GExperts FAQ

• Under Delphi 7, the GExperts menu and the component palette popup menus are too big to fit on the screen!

  The new Delphi menu system does not support menu columns/breaks or scrolling. You'll need to either increase your screen resolution, disable some component packages, disable some GExperts experts, or ask Borland to fix this limitation in the IDE.

• When will Kylix support be available?

  Support for Kylix is not currently available. The limitations and stability of the Kylix Open Tools/IDE are issues and the time necessary to make the changes to work under Linux is another issue. That said, you are welcome to download the latest source from CVS and see if you can help convert GExperts to be compatible.

• Will you add a tool to GExperts that removes unnecessary uses clause entries?

  Removing "unused" uses clause entries may seem like a simple task, but the feature would actually be quite complex and and possibly dangerous to implement. Even if a unit does not make use of classes/functions in a given used unit, the initialization and finalization sections in used units are sometimes performing necessary work. If we were to ignore initialization and finalization sections, we would still need to implement the initial stages of a compiler up to the point of creating a full symbol table to determine what unit given identifiers map to, or deevlop units to parse the undocumented and ever-changing DCU file format. We would welcome any code contributions toward this feature, but we don't have any plans to implement ourselves it right now.

• Where can I get the Delphi 3.01/3.02 update required for GExperts?

  GExperts can not support Delphi 3.00-3.02 with the same binary file, because Borland made incompatible changes to a package between releases. You can check the Borland download page or their FTP site, but I don't think they offer the 3.01 update anymore, so you may need to locate a friend with the 3.01 update CD. If you have 3.01 already, the 3.02 patches are available at the link above. If you still can not find the update you need, you will need to compile GExperts yourself from the provided source code.

• How can I share a Code Librarian database over the network?

  GExperts 1.1 ClientDataSet (CodeDB.cds) database can not be shared over a network unless you set the file to be read-only. Download the source code and compile it with BDE support if you need this feature. The GExperts 1.0 Code Librarian stores its data in a Paradox database. Sharing of Paradox databases is governed by your BDE configuration. The configuration setting is under BDE Administrator, Configuration, Drivers, Native, PARADOX, and is called "NET DIR". Set this to a shared network directory location. See the BDE help file for full details.

• I have multiple IDE versions on my system. How do I install GExperts?

  You should download all of the binary versions and install them into separate directories. Technically, you can install them into the same directory but some non-critical files such as the standalone expert EXEs will overwrite each other. To share data between multiple GExperts installs, just set the "GExperts storage directory" in the configuration dialog to a shared location.

• Is there any chance of a GExperts for JBuilder/Visual C++/etc.?

  Not likely, since it would require a nearly complete rewrite to support integration with other IDEs.

• Why can't I use GExperts in a commercial environment?

  You've likely misinterpreted the intent of the GExperts license. The restriction on usage in commercial or proprietary products only applies to the GExperts source code, not GExperts itself.

• Why isn't the Standard/Personal version of my IDE fully supported?

  The standard/personal editions of Delphi 5+ and C++Builder 5+ do not have database support, which is required for parts of GExperts. DLLs without the database experts (Code Librarian and Code Proofreader) included are available on the download page.

• What parts of GExperts work under C++Builder?

  See the BCBNotes.txt file for complete details on the restrictions while running under C++Builder. Notably, GExperts does not contain a C++ parser, so none of the functionality which relies on source code parsing will work.

• How can I prevent errors about missing DLLs and entry points when starting the IDE?

  If you get errors that mention "ComCtls.GetComCtlVersion@C43AB84F could not be located", "@Controls@TSizeConstraints@SetConstraints$qqrii could not be located", or "can't find wizard,'GExpertX.dll'" then you are probably running under an older version of your IDE. Please upgrade to Delphi 3.02, Delphi 4.03, Delphi 5.01, or Delphi 6.01.

  For example, to check if you are running Delphi 3.02, look at the date/time of the VCL30.dpl file in your system directory:

  10/23/97  03:02a             1,287,088 vcl30.dpl

  Also, all successful 3.02 patch installs have a readme302.txt file in the root Delphi 3 directory.

• I've experienced crashes or access violations that I think are due to GExperts. How do I investigate or report this?

  First see the known bugs section of the Readme to see if you have found a known problem. If it isn't there, be sure you are using the latest stable version of GExperts. If you still want to investigate the cause of the problem, you need to debug a GExperts DLL:

  1. Obtain the latest GExperts source code.
  2. Remove any registry entries which load GExperts DLLs into your IDE. Look in HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Borland\Delphi\x.0\Experts (or similar).
  3. Start your IDE, and verify GExperts is not loaded.
  4. Read SourceCode.txt for instructions to compile the GExperts DLL. Be sure to turn on debug information, stack frames, reference info, and assertions. Turn optimization off.
  5. Install the compiled DLL into your IDE manually using the instructions in Readme.txt (again HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Borland\Delphi\x.0\Experts).
  6. Select Run, Parameters from the IDE menu. Enter the IDE's executable as the host application.
  7. Set breakpoints as appropriate in the GExperts source files.
  8. Run the host application (F9), and another copy of the IDE should appear with GExperts loaded.
  9. You can now debug the GExperts DLL as it was a normal program (watches, breakpoints, inspections, tooltip evaluation, etc.).
  10. Note that library debugging does not work well in Delphi 4 and BCB 4. Both will lockup fairly often when debugging DLLs and packages. Delphi 3/5/6 are much more stable in this respect.

  If you do not have the time or energy to debug the DLL and find the problem, please attempt as much of the following as possible:

  Determine step-by-step instructions for duplicating the problem and the text of the error message, if any. Note the exact version of the IDE and the exact GExperts version. Attempt to duplicate the problem with the default (empty) project loaded or no project loaded. Test the problem with all other experts disabled. Duplicate the problem with all third party packages unloaded. Note what windows you had open, the active one, and what actions you had performed before seeing the error. Send a full description of the test results from above and the problem to the mailing list or using the Feedback Wizard in the about box.

• Can I get GExperts for Delphi 1 or Delphi 2? What about C++Builder 1 and 3?

  An old and totally unsupported version of GExperts is available for Delphi 2. GExperts will likely never will be available for Delphi 1 or C++Builder 1. C++Builder 3 might work, but you must recompile from the old source code yourself.

• Is GExperts compatible with CodeRush?

  CodeRush and GExperts work together fairly well under Delphi 4+. They partially work together under Delphi 3, but this isn't recommended. Under Delphi 3, you will have the best luck if you disable the editor experts, editor enhancements, and IDE enhancements.

• I want to contribute to the GExperts project. What can I do to help?

  See the Readme.txt file, and read through the known bugs and future enhancements section. You can also join the mailing list and make feature suggestions or gather general feedback from there. Generally, it is best to notify the mailing list before you begin work on a major new feature, to prevent multiple people from working on the same task. Also, please only make modifications to the latest source from CVS to make it easier for us to merge in your changes.

  As you code your new expert or feature, try to follow the general formatting, layout, and style of the existing GExperts source code. The best way to learn this is to browse the existing source for a while before you begin coding. The mailing list is always available if you don't know where to start. Also, there is a sample expert template and a sample editor expert template in the SampleExperts directory.

  If you are not interested in coding, you can also assist with the help files and other documentation, commenting on the user interface, or with testing.

• I get an unknown property error when loading GExperts or a GExperts form.

  If you are using an official pre-compiled GExperts DLL, please notify me. If you are compiling from the source code, see the notes in SourceCode.txt for help.

• How do I recompile the GExperts source code?

  See SourceCode.txt for complete instructions. If you have problems not explained there, join and then consult the discussion mailing list.

• Why don't most of the Project Option Sets settings work?

  Many of the project options settings are surfaced by the IDE's Open Tools interface, but they are not hooked to any code that allows experts to get and set the values. Most of these issues are fixed in Delphi 5.01 and C++Builder 5, but not all of them. If you notice some options that have no effect when you apply a project option set, you are likely experiencing this IDE bug, so please upgrade. Settings that apparently do not work in Delphi 5.00 include Assertions, GenConsoleApp LocalSymbols, IOChecks, LongStrings, Optimization, OverflowChecks, RangeChecks, StackFrames, UnitDebugInfo, UnitAliases, TypedAddress, SafeDivide, LibPath, LibraryList, ReferenceInfo, PentiumFloat, LinkDebugVcl, ExtendedSyntax, DebugPath, BoolEval, etc.

• Where does GExperts store its settings?

  GExperts stores its settings under the IDE's registry key. For example, under Delphi 5.0, this key is:
  HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Borland\Delphi\5.0\GExperts[-1.1]\
  Because of this, you can transport your preferences to a new computer by opening regedit.exe, finding the appropriate registry key, exporting the key to a .reg file (using the Registry menu), and then executing the .reg file on the new machine.

• Will you please add method folding and other custom painting to the IDE's code editor?

  The functionality necessary to hide code lines is not surfaced by the Borland Open Tools API, and it would be unsafe and extremely complicated to implement without help from the IDE. Adding custom painting to the editor is possible, but as of yet nobody on the GExperts team has had time to look into this. Feel free to send us code contributions toward this feature.

• Will you please add a source code formatter to GExperts?

  We are trying to avoid duplicating major features provided by other free tools. There is a very nice source code formatter by Egbert van Nes available at: http://www.dow.wau.nl/aew/DelForExp.html and another one at http://jedicodeformat.sourceforge.net/.