Here's a new version of POV-Ray to test:

https://github.com/POV-Ray/povray/releases/tag/v3.8.0-alpha.9322209

The most notable changes pertain to some defaults:

- The `ambient` finish setting now defaults to 0.0 instead of 0.1.
- The camera `right` vector now defaults to x*image_width/image_height
instead of 1.33.

For the new defaults to kick in, `#version 3.8` or higher must be
specified as the _very first_ statement in the scene file (or a
corresponding command line / INI file setting).


Be advised that this binary-only release wants to reside in an existing
v3.7.x installation.


Happy testing!

Post a reply to this message

clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:
> Here's a new version of POV-Ray to test:
>
> https://github.com/POV-Ray/povray/releases/tag/v3.8.0-alpha.9322209
>
> The most notable changes pertain to some defaults:
>
> - The `ambient` finish setting now defaults to 0.0 instead of 0.1.
> - The camera `right` vector now defaults to x*image_width/image_height
> instead of 1.33.
>
> For the new defaults to kick in, `#version 3.8` or higher must be
> specified as the _very first_ statement in the scene file (or a
> corresponding command line / INI file setting).
>
>
> Be advised that this binary-only release wants to reside in an existing
> v3.7.x installation.
>
>
> Happy testing!

Thanks.
Did any Uberpov/HG-Povray feature get merged in yet?

Post a reply to this message

On 09/22/2017 04:54 AM, Mr wrote:
> clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:
> 
> Thanks.
> Did any Uberpov/HG-Povray feature get merged in yet?
> 
> 
The lemon object and new uv mapping capability for the cone and cylinder 
were merged in some time ago.

Christoph didn't mention it in this most recent post, but I believe the 
new ovus features and related ovus uv mapping changes were recently 
merged too.

Bill P.

Post a reply to this message

clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:
> Here's a new version of POV-Ray to test:
>
[snip]
> Be advised that this binary-only release wants to reside in an existing
> v3.7.x installation.
>

So, it seems that installing this into v3.7.1 beta 9 (which is a 'stand-alone'
version of Pov-Ray) is OK to do(?)-- but I'm not absolutely sure. The only
reason I ask is that the new version's download page says, "This is a
binary-only development release; to install, copy the binary into an existing
POV-Ray 3.7 installation." It doesn't specifically say "3.7.x" there.

Sorry if I sound like I'm nit-picking or over-analyzing the situation.

Post a reply to this message

"Kenneth" <kdw### [at] gmailcom> wrote:
> clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:
> > Here's a new version of POV-Ray to test:
> >
> [snip]
> > Be advised that this binary-only release wants to reside in an existing
> > v3.7.x installation.
> >
>
> So, it seems that installing this into v3.7.1 beta 9 (which is a 'stand-alone'
> version of Pov-Ray) is OK to do(?)-- but I'm not absolutely sure. The only
> reason I ask is that the new version's download page says, "This is a
> binary-only development release; to install, copy the binary into an existing
> POV-Ray 3.7 installation." It doesn't specifically say "3.7.x" there.
>
> Sorry if I sound like I'm nit-picking or over-analyzing the situation.

It's okay either place, I put the first 3.8 alpha into my 3.7.1 beta 9 bin
folder and this current alpha into 3.7.1 release candidate bin folder.

And just to be sure, tried v3.7.0 now too. Okay there as well.

I'm renaming the original pvengine64.exe file and using the new pvengine64.exe,
I have not used any others such as 32 bit.

Post a reply to this message

"omniverse" <omn### [at] charternet> wrote:
> "Kenneth" <kdw### [at] gmailcom> wrote:

> >
> > So, it seems that installing this into v3.7.1 beta 9 (which is a 'stand-alone'
> > version of Pov-Ray) is OK to do(?)

> It's okay either place, I put the first 3.8 alpha into my 3.7.1 beta 9 bin
> folder and this current alpha into 3.7.1 release candidate bin folder.
>
> And just to be sure, tried v3.7.0 now too. Okay there as well.
>
Thanks!

Post a reply to this message

Am 25.09.2017 um 05:01 schrieb Kenneth:
> clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:
>> Here's a new version of POV-Ray to test:
>>
> [snip]
>> Be advised that this binary-only release wants to reside in an existing
>> v3.7.x installation.
>>
> 
> So, it seems that installing this into v3.7.1 beta 9 (which is a 'stand-alone'
> version of Pov-Ray) is OK to do(?)-- but I'm not absolutely sure. The only
> reason I ask is that the new version's download page says, "This is a
> binary-only development release; to install, copy the binary into an existing
> POV-Ray 3.7 installation." It doesn't specifically say "3.7.x" there.
> 
> Sorry if I sound like I'm nit-picking or over-analyzing the situation.

Technically, it should work best with any POV-Ray v3.7.x release proper
- which de facto means v3.7.0. (POV-Ray v3.7.1-rc1 should also work
fine, but that installer is no longer officially available.)

It /may/ work ok with any v3.7.x-beta, but it isn't designed to do so,
and there may be subtle problems arising out of it - stuff like being
unable to find certain files, or loading a file from an unexpected
directory.

The background there is that POV-Ray for Windows uses a portion of its
version number in directory names and registry keys, namely `vX.Y`
(which I refer to as the "generation") for any POV-Ray vX.Y.Z final
release. Subsequent versions of the same generation are supposed to
replace earlier installations - but only as soon as they're out of beta,
so beta versions instead use `vX.Y-beta` for their directory names and
registry keys, so that installing them won't ruin a good installation of
the predecessor version.

Alpha versions don't come with an installer, so that risk doesn't exist
there; to the contrary, they need portions of the predecessor
installation to live; so alpha versions use plain `vX.Y` for their
directory names and registry keys.

(And in the case of v3.8.0-alpha, `v3.8` won't do, as the predecessor
version's generation was v3.7.)

Post a reply to this message

clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:
> Am 25.09.2017 um 05:01 schrieb Kenneth:
> >>
[Clipka wrote:]
> >> Be advised that this binary-only release wants to reside in an existing
> >> v3.7.x installation.
> >>
> > So, it seems that installing this into v3.7.1 beta 9 (which is
> > a 'stand-alone' version of Pov-Ray) is OK to do(?)--
>
> Technically, it should work best with any POV-Ray v3.7.x release proper
> - which de facto means v3.7.0. (POV-Ray v3.7.1-rc1 should also work
> fine, but that installer is no longer officially available.)
>
> It /may/ work ok with any v3.7.x-beta, but it isn't designed to do so,
> and there may be subtle problems arising out of it - stuff like being
> unable to find certain files, or loading a file from an unexpected
> directory.

Well, I'm learning something new every day ;-) Thanks for the clarification (and
I hope I understand it all.) For one thing, it seems that I've been erroneously
assuming "3.7x" and "3.7.x" to mean the same thing. (I've always used those
interchangably-- including "3.7xx"-- as a kind of lazy 'shorthand', in my own
mind and here in the newsgroups, for the same meaning-- not realizing that they
may have different meanings technically.) And yes, I've already run into the
'loading of a file from an unexpected directory' problem, in some of the
previous alphas/betas-- due no doubt to my lazy/hazy understanding of the
underlying processes.
>
> The background there is that POV-Ray for Windows uses a portion of its
> version number in directory names and registry keys, namely `vX.Y`
> (which I refer to as the "generation") for any POV-Ray vX.Y.Z final
> release.
[snip]

Thanks. I definitely don't want to screw up the registry! (OR my current beta 9
install.)

SO...I'll stick to installing this newest version into 3.7.0 proper.

Post a reply to this message

Am 25.09.2017 um 22:12 schrieb Kenneth:

> Well, I'm learning something new every day ;-) Thanks for the clarification (and
> I hope I understand it all.) For one thing, it seems that I've been erroneously
> assuming "3.7x" and "3.7.x" to mean the same thing. (I've always used those
> interchangably-- including "3.7xx"-- as a kind of lazy 'shorthand', in my own
> mind and here in the newsgroups, for the same meaning-- not realizing that they
> may have different meanings technically.)

In some sense, versions "3.7x" and "3.7.x" do indeed mean the same thing
- namely in that if "3.7x" is to be interpreted as /any/ version of
POV-Ray, it can only be interpreted as a (sloppy) shorthand for "3.7.x".
Otherwise it would have to be interpreted as
"Three-dot-SeventySomething", which does not exist (not yet at any rate,
and possibly never will, if only for technical reasons).

The origin of this imprecise notation is probably the syntax and
semantics of the `#version` statement and `version` variable, which
encode the version number as a floating point value, with the second
decimal place representing the third portion of the version number, e.g.
both `#version 3.7` and `#version 3.70` identifying v3.7.0, `#version
3.62` identifying v3.6.2, etc.

Another reason might be that POV-Ray's version numbering scheme has
never been officially codified until quite recently.

As for proliferation of that sloppy notation, it can be blamed on lots
of people, including members of the dev team. I guess even I myself did
use it on several occasions in the past.

Post a reply to this message

Well, that explains why I can't access the help menu / docs with either F1 or
the drop-down menu.

clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:

> Another reason might be that POV-Ray's version numbering scheme has
> never been officially codified until quite recently.

Is there documentation / explanation for how that all works?
Just curious, because one thing I'd like to see folks voluntarily adopt is
version numbers in their filenames and as comments in the code.

I often can't figure out which file I have, or what the latest file of the 12
all-named-the-same "myUsefulMacros.inc" is, and if I understood the reasoning
behind the classification, I could start to play along from home.  ;)

It would also be useful for the Insert-Menu, parts of which I tend to
extensively edit, and am paranoid that I'm going to accidentally obliterate with
some new version installation....

Thanks!   :)

Post a reply to this message

Am 26.09.2017 um 00:03 schrieb Bald Eagle:
> Well, that explains why I can't access the help menu / docs with either F1 or
> the drop-down menu.

Well... no, that's a different problem (though not entirely unrelated):
The name of the help file has been changed from `povray37.chm` to
`povray.chm`.

You can obtain an up-to-date help file from our GitHub repo; here's link
directly to the download:

https://github.com/POV-Ray/povray/raw/release/v3.8.0/distribution/platform-specific/windows/Help/povray.chm


>> Another reason might be that POV-Ray's version numbering scheme has
>> never been officially codified until quite recently.
> 
> Is there documentation / explanation for how that all works?
> Just curious, because one thing I'd like to see folks voluntarily adopt is
> version numbers in their filenames and as comments in the code.
> 
> I often can't figure out which file I have, or what the latest file of the 12
> all-named-the-same "myUsefulMacros.inc" is, and if I understood the reasoning
> behind the classification, I could start to play along from home.  ;)
> 
> It would also be useful for the Insert-Menu, parts of which I tend to
> extensively edit, and am paranoid that I'm going to accidentally obliterate with
> some new version installation....

Not sure what your question is here.

If you are looking for a good version numbering scheme for stuff you've
created (or that others have created), I strongly recommend having a
look at Semantic Versioning (http://semver.org/).

In a nutshell, in Semantic Versioning version numbers take the form
`MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH`, where all of `MAJOR`, `MINOR` and `PATCH` are
numeric, and...

- An increment in `MAJOR` indicates backward-incompatible changes.
- An increment in `MINOR` indicates added functionality.
- An increment in `PATCH` indicates bugfixes.

In addition, an optional (not necessarily numeric) suffix of the form
`-PRE` can be appended, indicating that this is not quite version
MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH yet (e.g. `-alpha`, `-beta.32`, `rc2` or the like).

In binaries, another optional (not necessarily numeric) suffix,
`+BUILD`, can be appended to distinguish different binaries built from
the same source code version (e.g. `+win32-sse2`).


As for POV-Ray's recently codified version numbering scheme, it is
strongly inspired by Semantic Versioning 2.0, but does have some notable
differences. For details, see the following link:

https://github.com/POV-Ray/povray/blob/release/v3.8.0/source-doc/versioning.md

Post a reply to this message

clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:

> You can obtain an up-to-date help file from our GitHub repo; here's link
> directly to the download:
>
>
https://github.com/POV-Ray/povray/raw/release/v3.8.0/distribution/platform-specific/windows/Help/povray.chm

Super.  Thanks for the tip  :)



> In a nutshell, in Semantic Versioning version numbers take the form
> `MAJOR.MINOR.PATCH`, where all of `MAJOR`, `MINOR` and `PATCH` are
> numeric, and...
>
> - An increment in `MAJOR` indicates backward-incompatible changes.
> - An increment in `MINOR` indicates added functionality.
> - An increment in `PATCH` indicates bugfixes.

Thanks - that little framework ought to be all I need to make more sense of
things and try to keep files better organized.

Post a reply to this message

Attention please!

Must caution everyone concerning what I said earlier about the alpha being okay
anywhere, so back to the subject of running the 3.8 alpha pvengine64.exe from
any 3.7.x install.

Something happened with the file open and file save that I can't explain. Don't
know if it has anything to do with what Clipka was saying about version mixups
but since I had put the 3.8 alpha into all three installs here I guess that's a
possibility.

Those three versions are 3.7.0, 3.7.1 beta and 3.7.1.  I only rendered already
open files to test 3.8 alpha, until now. Did not realize anything might be
wrong.

So would be wise to avoid putting the alpha into multiple installs anyhow, or at
least pvengine64.exe since that's what I was using.

The file open/save (as) caused Windows 10 to force a close of the program. Acts
like it isn't able to determine the correct folder/file location to use.

And unfortunately, for me, uninstalling all versions and reinstalling 3.7.0
again has yet to fix the problem.

Post a reply to this message

"omniverse" <omn### [at] charternet> wrote:
>
> Attention please!
[snip]
> The file open/save (as) caused Windows 10 to force a close of the program. Acts
> like it isn't able to determine the correct folder/file location to use.
>
> And unfortunately, for me, uninstalling all versions and reinstalling 3.7.0
> again has yet to fix the problem.

Sorry to hear that you're having such troubles. I guess you've already tried
shutting down the machine and restarting? That seems to help somewhat with
strange glitches, at least on my Win7 box. Sounds like a registry problem (if
Win10 even has a registry now!)

The only problem I've ever seen with POV-Ray (in my own similar alpha/beta
install screwups) is a mis-loaded 'resolution INI' file; but that was easily
fixed.

Post a reply to this message

"Kenneth" <kdw### [at] gmailcom> wrote:
> "omniverse" <omn### [at] charternet> wrote:
> >
> > Attention please!
> [snip]
> > The file open/save (as) caused Windows 10 to force a close of the program. Acts
> > like it isn't able to determine the correct folder/file location to use.
> >
> > And unfortunately, for me, uninstalling all versions and reinstalling 3.7.0
> > again has yet to fix the problem.
>
> Sorry to hear that you're having such troubles. I guess you've already tried
> shutting down the machine and restarting? That seems to help somewhat with
> strange glitches, at least on my Win7 box. Sounds like a registry problem (if
> Win10 even has a registry now!)
>
> The only problem I've ever seen with POV-Ray (in my own similar alpha/beta
> install screwups) is a mis-loaded 'resolution INI' file; but that was easily
> fixed.

Thanks for the sentiment, and I can't report a successful fix yet. Other than to
say it's apparently only affecting the pvengine64.exe while the
pvengine32-sse2.exe is okay.

I went into the registry editor to look around and found a curious thing, no
..pov listed among all the other file types. Although there is the .inc file type
there, it says inc_auto_file within it, and once finding that particular item it
has a pointer (shell, command, open) to "pvengine64.exe" "%1"

Risk taker that I am I duplicated the .inc to make a new .pov and whatever
happened wasn't a fix, but it might have allowed POV-Ray to list folder contents
when I tried to Open a file before once again freezing and forcing another close
of the program.

All this after a couple variations on uninstalls and reinstalls of only version
3.7.0.0.

I'm fairly sure something got mixed up in the Windows registry that makes
pvengine.exe choke on the folder/file system.

Probably my fault for putting everything from version 3.1g to 3.8 on here, beta
and rc 3.7.1 and unofficial stuff too.

Another thing I need to check is a user account which also uses 3.7.0.0
pvengine64.exe but not the others.

Post a reply to this message

Am 28.09.2017 um 07:18 schrieb omniverse:

> I went into the registry editor to look around and found a curious thing, no
> ...pov listed among all the other file types. Although there is the .inc file type
> there, it says inc_auto_file within it, and once finding that particular item it
> has a pointer (shell, command, open) to "pvengine64.exe" "%1"

Normally, you should find something like the following (HKCR =
Computer\HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT, D:\POV-Ray = C:\Program Files\POV-Ray):

HKCR\.pov
    (default)       POV-Ray.Scene
    PerceivedType   text

HKCR\POV-Ray.Scene
    (default)       POV-Ray scene source file

HKCR\POV-Ray.Scene\DefaultIcon
    (default)       D:\POV-Ray\v3.7\bin\POV-Ray.Scene-XP.ico

HKCR\POV-Ray.Scene\shell\Open
    (default)       Edit in POV-Ray 3.7

HKCR\POV-Ray.Scene\shell\Open\command
    (default)       "D:\POV-Ray\v3.7\bin\pvengine64.exe" /edit "%1"

HKCR\POV-Ray.Scene\shell\Render
    (default)       Render with POV-Ray 3.7

HKCR\POV-Ray.Scene\shell\Render\command
    (default)       "D:\POV-Ray\v3.7\bin\pvengine64.exe" /render "%1"

(typically along with one entry per key named "backup")


Besides that, you should also have the following keys, each with lots of
stuff in them (HKCU = Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER):

HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\Components
HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\POV-Edit
HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\POV-Edit\Macro
HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\POV-Edit\Older
HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\POV-Edit\Open
HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\POV-Edit\Recent
HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\Windows

If you don't see those keys, shout out loud.

You might also want to have a close look at the following entry:

HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\POV-Edit
    InitialDir

That's where POV-Ray (more specifically, POV-Ray's editor DLL) seems to
get the initial directory for the "open file" dialog. If that registry
entry is broken, that might explain your symptoms.

Post a reply to this message

clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:

Thanks for the help! Haven't fixed it by checking what you listed, only found
one thing not the same.

> Normally, you should find something like the following (HKCR =
> Computer\HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT, D:\POV-Ray = C:\Program Files\POV-Ray):
>
> HKCR\.pov
>     (default)       POV-Ray.Scene
>     PerceivedType   text
>
> HKCR\POV-Ray.Scene
>     (default)       POV-Ray scene source file
>
> HKCR\POV-Ray.Scene\DefaultIcon
>     (default)       D:\POV-Ray\v3.7\bin\POV-Ray.Scene-XP.ico
>
> HKCR\POV-Ray.Scene\shell\Open
>     (default)       Edit in POV-Ray 3.7
>
> HKCR\POV-Ray.Scene\shell\Open\command
>     (default)       "D:\POV-Ray\v3.7\bin\pvengine64.exe" /edit "%1"
>
> HKCR\POV-Ray.Scene\shell\Render

That said "edit" not render, other parts within were right.

>     (default)       Render with POV-Ray 3.7
>
> HKCR\POV-Ray.Scene\shell\Render\command
>     (default)       "D:\POV-Ray\v3.7\bin\pvengine64.exe" /render "%1"
>
> (typically along with one entry per key named "backup")
>
>
> Besides that, you should also have the following keys, each with lots of
> stuff in them (HKCU = Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER):
>
> HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\Components
> HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\POV-Edit
> HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\POV-Edit\Macro
> HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\POV-Edit\Older
> HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\POV-Edit\Open
> HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\POV-Edit\Recent
> HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\Windows

All there but I removed references to versions 3.5, 3.6 and 3.7.1 beta.

> You might also want to have a close look at the following entry:
>
> HKCU\Software\POV-Ray\v3.7\POV-Edit
>     InitialDir
>
> That's where POV-Ray (more specifically, POV-Ray's editor DLL) seems to
> get the initial directory for the "open file" dialog. If that registry
> entry is broken, that might explain your symptoms.

When reading this I thought that was going to be the answer. It wasn't.

Once again, I have the file open box showing the folder/file list but no buttons
or finishing of that box. It wasn't doing that much before I attempted to get
that missing HKCR/.pov into the registry, which I found was put right after I
removed it.

The broken Open file box is there several moments before Windows puts up the
close program message. Must be something else the 64-bit POV-Ray is expecting to
find.

I've already looked at pvengine.ini in the Documents POV-Ray ini folder and it
has the right things there, based on previous backup save of that.

I think next step would be to try a Restore Point and go back to an earlier time
when things were okay, so I'm going to give that a look. I'm not sure about
getting back to before 3.5, 3.6 and 3.7.1 beta were installed. I wonder how much
3.5 caused trouble, since it refused to render a while ago and I ignored it.

Post a reply to this message

Am 28.09.2017 um 21:10 schrieb omniverse:

> Once again, I have the file open box showing the folder/file list but no buttons
> or finishing of that box. It wasn't doing that much before I attempted to get
> that missing HKCR/.pov into the registry, which I found was put right after I
> removed it.
> 
> The broken Open file box is there several moments before Windows puts up the
> close program message. Must be something else the 64-bit POV-Ray is expecting to
> find.

Strictly speaking, it's not POV-Ray itself (pvengine.exe) that's dealing
with the Open file dialog, but the editor DLLs (more specifically,
cmedit*.dll). Maybe you want to investigate in that direction (e.g.
uninstalling and re-installing the editor DLLs).

Post a reply to this message

clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:
> Am 28.09.2017 um 21:10 schrieb omniverse:
>
> > Once again, I have the file open box showing the folder/file list but no buttons
> > or finishing of that box. It wasn't doing that much before I attempted to get
> > that missing HKCR/.pov into the registry, which I found was put right after I
> > removed it.
> >
> > The broken Open file box is there several moments before Windows puts up the
> > close program message. Must be something else the 64-bit POV-Ray is expecting to
> > find.
>
> Strictly speaking, it's not POV-Ray itself (pvengine.exe) that's dealing
> with the Open file dialog, but the editor DLLs (more specifically,
> cmedit*.dll). Maybe you want to investigate in that direction (e.g.
> uninstalling and re-installing the editor DLLs).

Only did the editor re-installs along with 3.7.0.0 install after everything was
uninstalled. No change there anyhow.

I may have jumped the gun on finding the actual problem because I just did the
restore point to what was good a week ago and that fixed it. Or has for now.

Took a look at the redone registry and found a surprise. Or at least didn't
notice, or mixed myself up about it.
Under HKCR there isn't a POV-Ray listed there, although the .pov and all else
within it is okay. Instead there's a povfile key, with the associated shell
commands.

Can't investigate more, I'm going out my door for the evening and late already!
Typical for me.

Hope to shed more light on this later. Thanks for the registry info!

Post a reply to this message

Le 17-09-28 à 16:44, omniverse a écrit :

> 
> Only did the editor re-installs along with 3.7.0.0 install after everything was
> uninstalled. No change there anyhow.
> 
> I may have jumped the gun on finding the actual problem because I just did the
> restore point to what was good a week ago and that fixed it. Or has for now.
> 
> Took a look at the redone registry and found a surprise. Or at least didn't
> notice, or mixed myself up about it.
> Under HKCR there isn't a POV-Ray listed there, although the .pov and all else
> within it is okay. Instead there's a povfile key, with the associated shell
> commands.
> 
> Can't investigate more, I'm going out my door for the evening and late already!
> Typical for me.
> 
> Hope to shed more light on this later. Thanks for the registry info!
> 
> 

Maybe you got a broken download.
I would clear my browser cache, then get a new download to reinstall 
everything. Don't know if you did just that, but probably worth trying.

Post a reply to this message

Alain <kua### [at] videotronca> wrote:
>
> Maybe you got a broken download.

Well, this seemed to be after trying the 3.8 alpha v499 and I'm not going to try
that again yet. I don't think it began with the first alpha.

Something probably going on with the Windows Registry entries, even before that,
due to my installing so many versions of POV-Ray. Somehow able to run the
different version okay, except v3.5 and maybe MegaPOV. I considered them shelved
for the time being until I could find a fix (MegaPOV renders okay again, too,
while v3.5 remains uninstalled).

To recap on that again, as Clipka said, there should be a POV-Ray.Scene key in
the HKCR section (not just within the .pov key), and all I have in HKCR is .pov
and povfile which is a result of version 3.6 installation (or so it seems).

Strange to me that version 3.7.0.0 is okay this way after the restore point from
last week. But then, nothing was wrong until 3.8 alpha.

And now I've found a key in the registry that contains both povfile and
POV-Ray.Scene, yet both have _.pov appended to them at:

Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\ApplicationAssociationToasts

Another mention of those without the _.pov at:

Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\FileExts\.pov\OpenWithProgids

Needless to say I'm good at making a mess of things even without potential
program bugs!

I'm considering going the route of uninstalling 3.6, 3.7.1-beta9, 3.7.1-rc and
3.7.0.0 (because I put it into renamed folder 3.70) then just installing 3.7.0.0
again.

Does any of this help explain what might have happened?

Could pvengine64.exe of 3.8 alpha alone do anything to cause this?
Or would the editor need a reinstall simply from putting 3.8 alpha in? Makes no
sense to me anyway.

Post a reply to this message

Am 29.09.2017 um 06:34 schrieb omniverse:

> To recap on that again, as Clipka said, there should be a POV-Ray.Scene key in
> the HKCR section (not just within the .pov key), and all I have in HKCR is .pov
> and povfile which is a result of version 3.6 installation (or so it seems).

There's nothing wrong with that: POV-Ray 3.6 and earlier registered the
`.pov` file type as `povfile`, while POV-Ray 3.7 and later renamed that
to `POV-Ray.Scene`. Different monikers, same mechanism.


> Does any of this help explain what might have happened?
> 
> Could pvengine64.exe of 3.8 alpha alone do anything to cause this?
> Or would the editor need a reinstall simply from putting 3.8 alpha in? Makes no
> sense to me anyway.

Makes no sense to me either.

If you run into the issue again, please let us know.

Post a reply to this message

clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:
> Am 29.09.2017 um 06:34 schrieb omniverse:
>
> There's nothing wrong with that: POV-Ray 3.6 and earlier registered the
> `.pov` file type as `povfile`, while POV-Ray 3.7 and later renamed that
> to `POV-Ray.Scene`. Different monikers, same mechanism.

Okay, thanks again.

I delayed a while with the uninstall/reinstall of 3.7.0 so I'm just now getting
a look at the Windows Registry.

POV-Ray.Scene is there after that, listed right after povfile. No problems with
file open or save (as). Apparently that's what happened, lost the POV-Ray.Scene
somehow.

Just got me curious about Windows 10 possibly juggling the pov file associations
around to allow the different versions to work together.

If happens again, easily fixed by exporting that POV-Ray.Scene key now and
importing it back into the Registry. If there ever is a next time.

Post a reply to this message

On 9/21/2017 3:10 PM, clipka wrote:
> Be advised that this binary-only release wants to reside in an existing
> v3.7.x installation.

nix is working oh-key-dokey fine however doze has an issue ... binary in 
v3.7.1 install directory but help buttons for POV-Win and Scene aren't 
working

Post a reply to this message

Am 01.10.2017 um 02:07 schrieb Jim Holsenback:
> On 9/21/2017 3:10 PM, clipka wrote:
>> Be advised that this binary-only release wants to reside in an existing
>> v3.7.x installation.
> 
> nix is working oh-key-dokey fine however doze has an issue ... binary in
> v3.7.1 install directory but help buttons for POV-Win and Scene aren't
> working

Yes, that's a known issue: v3.8 can't load the v3.7 help file.

To work around this, download the help file directly from the
`release/v3.8.0` branch, and copy it into the v3.7 install's `help`
directory.

Post a reply to this message

On 10/1/2017 4:13 AM, clipka wrote:
> Am 01.10.2017 um 02:07 schrieb Jim Holsenback:
>> On 9/21/2017 3:10 PM, clipka wrote:
>>> Be advised that this binary-only release wants to reside in an existing
>>> v3.7.x installation.
>>
>> nix is working oh-key-dokey fine however doze has an issue ... binary in
>> v3.7.1 install directory but help buttons for POV-Win and Scene aren't
>> working
> 
> Yes, that's a known issue: v3.8 can't load the v3.7 help file.
> 
> To work around this, download the help file directly from the
> `release/v3.8.0` branch, and copy it into the v3.7 install's `help`
> directory.
> 

copied as is and when that didn't work went through several renaming 
incantations with no joy

Post a reply to this message

Am 02.10.2017 um 11:20 schrieb Jim Holsenback:
> On 10/1/2017 4:13 AM, clipka wrote:
>> Am 01.10.2017 um 02:07 schrieb Jim Holsenback:
>>> On 9/21/2017 3:10 PM, clipka wrote:
>>>> Be advised that this binary-only release wants to reside in an existing
>>>> v3.7.x installation.
>>>
>>> nix is working oh-key-dokey fine however doze has an issue ... binary in
>>> v3.7.1 install directory but help buttons for POV-Win and Scene aren't
>>> working
>>
>> Yes, that's a known issue: v3.8 can't load the v3.7 help file.
>>
>> To work around this, download the help file directly from the
>> `release/v3.8.0` branch, and copy it into the v3.7 install's `help`
>> directory.
>>
> 
> copied as is and when that didn't work went through several renaming
> incantations with no joy

Presuming your v3.7 installation and the v3.8.0-alpha binary reside in
`C:\Program Files\POV-Ray\v3.7`, then the v3.8 help file
(`distribution\platform-specific\windows\Help\povray.chm` in the repo)
should work fine when dropped in as `C:\Program
Files\POV-Ray\v3.7\help\povray.chm`.

Note that v3.8.0-alpha always looks for its help file in your v3.7
(release proper, i.e. v3.7.0, or RC, i.e. v3.7.1-rc.1) installation
directory tree, regardless of where you place the v3.8.0-alpha binary.
Most notably, if you accidently placed the v3.8.0-alpha binary in a
v3.7-beta installation (e.g. v3.7.1-beta.9), it will still try to load
the help file from wherever your v3.7 proper installation resides.

Also note that the help file must be named `povray.chm` (as in the
`release/v3.8.0` branch), /not/ `povray37.chm` (as still in the master
branch, IIRC).

Post a reply to this message

On 10/2/2017 8:31 AM, clipka wrote:
> Presuming your v3.7 installation and the v3.8.0-alpha binary reside in
> `C:\Program Files\POV-Ray\v3.7`, then the v3.8 help file
> (`distribution\platform-specific\windows\Help\povray.chm` in the repo)
> should work fine when dropped in as `C:\Program
> Files\POV-Ray\v3.7\help\povray.chm`.
> 
> Note that v3.8.0-alpha always looks for its help file in your v3.7
> (release proper, i.e. v3.7.0, or RC, i.e. v3.7.1-rc.1) installation
> directory tree, regardless of where you place the v3.8.0-alpha binary.
> Most notably, if you accidently placed the v3.8.0-alpha binary in a
> v3.7-beta installation (e.g. v3.7.1-beta.9), it will still try to load
> the help file from wherever your v3.7 proper installation resides.
> 
> Also note that the help file must be named `povray.chm` (as in the
> `release/v3.8.0` branch), /not/ `povray37.chm` (as still in the master
> branch, IIRC).

well i uninstalled 3.7.1 beta and put the pvengine64 into my remaining 
3.7.0 bin directory and povray.chm into help directory. now the help 
buttons work but all i get is the left pane and none of the links are 
clickable ... not that big of an issue for /me/ because i prefer the 
html version

Post a reply to this message

Am 04.10.2017 um 14:20 schrieb Jim Holsenback:

> well i uninstalled 3.7.1 beta and put the pvengine64 into my remaining
> 3.7.0 bin directory and povray.chm into help directory. now the help
> buttons work but all i get is the left pane and none of the links are
> clickable ... not that big of an issue for /me/ because i prefer the
> html version

Now that's odd... can anyone confirm?

Post a reply to this message

clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:
> Am 04.10.2017 um 14:20 schrieb Jim Holsenback:
>
> > well i uninstalled 3.7.1 beta and put the pvengine64 into my remaining
> > 3.7.0 bin directory and povray.chm into help directory. now the help
> > buttons work but all i get is the left pane and none of the links are
> > clickable ... not that big of an issue for /me/ because i prefer the
> > html version
>
> Now that's odd... can anyone confirm?

Same thing here. Before I was going to say anything I was trying a few things to
see if I could get it to work, such as trying to default to Internet Explorer
rather than Windows 10 Edge.

I used the direct link to the Help file you provided, although I had gotten that
file from github before that and it was the same way but there were two
different byte sizes for the files.

Install directory is actually 3.7.0, not just 3.7 so I can only wonder if that
has anything to do with this.

Post a reply to this message

"omniverse" <omn### [at] charternet> wrote:
> clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:
> > Am 04.10.2017 um 14:20 schrieb Jim Holsenback:
> >
> > > well i uninstalled 3.7.1 beta and put the pvengine64 into my remaining
> > > 3.7.0 bin directory and povray.chm into help directory. now the help
> > > buttons work but all i get is the left pane and none of the links are
> > > clickable ... not that big of an issue for /me/ because i prefer the
> > > html version
> >
> > Now that's odd... can anyone confirm?
>
> Same thing here. Before I was going to say anything I was trying a few things to
> see if I could get it to work, such as trying to default to Internet Explorer
> rather than Windows 10 Edge.
>
> I used the direct link to the Help file you provided, although I had gotten that
> file from github before that and it was the same way but there were two
> different byte sizes for the files.
>
> Install directory is actually 3.7.0, not just 3.7 so I can only wonder if that
> has anything to do with this.

Have now tried something else. Right-click on povray.chm and go into Properties.
Under General tab is checkbox "unblock". That was a suggested fix I found on the
'net about these chm help files.

Get message when attempting that: "Too many posts were made to semaphore".

When button for Ignore is pressed, or Ignore All, nothing changes regarding
empty contents of the help file when opened next time.

Maybe this will make sense, all I know about it is what I find on the 'net and I
guess this is supposed to be about multiple calls to places within the file
going wrong somehow.

Post a reply to this message

"omniverse" <omn### [at] charternet> wrote:
Okay, Speaking of Ignore... please disregard my previous reply below.

See if you can right-click on the povray.chm file and in Properties, on the
General tab, check the box for Unblock.
Don't Ignore or Ignore All, and instead use Try Again (if same is seen on your
Windows system), then maybe the Administrator message will pop up and you can
let that get you through this like I did.

My Help contents now appear intact. Of course, I haven't looked at it all yet
but the context help seems to be okay now (selecting a keyword and pressing F1
key) and the menu buttons for POV-Win and Scene Help show up for me after doing
the above.

Bob

> "omniverse" <omn### [at] charternet> wrote:
> > clipka <ano### [at] anonymousorg> wrote:
> > > Am 04.10.2017 um 14:20 schrieb Jim Holsenback:
> > >
> > > > well i uninstalled 3.7.1 beta and put the pvengine64 into my remaining
> > > > 3.7.0 bin directory and povray.chm into help directory. now the help
> > > > buttons work but all i get is the left pane and none of the links are
> > > > clickable ... not that big of an issue for /me/ because i prefer the
> > > > html version
> > >
> > > Now that's odd... can anyone confirm?
> >
> > Same thing here. Before I was going to say anything I was trying a few things to
> > see if I could get it to work, such as trying to default to Internet Explorer
> > rather than Windows 10 Edge.
> >
> > I used the direct link to the Help file you provided, although I had gotten that
> > file from github before that and it was the same way but there were two
> > different byte sizes for the files.
> >
> > Install directory is actually 3.7.0, not just 3.7 so I can only wonder if that
> > has anything to do with this.
>
> Have now tried something else. Right-click on povray.chm and go into Properties.
> Under General tab is checkbox "unblock". That was a suggested fix I found on the
> 'net about these chm help files.
>
> Get message when attempting that: "Too many posts were made to semaphore".
>
> When button for Ignore is pressed, or Ignore All, nothing changes regarding
> empty contents of the help file when opened next time.
>
> Maybe this will make sense, all I know about it is what I find on the 'net and I
> guess this is supposed to be about multiple calls to places within the file
> going wrong somehow.

Post a reply to this message

Am 05.10.2017 um 01:05 schrieb omniverse:
> "omniverse" <omn### [at] charternet> wrote:
> Okay, Speaking of Ignore... please disregard my previous reply below.
> 
> See if you can right-click on the povray.chm file and in Properties, on the
> General tab, check the box for Unblock.
> Don't Ignore or Ignore All, and instead use Try Again (if same is seen on your
> Windows system), then maybe the Administrator message will pop up and you can
> let that get you through this like I did.
> 
> My Help contents now appear intact. Of course, I haven't looked at it all yet
> but the context help seems to be okay now (selecting a keyword and pressing F1
> key) and the menu buttons for POV-Win and Scene Help show up for me after doing
> the above.

Sounds to me like the help file viewer doesn't like it when the .chm
file is flagged as "downloaded from the internet and hence potentially
unsafe".

Since this won't be a problem once we create an installer, I tend to
consider this a non-issue.

Post a reply to this message

On 10/4/2017 7:05 PM, omniverse wrote:
> See if you can right-click on the povray.chm file and in Properties, on the
> General tab, check the box for Unblock.

thanks ... works now

Post a reply to this message