Re: WordPerfect 8.0 (installation)
Herewith is the latest update on my attempts to install WordPerfect 8.0
on my Debian 'sarge' GNU/linux distribution.
First, I discovered that in my original post of 17 November 2005, I
gave the wrong paths for the files which would be installed by xlib6g. I
only discovered my mistake when I tried to do what Mr. Behrens
suggested in his post of 20 November 2005:
Use "dpkg-deb --fsys-tarfile xlib6g.deb" to dump the contents of the
package in tar format, on stdout. That way you can use any facilities
tar provides, e.g. to only extract specific subdirectories, etc.
The contents section of debian packages is typically packaged
_relative_ to the root directory, so the following commands (run as
root) should install just the two subdirectories you mentioned above:
$ cd /
$ dpkg-deb --fsys-tarfile /path/to/xlib6g.deb | tar xv ./usr/X11R6/include/X11/xkb/ ./usr/X11R6/include/X11/locale/
(simply modify as required -- in case of doubt, use "tar tv" to check
what would be unpacked)
I then ran dpkg -S and found out that all the files in package xlib6g
are now part of package xlibs-data, except those in directory
/etc/X11/xkb, linked from /usr/X11R6/lib/X11/xkb. The xkb files are now
in package xlibs.
So it would appear that packages xlibs and xlibs-data supercede xlib6g.
In fact, the properties list of xlibs_4.3.0dfsg.1-14sarge1 says that it
replaces xlib6g(<< 4.0). The xlib6g I was trying to install was
3.3.5-1.0.1 I can find nowhere a version of xlib6g >= 4.0. In any
event it would be redundant as I already xlibs and xlibs-data in my
box. It was consequently unnecessary to do what Mr. Behrens suggested.
Next, I discovered that the version of xlib6 on the Corellinux CDROM
which I was trying to use was not the same as the one Mr. Wiseman was
using. The one I had was 3.3.5-1.0.1; Mr. Wiseman's was 3.3.6-44. I
downloaded that version from Mr. Wiseman's website. When I tried to
install it I got the following response:
SOL:~# dpkg -i xlib6_3.3.6-44_i386.deb
(Reading database ... 87476 files and directories currently installed.)
Unpacking xlib6 (from xlib6_3.3.6-44_i386.deb) ...
dpkg: error processing xlib6_3.3.6-44_i386.deb (--install):
corrupted filesystem tarfile - corrupted package archive: Success
dpkg-deb: subprocess paste killed by signal (Broken pipe)
Errors were encountered while processing:
xlib6_3.3.6-44_i386.deb
I think I am right in assuming that "Broken pipe" does not refer to an
oil spill.
Further comparison of the two xlib6 versions reveals that the earlier
one depends on xlib6g (>=3.3.2.3a-8) and libc5 (>=5.4.0-0); whereas the
later one depends on xlibs (>> 4.0) and libc5 (>=5.4.46). It also
conflicts with libc5 (<< 5.4.46-8) [By the way, is any special meaning
attached to double pointers as opposed to single ones, e.g., << and >>?]
I have installed in my sarge box xlibs 4.3.0.dfsg.1-14sarge1 and libc5
5.4.46-15; so as far as I can see there is no impediment to installing
xlibs 3.3.6-44. However, there must be one, because the package manager
will not let me install it.
However, whether the package manager will let me install my version of
WordPerfect 8.0 is another matter. My version is 8.0-78, which was
shipped with a book intitled "Corel Linux OS Starter Kit: The Official
Guide", published by Osborne. I purchased it on 24 October 2000. I
tried to install Corel Linux but could not; I later discovered that it
was considered to be unreliable. So I never got WP 8.0 for Linux working.
Mr. Wiseman, in your post of 19 November last, you mentioned that you
purchased the Corel Personal version of WP 8.0; and in your post of the
previous day you say that you are running it on "a current testing
system". It that system etch?
My version of WP 8.0 (8.0-78) depends on xlib6g; but yours apparently
depends on lib6, libc5 and xpm4.7. I now have two more questions.
First, what version of WP 8.0 do you have? Second, while I can
understand why I would not get my version of WP 8.0 to load because of
the conflicts between xlib6g and later packages, why could I not get
xlib6 to run on sarge, when you were able to get it to run on etch?
By the way xlib6 does not seem to appear any longer on any current
Debian archive. At least I could not find it on my mirror site.
It is very much of a disappointment that I cannot seem to be able to
use WP8.0 It makes the claim that Debian is about choice sound hollow.
There is now another possible option: WINE. Now that a beta version of
WINE is out, I may be able to install WP 12 using it.
Regards,
--
Ken Heard
Toronto, Canada
Museologist, specializing in
technology and transport
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