Default values stripped from schemas with empty "short_desc" attribute

[Fernando Miguel]

Binary package hint: gnome-settings-daemon

lucid gnome stop having keyboard repeat

ProblemType: Bug
Architecture: amd64
Date: Fri Jan 29 23:41:14 2010
DistroRelease: Ubuntu 10.04
InstallationMedia: Ubuntu 10.04 "Lucid Lynx" - Alpha amd64 (20091130)
NonfreeKernelModules: nvidia
Package: gnome-settings-daemon 2.29.6-0ubuntu2
ProcEnviron:
 PATH=(custom, user)
 LANG=en_US.utf8
 SHELL=/bin/bash
ProcVersionSignature: Ubuntu 2.6.32-11.15-generic
SourcePackage: gnome-settings-daemon
Uname: Linux 2.6.32-11-generic x86_64

[Chris Coulson (chrisccoulson)]

This is being broken by gconf-schemas, and affects any schema entry with an empty short_desc attribute. Taking /schema/desktop/gnome/peripherals/keyboard/repeat as an example here, it's schema originally (pre-trimmed) looks like this:

<entry name="repeat" mtime="1256315482" type="schema" stype="bool" owner="gnome" gettext_domain="libgnome-2.0">
    <local_schema locale="C" short_desc="">
        <default type="bool" value="true"/>
    </local_schema>
</entry>

When gconf-schemas is invoked to register or unregister a schema, the existing schemas with an empty short_desc attributed get trimmed like this:

<entry name="repeat" mtime="1256315482" type="schema" stype="bool" owner="gnome" gettext_domain="libgnome-2.0">
<local_schema locale="C">
<default type="bool" value="true"/>
</local_schema>
</entry>

The above entry still works ok (note that the empty short_desc attribute has disappeared as expected). But, if gconf-schemas is run a second time, then it gets mangled like this:

<entry name="repeat" mtime="1256315482" type="schema" stype="bool" owner="gnome" gettext_domain="libgnome-2.0">
</entry>

This is because the regexp '<local_schema locale="([a-zA-Z0-9@._-]+)">' matches "<local_schema locale="C">" on the second run, and that whole section gets trimmed out along with the default value.

[Martin Olsson (mnemo)]

Chris, does this need to go upstream or is it just an Ubuntu packaging bug?

In case someone needs a workaround for this bug. Just open System::Preferences::Keyboard and tick the checkbox called "Key presses repeat when key is held down". And in the same dialog set the "Delay" and "Speed" sliders so that their knobs are located just under the "en" letters in the word "when" (that's the default settings I have on my old karmic box, but I suppose you can just try out a delay/speed setting that feels "normal" to you).

[Vish (vish)]

This bug was fixed in the package gconf - 2.28.0-1ubuntu4 and is a dup of bug #514281.

---------------
gconf (2.28.0-1ubuntu4) lucid; urgency=low

  * debian/gconf-schemas: Do not trim mtime. (LP: #514281)
  * debian/gconf2.postinst: Force rebuilding the db on upgrades to this
    version, to undo the damage of the previous version.
 -- Martin Pitt <email address hidden> Fri, 29 Jan 2010 14:36:18 +0100

[Chris Coulson (chrisccoulson)]

I've unduplicated this. Bug 514281 is closed as fix released with a specific change to not trim mtime from the gconf defaults. This bug is about inadvertently trimming the default value from some schemas when gconf-schemas is executed more than once (some of the symptoms in bug 514281 may have been caused by the same issue here though)

[Launchpad Janitor (janitor)]

This bug was fixed in the package gconf - 2.28.0-1ubuntu5

---------------
gconf (2.28.0-1ubuntu5) lucid; urgency=low

  * debian/gconf-schemas: Ensure that we do not filter out "C" locale
    defaults. *Brown paperbag* Thanks to Chris Coulson! (LP: #514562)
  * debian/gconf2.postinst: Force rebuilding the db on upgrades to this
    version, to undo the damage of the previous version.
 -- Martin Pitt <email address hidden> Sat, 30 Jan 2010 18:48:11 -0800

[Geir Ove Myhr (gomyhr)]

gconf 2.28-1ubuntu5 did not fix this for me. I tried downgrading gconf2 to 2.28-1ubuntu4 and upgrading again, but to no avail. Running `xset r on` after each login is a workaround for now. Anything I can run in order to fix this?

[Vanishing (vanishing)]

@Geir Ove Myhr： It seems with the newest update, everything's fixed for me..

[Bowmore (bowmore)]

Same here, 1ubuntu5 fixed it for me too.

@Geir Ove Myhr
Can it be some interference with your local .gconf settings?

[Chris Coulson (chrisccoulson)]

Geir - what is the output of "gconftool-2 --dump /desktop/gnome/peripherals/keyboard" and "gconftool-2 --dump /schemas/desktop/gnome/peripherals/keyboard" after the update?

[Geir Ove Myhr (gomyhr)]

Found the problem: During troubleshooting I had turned off keyboard repetition in System -> Keyboard -> General, since when this bug was present, I would get double characters (probably because the delay got set to zero). For my test user which hadn't messed around with the settings, it worked again after the upgrade without any adjustments.