Bug#439877: texinfo: texi2pdf doesn't work if a ~ is in the file path

[karl@freefriends.org (Karl Berry)]

    Do you have any idea how this could be fixed?  

When I run the current texi2dvi in a directory named `x~', I do not get
an error in the default ("local") --build mode, as Christian (hi
Christian) is apparently invoking it.  So maybe try the current source
from CVS, to see if that works now?

It still fails in --build=tidy or =clean mode, since then texi2dvi runs
in a temp directory.  So to get access to the original working dir in
that case, it adds pwd to TEXINPUTS as an absolute directory.  I don't
see any eas way to deal with that.  Change the catcode of ~ on the
command line?  Ugggh ...

    It's quite urgent, since version numbers and hence directory names
    with ~ in them are now becoming more and more common in Debian.

How unfortunate.  Not that it matters now, but I'm curious -- why/how
was that character chosen?

Best,
Karl