myDSL Extensions (deprecated) :: Create .dsl Extention HOWTO?



Hi everyone,

Im curious, where can I find information about how to make .dsl extentions?
I would like to install Freeciv 2.0.1 (http://www.freeciv.org) in my DSL Linux distro, and now Im stuck. Any help appreciated!

:)
Check the DSL Documentation Pages.
I don't know if this has occurred to you, but if you are unsuccessful at installing a program in DSL then you're not going to have much luck building an extension of it....the first step in making an extension is to get the application running in DSL.  The extension part is mainly just a way to make an already running application portable so that you don't need to go through the process all over again.

Wheter you install from a binary package, or from source, or just by copying files from one distro to another, I'd say the most common thing that can prevent an application from running in DSL are missing dependencies.  These are typically libraries that the program links to, and the program expects to find them in the target system.

Even if all dependencies are met, there are other things that might cause trouble.  I don't have the knowledge to explain these, though....i just see it happen occasionally where an application just refuses to run and whatever error messages there might be give no clue to the cause.
In this case i generally give up on that particular application after a few attempts and look for an alternative.


Some tips:

"ldd program_name" will usually give you a list of libs needed to start a program, and tell you which ones can't be found.

Installing an application from source can provide you with a way to create an application installed into a single directory for easier packaging and transport

Depending on how the program is packaged, you might need to set up your environment in a way that will let the program find its dependencies.  You can do this by creating a 'wrapper', which is simply a shell script that sets one or more variables and then launches the program.  Two common variables used in these wrappers are
PATH: colon-separated list of directories searched for executables
LD_LIBRARY_PATH: list of directories searched for libraries

Most GUI applications in DSL use an interface built on GTK1, FLTK, or just the basic X libraries.  If you are attempting to install an application made for KDE(Qt) or GTK2 for example, you can expect to also include a PILE of dependencies.

Linux is full of options...if you don't succeed right away there are alternatives.  You could spend some time tracking down the problem, come here for help if needed, and eventually you will get your program working.  If you feel the time and effort are more than the project is worth, there are usually similar programs available which may be more compatable with DSL.
I would also like to see a good Make a DSL Howto. I have seen what is in the documentation and have searched these forums. I realize there are many variables and a step by step howto would certanly be a help, at least it would be a place to start.

David
I would not claim that the DSL documentation is perfect, but its generality is both its greatest strength and weakness.  For those requesting a step-by-step dsl extension-making howto beyond what is already available, I think you guys are asking for something impractical.

My suggestion would be for you to take advantage of the fact that knowledgable people read these forums quite frequently, and are willing to answer any detailed question to the best of their abilities.  The key phrase is "detailed question", which implies that the person asking for assistance have done the best he can to solve his problem, and that same person take reasonable effort to describe his problem so that others can help.  The benefit of this for the community is huge.  Everyone can read about the solution from this forums, which I think is the closest we can get to having a public step-by-step guide.

Post all the problems you encountered when you tried to follow the DSL Documentation.  The authors of these documents will appreciate that someone actually tried their suggestions, and will be able to know which parts of their writing need corrections or clarification.  Finally, don't be afraid to use (and abuse) the search capability of this forum.  Searching is what computers are good at, but the result depends on the quality of your queries.
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