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<body><p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;"><span style="font-size:0.92em;">Hi Stefan -</span></p>
<br /><p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">I always always always test new stuff on a virtual machine before letting it onto my main systems. If it blows up, I can revert to a snapshot. On a real computer, if it blows up I often have to rebuild from the metal. It is a risk not worth taking, and a problem that has bitten me many times. It is a lesson I learned the hard way.</p>
<br /><p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">The main issued I found with the flatpak for LabPlot is that it does not save files where I expect it to. I specified "/home/bgee/Documents" as the directory. LabPlot reports success. If I save the file again, LabPlot reports that the file is already there. However, I cannot see the file with any other program! Bash, Krusader, Dolphin ... None of them see the files I saved out of LabPlot. In my mind that is reason enough to not use the flatpak.</p>
<br /><p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">There may also be problems with themes, icons, fonts etc. I did not test for that. The Z-order problem with file-open and file-save dialogs is very annoying but not quite a show stopper.</p>
<br /><p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">As a general philosophy, I still think that flatpaks, snaps and containers are imperfect solutions for which no problem exists. Let's assume, for example, that I choose to run EVERY application I use as a flatpak. That means Firefox, LibreOffice, KMail, KOrganizer, KeePassXC, Audacity et.al. Each of them brings in and launches a complete version of KDE. None of them is running in the same sandbox, so they cannot see each other and use each other's services. If, for example, I click on a KMail attachment to open it, does Gwenview open in the same sandbox as KMail? If I click on an image in Firefox, does it open the same Gwenview instance as the one that KMail launched? If I click on an email address in Firefox, does that launch a new instance of KMail or does it use the sandbox that is already running?</p>
<br /><p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">KeePassXC connects into Firefox to provide password filling. If they are running in separate sandboxes, then how are they to talk to each other? If I make a settings change in the KDE System Settings application, how does that get inside all the different KDE sandboxes?</p>
<br /><p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">And if all those applications DO run in the same sandbox, then what's the gain? Why not run them in the real environment and save a huge amount of both memory and drive space?</p>
<br /><p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">I understand the problems with "DLL Hell", or its equivalent in Linux. I made a good living for many years doing Windows tech support. I think that flatpaks, snaps and containers are an interesting attempt to solve that problem. However, the only result has been to change the appearance. It is not gone - it just looks different.</p>
<br /><p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">I am - and remain - a committed contrary curmudgeon! :-) I think the real answer is to find a Fedora packager and ask them to create a repository package for LabPlot 2.8.1.</p>
<p> </p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">Thanks, and regards - </p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;"><br />-- </p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">Bill Gee</p>
<br /><br /><p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;"><br />On Wednesday, January 6, 2021 4:38:15 AM CST Stefan Gerlach wrote:</p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> Hi Bill,</p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> </p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> i maintain the Flatpak package, so i can hopefully give some answers.</p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> Flatpak is installing a package inside a sandbox. You don't need a VM to test it. It only needs a few system libraries. The advantage is that </p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> you can run the same package on many different systems. The disadvantage is that it brings all libraries it needs (Qt, KDE, etc. in our case), </p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> but several apps can use this so called runtime environment.</p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> I can check on Fedora if there are problems due to LabPlot running in the Flatpak sandbox. The Z-order or theme problems may also be related to </p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> Flatpak settings or missing configuration files. We can check this.</p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> </p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> best</p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> Stefan</p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> </p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> On 05/01/2021 02:33, Bill Gee wrote:</p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> > Hi Alexander -</p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> > </p>
<p style="margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;">> > </p>
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