Bob Lang wrote:
| You seem very anxious to condemn my suggestion.
How do you get *that* from what I wrote? Based on what follows, by the
usual
method: not actually reading what was written.
| A little experimentation shows that the command "javac -encoding
| ProgramFile.java" produces the same output that Brandon is getting.
|
| Let's enter the Terminal command: alias javac "/usr/bin/javac
| -encoding"
|
| Now, entering "javac ProgramFile.java" gives EXACTLY the same
symptoms
| that Brandon is getting.
Are you usually so eager to demonstrate your ignorance?
We'll make this as simple as possible: There are *two* programs
involved.
One is Terminal. The other is the shell (most likely bash or tcsh). The
shell is the program that parses and executes command lines. Terminal
merely
delivers to the shell whatever the user types, and displays in its
window
what the shell outputs. Or, as I wrote in the original message:
| Terminal is, as its name says, merely a *terminal*. It simply relays
| text back and forth to the shell and programs started from the shell.
Got that? Terminal *itself* doesn't know what's being typed. It knows
only
that typing is happening. That being the case, *Terminal*
settings--which
you suggested as a possible source of the problem--are quite unlikely
to be
the cause of the observed symptoms.
Now, what program handles the "alias" command? Right! The *shell*. Not
Terminal. The shell. And, since the shell handles the "alias" command,
what
kind of setting is an alias? Right again! A *shell* setting. Not a
Terminal
setting. And I'd already acknowledged that shell settings could
produce the
observed behavior:
| Scrambled *shell* settings might be able to do that
where "that" was causing "javac" to ignore its first argument. I didn't
mention aliases specifically, but then, I wasn't attempting to produce
an
exhaustive list of "Ways the Shell Could Screw Things Up".
So, tell me. How does showing that modified *shell* settings might
produce
the symptoms support your claim that *Terminal* settings might be at
fault?
Moreover, the original post lists other symptoms, ones that even munged
shell settings don't explain. A failed installation, or a Java
installation
broken by the security update--known hazards of applying
updates--suffices
to explain *all* the symptoms. Munged shell settings explain only some
of
them, and require that the settings be munged in very specific ways
even for
those.
| So, if there's a spurious alias somewhere, Brandon's problem is
| explained; hence my suggestion to check out the shell startup files
and
| Terminal settings.
Your suggestion *wasn't* to check out shell settings. Here's the entire
message again, sans salutation and closing:
| I wonder if this might be a Terminal problem?
|
| I'd try checking all your Terminal preferences, and check the default
| Terminal startup file. You could also change to an alternative
shell.
So which is it? Were you really talking about Terminal settings, or
are you
that unclear on the difference between Terminal and the shell? If the
former, then the advice is wrong. If the latter, then the advice is
from an
unreliable source. Take your pick.
Glen Fisher
_______________________________________________
Do not post admin requests to the list. They will be ignored.
Java-dev mailing list (email@hidden)
Help/Unsubscribe/Update your Subscription:
http://lists.apple.com/mailman/options/java-dev/
email@hidden
This email sent to email@hidden
