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sancho.s ReinstateMonicaCellio
Asked: 2021-03-05 15:26:28 +0800 CST

Where are GTK_IM_MODULE and GTK_MODULES set?

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When starting Eclipse for the first time in my Ubuntu 20.04, I got a warning (which actually seem to be 2 warnings)

***WARNING: Detected: GTK_IM_MODULE=xim. This input method is unsupported and can cause graphical issues.
***WARNING: Unset GTK_IM_MODULE or set GTK_IM_MODULE=ibus if flicking is experienced. 
log4j:WARN No appenders could be found for logger (org.eclipse.jgit.internal.storage.file.FileSnapshot).
log4j:WARN Please initialize the log4j system properly.

To deal with the GTK... warning, I googled a bit. I found here that "Gnome made ibus the default input method" (even if the answer is from 2016, figure below suggests it still applies). But

$ env | grep -i gtk
GTK_IM_MODULE=xim
GTK_MODULES=gail:atk-bridge

So I wonder where is GTK_IM_MODULE set. What I tried (with no luck):

$ grep -i gtk ~/.bashrc
$ grep -i gtk ~/.profile 
$ grep -i gtk /etc/profile
$ grep -i -nH gtk /etc/profile.d/*
$ grep -i gtk ~/.xprofile 
$ grep -i gtk ~/.xinputrc 
$ gsettings get org.gnome.desktop.interface gtk-im-module
'gtk-im-context-simple'

(note that as per dconf-editor, the default value is '').

I will next try the suggestion in the warning, Unset GTK_IM_MODULE or set GTK_IM_MODULE=ibus, but I still have the question:

Where are GTK_IM_MODULE and GTK_MODULES set?

When launching im-config I see this

enter image description here

EDIT:

Perhaps ~/.xinputrc is responsible. Its contents:

# im-config(8) generated on Tue, 03 Nov 2020 10:36:11 -0300
run_im xim
# im-config signature: 1f92fadecc95eaeaf5534ec0902b5a9b  -

If this is the cause, why would .xinputrc contain that?

EDIT #2:

I have removed .xinputrc, logged out and in again. Still

$ env | grep -i gtk
GTK_IM_MODULE=xim
GTK_MODULES=gail:atk-bridge

So it seems .xinputrc was not the culprit.

EDIT #3:

I executed

$ im-config -n ibus
$ im-config -m
default
ibus
ibus

ibus

So I made sure ibus was current (in the second line of the output, I had xim before). I logged out and in again. Still

$ env | grep -i gtk
GTK_IM_MODULE=xim
GTK_MODULES=gail:atk-bridge
$ cat .xinputrc 
# im-config(8) generated on Thu, 04 Mar 2021 23:34:26 -0300
run_im ibus
# im-config signature: 3d5777226bbd6243ce412ee4470b8020  -

Plus, launching eclipse still gives the same warning (expected, since the environment variables have the same values). And the ensuing flicker is still present.

As requested in comments

$ env | grep -E '_IM|XMOD'
GTK_IM_MODULE=xim
QT4_IM_MODULE=xim
XMODIFIERS=@im=none
CLUTTER_IM_MODULE=xim
QT_IM_MODULE=ibus

So it seems .xinputrc was not the culprit.

EDIT #4:

After a reboot

$ im-config -m
default
ibus
ibus

ibus
$ env | grep -E '_IM|XMOD'
XMODIFIERS=@im=ibus
QT_IM_MODULE=ibus
$ env | grep -i gtk
GTK_MODULES=gail:atk-bridge
$ grep -i gtk ~/.profile 
$ grep -i gtk /etc/environment
$ grep -i gtk /etc/environment.d/*
/etc/environment.d/90atk-adaptor.conf:GTK_MODULES=${GTK_MODULES:+$GTK_MODULES:}gail:atk-bridge

Plus, eclipse does not show the warning (as expected), and the flicker is gone.

whether GTK_IM_MODULE was also set in /etc/environment.d/90atk-adaptor.conf, I cannot tell (I would need to try a few things to ascertain that).

Even if not needed:

  1. The question about what set GTK_IM_MODULE persists.
  2. I will try removing .xinputrc, rebooting, and checking again.
gnome

2 Answers

  1. Best Answer

    Yes, that is most likely the cause.

    As regards your question why ~/.xinputrc would contain that, it's a long story. In short it's about various attempts historically to achieve a sensible default configuration. I assume that you installed Ubuntu some years ago, and later upgraded to 20.04.

    My advice: Just delete ~/.xinputrc and reboot. It won't return unless you actively change the input method configuration via e.g. Language Support.

    • 1

  2. I confirm that in yet another system with the same issue, executing

    $ im-config -n ibus

    and rebooting solved the problem.

    • 0