Mon 18 Apr 2005 09:53:50 AM UTC, comment #1:
I am having a similar problem. It seems caused by an error in the RPM package TeXmacs-fonts.
Said package places files in subdirectories under /var/lib/texmf. These directories are created with mode rwxr-xr-x during install. However, the texmf scripts seem to depend on these subdirectories having the same mode as /var/lib/texmf itself: rwxrwxrwt. (Notice the sticky bit.)
The directories in question do not officially "belong" to any package. While there might be good reasons why they do not belong to the TeXmacs-fonts package (I'm not sure), the package should be equipped with a preinstall script to create the directories and set their modes properly unless they already exist. This is easy to add in the "spec" file that controls the generation of rpm packages. Just add a "%preinstall" line and the bash script itself following it.
As it is, in my case, each time I need a new font, TeXmacs simply terminates. Since I start TeXmacs clicking an icon on the Gnome panel, I do not see the output from TeXmacs, but only see the window disappear like with a -pof-. It is indistinguishable from a crash.
While at it, may I suggest that whenever TeXmacs finds a problem so serious that it chooses to terminate, it posts a popup with the error message and an 'OK' button?
(When starting texmacs from the command line I get a message saying that TeX does not seem to be properly installed. This happens when kpseawhich fails to find the font immediately after mktexpk has been run to create it. Mktexpk creates the font in a temporary directory and attempts to move, then copy, it to the appropriate place under /var/lib/texmf. When this fails, mktexpk just "rm -rf"'es the temporary directory.)
I should say that I have not gone through the steps of fully creating an rpm package as I suggest, and test that the symptom disappears upon installing it, and reappears if I instead reinstall the old package. I offer to do so if you request it.
I have observed that my problems disappear when I make the directories writable. I also used strace to observe what happened during the failure. I think that left little doubt.
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