Thanks for your comments. Yes, I know I should really learn about Linux and its applications, but I have a lot of Windows software, and I have to keep doing "real work", so it would be a lot easier if I could just shift OS and keep all the familiar applications running, and migrate slowly over time. Ideally the OS would be invisible, with a Wine layer on top, and an XP desktop on top of that. No doubt the applications I chose to trial were not the easiest ones for wine to 'emulate', but I was rather assuming that the common apps would work without problems. The Java Runtime was a native version, so its problems didn't really deserve to be mentioned under Wine problems, but it does show why I need Wine to help me migrate. Why does Linux check for loose ends and then leave it up to me to fix them ? Whoever wrote the code must surely know where to find the missing things better than I do. [quote] [quote] ... if WinFile and WineProgman don't work, how was it ever released at all ? [/quote] Because there's no need for either. The functions of both are best handled by native tools. [/quote] I can learn something here - how do I launch an application with native tools so that it runs under Wine, without launching it from within Wine ? There's something I haven't grasped yet. Running from /root I gave the full path to the .exe because it seemed like the sensible thing to do, however when I was in WineFile and double-clicking the .exe, I guess the path started with /drive_c . How do I know if I am running Wine from root, and if I am, how do I not do that ? (perhaps I didn't make it clear how much I am groping in the dark). Dave
