Re: Install GWorkspace To Fedora

[Riccardo Mottola]

Hi!


sorry for the late answer, I was on travel. Fred gave you already 
precious information, but let me add some comments.

On 5/12/19 4:16 AM, LilZebra wrote:
> Hi, I have recently upgraded my Fedora Workstation to version 27. I've been
> trying out the GNUStep Window Maker desktop and "want more". I am aware of
> the GWorkspace "add-on" that needs to be compiled (why isn't there a ready
> made Binary for Fedora!?).


The choice of what packages are in GWorkspace and which one not, is not 
mine, nor of other members of the GNUstep team. Fred, when possible, 
produces some good RPMs.


> In searching various web forums, including the Google Group for GNUStep, I
> found that there is no Binary pkg. for GWorkspace and that I do indeed have
> to Compile this thing myself.


If you don't find one, unfortunately, yes.


> So in reading the Gworkspace Download page at:
> http://wwwmain.gnustep.org/experience/GWorkspace.html
> <http://wwwmain.gnustep.org/experience/GWorkspace.html>
> Which says to:
>   To enable all the GWorkspace features you need also:
>
>      The PDFKit framework (version >= 0.9) downloadable here.
>      PDFKit is needed to build the pdf contents inspector and to extract
> metadata from pdf files.


the PDFKit is needed if you like PDF content visualization in the 
inspector. It will build an Inspector bundle


> So I download PDFKit too and go into that directory, type:
> ./configure
>
> Then I get an error message saying:
>
> configure: error: You must run the GNUstep initialization script first!
>
> OK, so I find out what to do to run the GNUstep initialization script. The
> instructions are WRONG. The correct path to the script is:
>
> /usr/lib64/GNUstep/Makefiles/GNUstep.sh


Fedora chose to put it there, the "GNUstep installation root" can be 
personalized, the guide is valid for generic


> Have to run this as root or it won't do anything or will complain.


No, that is wrong.. it can't be. The "script" just sets some environment 
variables for you so that all components for GNUstep are found correctly.

So if you run or compile things as a user, you need to run it as your 
current user... if you need to run something as root, then source is as 
root (rarely needed).

sourcing in your case would be done with (note the initial .) for bash, 
zsh, ksh and similar shells:

. /usr/lib64/GNUstep/Makefiles/GNUstep.sh


for csh, tcsh, use "source" and the .csh version of the script instead.


> Run script. Go back to try to run ./configure for PDFKit and I get the same
> run GNUStep init script error message again.


because you did not source as your user, so it had no effect!


> This is so frustrating. I am not a programmer. I don't compile things. This
> is not the early days of Linux in the 90s anymore. Why can't we have a ready
> made RPM install file for GWorkplace so that we can get on with our life?

Not everything is readily packaged, unfortunately - I don't know how the 
policies of Fedora are and why GWorkspace is missing. Are there other 
GNUstep packages?

If the problem is GWorkspace only, I'd like to know if it is a code 
problem, so I can fix it.


Compiling packages is not and should not be hard.


Riccardo