Can't change default "Open with" application

[Suor]

I am on Ubuntu 13.10 using nautilus 1:3.8.2-0ubuntu2.2.

I am trying to change default application to open .avi files. I right-click an .avi file select "Properties", go to "Open With". There is a default application there (banshee) and recommended (VLC media player). I select VLC media player and click "Set as default" button, selection jumps back to banshee, "Set as default" button disabled and nothing else happens. Nautilus still opens .avi files with banshee.

ProblemType: Bug
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 13.10
Package: nautilus 1:3.8.2-0ubuntu2.2
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 3.11.0-15.25-generic 3.11.10
Uname: Linux 3.11.0-15-generic x86_64
ApportVersion: 2.12.5-0ubuntu2.2
Architecture: amd64
Date: Sun Feb 16 21:45:45 2014
GsettingsChanges: b'org.gnome.nautilus.window-state' b'geometry' b"'1497x873+0+171'"
InstallationDate: Installed on 2013-11-17 (91 days ago)
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 13.10 "Saucy Salamander" - Release amd64 (20131016.1)
MarkForUpload: True
SourcePackage: nautilus
UpgradeStatus: No upgrade log present (probably fresh install)
mtime.conffile..etc.xdg.autostart.nautilus.autostart.desktop: 2013-11-20T19:34:55.419627

[Sebastien Bacher (seb128)]

Thank you for your bug report. Is that working on a guest session? If you run "nautilus -q; nautilus" and try to do those change do you get any warning? It could be a wrong permission on some file or directory

[Suor (suor-web)]

No bug in guest session.

When I do "nautilus -q; nautilus" I immediately get:
Initializing nautilus-dropbox 1.6.1

(nautilus:499): GLib-GObject-CRITICAL **: g_object_set: assertion 'G_IS_OBJECT (object)' failed

(nautilus:499): GLib-GObject-CRITICAL **: g_object_set: assertion 'G_IS_OBJECT (object)' failed

(nautilus:499): GLib-GObject-CRITICAL **: g_object_set: assertion 'G_IS_OBJECT (object)' failed

(nautilus:499): GLib-GObject-CRITICAL **: g_object_set: assertion 'G_IS_OBJECT (object)' failed
Initializing nautilus-dropbox 1.6.1

(nautilus:508): GLib-GObject-CRITICAL **: g_object_set: assertion 'G_IS_OBJECT (object)' failed

(nautilus:508): GLib-GObject-CRITICAL **: g_object_set: assertion 'G_IS_OBJECT (object)' failed

Nautilus starts I do my thing and get these new lines:

(nautilus:508): Gtk-CRITICAL **: gtk_widget_show: assertion 'GTK_IS_WIDGET (widget)' failed

(nautilus:508): Gtk-CRITICAL **: gtk_spinner_start: assertion 'GTK_IS_SPINNER (spinner)' failed

[Sebastien Bacher (seb128)]

What about "ls -ld ~/.local/share/applications" and the files in that directory?

[Suor (suor-web)]

Looks like it's something wrong with my "~/.local/share/applications/mimeapps.list" config. After removing it I am able to change associations back and forth.

Attaching my old broken mimeapps.list.

[Suor (suor-web)]

I managed to break it again.

Here are the steps:
1. Delete "~/.local/share/applications/mimeapps.list".
2. Set VLC as default player for .avi files through nautilus.
3. Goto System Settings -> Details -> Default applications and set VLC player to open video files.
4. Go back to nautilus and try to change default application for .avi files. Get the bug.

It's worth noting that "~/.local/share/applications/mimeapps.list" is updated in step 4, but changes do not work.

[Suor (suor-web)]

In case you still need this:

$ ls -ld ~/.local/share/applications
drwx------ 2 suor suor 4096 Feb 17 21:06 /home/suor/.local/share/applications

$ ls -ld ~/.local/share/applications/*
-rw-r--r-- 1 suor suor 206 Feb 17 21:03 /home/suor/.local/share/applications/mimeapps.list
-rw-r--r-- 1 suor suor 1348 Jan 7 2013 /home/suor/.local/share/applications/opera-browser.desktop
-rw-rw-r-- 1 suor suor 187 Nov 16 2012 /home/suor/.local/share/applications/Twittertwittercom.desktop
-rw-r--r-- 1 suor suor 200 Nov 18 00:40 /home/suor/.local/share/applications/vkcomvkcom.desktop

[Doug McMahon (mc3man)]

I believe the bug here is that once you use System Settings > Details > Default applications for audio or video you then cannot individually change any related mime in nautilus > properties of a a/v filetype to a new default.

Test case:
delete ~/.local/share/applications/mimeapps.list
Open system settings > Details > default apps.. & set the default for either audio or video to some other player
(Ex. video to vlc
Then right click on a related filetype > properties > open with & try to set to another player, it will not do so
(ex. r. click on a .mp4, try to set to Videos

[Sebastien Bacher (seb128)]

The issue seems to be an upstream one and it would be nice if somebody having it could send the bug to the developers of the software by following the instructions at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/Bugs/Upstream/GNOME. If you have done so, please tell us the number of the upstream bug (or the link), so we can add a bugwatch that will inform us about its status. Thanks in advance.

[Doug McMahon (mc3man)]

On a closer look I don't see any big issue here. I happened to choose the only filetype as a test/example that *I've found* to be an issue - .mp4
When one uses ..Details > Default, ect on video there are these 2 lines concerning .mp4 created -
video/mp4=
video/mp4v-es=

So when both lines exist with a = of player A then nautilus > properties > open with doesn't work properly on a .mp4 when trying to set one or the other to player B as default
mimeapps.list will reflect the change but nautilus will not until the other line is either removed or edited to match
( most users will only have video/mp4 files..

So I guess this is a valid bug, albeit small, if would be good to know if there are any other 'conflicts' in video or audio mimes before considering an upstream bug.

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

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

[Doug McMahon (mc3man)]

With .mp4 can add another that will cause this - video/x-m4v
So for example if a user sets Videos as default thru "Default Applications" then these 3 are entered in mimeapps.list
video/mp4=
video/mp4v-es=
video/x-m4v=

Nautilus only sets the first one so if the other 2 exist then the default for .mp4 cannot be altered thru nautilus until they are removed or edited to intended new default.

Also if another player is set thru Default Applications & the above 3 are in mimeapps.list then the default for .mp4 will only be changed if that player has all 3 in it's .desktop's MimeType= line

[Justin Luth (jluth)]

I saw a similar problem in 16.04 with PDFs being opened with ImageMagick. Trying to open With Document Viewer and set that as the default made no change. I saw in mimeapps.list that there was both an image/pdf and an applications/pdf entry. I removed the image/pdf entry that pointed to ImageMagick, and left the very last entry in the file, which was the applications/pdf entry with Evince.