UPDATED: XULRunner patch for IDL 7.0
Topic
Firefox 3 for Linux updated a library called XULRunner from version 1.8 to version 1.9. Eclipse 3.3, causes the Linux IDL Workbench (versions IDL 7.0 or 7.03 and ENVI+IDL 4.5) to crash.
Solution
This problem was corrected in later releases of IDL and ENVI+IDL. Therefore, to correct this problem, it is recommended that you install a newer version IDL or ENVI+IDL. Current product installer downloads can be found under the Downloads > Product Downloads menu item section of our web site. Your product license file may require a version upgrade in order to use newer product versions.
| To check your license version eligibility, contact your local Exelis product office or distributor. Or if you are the registered administrator for your product license and your license is eligible for a product license upgrade, you may also be able to login to the Exelis Visual Information Solutions web site and then under the My Account menu Upgrade your eligible licenses or view the status of your Current Contracts. |
If it is still necessary for you to continue to use the older version of IDL 7.0 or ENVI+IDL 4.5, Exelis VIS has put together a patch to address the Firefox3 XULrunner change. To obtain this patch, please contact Exelis Visual Information Solutions Technical Support.
Below is information available in the IDL 7.0 Linux XULrunner patch README file.
Discussion
NOTE: This patch is intended for use on installations of IDL versions 7.0 through 7.0.3, or ENVI version 4.5, running on X86/X86_64 Linux operating systems.
The IDL 7.0.4/7.0.6 and ENVI 4.6/4.6.1 products are not affected by the XULrunner version change in Firefox 3. |
PROBLEM DETAILS
The IDL Workbench uses an HTML content rendering engine to display various types of user assistance, including the Welcome screen, content-assist popups, and the IDL Help system. On Linux systems, the Workbench uses the rendering engine created by the Mozilla Foundation for the Firefox web browser; a package known as XULRunner.
Prior to the release of Firefox 3, on Linux systems XULRunner was installed separately from Firefox, and the IDL Workbench used of the version included with the operating system. With Firefox 3 (released after IDL 7.0), the XULRunner package was installed along with the Firefox browser. Unfortunately for IDL users, the version installed along with Firefox 3 (XULRunner 1.9) is incompatible with the IDL Workbench and IDL help system. As a result, the IDL Workbench and IDL help system do not run properly on some systems that have Firefox 3 or XULRunner 1.9 installed.
What follows are the error messages seen when this problem is encountered. For example, when trying to run the IDL help from the IDL command line a user may encounter the following error message:
IDL> ?
% ONLINE_HELP: Starting the IDL online help browser.
IDL>
# An unexpected error has been detected by HotSpot Virtual Machine:
#
# SIGSEGV (0xb) at pc=0xa2f0d78c, pid=21956, tid=1431771840
#
# Java VM: Java HotSpot(TM) Server VM (1.5.0_11-b03 mixed mode)
# Problematic frame:
# C [libxul.so+0xcb278c]
#
# An error report file with more information is saved as /tmp/hs_err_pid21956.log
#
# If you would like to submit a bug report, please visit:
# http://java.sun.com/webapps/bugreport/crash.jsp
#
Additionally an X window appears with the following error message:
JVM terminated. Exit code=1
/opt/itt/idl70/idlde/bin.linux.x86/jre/bin/java
-jar /opt/itt/idl70/idlde/plugins/org.eclipse.equinox.launcher_1.0.0.v20070606.jar
-os linux
-ws gtk
-arch x86
-launcher /opt/itt/idl70/idlde/idlde.linux.x86
-name Idlde.linux.x86
--launcher.library /opt/itt/idl70/idlde/plugins/org.eclipse.equinox.launcher.gtk.linux.x86_1.0.0.v20070606/eclipse_1020.so
-startup /opt/itt/idl70/idlde/plugins/org.eclipse.equinox.launcher_1.0.0.v20070606.jar
-exitdata e0001
-application org.eclipse.help.base.helpApplication
-data /home/jhy/.idl/itt/idlhelp
-topic
-vm /opt/itt/idl70/idlde/bin.linux.x86/jre/bin/java
-vmargs
-jar /opt/itt/idl70/idlde/plugins/org.eclipse.equinox.launcher_1.0.0.v20070606.jar
The same will happen when trying to run IDL Workbench.
PATCH SOLUTION
If upgrading to a newer, corrected version of IDL or ENVI is not an option, then to solve this problem, the user will need to obtain and install a patch ("IDL 7.0 Linux Firefox 3 Update - Linux (32/64-bit, Intel x86)") that may be obtained by emailing support@exelisvis.com and requesting the patch and instructions to install.
The patch will modify IDL 7.0/7.0.1/7.0.3 or ENVI+IDL 4.5 installations and install XULRunner v1.8.1.3 for exclusive use by the modified IDL or ENVI+IDL installations, while not interfering with the use of the newer XULRunner version by Firefox 3.