Mail Archives: geda-user/2012/11/27/14:14:50
TL;DR There is much more breakage to come!
> Peter TB Brett <peter AT peter-b DOT co DOT uk> schrieb am 25. November 2012:
>>
>>> It breaks my batch mode output as well
>>
>> $(GSCHEM) -p -c '(print-paper "na_d")' -odesign.pdf \
>> -s${GEDA_SCHEME_DIR}/print.scm design.sch
>>
>>> Why?
>
> For the archive:
> My print procedures broke, too. Gschem fails on the "paper-size" line
> I had in my gschemrc since ages. The print command set in gschemrc to
> produce PDF output via CUPS-PDF did not work anymore, either. Instead
> of a print dialog I got a backtrace in the log window.
Yes. Unfortunately there is not currently any better way to alert users
that their rc files are out-of-date. Flailing horribly and printing
error messages is more efficient at this stage than trying to guess what
the user wants. I attempted to write some code that tried to DTRT with
the legacy "paper-size" function but it was both fragile and really
confusing.
>> If in doubt, read NEWS *before* misinterpreting git commit messages.
>
> Cite from src/geda-gaf/NEWS:
> "'gschem' now uses a standard GTK print dialog"
>
> ---> Yay for gschem devs!!
> Finally, a familiar print dialogue in gschem!
> No more raised eyebrows, when newbies I teach geda basics try to print
> their first schematics. Plus printing will work on every desktop that
> has a print system enabled. No more need to make sure, CUPS-PDF is
> installed...
Yes, I think it's a worthwhile change, or I wouldn't have made it. And
I'm the one who designed the previous "print" dialog...
> Release notes of geda 1.9 should contain a large and friendly warning
> about the change. Distros like Debian should offer a note on update.
> Would it be possible to catch the presumably common stumbling blocks
> me and Enoch hit?
1.9.0 is going to be a horribly "neither one thing nor the other"
release. There will be lots of new features and bug fixes in there, but
*all* geda-gaf configuration is going to be in flux throughout the 1.9.x
release series.
If you're going to be running git `master' over the next few months to a
year, expect cryptic messages and misleading documentation [1]. Don't
expect *not* to be having to tweak rc files and the (new) config files
on a regular basis. Also, a lot of the tutorials will need to be
rewritten. On the bright side, you should get nice new features, better
security, and improved ease-of-use, and 1.10.0 (or, depending on how
things go, 2.0) will be an excellent release [2].
The 1.9.0 release notes will of course contain a heads-up about the fact
that existing batch printing scripts will break horribly.
Just a reminder for all our wonderful beta testers about how to test the
`master' branch:
0) "Unstable" means "not stable" (i.e. things will change and break).
1) Oh no, the pesky devs appear to have broken it again!
2) Double-check the documentation. Sometimes it even gets updated!
3) Read NEWS. Less detailed, but more regularly updated.
4) Read `git log', working backward from the most recent commit.
5) File a bug report or "question" (http://launchpad.net/geda/)
6) "Use the Source, Luke!" and submit a patch.
N.b. "post a passive-aggressive e-mail to the mailing list" is not one
of the recommended steps for promptly resolving your issue.
Peter (back to lurking in the shadows)
[1] Help wanted.
[2] Fingers crossed!
--
Peter Brett <peter AT peter-b DOT co DOT uk>
Remote Sensing Research Group
Surrey Space Centre
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