Conference bulova::decwindows

5764.0. "running stat-box during CDE login screen?" by METALX::SWANSON (Victim of Changes) Wed Jan 29 1997 13:53

    Hi,
    
    I'm having a problem starting up a DECwindows program under CDE for
    VMS 7.1.
    
    The program is stat-box.exe, a scrolling message box that we use in
    the qual lab for showing the results of different tests.
    
    The problem is that VMS crashes if I try to start it up during the
    login screen IF THE SYSTEM HAS NOT BEEN LOGGED INTO AT LEAST ONCE.
    
    In other words, if I try to run stat-box right after the system
    is booted and the login screen appears (I am starting it as a batch
    job in SYSTARTUP_VMS.COM), the system crashes with
    "Exception while above ASTDEL".
    
    Even if I try an alternate method of starting it up by logging in
    remotely and running it from there, the same thing happens.
    However, if I log in and log back out, I can start it up this way
    just fine.  Also, I can start it up no problem if I click on "OPTIONS |
    RESET LOGIN SCREEN" at the login screen.  
    
    While trying to find a way of being able to run this as soon as the
    login screen first appears, *without* having to click Options | Reset
    Login Screen, I discovered that I can run it if I first run
    decw$wsinit.exe.  This causes the bottom 1/4 of the login screen to
    turn a different color however and I don't want this to happen because
    the people testing these systems in the lab will think it's a graphics
    problem.
    
    Can anyone shed some light on why this program crashes the system if
    it's started up during the login screen before the system has been
    logged into at least once (through the graphics head)... ?
    
    FYI, the system in question is a Mikasa.  VMS is 7.1-SSB from BULOVA::.
    The COM file which starts stat-box sits in a loop waiting until
    it sees the process "DTGREET", then waits a few seconds, does a
    
          SET DISPLAY/CREATE/USER/TRANS=LOCAL/SCREEN=0/SERV=0
    
    and then runs stat-box.exe.
    
    Again, this works just fine if the graphics head is logged into once,
    or if I click on RESET LOGIN SCREEN at the login screen, or I run 
    decw$wsinit before running the stat box, but none of these
    options are acceptable.  Running @DECW$STARTUP RESTART before running
    stat-box does *NOT* help the problem either.
    
    
    Anyone have any ideas?
    
    Thanks,                                     
    
    Ken
    

What exactly is stat_box doing?  Is it doing anything
with the keyboard bell by any chance?  There is a known
problem with attempting to ring the keyboard bell before
the first login on some systems on v7.1 resulting in a
system crash.

I will get someone to send you a patch.  Would it be
possible to get a copy of stat-box.exe?

Doug

>What exactly is stat_box doing?  Is it doing anything
>with the keyboard bell by any chance? 

Yes!  It rings the keyboard bell when it starts up and when a new message
is displayed in it.

>I will get someone to send you a patch.  Would it be
>possible to get a copy of stat-box.exe?

A patch would be great.  I'll talk to the author of Stat-Box and see if 
I can give you  a copy of it.

Ken

Doug,

Nevermind on the VMS patch for the bell problem.  We fixed it at our end
by removing the "bells" from stat-box.

Ken

  There is a fix for this problem. The image is SYS$IKBDRIVER.EXE_V71 and
  is located in DECW$PUBLIC:[SERVER].

   /bob

>  There is a fix for this problem. The image is SYS$IKBDRIVER.EXE_V71 and
>  is located in DECW$PUBLIC:[SERVER].

On node BULOVA.

				-- Bob

re: fix

Thanks!

Ken