[Openmcl-devel] Unreliable (load <file>) with MacOS Sierra 10.12.5

[Denis Lorrain]

I'm looking for help with the following issue. I'm an average level Common LISP user/programmer, not familiar with the environment's internals, using
- CCL Version 1.11.1 (16714) downloaded 05/19/2017 from Apple's App Store
- MacOS Sierra 10.12.5 (16F73)

I use a $HOME/ccl-init.lisp file to load other personal files upon CCL double-clic startup.
I use the Macinstosh IDE. My cl-init.lisp file allows me to chose between a couple of (load #P"/blabla...") forms. My personal files are loaded indeed, but leading to strange behaviours. In all cases, the following fixes the problem(s):
1. open the concerned file(s) in editor window(s) (i.e. File menu > Open...)
2. (re)evaluate the whole file(s) (i.e. <cmd><shift><E>) or appropriate part(s) of it (i.e. <cmd><E>)
>From then on, things work properly. It's as if the files had been first "carelessly" loaded, some elements skipped or something of that sort... (I know this is absurd.)

Example 1
A class defined in a file loaded by cl-init.lisp is defined indeed (it's not reported as undefined), but with one of its slots missing or bugged: the slot's initarg is reported as invalid. It's fixed as soon as I re-evaluate manually the defclass source code.

Example 2
A function is defined (not reported as undefined), but gives wrong results when called (details not significant). It's fixed as soon as I re-evaluate manually the defun source code.

Example 3
A function is defined (not reported as undefined), but gives this error when called:
> Error: The value NIL is not of the expected type NUMBER.
> While executing: CCL::+-2, in process Listener(5).

Comparison with LispWorks
Example 3 seems to me similar to the following error when opening a file with my older LispWorks 6.1 in the newer MacOS Sierra 10.12.5:
> Error in process "Cocoa Event Loop" {undebuggable process}
> In + of (NIL 0) arguments should be of type NUMBER.

In LispWorks 7.0, I have learned from experience with an Evaluation license that this bug and other oddities are somehow fixed within four (pre compiled) files in the private-patches folder. However, I'm switching to CCL to avoid purchasing LW 7.0, aside from the pleasure of going back to an environment similar to MCL, which I used a lot until 2008 on Motorola Macs, and liked very much.

Tentative causes
- Problem between CCL and Cocoa in MacOS Sierra 10.12.5? (I'm afraid I have only a vague idea about what Cocoa really is in fact...)
- Differences (ex. character set) between files as stored on disk and once opened in editor windows?

Sorry for the lengthy report! I have also reported this by creating a ticket:
https://trac.clozure.com/ccl/ticket/1414
 
--
Denis Lorrain
Site: http://denislorrain.org
Email: dlo_lorrain at yahoo.fr