Hey all,

I've posted to the list before about getting tcl errors in some of my new patches. Well after more digging I have finally found the cause.

I'll first explain the patch a bit. tcl_errors.pd is the toplevel patch. It contains a number of dir2abstractionArray abstractions. These are abstractions that create dynamic subpatches of abstractions. The abstractions are read from a directory you specify via set-dir messages. A TOT object reads the directory and then spits out a list of all the abstractions. Each one is then dripped and has the extension removed. This is sent to the dynamic patch generator that actually creates the "array" of abstractions in a subpatch. The dir2abstractionArray abstraction brokers the communication from the outside to the various abstractions contained in the array. The first two inlets and outlets get routed to the "selected" abstraction. The selected abstraction is chosen by index value.

I'm using this abstraction so that an end-user can drop custom abstractions into special directories and they automatically get updated in the GUI when the patch is loaded. This could even happen while PD is running by sending an update message.

Due to the complexity of the GOP that uses this abstraction I had a lot of trouble seeing where the tcl errors were coming from.

When we have only one dir2abstractionArray in a patch then it behaves very well (on OSX) on linux if you try and update the array too fast you get tcl errors. On both linux and OSX if we have more than one instance of this abstraction then all hell breaks loose and we get constant tcl errors. :(

The most obvious solution is to send the update (pattern) messages in sequence and not all at once. The problem is that the solution needs to work in every pixelTANGO patch, no matter how many abstractions there are or what order they are in. There is no way of picking out a particular abstraction to go first. How do the others know when its done? I had been using delays, but since all the abstractions are the same, they all get delayed for the same amount of time. I guess I could divide some constant by the $0 variable to get a unique delay for each abstraction. Does that make sense??

I'm not sure if this would be considered a real bug, since its so bleeding edge and perhaps is not supposed to work at all..

Krzysztof, are the tcl errors happening because I'm running simultaneous "query" commands that are being bogged down by the dynamic patching?

I'm doing a workshop on thursday night and I would really like to get this fixed, I feel like I'm very close since I can actually make a test-patch. I don't have any brilliant ideas about how to fix it though.

Using the test patch:

1. Make sure tot and zexy are working 2. save all the patches in one directory and then open the tcl_errors.pd file. 3. Change the set-dir arguments to a directory on your machine that is in your PD path. (better NOT choose the directory containing the tcl_errors patch) or try the sending "sel-dir" message. 4. Try the "pattern *.pd" message at the top and look for tcl errors. If you click it slowly enough you should get no tcl errors. 5. Try the "pattern *.pd" message attached to multiple abstractions. This will cause tcl errors every time.

A patch fix would be good for now, but it would be nice if these errors could somehow be avoided in the future (perhaps with changes in pd and or TOT?)

Thank you all for your time. I took me months to get this far, I hope there are some brilliant ideas to fix things out there.

B. Bogart

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#N canvas 87 227 619 468 10; #X obj 20 210 tot .; #X obj 86 107 dirpanel; #X obj 20 61 inlet; #X text 26 302 Can't read dirs with spaces... how to wrap??; #X obj 20 234 outlet; #X text 20 17 Lists the files in a directory thanks to dirpanel. Sends the files matching pattern as a list.; #X obj 20 110 symbol; #X text 26 271 ONLY sends absolute pathnames , otherwise hard to add before load! No internel data-structure to exploit.; #X obj 103 235 outlet; #X text 154 236 Output chosen directory; #X obj 20 84 route pattern sel-dir set-dir; #X obj 231 84 loadbang; #X obj 64 158 pack s s; #X text 129 200 $1 is pattern $2 is dir; #X msg 63 180 query glob [file join $2 $1]; #X obj 86 129 symbol; #X obj 152 107 symbol; #X obj 117 352 print tot; #N canvas 0 22 462 312 pwd 0; #X text 18 27 This is where used to be.; #X obj 35 92 inlet; #X obj 41 184 outlet; #X obj 48 153 symbol /; #X connect 1 0 3 0; #X connect 3 0 2 0; #X restore 231 107 pd pwd; #X connect 0 0 4 0; #X connect 1 0 15 0; #X connect 2 0 10 0; #X connect 6 0 12 0; #X connect 10 0 6 0; #X connect 10 1 1 0; #X connect 10 2 16 0; #X connect 10 2 8 0; #X connect 11 0 18 0; #X connect 12 0 14 0; #X connect 14 0 0 0; #X connect 14 0 17 0; #X connect 15 0 12 1; #X connect 15 0 8 0; #X connect 16 0 12 1; #X connect 18 0 12 1;

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#N canvas 0 22 454 304 10; #X obj 15 99 tot .; #X msg 15 77 query file rootname $1; #X obj 15 55 symbol; #X obj 15 33 inlet; #X obj 15 123 outlet; #X text 4 5 Uses toxy to remove the extension from a symbol (.*); #X connect 0 0 4 0; #X connect 1 0 0 0; #X connect 2 0 1 0; #X connect 3 0 2 0;

#N canvas 442 118 802 582 10; #X obj 26 315 dir2abstractionArray $0; #X text 21 16 Requires TOT and ZEXY; #X obj 152 401 dir2abstractionArray $0; #X obj 89 354 dir2abstractionArray $0; #X obj 391 490 dir2abstractionArray $0; #X obj 313 462 dir2abstractionArray $0; #X obj 229 435 dir2abstractionArray $0; #X obj 23 138 dir2abstractionArray $0; #X msg 127 95 pattern *.pd; #X msg 317 230 pattern *.pd; #X text 490 183 <- Same directory as above; #X msg 362 255 clear; #X text 418 255 <- to clear dynamic patch; #X obj 225 96 cnv 15 70 15 empty empty empty 20 12 0 14 -257281 -66577 0; #X obj 418 232 cnv 15 70 15 empty empty empty 20 12 0 14 -257281 -66577 0; #X text 344 60 1 Choose a directory containing your abstractions.; #X text 227 96 <- WORKS: when you create the array no tcl errors.; #X text 417 232 <- ERRORS: with multiple abstractions; #X msg 87 61 set-dir /store/temp/debug/tcl_errors; #X msg 219 185 set-dir /store/temp/debug/tcl_errors; #X text 298 116 On linux simply clicking too fast causes tcl errors ; #X connect 8 0 7 2; #X connect 9 0 0 2; #X connect 9 0 2 2; #X connect 9 0 3 2; #X connect 9 0 4 2; #X connect 9 0 5 2; #X connect 9 0 6 2; #X connect 11 0 0 2; #X connect 11 0 3 2; #X connect 11 0 2 2; #X connect 11 0 6 2; #X connect 11 0 5 2; #X connect 11 0 4 2; #X connect 18 0 7 2; #X connect 19 0 0 2; #X connect 19 0 3 2; #X connect 19 0 2 2; #X connect 19 0 6 2; #X connect 19 0 5 2; #X connect 19 0 4 2;