X Strike Force XFree86 SVN commit: r2146 - in trunk/debian: . local
Author: branden
Date: 2005-01-21 16:28:12 -0500 (Fri, 21 Jan 2005)
New Revision: 2146
Modified:
trunk/debian/CHANGESETS
trunk/debian/changelog
trunk/debian/local/FAQ.xhtml
Log:
Update (again) information in the FAQ regarding problems GNU Emacs, XEmacs,
Openbox, and Sawfish have with XKB's "fake keys". Retitle entry from "My
keyboard configuration worked with XFree86 4.2; why is it messed up now?"
to "My keyboard configuration worked with previous versions of XFree86; why
is it messed up now? For example, my Windows keys don't work right in
Emacs or my window manager anymore."
Modified: trunk/debian/CHANGESETS
===================================================================
--- trunk/debian/CHANGESETS 2005-01-21 18:54:49 UTC (rev 2145)
+++ trunk/debian/CHANGESETS 2005-01-21 21:28:12 UTC (rev 2146)
@@ -76,9 +76,13 @@
Minier for pointing this out. (Closes: #285222)
2109, 2115, 2118
-Update information in the FAQ regarding problems GNU Emacs and Sawfish
-have with XKB's "fake keys".
- 2110, 2113
+Update information in the FAQ regarding problems GNU Emacs, XEmacs,
+Openbox, and Sawfish have with XKB's "fake keys". Retitle entry from "My
+keyboard configuration worked with XFree86 4.2; why is it messed up now?"
+to "My keyboard configuration worked with previous versions of XFree86;
+why is it messed up now? For example, my Windows keys don't work right in
+Emacs or my window manager anymore."
+ 2110, 2113, 2146
Remove spurious quotes from variable expansions of $XVFBARGS and
$LISTENTCP in xvfb-run. Thanks to Jeff Lessem for the patch!
Modified: trunk/debian/changelog
===================================================================
--- trunk/debian/changelog 2005-01-21 18:54:49 UTC (rev 2145)
+++ trunk/debian/changelog 2005-01-21 21:28:12 UTC (rev 2146)
@@ -57,8 +57,12 @@
* Remove broken hyperlink to freedesktop.org in the FAQ. Thanks to Loïc
Minier for pointing this out. (Closes: #285222)
- * Update information in the FAQ regarding problems GNU Emacs and Sawfish
- have with XKB's "fake keys".
+ * Update information in the FAQ regarding problems GNU Emacs, XEmacs,
+ Openbox, and Sawfish have with XKB's "fake keys". Retitle entry from "My
+ keyboard configuration worked with XFree86 4.2; why is it messed up now?"
+ to "My keyboard configuration worked with previous versions of XFree86;
+ why is it messed up now? For example, my Windows keys don't work right in
+ Emacs or my window manager anymore."
* Remove spurious quotes from variable expansions of $XVFBARGS and
$LISTENTCP in xvfb-run. Thanks to Jeff Lessem for the patch!
@@ -138,7 +142,7 @@
functionality caused by overly aggressive validation of filespec strings
in OpenReadFile() and OpenWriteFile(). (Closes: #286164)
- -- Branden Robinson <branden@debian.org> Fri, 21 Jan 2005 13:52:23 -0500
+ -- Branden Robinson <branden@debian.org> Fri, 21 Jan 2005 16:23:31 -0500
xfree86 (4.3.0.dfsg.1-10) unstable; urgency=medium
Modified: trunk/debian/local/FAQ.xhtml
===================================================================
--- trunk/debian/local/FAQ.xhtml 2005-01-21 18:54:49 UTC (rev 2145)
+++ trunk/debian/local/FAQ.xhtml 2005-01-21 21:28:12 UTC (rev 2146)
@@ -155,8 +155,9 @@
my X session exiting abnormally?</a></li>
<li><a href="#radeondualhead">I'm having trouble getting dual-head support to
work on my ATI Radeon card. Can you help?</a></li>
-<li><a href="#xkbnewlayout">My keyboard configuration worked with XFree86 4.2;
- why is it messed up now?</a></li>
+<li><a href="#xkbnewlayout">My keyboard configuration worked with previous
+ versions of XFree86; why is it messed up now? For example, my Windows keys
+ don't work right in Emacs or my window manager anymore.</a></li>
<li><a href="#composeinput">Why does composing characters work in some
applications but not others?</a></li>
<li><a href="#xtermresizenoise">Sometimes I get garbage characters like
@@ -171,7 +172,7 @@
<h2><a id="copyright">Copyright and License</a></h2>
-<p>Copyright © 1998–2004 <a href= "mailto:branden@debian.org";>Branden
+<p>Copyright © 1998–2005 <a href= "mailto:branden@debian.org";>Branden
Robinson</a>.</p>
<p>This is free documentation; you may redistribute it and/or modify it under
@@ -3055,8 +3056,9 @@
class="other">MonitorLayout</code> line, but I can't think of a physical
mechanism for this actually happening.</p>
-<h3><a id="xkbnewlayout">My keyboard configuration worked with XFree86 4.2;
- why is it messed up now?</a></h3>
+<h3><a id="xkbnewlayout">My keyboard configuration worked with previous versions
+ of XFree86; why is it messed up now? For example, my Windows keys don't work
+ right in Emacs or my window manager anymore.</a></h3>
<p><em>Thanks to Denis Barbier for contributing much of this entry.</em></p>
@@ -3064,9 +3066,10 @@
in the X Window System?"</a> above for explanantions of unfamiliar
terms.</em></p>
-<p>First of all, XKB layouts have been revisited in XFree86 4.3.
-The most intuitive approach to supporting multiple levels on the keyboard is
-through combining layouts. Prior to XFree86 4.3, though, this was difficult because
+<p>The most significant recent change to keyboard configuration took place to
+XKB layouts in XFree86 4.3; they were significantly revised and updated. The
+most intuitive approach to supporting multiple levels on the keyboard is through
+combining layouts. Prior to XFree86 4.3, though, this was difficult because
keyboard symbols (<em>keysyms</em>) were defined to be specific to a given
group. For example, the <code>us</code> symbols file (in <code
class="filespec">/etc/X11/xkb/symbols/</code>) defined the its keycode to keysym
@@ -3078,9 +3081,9 @@
was consequently impossible without modifying the XKB data files directly
— a skill most users do not possess.</p>
-<p>There are now new definitions that are "multi-layout aware"; they can be used in
-arbitrary order so that <code>us,ru</code> and <code>ru,us</code> use the same
-<code>symbols</code> files. The multi-layout-capable definitions have been
+<p>There are now new definitions that are "multi-layout aware"; they can be used
+in arbitrary order so that <code>us,ru</code> and <code>ru,us</code> use the
+same <code>symbols</code> files. The multi-layout-capable definitions have been
placed in <code class="filespec">/etc/X11/xkb/symbols/pc/</code> while the old
ones are still available in their traditional location; that is, directly within
the <code class="filespec">/etc/X11/xkb/symbols/</code> directory.</p>
@@ -3092,37 +3095,57 @@
combining layouts, check that you are not trying to load a layout listed
there.</p>
-<p>Secondly, modifiers also been affected by the multi-layout changes to make
-the system more modular. One consequence is that <em>fake keys</em> have been
-introduced in XKB data files for <code>Alt</code>, <code>Meta</code>,
-<code>Super</code> and <code>Hyper</code>. (The fake keys are distinguished
-from real keys by not being pair-oriented to the "left" or "right". Even
-keyboards that have only one of a pair of such keys — like laptop
-keyboards — report the keys they do have as being either left or right,
-for compatibility with full-size models.) By default, the modifiers
-<code>mod1</code> and <code>mod4</code> use these fake keys instead of real
-ones. XKB-aware applications can handle those fake keys, but some applications,
-like GNU Emacs, XEmacs, and Sawfish, are buggy — they get confused and
-will not recognize some of your keys as activating the right modifiers.
-(<strong>Update:</strong> Version 21.3+1-8 of the Debian <code
-class="package">emacs21</code> packages fixes this problem for GNU Emacs.) A
-workaround for XEmacs is to set the <code class="other">altwin:super_win</code>
-XKB option. The recommendation of Debian developers to frustrated Sawfish users
-<a href="http://lists.debian.org/debian-x/2004/09/msg00307.html";>appears</a> to
-be to switch to Metacity.</p>
+<p>Furthermore, modifiers also been affected by the multi-layout changes to make
+the system more modular. This is a change that was initially made to XFree86
+CVS after XFree86 4.3.0 was released, but has been incorporated into Debian's
+packages of XFree86 4.3.0, further refined, and adopted upstream by both XFree86
+and X.Org. One consequence is that <em>fake keys</em> have been introduced in
+XKB data files for <code>Alt</code>, <code>Meta</code>, <code>Super</code> and
+<code>Hyper</code>. (The fake keys are distinguished from real keys by not
+being pair-oriented to the "left" or "right". Even keyboards that have only one
+of a pair of such keys — like laptop keyboards — report the keys
+they do have as being either left or right, for compatibility with full-size
+models.) By default, the modifiers <code>mod1</code> and <code>mod4</code> use
+these fake keys instead of real ones. The logo keys (a.k.a. "Windows" keys) are
+often used for one of these modifiers. XKB-aware applications can handle those
+fake keys, but some applications are not XKB-aware — they get confused and
+will not recognize some of your keys as activating the right modifiers.</p>
-<p>Futher reading:</p>
+<p>GNU Emacs, XEmacs, Openbox, and Sawfish are known to be (or have been) buggy
+in this fashion, but there may be others. In window managers, the consequences
+of this bug vary, but one commonly seen result is that the transient window used
+to navigate workspaces does not go away when the keys that bring it up (such as
+<kbd>Win+Tab</kbd>) are released. The recommendation of Debian developers to
+frustrated Sawfish users <a
+href="http://lists.debian.org/debian-x/2004/09/msg00307.html";>appears</a> to be
+to switch to Metacity.</p>
+<p>A workaround you can use if your application has not yet been fixed is to set
+the <code class="other">altwin:super_win</code> XKB option. To try it out, run
+the command <kbd>setxkbmap -option "altwin:super_win"</kbd><sup>*</sup>. To
+make the change permanent, run <kbd>dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xfree86</kbd> as
+root, and add <kbd>altwin:super_win</kbd> to your configured XKB options when
+prompted.</p>
+
+<p>For further information, please see:</p>
+
<ul>
<li><a
href="http://lists.debian.org/debian-emacsen/2004/09/msg00019.html";>description
of Emacs modifer problem</a></li>
<li><a href="http://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=274103";>Debian
- <code class="package">emacs21</code> bug report</a></li>
+ <code class="package">emacs21</code> bug report</a> (versions 21.3+1-8 and
+ later of the Debian packages are fixed)</li>
+ <li><a href="http://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=272214";>Debian
+ <code class="package">openbox</code> bug report</a> (versions 3.2-6 and
+ later of the Debian packages are fixed)</li>
<li><a href="http://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugreport.cgi?bug=263073";>Debian
<code class="package">sawfish</code> bug report</a></li>
</ul>
+<p><sup>*</sup> This may not work if you are already using an XKB option that
+affects your Alt or logo keys.</p>
+
<h3><a id="composeinput">Why does composing characters work in some applications
but not others?</a></h3>
Reply to: