[Replying via the bugreport] Quoting Junyong Liang (2026-08-24 15:26:39) > On 2026/8/21 17:52, Jonas Smedegaard wrote: > > An example config is a low-hanging fruit: That is just a file that we > > ship below /usr/share/doc/hx/examples/ that we imagine has some general > > use - can be inspirational use, so perfectly fine to share strongly > > biased or weird configuration examples there. > > This is beyond doubt. Since you mentioned that multiple > > configurations can be provided, then I think we could adopt > > a combined configuration. For example, the display configuration > > (line numbers, theme, cursor shape), the key configuration > > (my preferred Vim key arrangement), and so on. > > > > A default config is something else - that should be generally useful > > not only inspirationally but functionally - so things like "let's > > hardcode use of 24-bit color disregarding what the terminal says" are > > unacceptable there, and even "let's use theme foo" is questionable. > > I agree with you, but I think users should at least be warned, > > rather than seeing a gray interface after installation > > (neither the default purple nor any other color). > > > > What would be the proper, elegant approach would be to use debconf: > > https://wiki.debian.org/debconf > > I investigated debconf, and I don't think it's a good solution. > > For example, when I installed oh-my-zsh, > > it provided some preview features that let me know my configuration.
Please elaborate what you mean by debconf not being a good solution. I don't understand your pointing to oh-my-zsh as an example (I have never heard of it before, and I use bash, not zsh), and since it seems to not be an official Debian package, I highly doubt that it is using debconf (or if it does, that it has done so in an optimal way). To experience what debconf can be, try run one of these commands: sudo dpkg-reconfigure fontconfig-config sudo dpkg-reconfigure keyboard-configuration sudo dpkg-reconfigure tzdata > > This also ties into an old idea of mine to introduce a generic package > > in Debian for user-facing cross-package choices like "should dark or > > light be preferred?" and "base tinting color" and "console font?" and > > "console color depth (and should it be forced)?". Because such debconf > > questions are relevant not only for helix but for a large range of > > packages, potentially, if the maintainers ever engage in setting up the > > needed packaging infrastructure to handle debconf for their default > > config setup. > > > > Helix could be a frontier here: We could do the hard work of setting up > > proper separation of general questions and application-specific > > translation of those answered questions into auto-generation at > > package install time of maintainable default settings. > > Your idea is great, but I really don't know much about this area. > > The beautification of terminal programs is indeed an issue that > many people are researching. Just like my configurations are > scattered in various directories of dotfiles. > > If you have any ideas that could simplify > these configurations, I can help implement them together. If you want to do something quickly, then propose some sample configuration files that the user then can manually look at and copy into place on their own. If you want to help provide a smooth user customization experience that is also strongly maintainable, then debconf is great. But it is a bit complex to understand at first. Please do tell me what level of enthusiasm you have for diving into this, because I don't have debconf prepared on a silverplate for you, but I am willing to spend the time needed to get you accustomed to it if you have the interest in tackling it. - Jonas -- * Jonas Smedegaard - idealist & Internet-arkitekt * Tlf.: +45 40843136 Website: http://dr.jones.dk/ * Sponsorship: https://ko-fi.com/drjones [x] quote me freely [ ] ask before reusing [ ] keep private
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