[R-SIG-Mac] Blank help window

[Marc Schwartz]

Hi,

Ok, that confirms the issue, as surmised.

The default hosts file on macOS typically contains the following entries:

##
##
# Host Database
#
# localhost is used to configure the loopback interface
# when the system is booting. Do not change this entry.
##
127.0.0.1 localhost
255.255.255.255 broadcasthost
::1 localhost
fe80::1%lo0 localhost


Somewhere along the way, the content of that file has been changed and the above content deleted, possibly by whatever VPN configuration process was implemented at some point.

Ben, if you know how to edit and save the /etc/hosts file, which should require the admin password, add the above lines before the #BEGIN line in the file as it is now.

I would recommend saving the current version of the file, before you start editing, just in case. So, from the terminal, use something like:

  sudo cp /etc/hosts /etc/hosts.SAVE

If you are not sure how to edit the file, here is one resource:

  https://www.imore.com/how-edit-your-macs-hosts-file-and-why-you-would-want

and there are others online as well.

Once you do that, hopefully, that will resolve this issue.

Marc


> On Oct 18, 2018, at 6:34 PM, Ben Tupper <btupper using bigelow.org> wrote:
> 
> Hi,
> 
> 
> ben using gale ~ $ ping localhost
> ping: cannot resolve localhost: Unknown host
> 
> Here's /etc/hosts in its entirety.
> 
> ben using gale ~ $ more /etc/hosts
> # BEGIN section for OpenVPN Client SSL sites
> 127.94.0.1      client.openvpn.net
> 127.94.0.2      openvpn-client.vpn.bigelow.org
> # END section for OpenVPN Client SSL sites
> 
> I'm not currently using VPN.
> 
> 
>> On Oct 18, 2018, at 6:29 PM, peter dalgaard <pdalgd using gmail.com> wrote:
>> 
>> Cannot _find_ localhost?? Can you do this (in a Terminal window) ?
>> 
>> Peter-Dalgaards-MacBook-Air:STAT pd$ ping localhost
>> PING localhost (127.0.0.1): 56 data bytes
>> Request timeout for icmp_seq 0
>> Request timeout for icmp_seq 1
>> ^C
>> --- localhost ping statistics ---
>> 3 packets transmitted, 0 packets received, 100.0% packet loss
>> 
>> If not, what is in the first couple of lines in /etc/hosts?
>> 
>> -pd
>> 
>>> On 19 Oct 2018, at 00:09 , Ben Tupper <btupper using bigelow.org> wrote:
>>> 
>>> Just a little followup.  Switching the default browser from Firefox to Safari yields a similar message in the browser after...
>>> 
>>> Browse[2]> browseURL(x)
>>> 
>>> 'Safari can't open the page "localhost:29682/library/utils/html/help.html"
>>> because Safari can't find the server "localhost".'
>>> 
>> 
>> -- 
>> Peter Dalgaard, Professor,
>> Center for Statistics, Copenhagen Business School
>> Solbjerg Plads 3, 2000 Frederiksberg, Denmark
>> Phone: (+45)38153501
>> Office: A 4.23
>> Email: pd.mes using cbs.dk  Priv: PDalgd using gmail.com
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
>> 
> 
> Ben Tupper
> Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences
> 60 Bigelow Drive, P.O. Box 380
> East Boothbay, Maine 04544
> http://www.bigelow.org
> 
> Ecological Forecasting: https://eco.bigelow.org/
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
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> 
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