gnumeric 1.12.7 bugs

[nick65go]

The only version which works OK is gnumeric 1.10.17 (gtk1, from TC4).
in all other versionns of TC_32, from TC5 until TC12, gnumeric has a few bugs.
[in TC12_32, 2013/10/01 First version, 1.12.7 of gnumeric]

1. The help files are near useless (yelp "browser" is available only in TC4). But because are just text files (xml) could be read offline from /tmp/tcloop/gn3/usr/share/help/C/gnumeric

2. The selection of function dialog, from  f(x) button or Help/Functions, is crippled. In a window of 14 cm high you see just 2 small 3 cm sections, one for function selection and one for function parameters. None can be made taller than 3 cm.

My fast and dirty solution: gnumeric 1.12.48-1+b2 which use goffice 0.10.10
(TC 5-12 has goffice 0.10.7, it does not work with gnumeric 1.12.48)
Both shameless taken from debian (*.deb extracted and compressed as tcz).
https://packages.debian.org/bullseye/i386/gnumeric/download
https://packages.debian.org/bullseye/all/gnumeric-common/download
https://packages.debian.org/bullseye/i386/libgoffice-0.10-10/download

FYI: my tcz use /usr/{bin; lib}, because /usr/local/{bin; lib} is not working yet. not big deal i think.

PS: do not bother with making help running.
Gnome bloat use "yelp browser", which is only available in TC4. But from TC4 it will drag a lot of old versions dependencies. The new yelp from debian is also bloat, because depends on libwebkit2gtk-4.0-37 (>= 2.19.2) ; Basically the help browser is bigger than the help xlm files. how f*** ugly. https://packages.debian.org/bullseye/yelp

PS2: you need additional packages installed for solver to work (glpk/ linear / non-linear equations), because gnumeric has just the linking interface, not the solver engine (as Ms Excel solver).

[Juanito]

If you’d like to update the gnumeric extension, please feel free 🙂

[nick65go]

I deleted all non-english text from xml files, so no language except English will work. Plus my tcz use /usr/xxx not as is customary /usr/local/xxx. If is OK for your team, then I could submit for TC_32:-goffice.tcz, gnumeric.tcz, gnumeric-help (man + help + samples), gnumeric-solver.tcz (glpk+lpsolve)
maybe remaind me the email, I did not send tcz for very long time

[Rich]

Hi Juanito
Just a heads up,  abiword  also depends on  goffice , so changing  goffice  might break it.

[Juanito]

Plus my tcz use /usr/xxx not as is customary /usr/local/xxx.

In that case we’ll leave it, but thanks for the offer.

[nick65go]

Just a heads up,  abiword  also depends on  goffice , so changing  goffice  might break it.

thanks for your concerns. in TC12_32 abiword works OK with new goffice updated at 0.10.10 (from 0.10.7).

Old or new, goffice contains the plug-ins for charts, which (only) gnumeric use, but not abiword. This is the reason goffice tcz has files in /usr/lib (not in /usr/local/lib) because they did not show (by default) in gnumeric. Maybe from gnumeric, the tc user can select the plugin configuration, (maybe not). but not by default. Maybe I am wrong all the way.

PS: I still use the old version (the small size one!) of librsvg, i just need to load extra the libffi6.tcz

[nick65go]

I have partial good news, after both gnumeric.tcz and goffice.tcz have /usr/local/{bin/lib} new structure.
gnumeric starts and runs, but without any plugins (no charts, no plugins are listed) by default.
The menu "Tools/Plugins.." tab "Directories", button "Add" is useless (maybe something is read only). This is the main problem now.

Good news:
But I saw one default directory: "/home/tc/.gnumeric/1.12.48/plugins"
So I created the folder /home/tc/.gnumeric and simbolic linked here

Code: [Select]

tc@box:~/.gnumeric$ ln -s /usr/local/lib/gnumeric/1.12.48/ .
now I ca see the gnumeric plugins list, even if they are still hardcoded in gnumeric:

Bad news:
But still I can not see the plugins for charts (/usr/local/lib/goffice/0.10.48/plugins)
Neither the templates in menu "File/" (/usr/local/share/gnumeric/1.12.48/templates)

Code: [Select]

tc@box:/tmp/tcloop/gnumeric/usr/local/bin$ ./ssindex -v
ssindex version '1.12.48'
datadir := '/usr/share/gnumeric/1.12.48'
libdir := '/usr/lib/gnumeric/1.12.48'
starting with -L  parameter will not help also.

Code: [Select]

$ gnumeric --lib-dir=/usr/local/lib/goffice/.10.48/plugins/
FYI: I just need to link more plugins in /home/tc/.gnumeric/1.12.48/plugins, from /tmp/tcloop/goffice/usr/local/lib/goffice/0.10.48/plugins, 
But this means I must move a (charts) plugin folder from goffice into gnumeric, because I did not manage to properly use the -L and -D parameters from gnumeric or ssindex in shell line.

[nick65go]

Oh Yes! now all the plugins (basically math functions, build charts/diagrams, open/save databases and spreadsheets) work. For now is a dirty solution to symbolic link more INDIVIDUAL plugins from goffice. They must  be direct/simple folder under main plugin folder, not nested folders.

Code: [Select]

tc@box:~/.gnumeric/1.12.48/plugins$ for i in `ls -d /usr/local/lib/goffice/0.10.48/plugins/*`; do ln -s $i . ; done

now i have

Code: [Select]

tc@box:~$ ls -al /home/tc/.gnumeric/1.12.48/plugins/ | grep /usr/local
lrwxrwxrwx    1 tc       staff           51 Feb 26 17:48 plot_barcol -> /usr/local/lib/goffice/0.10.48/plugins/plot_barcol/
lrwxrwxrwx    1 tc       staff           52 Feb 26 18:00 plot_distrib -> /usr/local/lib/goffice/0.10.48/plugins/plot_distrib/
lrwxrwxrwx    1 tc       staff           48 Feb 26 18:00 plot_pie -> /usr/local/lib/goffice/0.10.48/plugins/plot_pie/
lrwxrwxrwx    1 tc       staff           50 Feb 26 18:00 plot_radar -> /usr/local/lib/goffice/0.10.48/plugins/plot_radar/
lrwxrwxrwx    1 tc       staff           52 Feb 26 18:00 plot_surface -> /usr/local/lib/goffice/0.10.48/plugins/plot_surface/
lrwxrwxrwx    1 tc       staff           47 Feb 26 18:00 plot_xy -> /usr/local/lib/goffice/0.10.48/plugins/plot_xy/
lrwxrwxrwx    1 tc       staff           50 Feb 26 18:00 reg_linear -> /usr/local/lib/goffice/0.10.48/plugins/reg_linear/
lrwxrwxrwx    1 tc       staff           50 Feb 26 18:00 reg_logfit -> /usr/local/lib/goffice/0.10.48/plugins/reg_logfit/
lrwxrwxrwx    1 tc       staff           49 Feb 26 18:00 smoothing -> /usr/local/lib/goffice/0.10.48/plugins/smoothing/

[Juanito]

Is there a ./configure switch to define the plugin directory?

[nick65go]

sorry, i did not compile anything. I take them from debian, as I said, so there are hard-code path in ELF programs and libraries.and main problem is the menu to add plugins is like a fake one.Anyway, I "proved" that using /usr/local works

[nick65go]

looking in alpine linux, i saw nothing special. so maybe you could give it a try as usually for tc with --prefix=/usr/local in ./config
https://git.alpinelinux.org/aports/tree/community/goffice/APKBUILD
https://git.alpinelinux.org/aports/tree/community/gnumeric/APKBUILD
I could help with testing. my AMD A6-6310 APU is not suitable for compiling.

[nick65go]

Weekend joy: Because the fat, bloat, often useless "news" in new software (firefox, libreoffice, you name it), sometimes I go back in time to simple, small and fast, wide range cover of almost utilities of TC4. I am still amazed of the quality of that software of a decade ago.

For example gnumeric in TC4 has a functional "add directory plugin", and after the quick look on the surface I did not see many functions additions, or chart types, or whatever. For nostalgic persons, I attached a small snapshot of gnumeric functional dialogs, from Qemu.

[nick65go]

To make a summary until now:
A. If you have 3  things:
1- remember all tricks in gnumeric, so no need for void Help menu
2- good memory (like a robot?) and remember all functions syntax (so no need for crippled f(x) functions help, or crippled Help/Functions menu)
3- no need to use solver engine (gLPk, or lp-solve) for linear LP, integer linear ILP, integer and mixed linear equations
Then gnumeric 1.12.7 from TC12_32 is OK for you. Enjoy it. The menu to add plugins is working also.

B. I tried to correct the f(x), and Help/Functions menu, by using external/debian binaries. Done, but still with deficiencies:
1- no functional general browser (yelp depends on libwebkit > 5MB)
4- no functional add directories for plugins (if you ever need it, i do not).
But I can add solver engine. All using /usr/xxx folders.
The only improvements over variant A are solver engine and f(x) selection & help. Which are important for me.

C. Same as B. but I tried using /usr/local/xxx instead of /usr/xxx. Same deficiencies as B (no help, no add plugins), plus
5- no File/Template menu. (but I managed to have all plugins functional).
Now variant C is worst than variant B.