[Info-vax] Some questions on software for VMS 7.3 VAX

[lists at openmailbox.org]

On Sat, 16 Jan 2016 12:55:47 +0100
hb via Info-vax <info-vax at rbnsn.com> wrote:

> On 01/15/2016 07:46 PM, Rich Alderson wrote:
> 
> > If you apply for an account on the VAX-11/780-5 at Living Computer
> > Museum and note that you want to install Emacs in the optional
> > "Describe your interest" box, I'll mark your account request High
> > Priority if you do that.  I would love to see Emacs on this system
> > myself, but I have no time to track down a freeware CD to install it; I
> > have other system projects with higher priority.
> 
> Thanks, but there are too many stared fields in the request form and no
> https.
> 
> Installing the binary kit is as easy as 1-2-3:
> 
> Get the emacs21_2_vax_bin.zip archive from
> https://www.sendspace.com/file/icqsn3 onto your VAX.
> 
> Uncompress the archive. It contains a VMS backup save set, which was
> archived with the -V option.
> $ UNZIP EMACS21_2_VAX_BIN.ZIP

This took like a half hour. Unbelievable.

> Restore the backup save set
> $ BACKUP EMACS21_2_VAX_BIN.BCK/SAV [.LOCAL...]

This took like 15 minutes. Wow. This is surprising.

I may have screwed up here by using [...] as the target (see my problem
further on). Although it did create local.dir so maybe not. I was going to
try to delete the local directory and try your command as you specified. I
didn't understand whether you were giving an example or the actual command.
But anyway I can't delete the gigantic directory tree it created. Is it
really a full-time job to delete a directory tree in VMS? So I figure I'll
send this email and go from there.

> To run/test emacs, as already mentioned,
> $ @[.LOCAL.STARTUP]GNU_STARTUP EMACS-21.2 NOLOGICALS

@[.STARTUP]GNU_STARTUP EMACS-21.2 NOLOGICALS
%GNU_STARTUP-I-SETTING_UP,  setting up Emacs version 21.2

> $ DEFINE TERM VT100
> $ EMACS
> or
> $ RUNEMACS

%DCL-W-ACTIMAGE, error activating image BLD_ROOT:[LOCAL.BIN]EMACS-21_2
-CLI-E-IMGNAME, image file DUA0:[REDACTED.][LOCAL.BIN]EMACS-21_2.EXE;
-RMS-E-DNF, directory not found
-SYSTEM-W-NOSUCHFILE, no such file

Your name was REDACTED above. But I got the sense something about your
directory structure was compiled in. And although I followed your
instructions (I think) I am totally confused by the multiple directories
this creates (although I should have expected that with gnu-anything) and
how I would deal with this when trying to set it up properly on my system.

I guess one thing at a time. What should I do now? Thanks a lot for helping
with this. Sorry it took me awhile to get to this. Usually whenever I have
something interesting to try on my home systems I get to work overtime that
day. I will never know how they know...

-- 
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