gEDA-bug: [Bug 699813] Re: gEDA configuration needs per-page values

[Peter TB Brett <699813@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

** Changed in: geda
       Status: Triaged => Confirmed

** Changed in: geda
   Importance: Critical => High

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https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/699813

Title:
  gEDA configuration needs per-page values

Status in GPL Electronic Design Automation tools:
  Confirmed

Bug description:
  At the moment, gEDA applications can only have one application-wide
value for any configuration parameter, even if they load schematics
and/or symbols from directories with conflicting configuration values
set in their per-directory rc files.

Additionally, for some configuration parameters, the value in the rc
files loaded at application startup is used, whereas for others the most
recent value set is used.

This problem manifests itself in a number of different ways, including:

Â- Different behaviour depending on the initial working directory when
ÂÂÂa gEDA application is launched (bug 698574).

Â- Duplicate component and source libraries appearing in gschem when
ÂÂÂschematics are loaded from more than one directory (bug 698814) or
   more than once from the same directory (bug 698492).

The only way to correct this problem is to allow more than one set of
configuration values to co-exist in a libgeda application.

There are a number of possible ways to approach such a solution:

Â(a) Make per-page configuration stores, linked to the PAGE structure.

Â(b) Introduce some sort of per-directory datastructure.

Option (a) seems preferable, because it requires the least amount of
disruption to libgeda datatypes and API.

On the other hand, it *doesn't* seem necessary at this stage to
distinguish between system configuration and user configuration -- these
could perhaps still be considered as "global" configuration.  However,
it would make sense to make sure that the per-page configuration "falls
back" on global values if they are not specified in the local rc file.

Some configuration parameters don't currently make sense to allow on a
per-page basis.  These include:

Â- gschem keymapping & menu layout (these are currently done in a way
ÂÂÂthat isn't at all compatible with being changed from page to page in
ÂÂÂa gschem session).

Â- gschem GUI behavioural preferences.

Â- Color maps (forcing per-user color maps is beneficial for help
ÂÂÂcolor-blind users).

Â- scheme-directory (if this is accessible from local rc files, it
ÂÂÂallows maliciously crafted designs to run arbitrary code).

So any such per-page configuration mechanism must have an easy way to
always obtain global values in preference to local ones.

ÂÂÂÂBugs arising from the lack of per-page configuration should be
ÂÂÂÂmarked as duplicates of this bug.






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