Comment 53 for bug 663776

Well, in the light of how Ubuntu handles languages and locales in Natty, I still think there is a need to modify the way the input method system selection works. Ubuntu now consequently distinguishes between languages and region specific formats. However, the input method system preference is set in language-selector for the current regional formats setting, which makes little sense. Setting it for the current language is a better assumption on the actual relation.

Kyle, what you actually did when you enabled ibus was telling the system that ibus shall be started when en_US is selected on the second tab. If you would change the regional formats setting to e.g. de_DE and reboot, IM would not be started. That's not a behavior we will keep, is it?

There have been quite a few misconceptions in this discussion, and I wouldn't like to drop a desired change based on the discussion so far. Instead, in the hope that it will clarify things, I made a few modifications to language-selector in response to Martin Pitt's suggestion in comment #15. A Natty package with those mods is available in my PPA: https://launchpad.net/~gunnarhj/+archive/misc

With that package and the modified im-switch package follow two principal changes:
- Input method system mapped to language, not regional formats
- Changing the language in language-selector is instantly reflected on
  the input method system control, meaning that you can change it if
  you don't like the default.

It would be great if those who are interested in this aspect of input methods could install both the packages and check out the behavior. Then, hopefully, the remaining discussion could be hold based on actual tests of the proposed code.