effect of xmodmap ~/.Xmodmap

[Steve Newcomb]

Binary package hint: xorg

I just installed karmic 9.10.

I have a ~/.Xmodmap file in effect; it has been working fine in Jaunty. The first time I used it in Karmic, I got the usual prompt about whether I really wanted to use it, and of course I said yes. After that, it worked fine in Karmic. HOWEVER, when I run emacs, all of the effects of the .Xmodmap file disappear; the keys revert to the way they worked without the .Xmodmap, and that's true not only in the emacs window, but everywhere on the screen.

Here's my ~/.Xmodmap :

! Swap grave/asciitilde with Escape
keycode 9 = grave asciitilde grave asciitilde grave asciitilde
keycode 49 = Escape NoSymbol Escape NoSymbol Escape
! Set capslock to be control, and the righthand control key to be capslock
clear Lock
clear Control
keycode 66 = Control_R NoSymbol Control_R NoSymbol Control_R
keycode 105 = Caps_Lock NoSymbol Caps_Lock NoSymbol Caps_Lock
add Lock = Caps_Lock
add Control = Control_R

In /etc/X11/Xsession.d, I have, among the ordinary things :

  lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 55 Oct 30 15:12 80ubuntu-xmodmap -> /usr/local/ch-tools/etc-X11-Xsession.d-80ubuntu-xmodmap

Here is /usr/local/ch-tools/etc-X11-Xsession.d:

USRMODMAP="$HOME/.Xmodmap"
if [ -x /usr/bin/xmodmap ]; then
    if [ -f "$USRMODMAP" ]; then
        xmodmap "$USRMODMAP"
    fi
fi

I repeat: all this works fine until I start emacs. Then it all goes away. This did not happen under Jaunty; it's a surprise.

[Steve Newcomb (srn-coolheads)]

I did a little more testing so I could tell you exactly how to reproduce the error. Turns out, emacs has nothing to do with it (sorry, I was confused). Now I think the problem is actually just another problem with the new gdm, because the problem occurs when I log out and then log back in.

Here are the steps to reproduce the problem:

(1) Set things up as shown above.
(2) Boot and log in. Everything works fine! Keys are just where the .Xmodmap file says they should be.
(3) Log out.
(4) Log back in again.
(5) Surprise! It's just as though the .Xmodmap file doesn't exist.

[Bryce Harrington (bryce)]

Hi srn-coolheads,

Please attach the output of `lspci -vvnn` and `dmesg`, and attach your /var/log/Xorg.0.log (and maybe Xorg.0.log.old) file from after reproducing this issue. If you're using a custom /etc/X11/xorg.conf please attach that as well.

[This is an automated message. Apologies if it has reached you inappropriately; please just reply to this message indicating so.]

[Steve Newcomb (srn-coolheads)]

I'm not sure what any of it has to do with the xmodmap ~/.Xmodmap bug I
just reported, but I'm attaching the information you requested, anyway.

Bryce Harrington wrote:
> Hi srn-coolheads,
>
>
> Please attach the output of `lspci -vvnn` and `dmesg`, and attach your /var/log/Xorg.0.log (and maybe Xorg.0.log.old) file from after reproducing this issue. If you're using a custom /etc/X11/xorg.conf please attach that as well.
>
> [This is an automated message. Apologies if it has reached you
> inappropriately; please just reply to this message indicating so.]
>
>
> ** Tags added: needs-xorglog
>
> ** Tags added: needs-lspci-vvnn
>
> ** Changed in: xorg (Ubuntu)
> Status: New => Incomplete
>
>

[Friedrich Strohmaier (bitsfritz)]

@Steve Newcomb: I've setup bug #512622 which in general matters strange xmodmap keymapping.
If You think this affects You, or maybe could solve Your Problem, then please strike the apropriate handle ;o))

Maybe many keybord related problems can be solved that way.

[Bryce Harrington (bryce)]

Sorry, guess this bug was misfiled originally

[Friedrich Strohmaier (bitsfritz)]

@Bryce Harrington:
should we mark this one as dupe of #255008?

[Steve Newcomb (srn-coolheads)]

Thanks for taking a look at this. Here's some more info: there's a weirdness with vncviewer, too. I can't use my xmodmap on both the viewed and the viewing machine. I can use it on the viewing machine, but not the viewed machine. Things get confused; the machines soon begin to disagree about whether capslock is on.

This is a problem because of the inconvenience of being unable to use xmodmap on the viewed machine directly (i.e., while using its own KVM).

[Bryce Harrington (bryce)]

[This is an automatic notification.]

Hi Steve,

This bug was reported against an earlier version of Ubuntu, can you
test if it still occurs on Lucid?

Please note we also provide technical support for older versions of
Ubuntu, but not in the bug tracker. Instead, to raise the issue through
normal support channels, please see:

    http://www.ubuntu.com/support

If you are the original reporter and can still reproduce the issue on
Lucid, please run the following command to refresh the report:

  apport-collect 465958

If you are not the original reporter, please file a new bug report, so
we can work with you as the original reporter instead (you can reference
bug 465958 in your report if you think it may be related):

  ubuntu-bug xorg

If by chance you can no longer reproduce the issue on Lucid or if you
feel it is no longer relevant, please mark the bug report 'Fix Released'
or 'Invalid' as appropriate, at the following URL:

  https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+bug/465958

[Bryce Harrington (bryce)]

We're closing this bug since it is has been some time with no response from the original reporter. However, if the issue still exists please feel free to reopen with the requested information. Also, if you could, please test against the latest development version of Ubuntu, since this confirms the bug is one we may be able to pass upstream for help.