Computer Guru's... HELP

[skid542]

Quick background, I've using this program called AVL. I'm using it configure a wing to obtain ideal lift distributions, this is all for my senior design project. It was developed by a couple aerospace engineers using Fortran and I believe Unix. They have made it available to the public, http://web.mit.edu/drela/Public/web/avl/ , and released it so that it runs with Windows if you call it from MS-DOS, you call avl.exe. It's a great program, I like it, and it works very well.

So the problem, for whatever reason, I can no longer run the program. A few weeks ago I could run it just fine and had no troubles. Now after I have loaded configuration data and begin the execution of the load calculations it gets through most of it and then it kicks out and goes back to the root directory. This is the error I get -

forrtl severe <157>: Program Exception - access violation
Image PC Routine Line Source
avl.exe 00445E80 Unknown Uknown Unkown

4 weeks ago I could run the program just fine and it'd do everything. I haven't made any changes to my computer since then, or atleast I don't think so. I defraged it yesterday but that's it. I've tried creating a second directory on the C drive (c:\avl2, the first was c:\avl) and installing it there and running it but still I get the same thing.

I've done some C++ and Matlab programing but nothing too intense and have some general computer knowledge but I'm really at a loss as to what to do. I know some of you guys really know computers and programming so I'm open to any and all suggestions/comments.

Thanks a bunch guys.

[Manarius]

So, you downloaded the zip..opened it and ran it from the temp zip..and it still gave you that error? I think it's a windows error, not a program error.

[skid542]

I downloaded the zip to my hd, c:\avl, and ran it from there and had no problems, 4 weeks ago that is. Now it won't run from there. So I downloaded it again to c:\avl2 and still no go.

It would certainly seem to be a problem with my computer not talking to the program right but I don't know why???

[Manarius]

Well, from what your error says, it sounds to me like the DOS Prompt is having issues getting access to that program.

From reading up on it, that program is trying to access virtual memory locations that don't exist.

My suggestion: Download the file again, only this time click "open" not save as and run it from the temporary zip folder.

Are you trying to do this from a user account that isn't an admin account? Error 157 has to do with access errors.

[skid542]

I can't do that because the data files have to saved in the same directory as avl.exe and I've also been told that avl.exe only runs properly when called through MS-DOS.

I did give it shot though and yep, couldn't load any data to run .

Any other ideas?

[Legacy777]

what happens if you bring up an MS-Dos window, and then run the command from there, instead of just clicking on the exe.

[vrg3]

Just to clarify -- AVL is not a DOS program. It's a console-based Windows program. I don't know if that'll help anyone figuring this out.

[vrg3]

Oh, I just thought of something -- have you updated all your antispyware definitions and whatnot? Maybe it's a piece of malware that's keeping this from working.

Also, try safe mode?

[skid542]

Perhaps I wasn't clear, I haven't been double clicking and have been accessing it through the command prompt.

I've run Spyware Blaster, Spybot, Ad-Aware, and AVG. Found a few things like usual but it didn't do anything for AVL.

I just tried safe mode, same error.

This is frustrating because I'm the aero guy on the team and mine won't run but my config data will run on my teammate's computers, grr...

Keep the ideas coming, eliminating possibilities if nothing else.

[subawhatsubawho]

I was telling Josh this just yesterday....clean install. Go in and delete any previous versions of the program. If you have a program such as Norton utilities run that after you delete the, to fix any registry errors. Free up any space available on your hard drive and degrag (just because it probably needs it), reboot your machine and try re-installing the program. This time put it in a folder that you make for it and set zip to unpack to the same folder if it is not set to do so already.

Keep us in the know.

[vrg3]

You wouldn't consider just installing Linux or something, would you?

[subawhatsubawho]

Try Lindows and tell me how it is.....hehe

[skid542]

I defraged yesterday. I've also already tried the clean install.

I would consider Linux. My preference would to not have to mess with it since I've never used it before and my computer ran AVL just fine 4 weeks ago so I'd think it should still be able to. But that doesn't mean I'm still not thinking about linux. I've got three wings I need to get figured so I've got to be able to get some hours in with AVL. What all would all would I have to do for Linux?

[vrg3]

Have you used UNIX much before? The best way to proceed kind of depends on your familiarity with that stuff. I'm not really a good source of info on this because I don't know any of the "user-friendly" distributions.

But basically, you'll need to make a hard drive partition for it. If your system is already running, that probably means you'll need to split one of your existing partitions in two somehow. Or install another hard drive.

But maybe you could just try downloading a Red Hat ISO image or something and seeing what happens... maybe it will know how to nondestructively repartition your hard drive and all.

Or you could use a package like vmWare to create a virtual machine on which you can run AVL in the environment of your choosing. If you're unfamiliar with UNIX maybe a virtual machine running a nice and simple Windows 95 or 98 installation would do the trick instead.

There are some Linux distributions that each exist on a single bootable CD, but I doubt any of them would have f77. And you don't want to have to redownload and recompile AVL every time.

[skid542]

Yeah... I've never used Unix before either. I watched my friend, a CPE major, play with it some but that's it.

I also have a laptop so adding extra hd's isn't really too much of an option and if it's going to require buying an external hd then I'll just spend time in the comp labs at school. As far as partioning the hd, I've only got about 4 gigs free, how big of a partion would it need to be? Can I just use window's partion creator thing, they're bound to have one and seems like I've seen one before, to make a partion and then install unix?

Thanks again for the help. I'm going to bed but I'll keep playing with it tomorrow.

[vrg3]

I don't know if any free Windows partition editors can nondestructively split partitions, but if you can get your hands on Partition Magic that ought to do it. I would imagine whatever Linux distribution you use should have an installer that can make use of a partition you made with Partition Magic.

For this purpose even 1 gigabyte should be more than enough space.

You might want to see if you can get a Linux geek at VT to help you out with this... Preferably one who knows Windows as well.

[Fishy]

This might be a little long-shotish but Set your machine to do a scandisk/repair on next boot and reboot. My machine freaked out on me last week when I messed up installing a new CPU fan and it was over-heating partway through boot. This made it half-boot about 35 times while I was trying different things to diagnose it. After I got it booting again it was very unstable and lots of programs would error out.

Finally I did TWO full scandisks and it repaired / deleted TONS of cross-linked files and other oddities. Now everything is working tip top again.

[subawhatsubawho]

Partition Magic.

For this purpose even 1 gigabyte should be more than enough space.

You might want to see if you can get a Linux geek at VT to help you out with this... Preferably one who knows Windows as well.

+1

[Legacy777]

I defraged yesterday. I've also already tried the clean install.

So you reformatted, did a clean install, and still have issues?

That's definitely a weird one....sounds like a hardware issue, memory, cpu, mb, or hard disk.

[Legacy777]

I don't know if any free Windows partition editors can nondestructively split partitions, but if you can get your hands on Partition Magic that ought to do it. I would imagine whatever Linux distribution you use should have an installer that can make use of a partition you made with Partition Magic.

Lee,

PM me

[skid542]

I got a hold of the guy on team who used AVL a lot over the summer and talked to him... You guys ready for this?

The load function within the program doesn't work. You have to load the data when you do the initial avl.exe call, ie c:\AVL\avl data.dat. If you load the data with the 'load' function it causes the error. It's too bad there's nothing in the documentation about this error and that the new version, released a couple weeks ago doesn't address it.

So now I've made myself feel like an idiot spending all this time trying to get it run right, you'd thought I'd remembered that I had to do that 4-5 weeks ago, duh *smacks self on forehead.

Sorry there wasn't anything miraculous to the problem but thank you again for all the help guys. I do appreciate it. God bless the BBS.

But while I have your attention, how do I do a screen save? I'll try to get a screen shot of the plane we're working on from AVL.

[vrg3]

Huh. Seems like that should be easy enough to fix, or at least avoid by disabling the load function...

Pressing PrintScreen should copy the entire screen's contents to the clipboard, and you can paste it into MS Paint or PhotoShop or what-have-you.

I don't know if PrintScreen works in a full-screen "DOS" session, but if you press Alt-Enter to bring it back into a window it should work.