I never got around to replacing the java that comes with Ubuntu. Then I upgraded from Ubuntu 11.10 to 12.04 a few days ago. After the upgrade, the java error messages no longer appear when loading newLISP GS IDE server. Saved me the trouble.
After Ubuntu Precise Pangolin solved the java GTK message problem, it was otherwise a very pleasant upgrade for me. The Unity loader works without problems now, but what's really great is the new Heads Up Display replacing menus. I click the Windows key, and the HUD overlays the desktop in transparency, displaying recent apps, recent files, and recent downloads. Typing "GI" offers me the Gimp's Icon, a click loads it.
I downloaded an app called Main Menu from the Software Center. Using that I added Newlisp to Unity. It was simple: enter the "newlisp-edit" command in the right input box, fill in the other details in the dialog, click on the icon in the dialog and browse to /usr/share/newlisp to select the newLISP icon & close. Then, pressing the Windows key and entering "Ne" brought up the newLISP icon. I think Ubuntu has really stolen a march on both Windows and Apple for ease of use here. I really don't enjoy too much clicking around endless menus with a mouse (and use a tablet instead of mouse when I can), so this ability to type (without needing to load a terminal first) is a steal to me. Speaking of which, I just plugged in my Wacom Bamboo tablet to this Ubuntu 12.04 (it's an HP laptop) computer, and it works straight off without a hitch. Win 7 struggled with that, and then downloaded a driver, which didn't work first time, but it eventually did the second time. I'm impressed.
Thanks for the note. I also just installed 12.04 in VirtualBox on Mac OSX Lion. And the Java installed on this version of UBUNTU works fine. Only the main menu in the newLISP-GS IDE was hardly visible because of the dark colors in the default UBUNTU theme. But switching to the "Radiance" theme solved the problem.
But I still have problems with the sound for midi-demo.lsp and midi2-demo.lsp. Even after installing "soundbank-mid.gm", it was not able to do a gs:midi-init with that file. Perhaps you find a solution for this ;-)
Thanks to you too. I had not noticed a problem, but checked now to find I had already switched to "radiance".
As to sound, I have always struggled with both midi demo programs, and in fact with sound on Ubuntu, throughout the years. I will give them a try, and report back.
When I press OK, it then plays the programmed scale sequence, on a piano. But maybe the piano is a default.
midi2-demo.lsp does the same thing, but after pressing ok, it plays only a few of the programmed sounds. Without ever doing anything with midi and synthesizers, I don't know why this is happening as it is, but I am wildly thrilled at getting any kind of sound at all!