HP OpenVMS Systems Documentation

This section contains release notes that pertain to the New Desktop environment.

2.3.1 Style Manager Now Sets Background on Correct Workspace in Multihead Configurations

V1.3--1

The problem with setting backgrounds on DECwindows Motif for OpenVMS Version 1.2--5 and higher systems in multihead configurations has been corrected. The Style Manager (DTSTYLE) now sets the background on the correct workspace.

2.3.2 Screen Saver No Longer Fills Session Manager Log File (DECW$SM.LOG) with Error Messages

V1.3--1

On DECwindows Motif for OpenVMS Version 1.2--4 or higher systems, the New Desktop screen saver occasionally encountered a race condition when the display was unlocked and the screen saver terminated. As a result, multiple X errors were continuously reported and recorded in the session log file, DECW$SM.LOG. Eventually, the log file would grow and fill the disk or produce an access violation.

The problem also arose when a rogue application deleted one of the windows used by the screen saver.

This condition has been fixed; the screen saver records a maximum of one error message before terminating. This error message also now includes a time stamp and other information that can help identify its origin.

2.3.3 Security Options Dialog Box Allows Selection of All Valid Option Combinations

V1.3--1

In DECwindows Motif for OpenVMS Alpha Version 1.3, users could not select and set all valid combinations of client and server security options in the Security Options dialog box.

The dialog box has now been improved to allow the selection of all valid options and to allow multiple changes to be made without the need to click the Apply button after each change.

2.3.4 Full File Specification No Longer Displayed in DTPAD Banner

V1.3

When selecting a file from the File Manager (DTFILE) and opening that file for editing (using DTPAD), the full file specification (node, disk, directory, and filename) is no longer displayed in the window banner. Only the filename portion of the specification is displayed.

2.3.5 Style Manager Displays Incorrect Security Options on Multihead Systems

V1.3

When the using the Style Manager to access the Security Options dialog box from a screen other than screen 0, the settings shown in the dialog box may be incorrect.

To prevent this from occurring, always display the Security Options dialog box from screen 0. Use the Set Default Screen tool to select the screen on which the Style Manager displays.

Note that this problem only occurs on multiheaded systems configured without XINERAMA. In the XINERAMA case, there is only one logical screen.

2.3.6 Screen Saver and Screen Lock Set by Default

V1.2--6

Note that at initial DECwindows Motif startup, Screen Saver (with a 10-minute timeout) and Screen Lock (with a 30-minute timeout) are enabled by default.

You can modify these defaults by accessing the Style Manager and changing (and subsequently saving) the Screen Saver settings.

2.3.7 Desktop Applications Disappear When Setting a Home Session

V1.2--6

In the Style Manager, selecting Startup and then Set Home Session can cause applications that you previously started using the Application Manager to disappear. This can happen if you start these applications with the Application Manager and then close the Application Manager before setting your home session.

The workaround is to keep the Application Manager window open.

2.3.8 DTSESSION Logging Problem

V1.2--5

In some cases, DTSESSION continues to log errors to its log file until all free disk space is filled. These errors could occur, for example, if DECW$DISPLAY is set to an incorrect value, or if CDE$SYSTEM_DEFAULTS:[BIN]DTSCREEN.EXE is not properly installed.

If on the New Desktop the Session Manager (DTSESSION) is unable to start the Screen Saver (DTSCREEN), it logs an error to the log file device:[user.DT]ERRORLOG. DTSESSION logs this error at a user-settable interval controlled by the Style Manager's "Time Per Background" parameter.

To workaround this problem, increase the "Time Per Background" parameter to the maximum (120 minutes), or exit the New Desktop when you are done with it, rather than locking the screen.

2.3.9 File Manager Problems with Extended File Specifications

V1.2--5

• The "Selected/Move to" menu item does not support case preservation. The files are moved correctly, but case is not preserved.
• The File Manager currently does not support case preservation when you create file names that contain special characters. For example, "Special^&Characters" will be converted to "SPECIAL^&CHARACTERS.;1".
• The "Selected/Put in Trash" menu item does not work on ODS-5 volumes marked for EFS (Extended File Specifications). This applies only to folders with extended file names. An error message similar to the following is displayed:

  File Manipulation Error Cannot create "sys$sysroot:[sysmgr.dt.trash]qwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnm- QWERTYUIOPASDFGHJKLZXCVBNM.LONG_NAME;1" The most common cause is that you do not have the correct permissions for the involved files or folders. To view permissions, select the object and then select "Change Permissions..." from the Selected or popup menu.

  
  These files can be deleted at the DCL level.
• Dragging a file or folder with an extended file name to Trash causes an error message. On an ODS-2 volume you can drag a file or folder with a short file name to Trash and still be able to restore it. On an ODS-5 volume you can drag a file or folder with a short name to Trash, but you cannot restore even files with short names from an ODS-5 volume. These files can be deleted at the DCL level.
• The "File/New Folder" menu item can handle the creation of a folder when the path length exceeds 255 characters, but the folder cannot be displayed (it is hidden). These files can be viewed at the DCL level.
• The "File/Find/File" menu item cannot find a file with file name that exceeds 235 characters if the full file name has been entered in the dialog's form field. To avoid the problem, use wildcards to conduct the search.
• The "Selected/Purge" menu item does not work for long file names on ODS-5 volumes marked for EFS (Extended File Specifications). "Short" file names do not present this problem. An error similar to the following is displayed:

  File Manipulation Error Cannot create "sys$sysroot:[sysmgr.dt.trash]qwertyuiopasdfghjklzxcvbnm- QWERTYUIOPASDFGHJKLZXCVBNM.LONG_NAME;1" The most common cause is that you do not have the correct permissions for the involved files or folders. To view permissions, select the object and then select "Change Permissions..." from the Selected or popup menu.

  
  These files with long file names can still be purged at the DCL level.
• Updated protection settings are not displayed when invoking "Fileview/Command/Protection," although the settings have actually been updated. However, the new settings can be verified by either issuing a DCL command or invoking "Fileview/Command/Show File."

V1.2--5

DECwindows does not include the DECwrite program. However, it does include the DECwrite icon on the New Desktop. If the DECwrite product has not been installed, clicking on the DECwrite icon results in the following error messages:

> RCV'D (pid 000000CA): %DCL-W-IVVERB, unrecognized command verb -
                         check validity and spelling
-> RCV'D (pid 000000CA):  \DECWRITE\
-> RCV'D (pid 000000CA):   TESTER       logged out at
29-JUL-1998 17:56:44.63

If the DECwrite product is installed and you still get this error, ensure that DECwrite is started in SYSTARTUP_VMS.COM.

2.3.11 Delay When Exiting a Session with Open TPU Windows

V1.2--4

Users will experience a one-minute delay for each DECwindows Text Processing utility (TPU) window displayed when exiting the session or when saving a home session.

The DECwindows interface for TPU (EVE editor) requires notification if its state needs to be saved, but it does not respond to that notification sent by Session Manager. The Session Manager waits one minute for a response before continuing, resulting in the delay.

2.3.12 Viewing TIF Files with dximageview

V1.2--4

When using dximageview to view TIF-formatted files from the CDE$SYSTEM_DEFAULTS:[APPCONFIG.HELP.C.GRAPHICS] directory, the following warning messages are displayed:

TIFFOpen: Warning, unknown field with tag 34209 (0x85a1) ignored.
TIFFOpen: XResolution: Rational with zero denominator (num = 200).

Note this error only occurs with the TIF files in CDE$SYSTEM_DEFAULTS:[APPCONFIG.HELP.C.GRAPHICS]; it is only a warning. The file is still displayed correctly by the image viewer.

2.3.13 Text Editor Restrictions

V1.2--4

The Text Editor application, which is part of the New Desktop, is described in Chapter 10 of the Common Desktop Environment: User's Guide. Currently, it has the following issues and restrictions:

• The reference page for Text Editor describes a client/server implementation of the Text Editor. This release of the Text Editor supports the -"standAlone" option only and is not built as a client/server application.
• The spell-checking function described in the section "To Correct Misspelled Words" is not implemented in this version of the Text Editor.
• The Text Widget upon which the New Desktop Text Editor is based does not set the size of a tab to exactly the width of eight (8) characters; it is usually slightly larger. When displaying text with a combination of spaces and tabs, text may not appear vertically aligned.

V1.2--4

In the Application Manager Find dialog box and in error messages reported by the Help Viewer, file names are displayed in UNIX format rather than in standard OpenVMS format. For example, SYS$SYSROOT:[SYSMGR]LOGIN.COM appears as /sys$sysroot/sysmgr/login.com.

2.3.15 Front Panel Clock is an Icon Only

V1.2--4

The New Desktop Front Panel Clock is an animated icon that displays the current system time using an analog display. The icon has no other function and does not support single-click or double-click operations.

2.3.16 ToolTalk Actions Not Supported

V1.2--4

Creation of ToolTalk Action definitions in the Action Definition files (*.dt) as described in the Common Desktop Environment: Advanced User's and System Administrator's Guide is not supported. Although some ToolTalk actions exist in the Action Definition files installed with this product, modification of these actions is not supported and could cause some New Desktop functions to fail.

2.3.17 Session Manager Save and Restore Limitations

V1.2--4

The Session Manager supplied with the New Desktop supports the WM_SAVE_YOURSELF protocol for the following DECwindows Motif applications: Bookreader, DECterm, and Calendar.

Applications that have been written to take advantage of this protocol can:

• Save their state when the user exits a session.
• Restore a state when the user starts a new session.

The New Desktop applications support save/restore, but many existing DECwindows Motif applications have not been modified to support the WM_SAVE_YOURSELF protocol.

The impact of this difference between existing and new applications can be seen during a logout/login sequence as follows:

• Applications supporting save/restore create a main window if they were running when the user logged out.
• Applications that do not support save/restore do not automatically restart.

An example of an existing DECwindows Motif application that supports save/restore is DECwindows Mail.

2.3.18 File Manager Search List Limitations

V1.2--4

The File Manager application has the following limitations with search lists in the New Desktop environment.

• If you specify a folder (directory) name, which is strictly a logical name, and the logical name translates to a search list, only the first directory encountered in the search list is displayed.
• When displaying a directory whose name includes a search-listed device, all directories in the search path are displayed. If more than one directory with the same name exists in the search path, an icon appears for each instance of that directory. If more than one file with the same name exists in the search path, the behavior depends on whether the Show Top Version Only filter option has been selected. If selected, only one icon of the file with the highest version is displayed. If not selected, all versions from all locations are displayed. However, if more than one of the files has the same version number, any action to any of the files with that version applies to the first occurrence of the file in the search path.
  For example, suppose the files SYS$SPECIFIC:[SYSMGR]TOOLS.DIR;1 and SYS$COMMON:[SYSMGR]TOOLS.DIR;1 both exist in a system. If a user switches to the directory SYS$SYSROOT:[SYSMGR], two icons represent the file TOOLS.DIR. Operations performed on either of the two icons work identically. New files are created in the first directory in the search path. In addition, some actions for these icons may not work properly.
  To work around this problem, specify explicit directory names when a conflict occurs, for example, SYS$SPECIFIC:[SYSMGR] or SYS$COMMON:[SYSMGR].

V1.2--4

The following sections provide information about the Login Screen and Pause Screen text fields.

2.3.19.1 Control Characters Not Recognized When Entering Username

The New Desktop does not support entering control characters in the login Username text field. If entered, these characters are discarded. This differs from the DECwindows login Username text field which supports such key sequences as:

• Ctrl/U, Ctrl/J, or F13 (deletes to beginning of the line)
• Ctrl/H or F11 (positions to the beginning of the line)
• Ctrl/E (positions at the end of the line)

The New Desktop does support Ctrl/U, which when typed while entering a password at login or when unpausing the screen, erases any characters entered up to that point.

2.3.19.2 Use Return Key to Move Between Login Text Fields

Because the Username text field and Password text field are different dialog boxes in the New Desktop, press the Return key to move the cursor from the Username text field to the Password text field. The Tab key does not move the cursor to the next text field; rather, this action highlights the OK button.

2.3.19.3 First Character Discarded When Entering Pause Screen Password

If the workstation is paused and the Password dialog box is not displayed, the first character typed is ignored. This differs from the DECwindows pause screen, which always accepts any characters typed.

When using the New Desktop, use a nontyping key, such as Shift, or move the mouse to redisplay the Pause dialog box before entering your password. If you are unsure of what you have already typed, you can use Ctrl/U to erase the Password text field.

2.3.19.4 Text on the Welcome Screen is Not Displayed

If the 100-dpi fonts are not included in the X server's font path, the welcome text is not displayed on the blue welcome screen that appears immediately after logging in. This may also occur if you are displaying your session on a remote X server.

2.3.20 Font Selection Limitations

V1.2--4

On the New Desktop, Style Manager contains a control that displays a dialog box used to select font size. Selecting a new font size affects only New Desktop applications and does not affect existing DECwindows Motif applications.

2.3.21 Default Workspace Limitations

V1.2--4

The New Desktop provides a default backdrop for the four default workspaces. You can change or even select Nobackdrop using the Backdrop control located in Style Manager.

When no backdrop is selected, you cannot drag icons and place them on the backdrop of the desktop. If you drag an icon and release it, it snaps back to File Manager or Application Manager.

Icons that were dropped on the background before Nobackdrop was selected remain and function correctly.

2.4 Traditional DECwindows Desktop Environment

This section contains release notes that pertain to the Traditional DECwindows Desktop environment only.

2.4.1 FileView Supports Variable Case Filenames

V1.3--1

FileView now recognizes filenames that include variable and lowercase characters. Problems using FileView to specify variable case filenames have been resolved, as follows:

• The correct pop-up menu is displayed for file types that contain lowercase characters
• The Run command works correctly for command and executable files that contain lowercase file types
• The Compile command works correctly for source code that contains lowercase file types
• The Select and Filter options are now case-blind

The following sections contain notes related to specific DECwindows Motif applications.

2.5.1 Bookreader

This section contains release notes pertaining to the Bookreader application.

2.5.1.1 Support for Display PostScript Removed

V1.2--6

With the removal of the support for Display PostScript from the current version of DECwindows Motif, Bookreader no longer supports the display of PostScript artwork in online manuals. When Bookreader detects PostScript artwork, it displays a full-size figure window with a large "X" overlayed with an error message box containing the following message:

Unable to display PostScript(R) graphic.
This feature is no longer available.

There is no workaround.

2.5.1.2 Including Comment Characters in the DECW$BOOKSHELF File

V1.2--3

If you include a comment character (! or #) in the last line of the DECW$BOOKSHELF file, Bookreader fails with a reserved operand fault. As a workaround, ensure that you do not add comment characters to the last line of the file.

2.5.2 CDA

This section contains release notes that pertain to the Compound Document Architecture (CDA) Run-Time Services and CDA Viewer components of DECwindows Motif.

2.5.2.1 Viewing Large, Color DDIF Files using eXcursion Version 7.1

V1.3

If you are unable to display large, color DDIF files while running the CDA Viewer from an eXcursion X Server session, HP recommends that you do one of the following:

• Display the DDIF file from a CDA Viewer session that uses either the local or DECnet transport outside of eXcursion.
• Upgrade the HP PATHWORKS 32 software to Version 7.2 or later. See the OpenVMS web site (http://www.hp.com/go/openvms) for information on obtaining a copy of this software.

V1.2--6

With the removal of the support for Display PostScript from the current version of DECwindows Motif, CDA no longer supports the display of PostScript source. The PostScript option has been removed from the CDA Viewer. If you attempt to view a PostScript file from the character cell interface CDA viewer, the viewer displays the following message:

%CDA-E-UNSUPFMT, unsupported document format.

There is no workaround.

2.5.3 DECterm

This section contains release notes pertaining to the DECterm application.

2.5.3.1 Use ignoreVisibility Resource When Displaying DECterm Windows with eXcursion or on a Multihead XINERAMA System

V1.3--1

A new resource, ignoreVisibility, has been added to prevent scrolling problems that occur when displaying a DECterm on eXcursion or XINERAMA. To prevent these problems from occurring, insert the following line into the DECterm options file:

*.ignoreVisibility: True

To save and activate the setting, choose Save Options, and then close and restart all DECterms on the display.

2.5.3.2 Invoking DECterm May Fail while Kerberos is Enabled

V1.3

When using Kerberos authentication, the DECterm controller may fail to start. The workaround for this problem is to change SYLOGIN.COM so that Kerberos is initialized (@SYS$MANAGER:KRB$SYMBOLS.COM) within the MODE_OTHER section of SYLOGIN.COM.

2.5.3.3 Euro Currency Symbol May Not Display Correctly When Using eXcursion

V1.3

Due to differences in how the euro symbol is supported between eXcursion and DECwindows Motif, the symbol may not display correctly on DECterm windows invoked via eXcursion. DECterm substitutes Latin-9 fonts with equivalent Latin-1 fonts, causing problems with the display of the symbol.

To prevent font substitution from occurring, modify the eXcursion font alias files, as described in the eXcursion release notes. The release notes describe how to edit the alias files, and describe additional restrictions related to support of the euro currency symbol.