Meld fails to start; complains about launchd not providing socket path

[Marcus Calhoun-Lopez]

Rainer Müller <raimue <at> macports.org> writes:

> 
> You are right, the org.freedesktop.dbus-session.plist is intended to be
> loaded by a user, not system-wide by root.
> 
> The message has been changed by mcalhoun in r49300.
> The old message was:
> 
> #########################################################
> # It is absolutely necessary for dbus enabled programs to work to execute
> #
> # launchctl load /Library/LaunchAgents/org.freedesktop.dbus-session.plist
> #
> # once for every user. Don't use 'sudo', else it will work only for root!
> # You also have to unload it before deactivating/uninstalling this software!
> #########################################################
> 
> This was more correct and it should be changed to read like this again
> in my opinion.
> 
> Rainer
> 

Sorry for joining this discussion late.
Here is the current situation on the dbus startup files:

   * The system-level daemon installed in /Library/LaunchDaemons is disabled
          by default to mimic the MacPorts startup mechanism.

   * Since the system-level daemon is disabled, the per-user agents installed in
         /Library/LaunchAgents is also disabled by default.

   * Without first enabling, them I do not think
         launchctl load /Library/LaunchAgents/org.freedesktop.dbus-session.plist
         does anything unless the -F flag is used.

   * Only root has permission to permanently enable the files, hence the sudo in
         sudo launchctl load -w /Library/LaunchDaemons/...
         and
         sudo launchctl load -w /Library/LaunchAgents/...

   *  The "-w" is intentional in both commands because that is what
           permanently enables the file.

   * After this, at least on my machine, there was no reason for each user to run
         launchctl.
      Everything worked for me.

Please let me know if I have something incorrect here.
I am aware of a problem of
/Library/LaunchAgents/org.freedesktop.dbus-session.plist
being a broken link:
http://permalink.gmane.org/gmane.os.apple.macports.user/14831
and
http://trac.macports.org/ticket/19510
but I do not think that is the problem here.

-Marcus