BA on Ubuntu Mate 18.04

The place to discuss the Linux/Ubuntu edition
RobertRathbone
Posts: 42
Joined: Mon Jul 07, 2014 6:40 pm

Re: BA on Ubuntu Mate 18.04

Post by RobertRathbone »

Darrel, did you ever find a solution to the color issue? I'm having the same/similar issue after upgrading KDE Neon to the version based on Ubuntu 18.04. Pretty much every window alternates colors from gray to blue to normal depending on whether or not the window has focus or if I'm currently scrolling it. I suspect in the case of the KDE desktop I suspect the problem may be related to it's GTK3 theme support, but since you were also having trouble in Mate (which is a GTK2 based desktop, if I remember correctly) then our issues may be related but not exactly the same.
Sample of what BA in KDE Neon looks like
Sample of what BA in KDE Neon looks like
BA in KDE Neon.png (205.49 KiB) Viewed 24239 times
Robert

darrel_jw
Posts: 279
Joined: Sun Dec 13, 2015 3:38 am

Re: BA on Ubuntu Mate 18.04

Post by darrel_jw »

Hi Robert
I am not having any color issues, but am having bigger issues and no response from Tim on a resolution. I am pushed to delve deeper into original language study, to know and understand what God is saying in His word.

1. Tim has indicated (correct me if I am mistaken Tim) there is not enough interest to take BA deeper in Greek and Hebrew. He has also indicated there probably will not be any further Greek and Hebrew tools coming forth.

2. With Ubuntu 18.04 as the base, BA will not display Hebrew right-to-left. Tim says it is an Ubuntu issue in the display code. Ubuntu (so far) does not agree. XIPHOS displays Hebrew right-to-left beautifully. So I question whether it is really an Ubuntu issue or if Tim needs to rewrite BA code to use a different set of modules to display code. This issue is the same in all distros based on Ubuntu 18.04. And I do not want to revert to earlier distros that are not based on Ubuntu 18.04!

3. There have been no Linux BA updates for a LONG time.

These are all major points that affect my using BA, so I have returned to theWord running in Wine where everything just works! If Tim can address these issues AND take BA forward as a Linux Bible program then maybe I will revisit BA. But until then I am being productive using theWord, and that is very important to me!

Darrel

Tim
Site Admin
Posts: 1454
Joined: Sun Dec 07, 2008 1:14 pm

Re: BA on Ubuntu Mate 18.04

Post by Tim »

Robert,

I am working on the 5.3 Linux edition and may be able to work around the blue color issue. GTK3, which was introduced with 18.04 has caused some other issues. One of the main ones is RTL display of Hebrew texts. They made a change in GTK3 that the platform Bible Analyzer uses (wxWidgets/wxPython) does not yet support. They are aware of the issue.

Darrel,

I'm sorry you feel I did not respond to you, but I remember telling you the same information about the RTL issue. The issue is not in Bible Analyzer code. It is in the code of the wx platform. It does seems though they see no urgency in fixing it. RTL languages are not very common or popular and they are not in a hurry.

As for not much interest in more Hebrew and Greek texts, that is continuing to be true. Users do not ask for them and I have received very little feedback about the original language tools we added a couple versions back such as Morphology, etc. Furthermore, many contemporary original language texts are very expensive and our users cannot justify the high prices. Probably the most notable original language Bible program with the most texts and capabilities was BibleWorks. However, BibleWorks has ceased development. One of the issues they cited was the resources it used were very expensive. For this reason and others, there will not likely be any new original language tools or titles for Bible Analyzer in the near future. If some free or reasonable priced titles come along we will consider them.

We did release Bible Analyzer v5.2 for Linux last Spring. That has not been that long.

I'm glad TheWord is serving you well. Costas is a good guy.
Tim Morton
Developer, Bible Analyzer

But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. (Rom 4:5 AV)

darrel_jw
Posts: 279
Joined: Sun Dec 13, 2015 3:38 am

Re: BA on Ubuntu Mate 18.04

Post by darrel_jw »

Hello Tim,
I like BA, but the RTL issue and where you stand regarding deeper Greek and Hebrew just kinda pushed me over the edge. I can run TW in Wine and it works great. Running BA in Wine does not run as smoothly. And unless I want to run either native XIPHOS my only choices are Dava4 or TW. I will keep checking back (there are many features of BA I really like!), but for now i need the indepth Greek and Hebrew. Still love ya Tim!

Darrel

RobertRathbone
Posts: 42
Joined: Mon Jul 07, 2014 6:40 pm

Re: BA on Ubuntu Mate 18.04

Post by RobertRathbone »

Tim wrote:Robert,

I am working on the 5.3 Linux edition and may be able to work around the blue color issue. GTK3, which was introduced with 18.04 has caused some other issues. One of the main ones is RTL display of Hebrew texts. They made a change in GTK3 that the platform Bible Analyzer uses (wxWidgets/wxPython) does not yet support. They are aware of the issue.
That's good to hear, Tim. Hopefully you will be able to find a solution. I understand being caught between what you'd like to be able to do and the capabilities of the tools you have to work with.

While I probably don't go as deeply into the original languages as Darrel does, I would still like to learn how to pick up on the nuances of the original languages that don't come through in English. I rely heavily on the Strong's and often refer to the morphology of a word to get an idea of how words are being used, although with my limited knowledge I hope I don't sometimes read something between the lines that isn't there! LOL But anything that could shed light on the original languages would be appreciated, although I do admit that cost would be an influencing factor with me since I am a bit of a cheapskate. :D

Thanks for all you do!

RobertRathbone
Posts: 42
Joined: Mon Jul 07, 2014 6:40 pm

Re: BA on Ubuntu Mate 18.04

Post by RobertRathbone »

darrel_jw wrote:Hi Robert
I am not having any color issues, but am having bigger issues and no response from Tim on a resolution. I am pushed to delve deeper into original language study, to know and understand what God is saying in His word.

1. Tim has indicated (correct me if I am mistaken Tim) there is not enough interest to take BA deeper in Greek and Hebrew. He has also indicated there probably will not be any further Greek and Hebrew tools coming forth.

2. With Ubuntu 18.04 as the base, BA will not display Hebrew right-to-left. Tim says it is an Ubuntu issue in the display code. Ubuntu (so far) does not agree. XIPHOS displays Hebrew right-to-left beautifully. So I question whether it is really an Ubuntu issue or if Tim needs to rewrite BA code to use a different set of modules to display code. This issue is the same in all distros based on Ubuntu 18.04. And I do not want to revert to earlier distros that are not based on Ubuntu 18.04!

3. There have been no Linux BA updates for a LONG time.

These are all major points that affect my using BA, so I have returned to theWord running in Wine where everything just works! If Tim can address these issues AND take BA forward as a Linux Bible program then maybe I will revisit BA. But until then I am being productive using theWord, and that is very important to me!

Darrel
Thanks for the update Without going to seminary or a Bible college, it's hard for a layman to obtain and know how to use the tools we need to be able to take our study into the original languages, especially at a reasonable price.

It's a shame that more Bible study software isn't cross-platform, although I suppose it would often require a wholesale reworking of the source code to make it cross-platform friendly since it was probably coded for Windows without a consideration for other platforms. That's probably more work (possibly starting over from scratch) than most of these authors are willing to do simply to make their software available on Linux and Mac.

Good luck with your studies and I hope you can find what you need to make your studies fruitful in the Lord!

Robert

jastombaugh
Posts: 22
Joined: Sat Jun 15, 2019 8:28 pm

Re: BA on Ubuntu Mate 18.04

Post by jastombaugh »

Ubuntu Mate 18.04 - upgraded and works without issue (aside from the strange blue windows previously mentioned elsewhere), but functions solidly and is a pleasure to use. Copy and paste work very nicely.
Kubuntu 18.04 - Works flawlessly. Screen flashes to black briefly (were talking nano-seconds here) when the Commentary/Dictionary or S-Pad search results windows have their contents updated/changed.
Ubuntu Gnome 18.04(Ubuntu Proper) - Noticed an issue between BA & the GnomeShell window manager gnome uses. When trying to type in the search bar for a word, the window manager Gnome uses seems to flash-cycle between Gnome Desktop/Ba-run.py briefly, and then each letter typed is replaced by the next letter typed. In effect, this allows for only one letter to be entered in to the search bar. The issue appears to lie with the 'auto-suggest' list of words the search bar wants to display below as you type.
The only way to break free of this 'loop' search for a word is to type each letter of the word followed by a right-arrow key press. Not impossible to work around, but will catch you off guard every time if you are used to just typing a word to search in.

Interestingly enough, booting into Ubuntu Gnome with the 'Flashback' desktop environment (aka, the old Gnome 2 look) seems to use the Metecity window manager, and the problem doesn't manifest itself here.

While the blue-window issue does not seem to be present with the Gnome/KDE version, I noticed the BA application window flashes to black when a word is searched for, or when the Commentary/Dicitonary window is updated to reflect a word you clicked on in the Scripture window. This happens across the Gnome(GnomeShell)/KDE(kwin)/Flashback(Metacity) desktop environments.

Not sure what's going on there. Any ideas on how I might help debug this?

PS. Tim - I STILL can't thank you enough for this software! It completely dwarfs everything else out there I've tried for Linux.

Tim
Site Admin
Posts: 1454
Joined: Sun Dec 07, 2008 1:14 pm

Re: BA on Ubuntu Mate 18.04

Post by Tim »

The blue windows seem to occur only on some distros and certain themes. Some users can change their current theme and eliminate it.

The flashes when certain windows or panels update is likely some sort of refresh or update issue in the underlying wx code. I'm not sure what the cause is.

I'm working on a new version of Bible Analyzer based on an updated wxPython that hopefully will solve some of these issues.

Thanks for your detailed report with the various distros.
Tim Morton
Developer, Bible Analyzer

But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. (Rom 4:5 AV)

jastombaugh
Posts: 22
Joined: Sat Jun 15, 2019 8:28 pm

Re: BA on Ubuntu Mate 18.04

Post by jastombaugh »

jastombaugh wrote:
Sun Jun 16, 2019 10:09 pm
Ubuntu Mate 18.04 - upgraded and works without issue (aside from the strange blue windows previously mentioned elsewhere), but functions solidly and is a pleasure to use. Copy and paste work very nicely.
Kubuntu 18.04 - Works flawlessly. Screen flashes to black briefly (were talking nano-seconds here) when the Commentary/Dictionary or S-Pad search results windows have their contents updated/changed.
Ubuntu Gnome 18.04(Ubuntu Proper) - Noticed an issue between BA & the GnomeShell window manager gnome uses. When trying to type in the search bar for a word, the window manager Gnome uses seems to flash-cycle between Gnome Desktop/Ba-run.py briefly, and then each letter typed is replaced by the next letter typed. In effect, this allows for only one letter to be entered in to the search bar. The issue appears to lie with the 'auto-suggest' list of words the search bar wants to display below as you type.
The only way to break free of this 'loop' search for a word is to type each letter of the word followed by a right-arrow key press. Not impossible to work around, but will catch you off guard every time if you are used to just typing a word to search in.

Interestingly enough, booting into Ubuntu Gnome with the 'Flashback' desktop environment (aka, the old Gnome 2 look) seems to use the Metecity window manager, and the problem doesn't manifest itself here.

>>> UPDATE ON UBUNTU GNOME 18.04 - After some fiddling, the issue seems to completely disappear when the 'unite' extension is disabled. Some sort of conflict seems to exist, not with BibleAnalyzer, but rather with how the extension attempts to merge the window title with the top bar on the Gnome desktop. Verified this is the issue, as in trying BA on other distros that use the gnome-shell DE do not seem to replicate the problem. Toggling on the extension can replicate the issue with the search bar. Removed the extension and BA runs as smooth and flawless as ever! :-D
(This explains why the issue would not be present in 'Flashback' mode, as this extension wouldn't been available)

While the blue-window issue does not seem to be present with the Gnome/KDE version, I noticed the BA application window flashes to black when a word is searched for, or when the Commentary/Dicitonary window is updated to reflect a word you clicked on in the Scripture window. This happens across the Gnome(GnomeShell)/KDE(kwin)/Flashback(Metacity) desktop environments.

Not sure what's going on there. Any ideas on how I might help debug this?

PS. Tim - I STILL can't thank you enough for this software! It completely dwarfs everything else out there I've tried for Linux.

RobertRathbone
Posts: 42
Joined: Mon Jul 07, 2014 6:40 pm

Re: BA on Ubuntu Mate 18.04

Post by RobertRathbone »

Tim wrote:
Tue Jun 18, 2019 1:21 pm
The blue windows seem to occur only on some distros and certain themes. Some users can change their current theme and eliminate it.

The flashes when certain windows or panels update is likely some sort of refresh or update issue in the underlying wx code. I'm not sure what the cause is.

I'm working on a new version of Bible Analyzer based on an updated wxPython that hopefully will solve some of these issues.

Thanks for your detailed report with the various distros.
Just to give you more feedback, I'm also on Kubuntu 18.04 and I can't say that BA works "flawlessly" in that distro for me with default distro settings. The colors are all messed up as described elsewhere, making it a pain to even look at the display and try to read. I've had to find alternatives for my Bible study for teaching Sunday School lessons.

Thanks for what you do.

Robert Rathbone

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