Re: /etc/X11/app-defaults/XTerm refers to font "helvetica"

[Thomas Dickey <dickey at his dot com>]

----- Original Message -----
| From: "Rainer Blome" <rainer.blome@gmx.de>
| To: cygwin@cygwin.com
| Sent: Thursday, June 30, 2016 1:22:37 PM
| Subject: /etc/X11/app-defaults/XTerm refers to font "helvetica"
| 
| Since many months (and probably several Cygwin and X11 releases),
| starting `xterm` triggers the following annoying warning (xterm
| starts fine otherwise):
| 
|  xterm &
|  Warning: Cannot convert string
|  "-adobe-helvetica-bold-r-normal--*-120-*-*-*-*-iso8859-*" to type
|  FontStruct
| 
| I have grepped for "helvetica" through my own config files
| (`.Xdefaults` etc.) and not found such a font reference.
| 
| The mailing list archives show that at least one other Cygwin user
| has encountered the same issue,
| and got no answer regarding this specific issue (just for another
| font issue).
| https://sourceware.org/ml/cygwin/2015-09/msg00184.html
| https://sourceware.org/cgi-bin/search.cgi?wm=wrd&form=extended&m=all&s=D&ul=%2Fml%2Fcygwin%2F%25&q=helvetica
| At first glance, internet search provides only less relevant hits.
| 
| It looks like the cause is in file `/etc/X11/app-defaults/XTerm`, in
| the following line:
| 
|  *SimpleMenu*menuLabel.font:
|  -adobe-helvetica-bold-r-normal--*-120-*-*-*-*-iso8859-*
| 
| When I comment out that line (using "!"), xterm starts without any
| warnings.
| 
| I do not recall having added that line myself, so I assume that it is
| part of its default content.
| Are users expected to maintain that file?

If there's a better choice for Cygwin, the packager probably should apply that as a patch.
I see that it's been as-is in xterm sources since 1994...

-- 
Thomas E. Dickey <dickey@invisible-island.net>
http://invisible-island.net
ftp://invisible-island.net

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