it might have different operating system defaults, so requires different code)

also, just to note... id already documented these custom variables in the user guide.

Using custom directory locations

Some users may need to use different directory locations for their setup, due to permissioning or using things like remote profiles. important note This is considered advanced use only, you must know how to configure for your operating system. Incorrect usage will cause issues. Also it will make it difficult for others to support you, since your files will not be in the 'usual' locations, an assumption most will make. (so make sure you mention this if you are posting a problem) environment v…

[wincent]

This is Windows XP Professional Version 2002 SP3.

[axoman]

@thetechnobear
Well at least I have a better understanding of how an Axoloti Installation works now. And like I said, I've never had any need to touch a system variable before. I mean literally, never, during my entire time using computers. But I get what they're used for now, thanks for the explanation.

@wincent
Windows XP Home Edition SP3 here.

[wincent]

I used the archived copy of the fresh installation of Windows XP with all updates installed. Archived as a Virtual Machine, that is.

Is it possible that you have some conflicting software installed?

[axoman]

There was only SP3, Blender, VLC, and my Canon printer drivers installed at the time, and I only installed SP3 because I originally thought the lack of it was stopping the Axoloti Patcher installer from running. But that was before I asked and Mark pointed out it needs to be installed in another working environment first.

I don't think I did anything wrong to the installation, although I might have done and not realised it. It's not impossible considering the amount of messing around I've had to do with OS installations lately.

Worth it in the end though, looking forward to finally playing with it again this afternoon

[axoman]

Just a heads-up to confirm that indeed, using a username without spaces won't change anything. Mark already pointed this out, but I just had to reinstall on another hard drive cause the other failed - so I though I might as well try it anyway. So this time I chose a username without spaces, and everything went exactly as before, therefore I still had to set-up the AXOLOTI_HOME variable manually again.

The good news of course is that I know it can be repeated and work perfectly if something screws-up again if I decide to stay with this system.