iMac testing for Delphic Oracle XPF & Discount Offer

1
I got a new iMac on the 9th and am busy configuring VMWare and Windows 10. This move was expected, but was prompted a bit early because the keyboard went bad on the PC I normally use. I'm using an older machine to do orders at the moment. There's a 1/3 discount sale on version 8 temporarily in effect. All those who currently have version 8+ will be able to upgrade to XPF for free simply by using your existing registration.

http://www.astrology-x-files.com/creditcardorder.html

Thanks for supporting my work!
Curtis Manwaring
Zoidiasoft Technologies, LLC

3
Thanks for the suggestion Jo?o. I'm using VMWare 8 Pro because it's what most of my customers currently use to run the windows version of DO with a Mac and I plan to keep the windows VCL version around for a while longer.

I already have VMWare installed, but it's taking forever to download the Windows 10 .iso file to burn to disk I only have a Vista machine for a PC at the moment because the other one is in a shop, so I can't transfer most of my files using the Migration Assistant PC ethernet option. That leaves me a 4GB download on a slow DSL connection (already downloading for more than a day so far and have 1.7GB.

What I'm not sure about is burning the iso from a Mac. I probably have to transfer that file to my external HD and burn it using my unstable vista machine or wait until my other laptop is done (which could be next week). This process has been slow. Also I'm not quite sure how to transfer a file from Mac downloads to my NTFS formatted external drive readable by a PC (I've never used a Mac until Feb 9th this year).

Delphic Oracle XPF was 90% written last spring, then I got busy with consultations (all while taking care of my father). I don't have much farm work to do now (just loading wood), so I really want this out before spring arrives.
Curtis Manwaring
Zoidiasoft Technologies, LLC

Wine, Linux and Delphic Oracle

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Hi - I have experimented with various Linux distros and Delphic Oracle. Most recently I had the program running successfully under Linux Mint 13, Cinnamon desktop and Wine 1.4. This was version 8 of Curtis' program.

I have recently upgraded to Linux Mint 17.3 with Cinnamon. I am now favouring installation of Windows astro software under Wine using Playonlinux as it helps with managing Wine versions.

Solar Fire, for example, seems to work well with Wine up to version 1.5.x, but not with version 1.6.x onwards. Playonlinux makes installing the required version much easier as the user doesn't have to rely on the distro's own repository version of Wine, or compiling the program from source code.

Ed
"...the motions that are akin to the divine in us are the thoughts and revolutions of the universe."

Plato, Timaeus, 90.

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zoidsoft wrote: What I'm not sure about is burning the iso from a Mac. I probably have to transfer that file to my external HD and burn it using my unstable vista machine or wait until my other laptop is done (which could be next week). This process has been slow. Also I'm not quite sure how to transfer a file from Mac downloads to my NTFS formatted external drive readable by a PC (I've never used a Mac until Feb 9th this year).
On VirtualBox, when you create an empty virtual machine you can open the iso file directly, you don't need to burn it into a CD/DVD. It's something like clicking in the CD/DVD menu but select to open in from an iso file. It kind of "mimics" a CD/DVD.. Here's something for VMWare that may help you: https://www.petri.com/use-iso-image-files-vmware

As for interfacing with external drives, you can read them perfectly fine in your Mac, just plug it and it'll work. The problem is in saving something to a NTFS hard drive. Although you can use a paid product such as http://www.tuxera.com/products/tuxera-ntfs-for-mac/ (never used that one), you can follow this tutorial: http://www.macbreaker.com/2014/06/how-t ... -hard.html

That solution with Fuse fox OSX works fine! But don't be afraid of breaking your computer, if you need to reinstall OSX, just do Cmd+R on the boot sequence, and you can restore everything.. ;)

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zoidsoft wrote:Thanks for the suggestion Jo?o. I'm using VMWare 8 Pro because it's what most of my customers currently use to run the windows version of DO with a Mac and I plan to keep the windows VCL version around for a while longer.

I already have VMWare installed, but it's taking forever to download the Windows 10 .iso file to burn to disk I only have a Vista machine for a PC at the moment because the other one is in a shop, so I can't transfer most of my files using the Migration Assistant PC ethernet option. That leaves me a 4GB download on a slow DSL connection (already downloading for more than a day so far and have 1.7GB.

What I'm not sure about is burning the iso from a Mac. I probably have to transfer that file to my external HD and burn it using my unstable vista machine or wait until my other laptop is done (which could be next week). This process has been slow. Also I'm not quite sure how to transfer a file from Mac downloads to my NTFS formatted external drive readable by a PC (I've never used a Mac until Feb 9th this year).

Delphic Oracle XPF was 90% written last spring, then I got busy with consultations (all while taking care of my father). I don't have much farm work to do now (just loading wood), so I really want this out before spring arrives.
make a .cdr format file and re-name it to .iso , most of the times it works well for me.
The more detailed version is here:
http://www.howtogeek.com/228886/how-to- ... and-linux/

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I decided to use Boot Camp and import this into a virtual machine using VMWare when I need dual access so I'm trying to download the iso file:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/softwar ... ndows10ISO

because that's the best performance model and I won't be going back and forth too much while writing code (you can use VMWare to import the boot camp partition when needed in a more virtual setting). The link above examines the machine to give the right copy (it said 19 hours to download). So I have a dsl connection that's not that much better than dialup and after baby sitting the connection for about 12 hours, the download stops because I fall asleep and the connection dies. Then because the link is only valid for 24 hours, I try again but no luck, it says to start over because the link is no longer valid. So I decided to go to Staples and they don't sell windows OS anymore but do orders so I've been waiting for about 6 days... UPS says it will get here and then winter forced a delay yesterday. They deliver finally today and then I find out that there's no .iso file on the USB stick, but just an exe only readable on windows (not for mac). Then of course I call Microsoft tech support and wait on the phone for over 90 minutes and finally hang up after no answer... and also called Staples only to find that the number on the receipt has been disconnected, so now I'm back to downloading again and baby sitting the connection hoping to avoid another long trip into Syracuse.

I had the idea a few hours ago of using GoToAssist to my sisters machine because she has a fast connection, but the problem there is the link above tells her to upgrade from windows 8 after the java script reads her machine specs so no .iso file there either. That would have saved me the trouble of carting a desktop machine around... but no. So I will have to take the ridiculous step of carting my 27" screen about 40 miles to connect to my sisters high speed connection tomorrow (winter weather advisory warning permitting).

In the past I'd have already been set up with the programming environment by now, but I don't even have windows on my iMac yet and I got it on the 9th. Still waiting for my keyboard to arrive for my other PC from Reno, NV. That won't be in until Monday at the earliest (otherwise I'd have migrated that OS in by now).

I'm left with the strong impression that Microsoft doesn't care about it's customers. $200+ tax and they just gave me a giant FU. Right now it's up to 1.01 GB of 4.02 GB after 5 hours... and 14 more hours to go without sleeping or the lost connection will cause me to start over.
Curtis Manwaring
Zoidiasoft Technologies, LLC

Linux

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Ahh Curtis - oh for a Linux, open source world - I can be up and running on a Linux machine, including downloading the ISO, burning it and installing it, in about 40-50 minutes. I'm sorry you've had these difficulties. Good luck and thank you for all your efforts with Delphic Oracle. It's a lovely piece of software.
"...the motions that are akin to the divine in us are the thoughts and revolutions of the universe."

Plato, Timaeus, 90.

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I've finally got the new machine mostly functional and in the IDE, I have configured PAServer and deployed an old copy of the zodiacal releasing program running it on my iMac for the first time yesterday evening.

I did upload a zipped PKG fie to my server, but think it would be a good idea not to publish it publicly until it's been tested by some other programmers. PM me if you're interested in getting the file for install on a Mac. Keep in mind that I've never owned a Mac before Feb 9th, so this is going really fast. I just downloaded Iceberg PKG maker this afternoon and already have an install file.

I noticed something interesting in my ZR spirit. When I first released the program on Dec 31, 1997, I had Aq -> Le -> Aq -> Le. Now it's (Aq) -> (Aq) -> (Aq) -> Aq. (The parenthesis means that the period is after the bond loosing).
Curtis Manwaring
Zoidiasoft Technologies, LLC