[SOLVED] `LANG=ja_JP.UTF-8 man man' doesn't work

average_user · 05-27-2017, 03:56 PM

Code:

$ LANG=ja_JP.UTF-8 man man
/usr/bin/groff: can't find `DESC' file
/usr/bin/groff:fatal error: invalid device `nippon'

It happens on both 14.2 and current. As shown by strace /etc/man.conf is opened and it has these lines:

Code:

JNROFF        /usr/bin/groff -Tnippon -mandocj
JNEQN         /usr/bin/geqn -Tnippon

Removing them does not help because they're probably set to the default value by man.

Some manuals I found mention using -Tnippon with nroff and not groff and in fact nroff -Tnippon works but it doesn't work with -mandocj.

Not a big issue but definitely something is wrong. Can someone reproduce this?

Didier Spaier · 05-27-2017, 04:55 PM

This is an issue with man shipped in Slackware. This is one of the reasons why in Slint we ship man-db instead.

In the attached pic you can see the same man page displayed in mlterm and xterm. In both case most is used as pager.

PS But maybe you just need to set GROFF_ENCODING to UTF-8?

average_user · 05-28-2017, 02:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Didier Spaier

This is an issue with man shipped in Slackware. This is one of the reasons why in Slint we ship man-db instead.
In the attached pic you can see the same man page displayed in mlterm an xterm. In both case most is used as pager.

So it's a known issue, I see. Do theses screenshots come from Slint that you mentioned or from Slackware?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Didier Spaier

PS But maybe you just need to set GROFF_ENCODING to UTF-8?

Still doesn't work:

Code:

$ /GROFF_ENCODING=UTF-8 LANG=ja_JP.UTF-8 man man
/usr/bin/groff: can't find `DESC' file
/usr/bin/groff:fatal error: invalid device `nippon'
$ GROFF_ENCODING=utf-8 LANG=ja_JP.UTF-8 man man
/usr/bin/groff: can't find `DESC' file
/usr/bin/groff:fatal error: invalid device `nippon'

Didier Spaier · 05-28-2017, 03:44 AM

The screenshots come from Slint. I have named the packages man (not man-db) so that they supersede the man packages shipped in Slackware (so upgradepkg will work in Slackware).

packages 32-bit, packages 64-bit, source.

average_user · 05-28-2017, 05:29 AM

After replacing a stock man package with yours displaying Japanese manpages work correctly, Thank you for your help.

As this problem seems to be well known, are there any plans to fix it in upstream?

Didier Spaier · 05-28-2017, 05:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by average_user

As this problem seems to be well known, are there any plans to fix it in upstream?

Only Patrick J. Volkerding can answer. But this has just been requested by Gazl.

PS And thanks should go to the packager, B. Watson.