Fwd: Is disabling ctrl-alt-backspace really such a good idea?

[Mike Jones]

I believe Dylan is right that this discussion is no longer productive.

    As I said before, it isn't that I personally object to the *zap X*
functionality being unlinked from C-A-B, as it is I object to the *zap X*
functionality having no default access method.

    Changing C-A-B to A-S-K provides a reasonably solution. And I don't
particularly care *how* I access it, so long as that I can without needing
to change settings anywhere. My objection isn't that I personally can't
change settings. My objection is that most of the people who use Ubuntu that
I know rely on me to help when it confuses them. Most of the time this is
via the phone from half-way across the United States. They simply will not
understand how to modify this file, and many times the solution to their
problem is simply to zap X... but they don't know that. Their computer is
literally a unknowable black box to them, and they prefer to err on the side
of caution. The obvious solution, of course, is for me to modify this file
for them. But there are situations where that just is simply not possible.
(Remember, I am sometimes providing assistance from several hundred miles
away, with the person I am assisting basically being completely
computer-illiterate.).

    I have no idea what the best way to both prevent accidental Zapping
while also allowing those users who wish to to Zap. But isn't it possible to
do that?

    Others have suggested a forked process to notify the user of what they
just asked to do. Others have suggested C-A-B^2, and apparently
ctrl-alt-sysreq-k is supposed to offer similar functionality (though it asks
me if i wish to log out similar to the CtrlAltDel functionality, as sysreq
and del are the same key for me.)

    What can be done?

Sincerely,
Michael Jones

Message: 6
Date: Fri, 13 Feb 2009 08:31:27 -0800
From: Dylan McCall <dylanmccall at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: Fwd: Is disabling ctrl-alt-backspace really such a good
       idea?
To: ubuntu-devel-discuss <ubuntu-devel-discuss at lists.ubuntu.com>
Message-ID:
       <9b6762c90902130831g12ca69efyb96a37c3df0f964c at mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1

This discussion is hardly relevant anymore. I agree the popup
explaining what the user is about to do would be a nice alternative,
but this is also a completely adequate solution.
I'm sure any patches for that alternative would have a good, warm and
fulfilling life.

Preferences? Fine; you can set your preferences in xorg.conf. (Please
nobody put them in Screen Resolution for the love of the Holy
Interface Guide).

Too late to set preferences, it's already crashed? Any power user who
would have used Ctrl Alt Backspace probably had the sense to read the
Jaunty release notes, which will have said (and I for one will make
sure they say this) that that key combination is disabled by default;
to use the kernel-level Alt SysRQ K instead.
While you're at it, get a different video driver.

SysRQ doesn't work or don't have the key? That's a bug in the kernel.
Please file it, or get a new keyboard. Try pressing Shift or Fn and
see if that makes a difference.

Would be sensible if keyboard / mouse grabs timed out after a while or
required the constant responsiveness of an "is alive" callback. (Or do
they?).


Bye,
-Dylan
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <https://lists.ubuntu.com/archives/ubuntu-devel-discuss/attachments/20090213/863851e5/attachment.html>