[GRASS-user] WinGRASS6.4.2RC2 + WindowsXP: GRASS Doesn't starts

[Hamish]

Lluís wrote:
> I have a student of an on-line course that wants to use
> WinGRASS6.4.2RC2 on Windows XP but she can't start the program.
> She has installed grass6.4.2rc2 under a Windows XP OS and the
> installation process seems to be ok («she gets the message
> Completed»). Now, she has two icons in her desktop (GRASS6.4.2RC2
> & GRASS6.4.2RC2 with MSYS) but when she does a double clic over
> any of them, nothing happens. There is no error message but
> nothing is displayed. GRASS doesn't starts...


Hi,

this is a known problem, fortunately with a known solution:
  http://grass.osgeo.org/wiki/WinGRASS_Current_Status#XP.2F2000

She will need to download and install two missing files from
Microsoft: (in order)

    * Microsoft's Windows Installer 3.1 Redistributable (v2) 
    http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?displaylang=en&id=25 

    * Microsoft's .net framework 3.5 downloader 
    http://www.microsoft.com/download/en/details.aspx?id=21 


Many other software supply these, so usually it only happens
on a brand new (or kept very clean) computer.


If anyone has suggestions on how to make the grass installer
test for those, or how to make the error pop up a useful message
explaining what to do, please contribute :-)


Hamish