I cannot create a Bottle

General Help
1

Greetings fellow Zorin Forum members

I am in the process of discovering which of my important Windows apps can be run under latest version (17.3) of Zorin. So, I tried installing a Windows app on Zorin but it did not work - presumably it was using 'Windows App Support' at the time. Then I had the idea to try using Bottles. However, trying to create a Bottle did not work. (See attached pictures.) I tried twice using both 'Runners' options.

Are Bottles now obsolete under Zorin 17.3? Am I supposed to be able to create a Bottle or would it make no difference anyway if I already have Window App Support installed?

Pic1
Pic11920×1080 59.2 KB

Pic2
Pic21920×1080 52.8 KB

2

What windows apps are you trying to run on zorin? If you're trying to run windows games, you're better off using Steam Proton, also known as Steam Play

1 Like
3

So did you have Windows App Support installed prior to attempting to install the windows program in question, or did you try to do it just by installing the exe? I've seen another report of someone needing to explicitly install Windows App Support before trying to install a program, otherwise certain packages tend to say they aren't available.

I haven't had any time to look into this issue in any depth, though.

4

Bottles is independent of Windows App Support, and just running the EXE won't get the user to where he is. Minimally, the user has installed Bottles, run it, clicked "Create Bottle," named it, and accepted settings.

I wouldn't say so. My recommendation to you is to open a terminal window (Ctrl-Alt-T) and then run bottles from the command line with flatpak run com.usebottles.bottles This will let you see error output in the Terminal window, so you can try again, and perhaps get some useful information to provide us to help you.

Edit: I should note that Bottles is only distributed as source code and as flatpak, at least officially, so you're probably using the flatpak (thus the command line I gave above). If you're trying to create the bottle somewhere other than its default location, the flatpak may not have rights to that location, which is the biggest user experience problem with flatpaks. That said, I would've expected a different error for that situation, so it'd still be good to run from command line and see what it says.

This is usually true. It's certainly easier, and running from Steam also makes it easier to get DLSS working for Nvidia users. I still prefer using Bottles for my non-Steam games, personally. There's some overhead in terms of storage, but I've found Bottles to be nicely portable when distro hopping, and when I delete a bottle, everything associated with it is GONE, whereas Steam tends to leave minor stuff behind. It's also easier to make certain configuration changes to a bottle, and I've had Steam have issues with some non-Steam games that include their own launcher (particularly Cyberpunk 2077, which I purchased from GoG), that worked great in Bottles.

Still, I agree that for a strong majority of use cases, it's easier to run games using Steam.

2 Likes
5

Many thanks for all the replies. I can now provide an update.

I just tried Bottles again and it worked! I was able to create a new Bottle and then install one of my Windows apps.

You will note from the attached screenshot that Bottles did much more installing this time when compared to the initial screenshot. Previously, it seemed to give up at the 'DXVK' stage.

I was attempting to install Potplayer (which is not a game) using Bottles just to see if the latest version is compatible with Linux. Unfortunately, it is still not compatible. However, I felt obliged to try before evaluating Linux alternatives.

I think there is a pattern emerging whereby I report a software installation problem then wait several hours and someone has fixed it.

Pic1
Pic1628×545 27.2 KB

1 Like
6

If you haven't yet, you may wish to try updating the runners Bottles uses. You can get ProtonUp Qt or ProtonPlus from the software store to do this, and there's a howto in the gaming section covering use. [How To] Install Custom Proton-GE in Steam. By selecting Bottles instead of Steam as the target (in either program), you can update Bottles' runners, which may make PotPlayer work (or may not). Remember to close Bottles before updating its runners, and remember to set the new runner on any bottle you're using; by default it sticks to the runner with which it was created.

1 Like
7

Thanks for the tips. I will try again tomorrow.

8

I installed ProtonUp-Qt which allowed me to install the GE-Proton9-26 runner. Then I created a new Bottle for Potplayer using the new Runner. I was then able to install Potplayer using the new Bottle. This resulted in some progress because Potplayer opened without immediately hanging.

The problem with the installed Potplayer is that I cannot play any video files. I tried drag and drop from my USB drive but I got a 'the file does not exist or cannot be accessible' message. I could have a codec issue but I suspect not. Potplayer uses a 'Windows' folder structure which seems to be walled off from the Linux folder structure. It is not practical to contemplate trying to get video files from a Linux folder to a 'Windows' folder - with no guarantee that they will open from the 'Windows' folder. Also, Potplayer is not available within Zorin to be chosen as the default video player. So, if I am unable to drag and drop my video files from Zorin into Potplayer or even open them from Potplayer there is no point continuing with the evaluation.

So, thank you for your suggestion but I have finished trying to get Potplayer working properly on Zorin. Having already ruled out a number of Linux video players - some of which appear to have zero configuration options - I am still hopeful that I will eventually find a suitable video player.

9

Understood. If you ever want to try again though, what's happening to you now is actually a common issue with software distributed via flatpak and is likely very fixable. (I won't say definitely because it's never wise to count chickens before they're hatched.) Since this is something you may run into in the future with other flatpaks, I'll give you a rundown on fixing it anyway. While Bottles or the flatpak in question is not running:

First, it's easiest to fix it using a program called Flatseal that lets you alter a flatpak's default security settings. You could do this from the command line, but flatseal is easier. So, install Flatseal and run it.

Second: Open Flatseal and select Bottles from its list of applications (or whatever flatpak may bother you in the future).

Next, scroll down on the right side until you see a section for granting access to directories. You'll need to click the button to the right of "other files" and then enter the path to which you'd like to grant access. I'm currently stuck on Windows on the moment on a new computer so I can't take a screenshot, but here's one from a TechRepublic article on Flatseal:

flatsealb
flatsealb1198×900 56 KB

There is no "save" or "apply." Once you've made the addition, close Flatseal and Bottles or whichever flatpak you're using should be able to access the directory in question.

It sounds to me like you're only one adjustment away from having Potplayer work, so I hope you give it a try, but if not, good luck in finding an alternate player.

For reference, what's happening here is that as a security measure, flatpak software is configured with access to very few directories. This is the primary cause of bad user experience with flatpaks, but there are other practical and ideological issues others have with them. The benefit of flatpaks is that if your Linux distribution supports them, you don't need to hunt for a package for your distro or wait for your distro's software repositories to be updated with new versions; you can just download and go.

In any case, since you honestly seem to have given up just before the finish line, I hope you see this and give it a shot, but if not, I wish you luck. I've had this exact issue with a messaging program for Windows called Line, and resolved it with the above steps, so I'm reasonably confident it will help.

10

During the past several days, as well as trying to get Potplayer to work, I have been searching for a suitable Linux media player.

I did try your suggestions and I was able to successfully install Potplayer. I then adjusted Flatseal and Potplayer was able to 'see' the media files on my Desktop. (I used small size test video files that I proved were working on the Zorin computer.) Unfortunately, the first media file that I loaded from my Desktop caused Potplayer to crash. Thereafter, Potplayer refused to open normally and gave me a 'not responding' popup message. I did several reinstalls and I have now convinced myself, rightly or wrongly, that Potplayer is, quite simply, not compatible - at least with my Zorin computer.

After evaluating about seven of the 'best' Linux media players, I have settled on SMplayer as my Zorin default media player. I am not a fan of SMplayer's default skin but I found a skin I really like from the installed skins. SMplayer gives me all the features that I used in Potplayer. Plus, it has the benefit of having both Windows and Linux versions. So, I have replaced Potplayer on my Windows computer with SMplayer.

My quest for a suitable Zorin media player is now over.

Thank you for encouraging me to keep trying.

3 Likes
11

Glad you've got a solution, and thanks for letting me know how it went. Even when our help isn't exactly helpful, it's gratifying when helping to know we weren't typing into the void. It certainly sounds to me like you've reached a more than reasonable conclusion with Potplayer. As much as we try, some things just don't like running under WINE or in VMs.

12

I tried the Windows App Support on 17.3 and was able to run some 20 year old programs (Moonrise and HomePlanet).
But the programs I wanted to use Affinity, eM-Client and Xara = no luck at all.
Bottles + bottles and wine etc. seems to be made only for people gaming and I am not doing that.
Without these 3 programs (actually 5: designer, photo from both Affinity and Xara) not going to abandon Windows even though it is getting harder to keep that stupid piece of glass from looking more into my private data than helping me look out into the world.