cloned home - kde settings don't stick

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littlenoodles

cloned home - kde settings don't stick

Post by littlenoodles »

I brought over the /home filesystem to Mint from a different kde-based system (PCLinuxOS). Created a new mint user and used rsync to copy my old PCLOS user to it. Then did a

Code: Select all

find . -exec chmod <user:group> {} \;
to make sure all the cloned stuff was owned by the new user.

Anyway, I've been having a variety of problem.s
1. When I say, 'open with...' and select 'always open with this application', it says it's updating system settings, but it doesn't take. Basically, I'm trying to make all video formats play with smplayer, which I prefer to kaffeine. I even tried manually editing .local/share/applications, which seems to work for most file types, but not for .mp4.

2. I tried adding two different weather widgets to my desktop. But when I try to set my location, it doesn't stick. I also tried putting one of these on my panel, and it's there (I think) as a blank box (because it has no location info to display). Anyway, I can't delete it.

3. I had been using gPodder under my old account, and it had stored full path info in its config files, so that didn't move over gracefully.

Bottom line - should I not have attempted to clone my login? Am I having permission problems?
Last edited by LockBot on Wed Dec 28, 2022 7:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Topic automatically closed 6 months after creation. New replies are no longer allowed.
caf4926
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Re: cloned home - kde settings don't stick

Post by caf4926 »

Mint settings are in .kde

I suspect PCLinuxOS are using the more traditional .kde4
Linux Mint 21.1 Cinnamon
littlenoodles

Re: cloned home - kde settings don't stick

Post by littlenoodles »

caf4926 wrote:Mint settings are in .kde
I suspect PCLinuxOS are using the more traditional .kde4
True - I noticed that. But that's not the problem. Actually, I just tried adding the Weather Widget to a new test user created in Mint. The widget's location setting won't stick for that user either. Something's wrong, no?
littlenoodles

Re: cloned home - kde settings don't stick

Post by littlenoodles »

Okay, it's not that the config files are not writeable - I've verified that they are. And it turned out that the weather widget didn't take the location, because I just typed in my zip code, and apparently it wants you to type in a name and then hit the Search button. Silly me.

But the file associations really seems to have a bug. I was able to make SMPlayer the default app for .flv files just by selecting it in the Open With... dialog and asking to have my choice stick, but this didn't work for .wmv or .mp4's. It would say it was updating my config files, but nothing would change. Then I opened the 'File Associations' tool and tried moving SMPlayer to the top of the list for those file types. Again, it would seem to move (if I highlighted another type and came back, the change was still there), but it had no effect. And when I closed and reopened the list, Kaffeine was back at the top. It's as if KDE was forcing Kaffeine on you. Finally, I just removed Kaffeine from the list in the tool, and that worked.

So, is this a KDE bug that I should report to KDE - or is it possible that Mint is forcing this selection. I've found that Mint gets a little pushy - for instance, it takes some non-obvious doing to make Google the default search engine. There's a rationale for this, I understand. I'd just like to know a list of places where Mint has changed default configurations of apps, so I don't blame it on KDE or Mozilla...
caf4926
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Re: cloned home - kde settings don't stick

Post by caf4926 »

File association is
Right click the file > Properties >
Now click the small spanner and in the new dialogue box you can make changes and apply
Linux Mint 21.1 Cinnamon
littlenoodles

Re: cloned home - kde settings don't stick

Post by littlenoodles »

caf4926 wrote:File association is
Right click the file > Properties >
Now click the small spanner and in the new dialogue box you can make changes and apply
That takes you to the same dialog as if you went into System Settings - File Associations. And it has the same behavior. If you merely lower the precedence of Kaffeine, it pops back to the top the next time you open the dialog. But if you remove it completely, it stays removed. Nasty. It's as if KDE wants to impose their preferred video viewer on you. But only for .wmv and .mp4 files. It's fine with my specifying SMPlayer for .flv's.
littlenoodles

Re: cloned home - kde settings don't stick

Post by littlenoodles »

Another setting that doesn't stick. When you close Firefox with multiple tabs open, you get a dialog asking whether to save your tabs for next time. There's a checkbox there that says 'don't ask me again'. If I click the box and then click 'close' (i.e. don't save the tabs), the next time Firefox opens, the tabs are not restored (so it didn't save them - and it does save them if I ask it to), but I still get the dialog the next time I close Firefox.
caf4926
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Re: cloned home - kde settings don't stick

Post by caf4926 »

littlenoodles wrote:
caf4926 wrote:File association is
Right click the file > Properties >
Now click the small spanner and in the new dialogue box you can make changes and apply
That takes you to the same dialog as if you went into System Settings - File Associations. And it has the same behavior. If you merely lower the precedence of Kaffeine, it pops back to the top the next time you open the dialog. But if you remove it completely, it stays removed. Nasty. It's as if KDE wants to impose their preferred video viewer on you. But only for .wmv and .mp4 files. It's fine with my specifying SMPlayer for .flv's.
Then something is wrong with your system or you have a messed up /home/username

If I set the application order and apply I see a 'Updating system settings' timer. And any change I have made remains.....
Linux Mint 21.1 Cinnamon
littlenoodles

Re: cloned home - kde settings don't stick

Post by littlenoodles »

caf4926 wrote: Then something is wrong with your system or you have a messed up /home/username
You're right - I've messed up something. I've tried changing file associations under a newly created user, and it works there. What I was hoping to figure out is what I messed up.
I created my user account fresh, but then renamed my home folder and cloned the home folder from my account on another kde4-based system. I then did a
find . -exec chmod <me>:<me> {} \;
command to change the ownership to the newly-created user. I tend to share my /home across systems when I'm trying out new distros, and usually it works fine. But I generally create a new user under the new distro to make sure everything's clean.
caf4926
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Re: cloned home - kde settings don't stick

Post by caf4926 »

I usually format /home and only import my personal files and some settings such as konversation
Linux Mint 21.1 Cinnamon
Embryo

Re: cloned home - kde settings don't stick

Post by Embryo »

I'm experimenting the exact same problem on Mint 14 KDE with all the updates to date (fresh install). I tried chmod 644 /usr/bin/kaffeine but that didn't work, instead the solution provided above to right click Properties and remove it from the list seems to work.
littlenoodles

Re: cloned home - kde settings don't stick

Post by littlenoodles »

Embryo wrote:I'm experimenting the exact same problem on Mint 14 KDE with all the updates to date (fresh install). I tried chmod 644 /usr/bin/kaffeine but that didn't work, instead the solution provided above to right click Properties and remove it from the list seems to work.
Is your user account freshly created? For me, a newly created account had no problem. I suspect that I have old hidden config directories that are confusing KDE and Firefox. Though it is strange that it will remember when I ask it to remove kaffeine from the list, but not when I simply reorder the list.
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