xview apps hang the system (when viewed from 9.04 X.org)

[Wonko]

When startting XView applications like cmdtool, the application starts and reacts to keyboard input, but after the first mouse click inside the window (not on the window title bar), X hangs. Switching to a text console is still possible, and after killing the application, all is fine again.

When I login via ssh to the ubuntu machine from a remote machine, there is no problem. But when I log into that remote machine from the ubuntu machine, X also hangs when I start cmdtool

I am using Ubuntu 9.04 (in VMware player, downloaded from vmplanet.net), and xview-clients 3.2p1.4-23ubuntu2.

Below comes some strace output. I started the cmdtool, entered "12345" and waited a little, te first part shows the bottom of this log. The next part is from this point until after I clicked with the mouse into the window.

read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(1024, [3 5 9], [], [], NULL) = 1 (in [5])
readv(5, [{"\0"..., 1}, {"\0005\0v@ubuntu-vm:~$ \0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0"..., 2047}], 2) = 3
ioctl(6, SNDCTL_TMR_TIMEBASE or TCGETS, {B38400 opost isig -icanon -echo ...}) = 0
ioctl(6, SNDCTL_TMR_TIMEBASE or TCGETS, {B38400 opost isig -icanon -echo ...}) = 0
gettimeofday({1249049894, 595805}, NULL) = 0
select(4, [3], [3], NULL, NULL) = 1 (out [3])
writev(3, [{"8\0\4\0+\0\240\2\0\0\10\0)\0\240\2F\2\5\0\25\0\240\2+\0\240\2\326\0\17\0\7"..., 76}, {NULL, 0}, {""..., 0}], 3) = 76
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
gettimeofday({1249049894, 598629}, NULL) = 0
setitimer(ITIMER_REAL, {it_interval={0, 0}, it_value={0, 0}}, NULL) = 0
select(1024, [3 5 9], [], [], {0, 0}) = 0 (Timeout)
gettimeofday({1249049894, 601788}, NULL) = 0
select(4, [3], [3], NULL, NULL) = 1 (out [3])
writev(3, [{"8\0\4\0+\0\240\2\0\0\10\0)\0\240\0028\2\4\0+\0\240\2\0\0\2\0\340\0\0\0F"..., 52}, {NULL, 0}, {""..., 0}], 3) = 52
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
gettimeofday({1249049894, 604802}, NULL) = 0
setitimer(ITIMER_REAL, {it_interval={0, 0}, it_value={0, 0}}, NULL) = 0
select(1024, [3 5 9], [], [], NULL) = 1 (in [3])
read(3, "\3\16A\1/\307=\0\374\0\0\0\25\0\240\2\0\0\0\0\200\0e\0\177\0003\0\0\0\1\1"..., 4096) = 32
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(1024, [3 5 9], [], [], NULL) = 1 (in [3])
read(3, "\2%A\1t\315=\0\374\0\0\0\25\0\240\2\0\0\0\0\0\0~\0\377\377L\0\0\0\1\1"..., 4096) = 32
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(4, [3], [3], NULL, NULL) = 1 (out [3])
writev(3, [{"8\0\4\0+\0\240\2\0\0\10\0)\0\240\2F\2\5\0\25\0\240\2+\0\240\2\340\0\17\0\7"..., 72}, {NULL, 0}, {""..., 0}], 3) = 72
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(1024, [3 5 9], [], [], NULL) = 1 (in [3])
read(3, "\2@E\1\224\315=\0\374\0\0\0\25\0\240\2\0\0\0\0\0\0~\0\377\377L\0\4\0\1\1"..., 4096) = 32
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(4, [3], [3], NULL, NULL) = 1 (out [3])
writev(3, [{"8\0\4\0+\0\240\2\0\0\10\0)\0\240\2F\2\5\0\25\0\240\2+\0\240\2\340\0\17\0\7"..., 72}, {NULL, 0}, {""..., 0}], 3) = 72
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(1024, [3 5 9], [], [], NULL) = 1 (in [3])
read(3, "\3@I\1\36\316=\0\374\0\0\0\25\0\240\2\0\0\0\0\5\0{\0\4\0I\0\f\0\1\1\3"..., 4096) = 64
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(4, [3], [3], NULL, NULL) = 1 (out [3])
writev(3, [{"8\0\4\0+\0\240\2\0\0\10\0)\0\240\2F\2\5\0\25\0\240\2+\0\240\2\340\0\17\0\7"..., 144}, {NULL, 0}, {""..., 0}], 3) = 144
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(1024, [3 5 9], [], [], NULL

Now I click into the window:

                                  ) = 1 (in [3])
read(3, "\0022Q\1\214\366=\0\374\0\0\0\25\0\240\2\0\0\0\0*\1\244\0)\1r\0\0\0\1\1"..., 4096) = 32
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(4, [3], [3], NULL, NULL) = 1 (out [3])
writev(3, [{"8\0\4\0+\0\240\2\0\0\10\0)\0\240\2F\2\5\0\25\0\240\2+\0\240\2\340\0\17\0\7"..., 72}, {NULL, 0}, {""..., 0}], 3) = 72
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(1024, [3 5 9], [], [], NULL) = 1 (in [3])
read(3, "\0032U\1\233\367=\0\374\0\0\0\25\0\240\2\0\0\0\0*\1\244\0)\1r\0\1\0\1\1"..., 4096) = 32
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(4, [3], [3], NULL, NULL) = 1 (out [3])
writev(3, [{"8\0\4\0+\0\240\2\0\0\10\0)\0\240\2F\2\5\0\25\0\240\2+\0\240\2\340\0\17\0\7"..., 72}, {NULL, 0}, {""..., 0}], 3) = 72
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(1024, [3 5 9], [], [], NULL) = 1 (in [3])
read(3, "\4\1Y\1\232\371=\0\374\0\0\0\25\0\240\2\0\0\0\0+\1\234\0*\1j\0\0\0\1\0"..., 4096) = 32
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(4, [3], [3], NULL, NULL) = 1 (out [3])
writev(3, [{"#\6\2\0\0\0\0\0"..., 8}, {NULL, 0}, {""..., 0}], 3) = 8
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(4, [3], [3], NULL, NULL) = 1 (out [3])
writev(3, [{"8\6\4\0+\0\240\2\0\0\10\0)\0\240\2F\2\5\0\25\0\240\2+\0\240\2\340\0\17\0\7"..., 44}, {NULL, 0}, {""..., 0}], 3) = 44
select(4, [3], [], NULL, NULL) = 1 (in [3])
read(3, "\1\16]\1\0\0\0\0\0\0\0\0x\26\267\10\0\0\0\0\10\0\0\0\0\0\0\0x\26\267\10"..., 4096) = 32
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(4, [3], [3], NULL, NULL) = 1 (out [3])
writev(3, [{"\26\6\4\0\7\0\240\2\1\0\0\0\232\371=\0\27\2\2\0\1\0\0\0"..., 24}, {NULL, 0}, {""..., 0}], 3) = 24
select(4, [3], [], NULL, NULL) = 1 (in [3])
read(3, "\1\16_\1\0\0\0\0\7\0\240\2x\26\267\10\0\0\0\0\10\0\0\0\10\0\0\0x\26\267\10"..., 4096) = 32
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
read(3, 0x9561f00, 4096) = -1 EAGAIN (Resource temporarily unavailable)
select(1024, [3 5 9], [], [], NULL

[khofmann (kayhofmann)]

First, I can fully confirm this problem, which has previously been discussed here:
http://ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?p=7613644 and
http://www.physionet.org/physiotools/xview/

From what I see and read in this discussion, it makes me wonder if this is really an xview problem. Isn't it more a problem of the new X-server in ubuntu 9.04 (jaunty) ?

As has been mentioned, xview applications in older ubuntu releases used to work fine. But even these applications freeze the screen if you let them display there window on a jaunty X.org system! Obviously, the problems have not been created by a change in the xview libraries (I have used several old versions - all have this problem) but rather by changes in the X-server.

I am not familiar with this bug tracking system. Could somebody more knowledgeable please link this bug to the relevant x-server section of launchpad?

[Wonko (wonko-wonkology)]

I want to point out that, although probably very few people still use the XView applications in the xview-clients package (like cmdtool), there still exist some important XView tools, mainly in the scientific / medical area, which are not easy to replace. Even less by free software. As for myself, I am a developer of such an application, and received a report about the problem with Ubuntu.
This comes from the fact that those software has originally been developed on Sun Solaris machines, where the XView toolkit was being used. Some of these applications had been ported to Linux when PCs became cheaper than Sun workstations. I hope they will continue to work in the future.

[Dan (quaninux)]

I can confirm the same problem on several systems running ubuntu 9.04.

[Wonko (wonko-wonkology)]

2 Things:

- The -Wfsdb command line option should be a workaround. See http://www.physionet.org/physiotools/xview/ for more information on this.

- The problem seems to be fixed in 10.04.