We're experimenting with app_info.xml files at SETI Beta, in anticipation of the release of Astropulse.

SETI's third party optimised applications make heavy use of the anonymous platform mechanism, even on standard operating systems.

We've had a case where a user was using an app_info including the constructs <executable /> and <main_program /> (with spaces). He then combined this with a second block specifying the Astropulse application, using the constructs <executable/> and <main_program/> (without spaces). All tasks for the original application - the one specified with spaces - then failed with "No main program specified".

I have reproduced the failure on my own machine (by adding spaces), and advised that the spaces should be removed from the reporting problem machine. Further reports as I receive them.

The question is, why did it (apparently) work before editing? I have checked the optimised application download package, and the spaces are present in the pre-supplied app_info. It's been available for download for almost three months (since 1st. May), so I would have expected problems to have shown up and been corrected by now.

All of this is happening in BOINC 5 (mine v5.10.13, his v5.10.45), so the debug output introduced in [trac]#703[/trac] isn't automatically available. I'm not sure whether <unparsed_xml> will help, but I'll try it if no-one can tell me exactly what's wrong with the spacing.

Forwarded to the developers.

---

Bump.

This problem is now showing up on SETI Main as well. The application developers are rather busy on social engineering issues right now, so assistance from the rest of the BOINC community would be appreciated.

A user at SETI has helped us track down the source of these extraneous spaces (thanks, MarkJ).

On a bog-standard default Windows installation, the XML file extension is associated with Internet Explorer. The temptation for anyone needing to 'tweak' an XML file, therefore, is to:

1) Double-click on the file
2) Select the text they require in the resulting IE window
3) Ctrl-C to copy
4) Open the editor of their choice, paste, and carry on from there.

Whatever you think about Microsoft's definition of "standards", it's clear that Internet Explorer thinks that the standard for a self-closed tag like <executable /> and <main_program /> is to use a space - it inserts one automatically when you use this procedure. And, this being the real world, I think it's important that BOINC at least recognises, and correctly parses, Microsoft's version of the standard.

Jord, do you want to raise the ticket, or shall I?

Jord, do you want to raise the ticket, or shall I?

You do it, please. I've got my head elsewhere.

---

Jord, do you want to raise the ticket, or shall I?

You do it, please. I've got my head elsewhere.

Will do. May be later tonite, or even tomorrow - I want to watch Stephen Fry's road-trip round America this evening.

I want to watch Stephen Fry's road-trip round America this evening.

I got that one set in the VCR while I'll watch James May's Big Things. ;-)

---