funny menu after install of emacs-extra

[Søren Bredlund Caspersen]

Binary package hint: emacs

Trying to install emacs. Did this:

sudo aptitude install xemacs21 emacs21 emacs-extra emacs-goodies-el emacs auctex preview-latex xfonts-jmk tetex-base tetex-extra kdvi xgdvi

And got this "menu" in the terminal:
(sorry for ugly cut+paste)
As you can see the message doesn't really make sense...

Package configuration

                    ┌────────────────────────────────────────────────┤ Emacs-Extra ├────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
                    │ │
                    │ you must run "apt-get install 10 emacs-extra/select-modes doesn't exist" to install theses languages support │
                    │ │
                    │ long description here... │
                    │ │
                    │ <Ok> │
                    │ │
                    └───────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘

[Micah Cowan (micahcowan)]

What version of Ubuntu are you running, and what date did you do this install? Do you still have the dpkg logs from the install?

[Søren Bredlund Caspersen (soeren-b-c)]

I am (was) running 7.04, 64 bit.

Was the same day as I reported the bug. So this happened on 2007 - 05 - 06

Here is what I could find in /var/log/dpkg.log :

2007-05-06 15:21:13 install emacsen-common <none> 1.4.17
2007-05-06 15:21:13 status half-installed emacsen-common 1.4.17
2007-05-06 15:21:14 status unpacked emacsen-common 1.4.17
2007-05-06 15:21:14 status unpacked emacsen-common 1.4.17
2007-05-06 15:21:14 install emacs21-common <none> 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:14 status half-installed emacs21-common 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:16 status unpacked emacs21-common 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:16 status unpacked emacs21-common 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:17 install emacs21-bin-common <none> 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:17 status half-installed emacs21-bin-common 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:17 status unpacked emacs21-bin-common 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:17 status unpacked emacs21-bin-common 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:17 install xaw3dg <none> 1.5+E-14ubuntu2
2007-05-06 15:21:17 status half-installed xaw3dg 1.5+E-14ubuntu2
2007-05-06 15:21:17 status unpacked xaw3dg 1.5+E-14ubuntu2
2007-05-06 15:21:17 status unpacked xaw3dg 1.5+E-14ubuntu2
2007-05-06 15:21:17 install emacs21 <none> 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:17 status half-installed emacs21 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:18 status unpacked emacs21 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:18 status unpacked emacs21 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:18 status unpacked emacsen-common 1.4.17
2007-05-06 15:21:18 status unpacked emacsen-common 1.4.17
2007-05-06 15:21:18 status unpacked emacsen-common 1.4.17
2007-05-06 15:21:18 status half-configured emacsen-common 1.4.17
2007-05-06 15:21:19 status installed emacsen-common 1.4.17
2007-05-06 15:21:19 status unpacked emacs21-common 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:19 status half-configured emacs21-common 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:20 status installed emacs21-common 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:20 status unpacked emacs21-bin-common 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:20 status half-configured emacs21-bin-common 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:21 status installed emacs21-bin-common 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:21 status unpacked xaw3dg 1.5+E-14ubuntu2
2007-05-06 15:21:21 status half-configured xaw3dg 1.5+E-14ubuntu2
2007-05-06 15:21:44 status installed xaw3dg 1.5+E-14ubuntu2
2007-05-06 15:21:44 status unpacked emacs21 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:44 status half-configured emacs21 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:21:45 status installed emacs21 21.4a+1-2ubuntu1
2007-05-06 15:36:52 install preview-latex-style <none> 11.83-4
2007-05-06 15:36:52 status half-installed preview-latex-style 11.83-4
2007-05-06 15:36:52 status unpacked preview-latex-style 11.83-4
2007-05-06 15:36:52 status unpacked preview-latex-style 11.83-4
2007-05-06 15:36:52 install auctex <none> 11.83-4
2007-05-06 15:36:52 status half-installed auctex 11.83-4
2007-05-06 15:36:52 status unpacked auctex 11.83-4
2007-05-06 15:36:52 status unpacked auctex 11.83-4
2007-05-06 15:36:52 install recode <none> 3.6-13build1
2007-05-06 15:36:52 status half-installed recode 3.6-13build1
2007-05-06 15:36:53 status unpacked recode 3.6...

[Ross Vandegrift (vandegrift)]

I see this on Fiesty and it seems specifically related to the package emacs-extras. Also worthy of note is the deb's Description:

Description: emacs configuration
 very long description to put here

Kinda fails to meet its own aim :)

[towsonu2003 (towsonu2003)]

not fixed on gutsy!

[towsonu2003 (towsonu2003)]

also gives these:

/tmp/emacs-extra.config.79463: 91: cannot create /usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/emacs-extra/emacs-extra.el: Directory nonexistent
/tmp/emacs-extra.config.79463: 91: cannot create /usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/emacs-extra/emacs-extra.el: Directory nonexistent
/tmp/emacs-extra.config.79463: 91: cannot create /usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/emacs-extra/emacs-extra.el: Directory nonexistent
/tmp/emacs-extra.config.79463: 91: cannot create /usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/emacs-extra/emacs-extra.el: Directory nonexistent
/tmp/emacs-extra.config.79463: 91: cannot create /usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/emacs-extra/emacs-extra.el: Directory nonexistent
/tmp/emacs-extra.config.79463: 91: cannot create /usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/emacs-extra/emacs-extra.el: Directory nonexistent
/tmp/emacs-extra.config.79463: 91: cannot create /usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/emacs-extra/emacs-extra.el: Directory nonexistent
/tmp/emacs-extra.config.79463: 91: cannot create /usr/share/emacs/site-lisp/emacs-extra/emacs-extra.el: Directory nonexistent
emacs-extra failed to preconfigure, with exit status 2

[Michael Olson (mwolson)]

Reassigning to emacs-extra package and removing duplicate. This is a bug in that package rather than emacs21 or emacs22.

[Peter Berry (pwberry)]

Still happening in Hardy.

[GaryW (gnubyexample)]

Doubtful much will happen anytime soon with this but - Gutsy has been and gone
and after being outstanding for a year or more it still sits as an issue in
the version in Gutsy.

Note much hope of a reply on the forums either by the looks of it - here is a seeming unanswered post from January 2008 which looks to have gone 4 months without a reply:
*** Start ***
bkelly
January 27th, 2008, 10:39 AM
First, I did not see how to mark Manny C's post with a Thanks. This is a couple of years old, but continues to be usefull to newbies.

This is in regards to installing Emacs version 22.1.1 into Gutsy 7.10 in an X 86 architecture, 64 bit.
During the install, my system popped up with the message:
.......................
you must run "apt-get install 10 emacs-extra/select-modes doesn't exist" to install theses languages support

long description here...
........................
I find this odd on several counts. Within the quoted command is the phrase "doesn's exist" Would that really be part of a command?

What can I do with the phrase "long description here..." I did not see how to get that long description.

A bit later in the install a window popped up containing a bunch of options to select. One of them was Templates. I did not take the time to write them down and forgot the remainder. Each option line began with a pair of brackets such as [ ] and the cursor could be moved up and down. But I pressed Enter before figuring out how to enable the options. How do I enable those options and how do I get back to the point of activating those options?

Thanks for your time
*** End ***

[Peter Cordes (peter-cordes)]

not fixed in intrepid either, and has no maintainer in Debian. The package doesn't even exist on the PTS (http://packages.qa.debian.org/e/emacs-extra.html -> 404). So it's not exactly actively maintained.

 I like the colour scheme it provides for light on dark, but it's probably pretty obsolete. The only two entries in changelog.Debian.gz are May 2002 and June 2007!

[Peter Cordes (peter-cordes)]

BTW, happycoders-emacs conflicts with emacs-extra, and is from the same Debian maintainer. It's version number is 2004.08.14, so it's old, too.

[GaryW (gnubyexample)]

At the end of this posting is the contents of the emacs-extra changelog.

In response to the postings about lack of any upstream package:-
   A good portion of what is in Ubuntu comes from upstream debian and there
is a close relationship there, however, that does not prevent Ubuntu having its
own packages and anything that is seen to add value to Ubuntu can be
included that way.
To clarify: Checking the QA of debian is worthwhile for most packages but in this
case, what it tells you is that what you are looking at is an Ubuntu maintained
package rather than some other interpretation you might make.

This package emacs-extra is not like the large, regularly changing system packages that
you might be used to reading changelogs for. It does not have to be updated because glibc or gnome
or kde change - as lots of other packages do.
It is really just a collection of useful add on scripts for emacs conveniently packaged that is all.
So a gap of several years in the changelog in this case just means that perhaps no 'high' priority
bugs have been squashed and nothing is seriously broken.

This bug is now priority 'medium' as of 2009 so hopefully it will get some attention.

changelog:
emacs-extra (0.1-1ubuntu1) gutsy; urgency=low

  * debian/php-mode.emacsen-startup:
    Use php-mode instead of c-mode for files ending in .php (LP: #71581).
    (thanks to Michael Speer for the patch)
  * misc/std_comment.el:
    Fix time stamp problem in the template (LP: #67286).
  * debian/php-mode.emacsen-install:
    Fix installation problem with emacs21 (LP: #36055).
  * debian/control: Change Maintainer to XSBC-Original-Maintainer.

 -- Michael Bienia <email address hidden> Tue, 12 Jun 2007 23:24:31 +0200

emacs-extra (0.1-1) unstable; urgency=low

  * Initial Release.

 -- Julien LEMOINE <email address hidden> Sun, 12 May 2002 18:27:59 +0200

[era (era)]

> This package emacs-extra is not like the large, regularly changing
> system packages that you might be used to reading changelogs for.
> It does not have to be updated because glibc or gnome
> or kde change - as lots of other packages do.
> It is really just a collection of useful add on scripts for emacs
> conveniently packaged that is all.
> So a gap of several years in the changelog in this case just means that
> perhaps no 'high' priority bugs have been squashed and nothing is
> seriously broken.

As a volunteer Launchpad Emacs bug triager, I beg to differ. While there are no open serious or grave bugs, the inclusion of this package does not reflect well on Ubuntu or Emacs, and the usefulness of the included add-on scripts can certainly be contested. There is no documentation (no proper package description, even; LP#336210) so it is hard to argue about what somebody might perceive as added value, but given that the package causes breakage on upgrades (multiple reports vaguely implicating emacs-extra; LP#222542 is marked as Confirmed, but not a very clear-cut case, to me at least), displays completely incomprehensible and confusing dialogs when you install it (LP#112837), fails to run its own preinst script (no separate report yet), breaks with several best packaging practices (see comments of mine in LP#336210), and clobbers user customizations (LP#138966) and there are good, maintained replacements for several of the included scripts, including in the regular Emacs distribution, I would like to hear what, if any, the redeeming features of this package are; and in the absence of any compelling reasons to continue to ship it, argue for its removal from Ubuntu universe.

[marius (mail-nulldevice)]

not fixed in Karmic

[maarteng (maarten-grachten)]

This package breaks configuration settings in emacs23 when used in server/client mode. Specifically, it ignores/alters color-configurations made by the user.

[era (era)]

@maarteng: yours is a separate issue, already reported as bug #138966. But with the resolution of bug #336210 emacs-extra will no longer be included in Ubuntu, so reporting further problems against this package is probably not worth your time.