Possible Slackware64 15.0 regression: empty /usr/share/X11/XKeysymDB
by jwoithe from LinuxQuestions.org on (#6PZZF)
When libX11 was upgraded to version 1.6.5 in Slackware 13.1 on 31 Oct 2016, the supplied /usr/share/X11/XKeysymDB was empty. This ended up breaking a number of old applications I needed to run at the time. When Slackware current shifted to libX11-1.6.5 on 8 Mar 2017, the XKeysymDB had content once more. The content remained throughout the Slackware current development leading to Slackware64 15.0, which shipped libX11-1.7.3.1.
The libX11 package in Slackware64 15.0 received an update to version 1.8.6 on 15 Jun 2023, and 1.8.7 on 3 Oct 2023. In both of these packages the
XKeysymDB file was empty again, which is the current state of affairs.
Rightly or wrongly, I still have a need to use old software which depends on the content of XKeysymDB. If the file is empty the software becomes unusable.
Was the removal of content in the XKeysymDB file within the stable slackware64 15.0 distribution intentional? There was no mention of the XKeysymDB content removal in the Slackware ChangeLog, so perhaps it was inadvertent.
I'm aware that the affected software is very old and that nothing released in the last two decades likely requires XKeysymDB. However, does the content cause any harm to other software? If not, could consideration be given to restoring the XKeysymDB to both Slackware 15.0 and current so older software continues to function correctly? It is possible to manually work around the regression by restoring XKeysymDB every time libX11 is upgraded, but this can be overlooked until the need to use the affected software arises. If the libX11 package can include the XKeysymDB content this maintenance difficulty is removed.
The libX11 package in Slackware64 15.0 received an update to version 1.8.6 on 15 Jun 2023, and 1.8.7 on 3 Oct 2023. In both of these packages the
XKeysymDB file was empty again, which is the current state of affairs.
Rightly or wrongly, I still have a need to use old software which depends on the content of XKeysymDB. If the file is empty the software becomes unusable.
Was the removal of content in the XKeysymDB file within the stable slackware64 15.0 distribution intentional? There was no mention of the XKeysymDB content removal in the Slackware ChangeLog, so perhaps it was inadvertent.
I'm aware that the affected software is very old and that nothing released in the last two decades likely requires XKeysymDB. However, does the content cause any harm to other software? If not, could consideration be given to restoring the XKeysymDB to both Slackware 15.0 and current so older software continues to function correctly? It is possible to manually work around the regression by restoring XKeysymDB every time libX11 is upgraded, but this can be overlooked until the need to use the affected software arises. If the libX11 package can include the XKeysymDB content this maintenance difficulty is removed.