[SOLVED] Some characters not displaying properly in Terminal

crts · 04-15-2018, 08:57 AM

Every once in a while I need to display some 'umlauts'. I have no problem, when running X and using an xterm. However, when I am not running a Desktop environment the umlauts do not display properly. I have tried setting different locales, e.g.,

Code:

export LC_ALL=C
export LANG=C
export LC_ALL=en_US
export LANG=en_US
export LC_ALL=en_US.UTF-8
export LANG=en_US.UTF-8

but none of them worked. Additionally, whenever I use a UTF-8 locale, midnight commander also displays garbage on its margins. Is there a way to solve this issue when running a terminal without X?

PS: Running on Slackware 14.2

RandomTroll · 04-15-2018, 10:49 AM

What does

Code:

setfont -v

return? Available fonts are in /usr/share/kbd/consolefonts/ ; linux loads default

Code:

/etc/rc.d/rc.font

sets the font also.

Didier Spaier · 04-15-2018, 01:45 PM

Set the keyboard properly, for instance:
Code:
```
loadkeys de
```
Use any locale with an UTF-8 encoding.
Use a font with an unicode map and the needed glyphs, for instance:
Code:
```
setfont ter-124b
```
When you are satisfied with your settings store them in /erc/rc.d/rc.keymap and /etc/rc.d/rc.dont and make these scripts executable.

crts · 04-15-2018, 03:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RandomTroll

What does

Code:

setfont -v

return? Available fonts are in /usr/share/kbd/consolefonts/ ; linux loads default

Code:

/etc/rc.d/rc.font

sets the font also.

The output is

Code:

Loading 256-char 8x16 font from file /usr/share/kbd/consolefonts/default8x16.psfu.gz
Loading Unicode mapping table...

@didier:
I have tried all of it without success. Not sure if this is relevant, but after I issued 'loadkeys de' I was not able to type umlauts. The characters that were printed instead were '[' and ']'.

Didier Spaier · 04-15-2018, 04:40 PM

I don't know what is your keyboard mapping. Can you type directly the umlaut vowels (with a single key) and which ones exactly do you want to type?

To know which glyphs are available in the font currently in use, just type:

Code:

showconsolefont

crts · 04-15-2018, 04:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Didier Spaier

I don't know what is your keyboard mapping. Can you type directly the umlaut vowels (with a single key) and which ones exactly do you want to type?

To know which glyphs are available in the font currently in use, just type:

Code:

showconsolefont

This is the output of 'showconsolefont'

Code:

    !  "  #  $  %  &  '  (    )  *  +  ,  -  .  /  0    
    1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8    9  :  ;  <  =  >  ?  @    
    A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H    I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P    
    Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X    Y  Z  [  \  ]  ^  _  `    
    !  "  #  $  %  &  '  (    )  *  +  ,  -  .  /  0    
    1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8    9  :  ;  <  =  >  ?  @    
    A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H    I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P    
    Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X    Y  Z  [  \  ]  ^  _  `    

    !  "  #  $  %  &  '  (    )  *  +  ,  -  .  /  0    
    1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8    9  :  ;  <  =  >  ?  @    
    A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H    I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P    
    Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X    Y  Z  [  \  ]  ^  _  `    
    !  "  #  $  %  &  '  (    )  *  +  ,  -  .  /  0    
    1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8    9  :  ;  <  =  >  ?  @    
    A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H    I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P    
    Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X    Y  Z  [  \  ]  ^  _  `

Just to be clear: I do not mind that I am not able to type umlauts. As I stated earlier, I just need to display some every now and then, usually when I receive a file that has them in its name. I simply mentioned that I cannot type them just in case it may provide some further insight on what the underlying problem might be.

Didier Spaier · 04-15-2018, 05:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by crts

This is the output of 'showconsolefont'

Code:

    !  "  #  $  %  &  '  (    )  *  +  ,  -  .  /  0    
    1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8    9  :  ;  <  =  >  ?  @    
    A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H    I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P    
    Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X    Y  Z  [  \  ]  ^  _  `    
    !  "  #  $  %  &  '  (    )  *  +  ,  -  .  /  0    
    1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8    9  :  ;  <  =  >  ?  @    
    A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H    I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P    
    Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X    Y  Z  [  \  ]  ^  _  `    

    !  "  #  $  %  &  '  (    )  *  +  ,  -  .  /  0    
    1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8    9  :  ;  <  =  >  ?  @    
    A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H    I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P    
    Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X    Y  Z  [  \  ]  ^  _  `    
    !  "  #  $  %  &  '  (    )  *  +  ,  -  .  /  0    
    1  2  3  4  5  6  7  8    9  :  ;  <  =  >  ?  @    
    A  B  C  D  E  F  G  H    I  J  K  L  M  N  O  P    
    Q  R  S  T  U  V  W  X    Y  Z  [  \  ]  ^  _  `

Using which font? This not what I get, neither with default8x16 nor with ter-16b.

I don't see even lower case letters, which is rather weird.

crts · 04-15-2018, 05:19 PM

This is the output of 'showconsolefont' after I redirect it into a file. I just noticed that the output on the console itself is different. However, in order to copy paste it I have to redirect it to a file, since I cannot reproduce the errors in a GUI environment. Well, I guess I am stuck with this bug. Thanks anyway.

RandomTroll · 04-15-2018, 05:20 PM

Your high-bit-set characters are duplicates of your low-bit characters. You need a new font. Go to /usr/share/kbd/consolefonts and try some of the lat* , probably the high ones, such as 15 or 16. Run

Code:

setfont [fontname]

then

Code:

showconsolefont

and look for diacritically-marked characters in the high-bit characters. You can rename the default character set to something else then link the character set you like to the default name.

Didier Spaier · 04-16-2018, 12:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by crts

Well, I guess I am stuck with this bug.

Please don't say there is a bug without providing any evidence.

You can just make a snapshot of the console in a virtual machine, or use a camera and post the image or a link to it.

Gerard Lally · 04-16-2018, 02:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Didier Spaier

You can just make a snapshot of the console in a virtual machine, or use a camera and post the image or a link to it.

Just run your commands in a screen session and direct console output to a file:

Code:

screen
showconsolefont
screen -X hardcopy

Your console output will be in a file called hardcopy.0 in the current directory.

Didier Spaier · 04-16-2018, 08:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gerard Lally

Just run your commands in a screen session and direct console output to a file:

Code:

screen
showconsolefont
screen -X hardcopy

Your console output will be in a file called hardcopy.0 in the current directory.

Doesn't work here, says:

Code:

couldn't find file descriptor referring to the console

What do I miss?

Otherwise I just installed Slackware64-14.2 in a VM (no custom console font, all default settings) and get the attached pic.

So all umlout vowels are there.

Maybe a misfit with the encoding of the file being printed by the OP? Make sure it's encoded in UTF-8 if you are using a font with an unicode map.

Gerard Lally · 04-16-2018, 08:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Didier Spaier

Doesn't work here, says:

Code:

couldn't find file descriptor referring to the console

What do I miss?

Do it as root.

Didier Spaier · 04-16-2018, 08:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gerard Lally

Do it as root.

It worked, thanks Gerard.

However I don't get the same glyphs as typing showconsoelfont directly in a VT (and I don't get the umlaut vowels, by the way). Does screen sets a specific font?

Sorry for the newbie question, I never started screen until today.

Gerard Lally · 04-16-2018, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Didier Spaier

It worked, thanks Gerard.

However I don't get the same glyphs as typing showconsoelfont directly in a VT (and I don't get the umlaut vowels, by the way). Does screen sets a specific font?

Sorry for the newbie question, I never started screen until today.

Well, that's interesting! Same problem here! I don't think screen sets its own font; I moved back to screen from tmux because it seems better behaved. It must have something to do with $TERM ; on the console, it's linux, and in screen (running on the console), at least here, it's screen-256color

But even on the linux console I don't get the glyphs I was expecting (with ter-v16b).