package sml-mode (not installed) failed to install/upgrade: subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 1

[Victor Allves]

receiving error messages, not sure why. Everything seems to be fine.

ProblemType: Package
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 12.10
Package: sml-mode (not installed)
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.5.0-21.32-generic 3.5.7.1
Uname: Linux 3.5.0-21-generic x86_64
NonfreeKernelModules: nvidia
ApportVersion: 2.6.1-0ubuntu9
AptOrdering:
 sml-mode: Install
 sml-mode: Configure
Architecture: amd64
Date: Tue Jan 8 07:55:56 2013
ErrorMessage: subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 1
InstallationDate: Installed on 2012-12-06 (33 days ago)
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 12.04.1 LTS "Precise Pangolin" - Release amd64 (20120823.1)
MarkForUpload: True
SourcePackage: sml-mode
Title: package sml-mode (not installed) failed to install/upgrade: subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 1
UpgradeStatus: Upgraded to quantal on 2012-12-06 (33 days ago)

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

Status changed to 'Confirmed' because the bug affects multiple users.

[Eric James Soltys (esoltys)]

Setting up sml-mode (4.1-2) ...
Install emacsen-common for emacs
Install emacsen-common for emacs23
install/sml-mode: Handling install for emacsen flavor emacs23
Wrote /usr/share/emacs23/site-lisp/sml-mode/sml-util.elc
Wrote /usr/share/emacs23/site-lisp/sml-mode/sml-mode-startup.elc
Wrote /usr/share/emacs23/site-lisp/sml-mode/sml-defs.elc
Wrote /usr/share/emacs23/site-lisp/sml-mode/sml-proc.elc
Wrote /usr/share/emacs23/site-lisp/sml-mode/sml-move.elc
Wrote /usr/share/emacs23/site-lisp/sml-mode/sml-mode.elc
Wrote /usr/share/emacs23/site-lisp/sml-mode/sml-compat.elc
Install emacsen-common for emacs24
install/sml-mode: Handling install for emacsen flavor emacs24

In toplevel form:
sml-util.el:25:1:Error: Constant symbol `:group' specified in defvar
Wrote /usr/share/emacs24/site-lisp/sml-mode/sml-mode-startup.elc

In toplevel form:
sml-defs.el:25:1:Error: Constant symbol `:group' specified in defvar

In toplevel form:
sml-proc.el:93:1:Error: Constant symbol `:group' specified in defvar

In toplevel form:
sml-move.el:26:1:Error: Constant symbol `:group' specified in defvar

In toplevel form:
sml-mode.el:73:1:Error: Constant symbol `:group' specified in defvar
Wrote /usr/share/emacs24/site-lisp/sml-mode/sml-compat.elc
ERROR: install script from emacsen-common package failed
dpkg: error processing sml-mode (--configure):
 subprocess installed post-installation script returned error exit status 1
No apport report written because MaxReports is reached already
Errors were encountered while processing:
 sml-mode

[Seth Galitzer (sgsax)]

Problem persists in raring when trying to install emacs24. Looks like it could be upstream: http://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=681922. The patch there looks easy enough to implement, but another post indicates that sml-mode-5.0 should also resolve the issue.