[vtkusers] problems using VTK from Java on Windows'98

[Zsolt Zsoldos]

Dear VTK users,

I've been using VTK since version 1.0 on Unix (SGI Irix and Linux),
from Java binding since version 2.0. I have even added some of my own
classes to the contrib package, which I could also use from Java.

Now, University of New Brunswick would be interested to use my software
as a demonstration tool during a computational chemistry course, but
they need a Windows'98 version.

I installed VTK on Win98 and SUN JDK1.1.8, then tried to start some
simple example java class from the VTK distribution (e.g. Test.java).
However, I could not get any java example to run. I keep getting one
of the following two error messages - neither of which makes sense 
considering my setup:

1. If I try to start a java class, which has been compiled under Unix
   and copied over to the windows machine, then I get the error:

java.lang.UnsatisfiedLinkError: no vtkJava in shared library path
  at java.lang.Runtime.loadLibrary(System.java 561)
...


However, my PATH setting contains C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM, and the file
vtkJava.dll is in that directory, so do not understand why doesn't it
find the library.

2. If I try to recompile the .java file under windows 98 (suspecting there
   might be something Unix specific in the .class file even though there 
   should not be such thing), then the compilation goes OK, I get the
   new class file at the same location (current directory) where the Unix
   version was before. However, when I try to start it, I get the error:

Can't find class Test 

However, this does not make any sense, because the class file is right there
in the current directory and CLASSPATH contains the '.' Same thing happens
if I unset the CLASSPATH and try to rely on the default one, which should also
include the current directory.

So it seems, that the error messages are misleading, but I can't figure out
what is the real problem. I would greatly appreciate any tips, ideas what to
try, or any advice from people who got Java binding to work on windows.

Thanks a lot,
Zsolt
-- 
Zsolt Zsoldos, PhD.              
zsolt at simbiosys.ca   http://www.simbiosys.ca/