OK, I have made some progress. Here is what I think I know - I used a shell script downloaded from
http://ubuntuhandbook.org/index.php/2016/10/netbeans-8-2-released-how-to-install-it-in-ubuntu-16-04/ to install Netbeans 8.2. One of the files it installed was myhome/Netbeans-8.2/etc/netbeans.conf. In this configuration file was a line that looked like this: netbeans_jdkhome="/myhome/netbeans-8.2/bin/jre" When I replaced this line with one that looked like this: netbeans_jdkhome="/usr/lib/jvm/java-1.8.0-openjdk-amd64" the problem of netbeans suddenly closing appeared to go away. There is less than an hour's worth of testing on this so far. - As for not seeing local variables, I have found that netbeans will only show local variables after they have appeared on the right hand side of an assignment. In other words $y = 1; //Will not show the value of $y $z = $y + 1; //Will show the value of $y, but not of $z - This is NOT the behavior I remember from previous versions of Netbeans, but it is one that I can live with. Wyckham ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Wyckham Seelig <wdsee...@gmail.com> Date: Wed, Jan 10, 2018 at 9:49 PM Subject: Fwd: Please tell me where to go To: users@netbeans.apache.org Paolo, Thanks for the suggestion, but a quick check of phpinfo() reveals that xdebug.show_local_vars is on, and I'm still not seeing then in netbeans. Do you know of any other xdebug settings that I might want to check? Wyckham ---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Paolo Scarabelli <pa...@msw.it> Date: Wed, Jan 10, 2018 at 8:14 PM Subject: Re: Please tell me where to go To: Wyckham Seelig <wdsee...@gmail.com> Cc: users@netbeans.apache.org Hi Wyckham, Have your tried setting xdebug.show_local_vars=on in your xdebug.ini file? Regards, Paolo On Thu, Jan 11, 2018 at 4:50 AM, Wyckham Seelig <wdsee...@gmail.com> wrote: > At Chuck Davis's request, I am forwarding this email to the users list. > > Also, at his suggestion, I have installed java 8 oracle, and have reset my > netbeans_jdkhome to > /usr/lib/jvm/java-8-oracle. > > This change made no difference in the availability of local variables in > my variable window. > > Wyckham > ---------- Forwarded message ---------- > From: Chuck Davis <cjgun...@gmail.com> > Date: Wed, Jan 10, 2018 at 2:55 PM > Subject: Re: Please tell me where to go > To: Wyckham Seelig <wdsee...@gmail.com> > > > Hi Wyckham. Please re-mail the above information to the list where there > are many VERY knowledgeable people who can help. > > I just have one other question that the people on the list will want to > know -- are you using Oracle java or openjdk? NB doesn't work well with > openjdk at this time. > > On Wed, Jan 10, 2018 at 10:06 AM, Wyckham Seelig <wdsee...@gmail.com> > wrote: > >> Thank you very much for responding. >> >> - I am running on Ubuntu 16.04 >> - I installed Netbeans by downloading it from the Netbeans site and >> then >> running the shell script. It appeared to install just fine. >> - I am able to open Netbeans 8.2, am able to navigate to files >> within my project, set breakpoints, and launch the debugger. When I >> do this, >> the site I am running comes up in Firefox my default browser, and all >> appears to be normal. >> >> Now the trouble starts. >> >> - First, when the debugger stops at a breakpoint, the local variables >> that >> I are set in the code do not appear in the variables window. >> - Second, occasionally Netbeans just closes all by itself--even >> though the >> site that I am debugging is still visible in the Firefox browser. >> >> Other things you might like to know: >> >> - I am running Netbeans via an Xwindow using TightVNC and the >> vncserver >> on my server. >> - I am attempting to debug PHP7.0 >> - I have modified the jdkhome statement in my netbeans.conf file to >> point to >> jdk rather than the jre. [The system didn't work with jre either]. >> - Finally, it appears to me that Netbeans is less likely to close >> suddenly after >> I reboot my server, but I do not know if this is really true or not. >> >> >> Again, thanks for any help you can provide. >> >> Wyckham >> >> On Wed, Jan 10, 2018 at 12:50 PM, Chuck Davis <cjgun...@gmail.com> wrote: >> >>> What is your platform (os)? >>> What have you done -- how did you install NB? >>> What happens when you click on the desktop icon? >>> What happens if you start the binary from a command prompt? >>> >>> On Wed, Jan 10, 2018 at 9:03 AM, Wyckham Seelig <wdsee...@gmail.com> >>> wrote: >>> >>>> Hello, >>>> >>>> Can somebody please help me find somewhere to go to get help in getting >>>> Netbeans 8.2 to work? >>>> >>>> I have scoured the netbeans.org site, and have tried to use the >>>> netbeans.org bugzilla system, but am >>>> told that "Either no products have been defined to enter bugs against >>>> or you have not been given access to any". >>>> >>>> What I'm looking for is something like the system Drupal has or >>>> StackExchange. >>>> >>>> Wyckham >>>> >>>> >>>> >>> >> > >