emacs shell mode and debian dpkg-reconfigure / debconf

[Samuel Wales]

ok, so you can't get the familiar red/blue/grey tui of
dpkg-reconfigure in emacs shell mode.  that is actually very much ok
with me because setting that tui up for accessibility was too
difficult and time-consuming for me and i quit trying.

and i like the readline mode of dpkg-reconfigure MUCH BETTER than the
tui.  it does everything that the tui does and possibly even more.
(the package to configure to select the ui is debconf.)

the man pages go into detail here.  you have to install a perl or
python readline package and then defaults work in this ui and it shows
what the default is.  otherwise they do not and the interface looks
inferior in that no defaults.

so this means i found a solution for the accessibility issues, the
solution being to use the readline interface.

if i am willing to use xterm....

which, i want to use shell mode in emacs....

and it MOSTLY works there.  everything except hte defaults i think.

and you can even get defaults to PARTLY work by saying that
TERM=xterm.  you press RET and you get the default.  but the default
does not show.  THIS is the problem i want fixed.  to know what the
default is.

so this tool works well in an xterm, but not in emacs shell mode.  i
don't want to launch m-x term or so every time i want to upgrade, teh
reason being that i do not want to enter the root password again.  i
/think/ i would have to do so.

i also do not want to use m-x term for the shells cript in which the
upgrade is embedded.  i don't use terminals much really.

i want just to see if this tool can work in shell mode with a trick or
if there is anohter interface or so.

so, is there a trick to getting hte readline mode to show defaults?

please note: i do not need full readline capabilities!  that is what
emacs shell mode is for.  plenty of editing possible.  all i need is
to know what the default selection is.  in an xterm, this shows
pre-filled in the prompt.  which is readline.

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