# Ruby Install vs. Gimp Install: how to make them both happy?

**URL:** <https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/ruby-install-vs-gimp-install-how-to-make-them-both-happy/57891>\
**Category:** Ruby\
**Created:** [April 15, 2006, 7:47pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/ruby-install-vs-gimp-install-how-to-make-them-both-happy/57891 "2006-04-15T19:47:21Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Michael\_Prior](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Michael\_Prior](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Michael_Prior)\
**Post date:** [April 15, 2006, 7:47pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/ruby-install-vs-gimp-install-how-to-make-them-both-happy/57891/1 "2006-04-15T19:47:21Z")

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Hello all,

I’ve installed ruby via the 1-click installer with defaults selected  
(on a very clean win2000 machine), then I went to install GIMP, which  
needs the latest GTK+2 runtime as a prerequisite. On installing the  
GTK+2 i get this error:  
[snip-\>]  
Setup has found some DLL files, which may conflict with programs that  
rely on GTK+ 2. To prevent such conflicts, Setup can automatically  
rename these files.  
Note: Renaming these files may cause other programs to stop working.  
If you encounter such program, please read the FAQ at \<  
[http://www2.arnes.si/~sopjsimo/gimp/faq.html](http://www2.arnes.si/~sopjsimo/gimp/faq.html)\> for possible solutions.

Following is the list of files, which would be renamed:  
c:\ruby\bin\iconv.dll  
c:\ruby\bin\zlib1.dll  
If you choose to rename these files, their extension will be changed  
to .dll.off.  
[\<-snip]

and then i’m given the option of renaming these dlls.

looking through the GIMP install FAQ documentation I see this:  
[snip-\>]  
Q\* The GIMP installer informs me about conflicting DLL and  
recommends to rename them. What does this mean?  
A\* Another program installed libraries with the same name as those  
used by Gimp where they don’t belong. If these files are incompatible  
with the libraries required by the GIMP, the GIMP may either fail to  
load, or work incorrectly.

```
Q* I allowed the installer to rename conflicting DLL files, now

```

another program stopped working. What should I do?  
A\* Find the DLL file(s) the program is complaining about (it will  
have the extension .dll.off), copy it to the program’s directory and  
remove the .off extension.  
[\<-snip]

unfortunately I don’t understand enough of this ‘dll hell’ to  
understand the implications or what I should do here. Are any of you  
able to share your wisdom as to what i should do?

thanks soooo much for the help!

-Michael

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Michael\_Prior](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Michael\_Prior](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Michael_Prior)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 7:39am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/ruby-install-vs-gimp-install-how-to-make-them-both-happy/57891/2 "2006-04-16T07:39:55Z")

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On Apr 15, 2006, at 1:44 PM, Michael Prior wrote:

> [snip-\>]  
> Q\* The GIMP installer informs me about conflicting DLL and  
> recommends to rename them. What does this mean?  
> A\* Another program installed libraries with the same name as those  
> used by Gimp where they don’t belong. If these files are incompatible  
> with the libraries required by the GIMP, the GIMP may either fail to  
> load, or work incorrectly.

I find this difficult to believe. Why should C:\ruby\bin even be in  
the path that the GIMP looks for DLLs in? I feel like this is a bug,  
either in the ruby installer (it puts that path into the windows  
equivalent of ld.conf) or in the gimp (it’s just scouring the hard-  
drive unnecessarily). Have you tried NOT renaming the the files and  
continuing to install the GIMP to see what happens?

---

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**Author:** ![Michael\_Prior](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Michael\_Prior](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Michael_Prior)\
**Post date:** [April 16, 2006, 4:47pm UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/ruby-install-vs-gimp-install-how-to-make-them-both-happy/57891/3 "2006-04-16T16:47:39Z")

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Logan C. wrote:

> On Apr 15, 2006, at 1:44 PM, Michael Prior wrote:
> 
> > [snip-\>]  
> > Q\* The GIMP installer informs me about conflicting DLL and  
> > recommends to rename them. What does this mean?  
> > A\* Another program installed libraries with the same name as those  
> > used by Gimp where they don’t belong. If these files are incompatible  
> > with the libraries required by the GIMP, the GIMP may either fail to  
> > load, or work incorrectly.
> 
> I find this difficult to believe. Why should C:\ruby\bin even be in  
> the path that the GIMP looks for DLLs in? I feel like this is a bug,  
> either in the ruby installer (it puts that path into the windows  
> equivalent of ld.conf) or in the gimp (it’s just scouring the hard-  
> drive unnecessarily). Have you tried NOT renaming the the files and  
> continuing to install the GIMP to see what happens?

Because the %PATH% is searched for DLL’s this is correct behavior.

The only thing you should neeed to do is make sure that the Gimp’s path  
appears before Ruby’s in the %PATH% environment variable. Windows looks  
in the folder containing the executable before looking in the %PATH% for  
DLLs.

Ruby keeps the DLL’s in the same folder as the executable, Ruby should  
alsays find it’s own copy.

Gimps appear first in the path because you may have external  
applications trying to link against it.

A better all around approach for the Ruby installer should of been just  
to require the install of GTK+ if you wanted to support it.

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<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Michael\_Prior](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/m/b5a626/32.png) [@Michael\_Prior](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/Michael_Prior)\
**Post date:** [April 17, 2006, 2:00am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/ruby-install-vs-gimp-install-how-to-make-them-both-happy/57891/4 "2006-04-17T02:00:47Z")

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On 4/16/06, Michael G. [removed\_email\_address@domain.invalid](mailto:removed_email_address@domain.invalid) wrote:

> A better all around approach for the Ruby installer should of been just  
> to require the install of GTK+ if you wanted to support it.

Thankfully, Ruby’s installer doesn’t have GTK+. iconv.dll is used for  
localization support; zlib1.dll is used for compression support.

c:\ruby\bin\iconv.dll  
c:\ruby\bin\zlib1.dll

The GTK+/GIMP installers are too aggressive on this matter, assuming  
that one and only one copy of iconv.dll and zlib1.dll will be  
installed on a system.

There are ways around it, though.

-austin