Having re-read the previous thread again and explored the openGL version on my machine, it looks as though one needs openGL 2.0 or above - I had 1.1. I checked this using matlab with the command “opengl info.” Since there seems to be no route forward through updating drivers, I have switched to a different machine (with version 4.3.0) and it now works.
Given this problem results in practically nothing working, it does seem to me that it might be useful for an automatic check at launch or installation time that ensures that the machine meets the required spec - the error message that eventually comes at runtime is pretty obscure to the uninitiated. Someone in the previous thread suggested something like that, but it does not seem to have been implemented.