[Smartphones-userland] Ideas for a flexibe zhone-session replacement

[Luca Capello]

Hi Joachim!

On Thu, 04 Sep 2008 22:55:09 +0200, Joachim Breitner wrote:
> Am Donnerstag, den 04.09.2008, 22:36 +0200 schrieb Luca Capello:
>> On Thu, 04 Sep 2008 15:57:42 +0200, Joachim Breitner wrote:
>> > The zhone-session init script becomes a non-zhone-specific display
>> > (non)manager. Differences to the current script:
>> >  * Does _not_ pass a session script to /etc/X11/Xsession
>> 
>> IIRC we directly passed a session script because we don't provide an
>> x-session-manager alternative, like openbox does.  And in our specific
>> case we wanted to do more than simply starting a window manager (the
>> x-window-manager alternative being the second choice in
>> /etc/X11/Xsession.d/50x11-common_determine-startup).
>
> Right. But neither x-session-manager nor x-window-manager is being used
> if ~/.xsession exists.

Exactly.

>> >  * The session can be started as a different user by modifying a file
>> > in /etc/defaults, for those who know what to do.
>> >
>> > The installer.sh will install the current content
>> > of /usr/bin/zhone-session as /root/.xsession, so that after a fresh
>> > installation, people have the same behaviour.
>> 
>> I'd avoid this and instead define the 'root' user in /etc/$FOO.conf.
>
> Avoid what exactly? Having the session in a users’s .xsession file
> installed by the installer instead of a package? Or fixing the user name
> by the installer?

Bingo!  Actually, I should have separated my reply, sorry.  It should
have been "I'd avoid installing stuff into /root/, going instead for a
*real* user".

>> However, if we go along this path, I'd go completely, i.e. a normal user
>> should be created as well.  And then this user should be the default in
>> /etc/$FOO.conf.
>
> Right, but needs (some) more work and thought, e.g. with the dbus
> security files.

:-D

>> This is not really a disadvantage: if necessary (IMHO not), we can do
>> all the necessary stuffs in ndm's postinst.  However, I'd put all the
>> informations in the zhone-session package (since this one should
>> automatically pull ndm) and in the wiki.
>
> Hmm, putting something in a user’s directory in postinst?

Managed by a debconf question?  The problem here is that in any case
something should be done in postinst, either for root or johndoe.
Otherwise after having installed ndm if no x-session-manager or
x-window-manager is installed the user ends up with a plain xterm (which
IMHO should be an ndm's dependecy, so at least X cat start).  Without
any input option, since matchbox-keyboard-toggle is not started.

ndm is different from any other *dm since it's should be configured for
a specific user *when* it's being installed.

> Also note that there is no reason for a zhone-session package at all any
> more. The init script becomes the ndm package, and the session script
> becomes part of the inital setup in install.sh. Only the
> matchbox-keyboard-toggle script has to go somewhere...

I'd provide a zhone-session transitional package to smooth upgrades.
About matchbox-keyboard-toggle, this can become a bit more general,
something like "freerunner-aux-button-toggle" and then we can also
provides "freerunner-power-button-toggle", whose action is configurable
in ~/.freerunner-buttons-togglerc.

> I hope this makes my ideas clearer,

Actually, your first mail was very clear, maybe the heavy rain here in
Geneva confused my fingers and my brain wasn't correctly connected :-D.

Thx, bye,
Gismo / Luca
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