MichaelChirico
commented
4 years ago From: ripley@<::CENSORED -- SEE ORIGINAL ON BUGZILLA::> Note that this only a problem for pre-compiled versions of R used on machines other than the one on which it was compiled. For those compiling from source, the configure script selects a browser. So almost all the analysis is based on incorrect assumptions.
What you seem to want is run-time rather than compile-time automated selection.
On Fri, 8 Nov 2002 edd@<::CENSORED -- SEE ORIGINAL ON BUGZILLA::> wrote:
> Package: r-base-core
> Version: 1.5.1-0woody1
> Severity: minor
>
> I don't have Netscape on my system. Trying to follow the sample
To best of my knowledge, this R feature dates from a time when
Netscape was essentially the only browser out there. It also had
a most useful feature: you could attach new request (resulting in
a new "frame" in X11 / window manager parlance) to a running Netscape
making startup for this request /much/ faster than starting a new
Netscape executable.and netscape no longer allows multiple executables to run.
This feature lacks in other browsers which is why no one was able
to write a wrapper script around netscape, mozilla, galeon, konqueror,...
and pick whichever is found.
> session in the R Intro fails with a less than helpful error message:
Then this should be fixed in the R Intro -- maybe a line could be added
suggesting that the browser="foo" options may be needed to switch
away from netscape?Nope, what's in R-intro works everywhere R was compiled from source. It's a Debian (etc) problem.
> Type `demo()' for some demos, `help()' for on-line help, or
> `help.start()' for a HTML browser interface to help.
> Type `q()' to quit R.
>
> > help.start()
> Making links in ~/.R ...
> If netscape is already running, it is *not* restarted, and you must
> switch to its window.
> Otherwise, be patient ...
> > sh: netscape: command not found
>
>
> Could some heuristic be put in place to use whatever is installed
> rather than blindly hope Netscape will be there? I thought I even sawAgain, that's not what happens.
This has been discussed on the R lists, but as I recall, no consensus
was reached for the reasons outlined above.
> something about an /etc/alternatives mechanism for selecting a web
> browser but this does not seem to exist (yet?)
Now you're switching from a generic R problem to a Debian specific
solution -- but yes I may be able to do that. However, what we would
really need is a wrapper like, say, sensible-browser akin to the
existing sensible-paper and sensible-editor. Now, as I said above,
this will likely be difficult or impossible to do well, so nobody
did it.
Also, /etc/alternatives is designed to switch between variants of the
same program: emacs as a choice between emacs20 and emacs21, netscape
as one between static motif and other linkage variants, ... whereas
sensible-$FOO is a wrapper around different programs doing $FOO.
> Failing that, perhaps the program could check for the existence of
> Netscape before attempting to launch it, and display a suitable error
> message if it is not installed (hopefully with instructions for how to
> override).
Yes, but that is tough to do portably on Unix, Max, Win, ... where R
runs.
> I was lucky enough to fairly quickly find an example of how to work
> around this in Google; for the record, help.start(browser='mozilla')
> worked for me, and apparently R will now remember to use Mozilla in
> the future on my account.
Only for the running session. Set
options(browser="mozilla")
in ~/.Rprofile to make it truly permanent.
> Sorry if this is already fixed in testing/unstable.
No, I'd call it one of the "unfixable" ones.
Regards, Dirk
>
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- Comment author - Jitterbug compatibility account
- Timestamp - 2002-11-08 21:51:10 UTC
From: "Dirk Eddelbuettel" <edd@<::CENSORED -- SEE ORIGINAL ON BUGZILLA::>>
To best of my knowledge, this R feature dates from a time when Netscape was essentially the only browser out there. It also had a most useful feature: you could attach new request (resulting in a new "frame" in X11 / window manager parlance) to a running Netscape making startup for this request /much/ faster than starting a new Netscape executable.
This feature lacks in other browsers which is why no one was able to write a wrapper script around netscape, mozilla, galeon, konqueror,... and pick whichever is found.
Then this should be fixed in the R Intro -- maybe a line could be added suggesting that the browser="foo" options may be needed to switch away from netscape?
This has been discussed on the R lists, but as I recall, no consensus was reached for the reasons outlined above.
Now you're switching from a generic R problem to a Debian specific solution -- but yes I may be able to do that. However, what we would really need is a wrapper like, say, sensible-browser akin to the existing sensible-paper and sensible-editor. Now, as I said above, this will likely be difficult or impossible to do well, so nobody did it.
Also, /etc/alternatives is designed to switch between variants of the same program: emacs as a choice between emacs20 and emacs21, netscape as one between static motif and other linkage variants, ... whereas sensible-$FOO is a wrapper around different programs doing $FOO.
Yes, but that is tough to do portably on Unix, Max, Win, ... where R runs.
Only for the running session. Set options(browser="mozilla") in∼/.Rprofile to make it truly permanent.
No, I'd call it one of the "unfixable" ones.
Regards, Dirk
-- According to the latest figures, 43% of all signatures are totally worthless.
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