Warning for all prop tool users.
Clock Loop
Posts: 2,069
I was using the prop tool (have been for a few months now) and had it loaded along with 5-6 other programs/windows....
well, when i went to save my latest code one of the many times, prop tool gave me an error, it said that it could not save the file. I sent the error to parallax, but once i closed the file and opened it again, the file size was 0, and all code lost with no backup(some programs save a backup copy of all open work when errors happen)
well, luckly I had made a cd backup 2 days prior, (other wise it would have been 2 weeks of lost work.)
I now regularly use the "archive" option under the file menu....
Since prop tool is buggy, you all should do this too.
I would suggest that parallax include some failsafe code that saves a backup of all open files under a backup name in the event of a program error/crash.
(had i known the file was 0(after error), i would have copied all code from the prop tool before restarting prop tool. (proptool didn't crash, just kept giving me errors when i tried to save, so the text was still in ram, even tho the hard drive copy was toast)
[noparse]:o[/noparse]
well, when i went to save my latest code one of the many times, prop tool gave me an error, it said that it could not save the file. I sent the error to parallax, but once i closed the file and opened it again, the file size was 0, and all code lost with no backup(some programs save a backup copy of all open work when errors happen)
well, luckly I had made a cd backup 2 days prior, (other wise it would have been 2 weeks of lost work.)
I now regularly use the "archive" option under the file menu....
Since prop tool is buggy, you all should do this too.
I would suggest that parallax include some failsafe code that saves a backup of all open files under a backup name in the event of a program error/crash.
(had i known the file was 0(after error), i would have copied all code from the prop tool before restarting prop tool. (proptool didn't crash, just kept giving me errors when i tried to save, so the text was still in ram, even tho the hard drive copy was toast)
[noparse]:o[/noparse]
Comments
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Timothy D. Swieter, E.I.
www.brilldea.com - Prop Blade, LED Painter, RGB LEDs, 3.0" LCD Composite video display, eProto for SunSPOT
www.tdswieter.com
*Peter*
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Links to other interesting threads:
· Home of the MultiBladeProps: TriBladeProp, RamBlade, TwinBlade,·SixBlade, website
· Single Board Computer:·3 Propeller ICs·and a·TriBladeProp board (ZiCog Z80 Emulator)
· Prop Tools under Development or Completed (Index)
· Emulators: Micros eg Altair, and Terminals eg VT100 (Index) ZiCog (Z80), MoCog (6809)
· Search the Propeller forums (via Google)
My cruising website is: ·www.bluemagic.biz·· MultiBladeProp is: www.bluemagic.biz/cluso.htm
Well windowz is crappy, but since i started using proptool, it has given me more than a few major errors, for instance, if you accidentally press the F10 and F11 button at the same time, prop tool will give you a code error when it shouldn't. i know you shouldn't press f10 and f11, but its easy to do, being next to eachother.. and considering that programming something that will refuse this kind of keyboard input would be fairly easy... the prop tool DOES have bugs.
And i submit every single one to parallax. Blame windows all you want, but i have been using windows long enough to know if a program causes its own demise, or if its windows acting funny.
One thing to mention tho, is that I leave my pc on, and proptool open 24/7 (and don't allow standby/sleep/hibernate modes) because i use my pc so much, that turning it off and on everyday will cause more damage than leaving it all on.
So perhaps its something to do with the length of time your running prop tool.
Still i have run Other programs without shutting down for weeks, and they work fine. i use program firewalls to prevent malicious programs, and even keep the pc offline when not interfacing with the net.
I am 95% certain that this was a prop tool bug.
Why is everyone SO down on Vista (and just widows inparticular)?? It is the best OS I have ever used! It is on our Dell Hybrid downstairs and is blazing fast and is awsomely user-friendly. So why do SO MANY people hate it?!?!?
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Toys are microcontroled.
Robots are microcontroled.
I am microcontroled.
If it's not Parallax then don't even bother. :-)
·
Mini-Din/PS2 connectors are for sale! 5 for $1! PM me if you wish to make an order.
Cheap·shipping unless specified!··········150 left!!··
@Clock Loop - Thanks for the heads-up.
Ned
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
"They may have computers, and other weapons of mass destruction." - Janet Reno
@Clock Loop - Perhaps Prop tool has some bugs but I found the Windows USB drivers troublesome which is perhaps what might have something to do with when you hit F10,F11 together (all thumbs? [noparse]:)[/noparse] ).
About O/S's in general I must say that the one I always liked best was BeOS but Linux has come a long way and I have found that it has only been in the last couple of years that I would have considered Linux as a viable substitute for Windows for general PC use. Not bad at all considering Linux does not have the billions of dollars and manufacturers "cooperation" that MS has. Sounds a bit like Parallax and the Propeller, whereas other CPU users get their nose out of joint and don't want to hear about the Propeller.
*Peter*
ErNa
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
cmapspublic3.ihmc.us:80/servlet/SBReadResourceServlet?rid=1181572927203_421963583_5511&partName=htmltext
Hello Rest Of The World
Hello Debris
Install a propeller and blow them away
I'm pretty sure what's happening as I can recreate the error -
1. Don't launch the prop tool by double clicking on the source file, use file open and browse to it.
2. Save and *then* close the file (close the tab). Save, close, and exit the prop tool in that order.
( To recreate the error, try double clicking on a source and then just exit the prop tool - even without editing, it is likely to crash. )
Print will cause the app to hang on close too if for one example you turn off the printer while it's printing, then clear the print cache, and close the prop tool. Granted, that's pretty silly, but it indicates what I describe below *)
It's easy to blame the OS, or other programs, but it's wrong to do so - it often just *seems* like they're to blame. XP at least has been hammered on *way* too much. By the time an MS OS gets past SP2, it's pretty mature. Clock Loop, which OS and service pack are you running? It's not a good sign that you can't shut down your machine. Rebooting often clears up problems and starts a clean slate.
> So perhaps its something to do with the length of time your running prop tool.
This is usually indicative of a stray pointer, more commonly called a 'memory leak'. The bits are slowly dribbling into places they shouldn't go - until the OS notices and kills your app (or doesn't notice ... and it just grows into a monster or hangs).
Look in the event log -> applications ... it will tell you more.
*) I suspect what's happening with the Prop tool is one of the most common problems in programming in general: lack of error trapping routines. (Code it fast, worry about error correction later. ... oh, job done - oh well, I guess we didn't get those error routines in.) For example, the print driver on a failed print tells the application there's a problem. The app ignores the problem at it's own peril - an unattended driver is a good way to crash a calling program. (Just think of how many times your machine seems to lock up when you get a bad CD sector (or the optical drive itself futzes out.))
cheers
-Howard
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Post Edited (CounterRotatingProps) : 7/11/2009 9:27:39 PM GMT
I hate to see people having problems with XP, I have to use it everyday, I have no choice for many of the things I have to do sadly, but adding LS and vi have really helped me deal with it. [noparse]:)[/noparse]
Jimmy
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
My Prop Info&Apps: ·http://www.rayslogic.com/propeller/propeller.htm
I am not trying to grouch around, it is just that people constantly put Windows and Vista down, and I think it is a great OS. I have had very few errors with them, and whenever I do, my work is always restored.
Then agian, maybe I am just used to it.
▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔
Toys are microcontroled.
Robots are microcontroled.
I am microcontroled.
If it's not Parallax then don't even bother. :-)
·
Mini-Din/PS2 connectors are for sale! 5 for $1! PM me if you wish to make an order.
Cheap·shipping unless specified!··········150 left!!··
I have been fortunate to be able to have free and fast downloads for all those Linux flavors but there have been surprisingly few that I would choose. In terms of standouts PuppyLinux is only a 100MB install and is fast and comes packed with apps but I actually use Ubuntu now although it wasn't one of my favorites previously. I am still using Protel99SE which just would not run properly on Vista no matter what tricks I or anyone else pulled so I am running it very nicely under WinXP using VirtualBox in Ubuntu. But that's about the only real app I still run on Windows. Say, I have played with PCB/Schematic apps that run directly in Linux or through Wine, does anyone have any recommendations for any particular one especially for production work? I mostly do double-sided SMD with schematic to PCB but I prefer manual routing.
This forum is a positive forum and is all about help and suggestions and whereas we may differ on many issues we know that we are in agreement that the Propeller although not being everyone's cup of tea is a fantastic processor and plaything.
*Peter*