[Cooker] xfs and X core fonts

[Ademar de Souza Reis Jr.]

Hi there.

I'm starting to implement the transition from xfs to the new 
xserver + fontpath.d schema. For the ones who don't know, the new
fontpath.d schema allows X fontdirs to be added/removed at
runtime on /etc/X11/fontpath.d, via symlinks pointing to the
font directories (see [1] about xfs being deprecated).

I also plan to cleanup the font directories added to X. Since
most of applications today use client-side font rendering (via
xft/fontconfig) instead of the legacy x11-server font
protocol[2], it may be worth to keep only core fonts accessible
on the server side (saving some memory, startup time, etc)

I would like to request from cooker users some tests and comments
(besides patience in case of bugs) after installing the new
schema with a minimum set of fonts available via X. 

1. Install the following packages:
    x11-server >= 1.3.0.0-8mdv
    x11-font-alias >= 1.0.1-9mdv
    (some will be available on mirrors tomorrow)

2. Remove all fontpaths from the xorg.conf file. (it will
   fallback to the default fontpath which is
   'catalogue:/etc/X11/fontpath.d/');

3. Stop using xfs (or even remove it from your
   system);

4. Report any problem with fonts (warnings on
   consoles, legacy applications with an odd look,
   etc).

I would like to hear what you think. A bugzilla ticket to
track the tasks and problens has been opened[3].

If you have any problem with missing fonts, you can add it
manually to /etc/X11/fontpath.d by creating a symlink
in there[4].

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X_Font_Server
2. http://www.openbsd.org/papers/eurobsd2005/herrb-hopf.pdf
3. http://qa.mandriva.com/show_bug.cgi?id=31756
4. man xorg.conf(5) Xserver(1)

Thanks and best regards,
  - Ademar


-- 
Ademar de Souza Reis Jr.
Mandriva - http://www.mandriva.com.br

^[:wq!