aspell 0.60.6.1-1 does not install any dictionaries by default (RE: git gui 1.7.9-1: "spell checking is unavailable" error message)

aspell 0.60.6.1-1 does not install any dictionaries by default (RE: git gui 1.7.9-1: "spell checking is unavailable" error message)

[Matt Seitz]

Updated subject line to reflect the root cause.

-----Original Message----- 
From: Matt Seitz
Sent: Wednesday, November 07, 2012 5:57 PM
To: cygwin
Subject: Re: git gui 1.7.9-1: "spell checking is unavailable" error message

> From: Matt Seitz (matseitz)
>
> Any idea what caused the "git-gui" error message to start appearing after 
> I ran "setup.exe" on Nov. 5?
> I've been running "git-gui" 1.7.9-1 since February, and I haven't changed 
> my "git-gui" options recently.
> "Git-gui" was working fine with no error messages on Nov. 2.

I looked through "setup.log".   I see that something triggered "aspell" to
be installed on Nov. 5:

2012/11/05 06:48:59 Adding required dependency aspell: Selecting version
0.60.6.1-1 for installation.

2012/11/05 06:48:59 Adding required dependency libaspell15: Selecting
version 0.60.6.1-1 for installation.

From what I've read, git-gui silently disables spell check if "aspell" is
not installed.  But if "aspell" is installed, "git-gui" tries to load it,
and then load whatever dictionary is specified in the
"gui.spellingdictionary" option. This option is not set on on my system,
which apparently means "use default dictionary".   So, "git-gui" tries to
load the default dictionary, and reports an error when it can't find it.

It looks like the Fedora team originally installed the "aspell-en"
dictionary by default whenever "aspell" was installed.  Then they dropped it
as a dependency for the same reason given earlier in this thread: that it's
not really required for "aspell".  Then they made installing  the
"aspell-en" dictionary a requirement again, to avoid issues like this.

https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=494084

Does it make sense for Cygwin to follow Fedora's lead, and install
"aspell-en" by default when "aspell" is installed?


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Re: aspell 0.60.6.1-1 does not install any dictionaries by default (RE: git gui 1.7.9-1: "spell checking is unavailable" error message)

[Andrey Repin]

Greetings, Matt Seitz!

> It looks like the Fedora team originally installed the "aspell-en"
> dictionary by default whenever "aspell" was installed.  Then they dropped it
> as a dependency for the same reason given earlier in this thread: that it's
> not really required for "aspell".  Then they made installing  the
> "aspell-en" dictionary a requirement again, to avoid issues like this.

> https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=494084

> Does it make sense for Cygwin to follow Fedora's lead, and install
> "aspell-en" by default when "aspell" is installed?

No, it makes sense to report this issue to Git maintaners.


--
WBR,
Andrey Repin (anrdaemon@freemail.ru) 08.11.2012, <18:35>

Sorry for my terrible english...


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Re: aspell 0.60.6.1-1 does not install any dictionaries by default (RE: git gui 1.7.9-1: "spell checking is unavailable" error message)

[Matt Seitz]

> From: Andrey Repin
>
>> From:  Matt Seitz
>>
>>
>> https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=494084
>>
>> Does it make sense for Cygwin to follow Fedora's lead, and install
>> "aspell-en" by default when "aspell" is installed?
>
> No, it makes sense to report this issue to Git maintaners.

OK, I can do that.

However, based on the Fedora bug reports, it sounds like this could be an 
issue for other "aspell" client applications.   It appears that the normal 
behavior for "aspell" clients is to report an error if the "default" 
dictionary is specified and no dictionary is present.

So it seems like the options are:

1.  Change git-gui and other "aspell" based applications to suppress their 
error message when the "default" dictionary is specified and no dictionary 
is present.

2.  Change "setup.exe" to install the "default" dictionary (i.e., the 
dictionary for the current locale) automatically when "aspell" is installed.

3.  Change "setup.exe" to remind the user to install the "default" 
dictionary when "aspell" is installed.

4.  Keep the current behavior, and let the end-user figure out what went 
wrong and how to fix it.

Option 2 seems to be the solution that Fedora went with.



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Re: aspell 0.60.6.1-1 does not install any dictionaries by default (RE: git gui 1.7.9-1: "spell checking is unavailable" error message)

[Andrey Repin]

Greetings, Matt Seitz!

>>> https://bugzilla.redhat.com/show_bug.cgi?id=494084
>>>
>>> Does it make sense for Cygwin to follow Fedora's lead, and install
>>> "aspell-en" by default when "aspell" is installed?
>>
>> No, it makes sense to report this issue to Git maintaners.

> OK, I can do that.

> However, based on the Fedora bug reports, it sounds like this could be an 
> issue for other "aspell" client applications.   It appears that the normal 
> behavior for "aspell" clients is to report an error if the "default" 
> dictionary is specified and no dictionary is present.

Application should not error out on mistakes in a third-party module
configuration, that is not even required for application to run, and merely
providing a cosmetic functionality.

> So it seems like the options are:

> 1.  Change git-gui and other "aspell" based applications to suppress their 
> error message when the "default" dictionary is specified and no dictionary 
> is present.

Specified where? If it's a configuration in Git-GUI, it must report it as
inconsistency and suggest the way to amend it.
If it's a configuration in aspell, and Git-GUI merely asking for default
behavior, then again, Git-GUI should check, if the module can work at all,
before trying to use it and throw errors at the user.

> 2.  Change "setup.exe" to install the "default" dictionary (i.e., the 
> dictionary for the current locale) automatically when "aspell" is installed.

Unlikely to happen. Even if do, it would only be a suggestion.
Unless you take the burden of implementing full APT functionality into cygwin
setup.exe.

> 3.  Change "setup.exe" to remind the user to install the "default" 
> dictionary when "aspell" is installed.

> 4.  Keep the current behavior, and let the end-user figure out what went 
> wrong and how to fix it.

> Option 2 seems to be the solution that Fedora went with.


--
WBR,
Andrey Repin (anrdaemon@freemail.ru) 08.11.2012, <22:59>

Sorry for my terrible english...


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Re: aspell 0.60.6.1-1 does not install any dictionaries by default (RE: git gui 1.7.9-1: "spell checking is unavailable" error message)

[Matt Seitz]

From: Andrey Repin

> > So it seems like the options are:
>>
>> 1.  Change git-gui and other "aspell" based applications to suppress 
>> their
>> error message when the "default" dictionary is specified and no 
>> dictionary
>> is present.

> Specified where?

Sorry, I wasn't clear.  The "git-gui" program is just telling "aspell" to 
use the default "aspell" dictionary.  It's then up to "aspell" to decide 
what the default dictionary is.

The relevant "git-gui" code appears to be here:

http://repo.or.cz/w/git-gui.git/blob/HEAD:/git-gui.sh#l3913

> If it's a configuration in aspell, and Git-GUI merely asking for default
> behavior, then again, Git-GUI should check, if the module can work at all,
> before trying to use it and throw errors at the user.

OK, I can suggest that to the Git maintainers.


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Re: aspell 0.60.6.1-1 does not install any dictionaries by default (RE: git gui 1.7.9-1: "spell checking is unavailable" error message)

[Matt Seitz]

From: Matt Seitz
>
> I looked through "setup.log".   I see that something triggered "aspell" to
> be installed on Nov. 5:
>
>
> 2012/11/05 06:48:59 Adding required dependency aspell: Selecting version
> 0.60.6.1-1 for installation.
>
> 2012/11/05 06:48:59 Adding required dependency libaspell15: Selecting
> version 0.60.6.1-1 for installation.

What's the best way for me to determine which packaged triggered adding the 
required dependency "aspell"?


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Re: aspell 0.60.6.1-1 does not install any dictionaries by default (RE: git gui 1.7.9-1: "spell checking is unavailable" error message)

[Matt Seitz]

> From: Matt Seitz

> From: Matt Seitz
>
> > I looked through "setup.log".   I see that something triggered "aspell" 
> > to
> > be installed on Nov. 5:
> >
>
> What's the best way for me to determine which packaged triggered adding 
> the required dependency "aspell"?

I'm suspecting the problem has something to do with the update of TeXmacs on 
Nov. 4.  The "setup.ini" file does say that "TeXmacs" requires "aspell". 
But on the other hand, it appears that the previous version of "TeXmacs" 
also requires "aspell".

So I'm still looking for a definitive answer as to what triggered the 
"aspell" installation.


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