* FH-v5 AS-v4 WinXP Crossover & Wine Bottles

[tatewise]

Certainly, the KB instructions say to use a Windows XP Bottle, because in thread FH running on Wine (10907) on Sat Feb 22, 2014 3:46 pm Colin reported that:

Crossover won't allow FH to install in a Win7 Bottle as it says that it is not a compatible OS!!! It will allow AS 32 Bit to install to a Win7 Bottle.

So that poses the question:
What Crossover Windows Bottle versions (Win XP, Win 7, Win 8, 32-bit/64-bit) are supported for both FH and AS and which is the recommended version to use?

I don't understand why Gerry tried installing Windows OLE because it has never been mentioned anywhere.

Is it possible that MS .NET Framework 3.5 is somehow integral with a Win XP Bottle in Crossover?
At the very end of http://www.codeweavers.com/compatibilit ... msg=114984
it says CX-11 is out and Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 is now included.
Does this mean Crossover 11 (and thus Crossover 12) includes .NET Framework 3.5 by default?

BTW: There is a Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 Service Pack 1 CrossTie

For different versions of Windows different versions of MS .Net Framework are invoked in different ways.
Sometimes they must be installed as completely separate application programs.
Sometimes they are an integral Feature of Windows, managed via Control Panel > Add Remove/Programs & Features and the Turn windows features on or off option.

[gerrynuk]

Well, in desperation I started from scratch and recreated as nearly as I could the applications in Colin's Win XP Bottle then installed AS 4.0.1 and FH 5.0.9. Surprise, surprise things now seem to be working although I haven't had time to test everything. However, Backup and Restore do now open file windows enabling me to select the required files and Open Gedcom now also seems to be working. So, as far as I can see, the key is to get the right supporting applications in the Bottle. This is how mine now looks, although it isn't quite the same as Colin's bottle as some of his applications aren't listed in the Crossover Software Installer window:

Screen Shot 2014-04-30 at 12.46.27.png (177.02 KiB) Viewed 11194 times

I don't know what the minimum installation would be but these applications do seem to be sufficient to support FH and AS.

Very many thanks to everyone for their help and support. I hope this will make it easier for others to get FH and AS working on their Apple computers.

[tatewise]

That is excellent progress Gerry. It would seem to suggest .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 is integral with the WinXP Bottle.

Have you tried any Plugins yet?

To get many Plugins to work it is important to use the Windows Script 5.7 CrossTie and set the COMPUTERNAME as advised in the how_to:install_family_historian_with_crossover_wine|> How to Install Family Historian with Crossover and Wine.

Can you please recall while fresh in mind which Installed Applications you specifically chose to install, and which appeared as a side effect of installing others.

That screen-shot may be a useful addition to the KB advice.

[Valkrider]

I have updated Codeweavers compatible applications to include Ancestral Sources 4.0.1.

It should appear in the list later today.

Gerry if, when it appears, you can vote it up I am sure that Nick would be happy and if in the meantime you want to up vote FH5.0.9 and AS 3.x as well that may be useful to others.

I am reading up on creating a Crosstie and will see if I can create one for both FH and AS so that it will make it easier for future users.

[gerrynuk]

Mike,

Re Plugins, I made the addition to the cxbottle.conf file as suggested in the KB and then loaded "Backup and Restore Family History Settings" from the Plugin store. Running the Plugin produced this error message:

Screen Shot 2014-04-30 at 14.30.30.png (18.33 KiB) Viewed 11182 times

I then loaded "Show Project Statistics" and this ran properly and produced the required report in FH. Do I recall that there was a problem with Plugins that tried to access the Registry?

Just a point re Plugins, whilst clicking on Plugin Store... in the Tools>Plugins.. window opens the Plugin Store in Internet Explorer 7, clicking on "Download Now!" brings up a File Download Security Warning window. Clicking on Save in this window brings up the usual Save As window but with the incorrect Plugin name of "download" with no file extension. I found it better to use Safari to open the Plugin Store and download from there automatically to the Mac Downloads folder. The file is then saved with the correct name and can be imported into FH using the Tools>Plugins... window, then clicking on More>> to show the Import... button.

Sorry, I didn't take a note of the individual programs I installed in the bottle. I just worked my way down Colin's list and found that something like Internet Explorer also loaded all the font files. So all you need to do is work your way down the list and check at each stage what else had been loaded. The loader is intelligent enough to know if something has already been loaded.

[gerrynuk]

I have updated Codeweavers compatible applications to include Ancestral Sources 4.0.1.

It should appear in the list later today.

Gerry if, when it appears, you can vote it up I am sure that Nick would be happy and if in the meantime you want to up vote FH5.0.9 and AS 3.x as well that may be useful to others.

I am reading up on creating a Crosstie and will see if I can create one for both FH and AS so that it will make it easier for future users.

Colin,

I'm still using the trial version of Crossover so Codeweavers won't let me vote. I will probably purchase the full version after I have done a little more testing and will then add my votes.

[tatewise]

Gerry, please read through the all KB advice page.
It seems that if you had done that to start with, and used a Win XP Bottle as advised, your problems would have been avoided.
Ditto Plugins - the KB advice explains most of what you have reported, including Backup & Restore FH not working.

[Valkrider]

Gerry

To save space you can delete the FH PDF printer as that doesn't work and FH continues to function perfectly without it.

I recommend Firefox rather than IE and I always download using Mac to get any apps or plugins etc. DO NOT use IE inside the bottle for downloading as it can lead to some of the issues that you have found

[gerrynuk]

Gerry, please read through the all KB advice page.
It seems that if you had done that to start with, and used a Win XP Bottle as advised, your problems would have been avoided.
Ditto Plugins - the KB advice explains most of what you have reported, including Backup & Restore FH not working.

Have done several times but, with respect, I don't think KB makes it clear that it should be an XP bottle. I think you need to stress that the Bottle must be the default Win XP and not some other version of Windows. As XP is now longer supported the KB might be read as just being out of date and that the current version of Windows should be used. The KB must make this point clear.

[tatewise]

OK, have done.

Please try Ancestral Sources Data Entry Plugin, which needs Windows Script 5.7 package.

[Valkrider]

Codeweavers have now accepted Ancestral Sources 4.0.1 as a working application under Crossover.

[gerrynuk]

OK, have done.

Please try Ancestral Sources Data Entry Plugin, which needs Windows Script 5.7 package.

Mike,

I had to download the Windows Script 5.7 CrossTie from the Codeweavers site to get the plugin to work. Downloading v5.7 from the Microsoft site doesn't work as it gives following error message when you try to install it:

Screen Shot 2014-05-01 at 10.11.25.png (33.73 KiB) Viewed 11143 times

So the plugin does now work OK.

Thanks for all your help in getting things running OK and for clarifying the point regarding the use of an XP bottle.

[gerrynuk]

Gerry

To save space you can delete the FH PDF printer as that doesn't work and FH continues to function perfectly without it.

I recommend Firefox rather than IE and I always download using Mac to get any apps or plugins etc. DO NOT use IE inside the bottle for downloading as it can lead to some of the issues that you have found

I have deleted the FH PDF printer and installed the PDF Writer for Mac. The File>Print function works OK but there is no choice as to where to save the pdf file. I have overcome this by adding an alias/shortcut to this location on Finder. Do you know any way the location can be customised?

The KB states:

The free PDFWriter for Mac offers a way of creating PDF output, including the FH Diagram > Save Diagram As > PDF File (.pdf) command.

However, Diagram>Save Diagram As... PDF file (.pdf) returns an error message that "PDF file output is not enabled." Do I need to carry out any further steps to get this running?

[Valkrider]

Gerry

It is your configuration that is causing the issue.

Both Ancestral Sources Data Entry plugin and the pdf printer work perfectly for me exactly as the KB says.

Sorry I have no other ideas than starting again and follow every step of the KB precisely. I presume you are running Mavericks as that is what I am running and I do not have any of the problems you are describing, the only possible difference was that I did all of my install on an earlier version of Crossover 13.1.1 and have then updated it.

The default save location is users/shared/pdfwriter/username/

If you want to change it see https://sourceforge.net/p/pdfwriterform ... it=25#3ab9

[tatewise]

In hindsight, I wonder if Colin is mistaken in thinking that removing the FH PDF printer has no side effects on FH.
I recall that normal Windows users of FH get the message Gerry mentions if the FH PDF printer is missing or faulty.

I suggest re-installing FH V5.0.9 to reinstate the FH PDF printer.

[Valkrider]

Mike

I can confirm that I have just tried and successfully created a pdf diagram using pdfwriter without having the FH pdf printer installed. So it is definitely Gerry's config.

[tatewise]

Colin, maybe there is another step that is needed, such as using File > Print Setup and choosing the PDF Writer for Mac.

For example, if I choose a non-PDF printer driver in File > Print Setup then FH does not like Save Diagram/Report As > PDF File.

[Valkrider]

Ah this maybe where Gerry is going wrong I don't use the dialog in that way.

I select file > print then chose the printer (my default is my colour laser) and then select print. I don't use the Save Diagram/Report As > PDF File I let the pdf printer deal with it.

[gerrynuk]

I reinstalled FH 5.0.9 to get the Nova printer driver. Although the Diagram>Save Diagram As... PDF file (.pdf) "Save as PDF File" dialog now displays, clicking OK crashes FH. I then reinstalled FH from disk and applied the upgrade to 5.0.9 but get the same result.

I tried the Print setup route but it didn't make any difference.

[gerrynuk]

Ah this maybe where Gerry is going wrong I don't use the dialog in that way.

I select file > print then chose the printer (my default is my colour laser) and then select print. I don't use the Save Diagram/Report As > PDF File I let the pdf printer deal with it.

That works OK for me too but you have slightly less control over the output and no control of the save location.

[tatewise]

What happens if you use the following with Publish any Report:

Print command on right using Mac PDF Writer.

Save Report As > PDF File

I suspect the KB advice is in error.
When Colin got PDF printing going using PDF Writer and said everything was OK, I assumed he was using the Save Report/Diagram As > PDF File commands, but now realise he was using the Print commands.

If removing the FH PDF Printer causes FH commands to crash instead of simply doing nothing, then the KB should not advise that.

FYI:
On native Windows the Print dialogue allows full control of the destination, and the Properties button offers other settings to adjust print options as described in how_to:creating_a_single_page_pdf_of_a_diagram|> Single Page PDF of a Diagram.

[gerrynuk]

What happens if you use the following with Publish any Report:

Print command on right using Mac PDF Writer.

Save Report As > PDF File

I suspect the KB advice is in error.
When Colin got PDF printing going using PDF Writer and said everything was OK, I assumed he was using the Save Report/Diagram As > PDF File commands, but now realise he was using the Print commands.

If removing the FH PDF Printer causes FH commands to crash instead of simply doing nothing, then the KB should not advise that.

FYI:
On native Windows the Print dialogue allows full control of the destination, and the Properties button offers other settings to adjust print options as described in how_to:creating_a_single_page_pdf_of_a_diagram|> Single Page PDF of a Diagram.

At present I still have the Nova PDF driver installed. So, using the Print command on the right and selecting the PDF Writer as the printer works as expected. Using Save Report as> PDF File appears to work but no Save window is opened and I cannot see that any report is actually saved.

I think it is better that the Nova PDF driver is removed as FH then just reports that PDF file output is not enabled but FH otherwise operates normally, as Colin reports. If the Nova PDF driver is installed then trying to use it to print Diagrams crashes FH. Would welcome Colin's input on how the KB should be worded.

Yes, unfortunately the PDF Writer does't have many options, other than to select the paper size so the options available on native Windows are not presently available under Crossover.

[Valkrider]

Removing the Nova PDF printer does not crash so imho it is the preferred option to doing nothing as Gerry describes when it is enabled.

If Save Report/Diagram As > PDF File is selected without the driver installed FH fails gracefully saying that no pdf driver is installed.

There maybe a better pdf printer driver for the Mac. I will do some investigation to see. However, as pdf printing is built in to the Mac OS I doubt there will be anything as fully featured as Nova.

I will reword the KB in the pdf printing area to say use File > Print rather than Save Report/Diagram As > PDF File and leave the recommendation in place to remove the FH Nova driver.

====
Update. I see Mike has already reworded it.

[tatewise]

There is one other consideration.

If the FH PDF Printer is retained, then the following might work:

Use Save Diagram As > PDF File (.pdf) and in Save as PDF File dialogue click OK.
In the Print dialogue replace Family Historian PDF with Mac PDF Writer.
If possible, set any properties/options and then click OK.

If it works, does that offer any advantages over the Print command alternative?

Unfortunately, the same is not available for Save Report As > PDF File (.pdf).

If that PDF Diagram printing method has no advantages, then removing the FH PDF Printer driver is the best solution.

[gerrynuk]

There is one other consideration.

If the FH PDF Printer is retained, then the following might work:

Use Save Diagram As > PDF File (.pdf) and in Save as PDF File dialogue click OK.
In the Print dialogue replace Family Historian PDF with Mac PDF Writer.
If possible, set any properties/options and then click OK.

If it works, does that offer any advantages over the Print command alternative?

Unfortunately, the same is not available for Save Report As > PDF File (.pdf).

If that PDF Diagram printing method has no advantages, then removing the FH PDF Printer driver is the best solution.

Mike, that doesn't work. If the Nova PDF driver is loaded then, regardless of which option is selected, when you click on the OK button FH crashes. There is no option to select the printer and changing the printer in File>Printer Setup to the PDF Writer has no effect on the Save Diagram dialogue.

With the Nova PDF driver present this is the dialogue that appears when you use Save Diagram As > PDF File (.pdf):

Screen Shot 2014-05-01 at 15.19.31.png (21.07 KiB) Viewed 11114 times

clicking OK brings up this:

Screen Shot 2014-05-01 at 15.24.17.png (33.92 KiB) Viewed 11114 times

With the Nova PDF driver deleted from the Bottle then the Save Diagram As > PDF File (.pdf) brings up this:

Screen Shot 2014-05-01 at 15.30.17.png (15.22 KiB) Viewed 11114 times

which isn't perfect as you can use the File>Print dialogue but at least FH doesn't crash.