Bug#619786: texi2dvi: Syntax error: Bad function name when dash is /bin/sh (uses "local" as function name)

[Jonathan Nieder]

Package: texinfo
Version: 4.13a.dfsg.1-6
Severity: important
Forwarded: address@hidden
Justification: goal-dash; makes autogen ftbfs
Tags: upstream patch

Hi,

With dash is /bin/sh, texi2dvi doesn't seem to work:

| $ texi2dvi
| /usr/bin/texi2dvi: 144: /usr/bin/texi2dvi: Syntax error: Bad function name
| $ sed -ne 144p /usr/bin/texi2dvi
| ) || local () {
| $ dash -c 'true || local () { echo hi; }; echo continuing'; echo $?
| dash: 1: Syntax error: Bad function name
| 2

The cause: texi2dvi conditionally defines a function named "local".
What that condition is is not important for now; the trouble is that
regardless of the condition, dash errors out, considering such a
function declaration to be a syntax error.

At first I thought this was an odd corner case in application usage
that POSIX allows (such a function could never be used since the
builtin takes precedence, but it could be defined) and that dash was
in error.  In fact that first part is true --- POSIX does allow this.
TC1 to the standard is intended not to allow it[1].

In any event, the usage is questionable.  Patch to wrap it in "eval"
follows, so shells that implement local as a special builtin can avoid
some worry.

Thoughts?

Thanks for making some nice manuals possible.
Jonathan

[1] http://austingroupbugs.net/view.php?id=383
---
 util/texi2dvi |   13 ++++++++-----
 1 files changed, 8 insertions(+), 5 deletions(-)

diff --git a/util/texi2dvi b/util/texi2dvi
index 07f4da2..a64af49 100755
--- a/util/texi2dvi
+++ b/util/texi2dvi
@@ -141,11 +141,14 @@ test -n "$TEX" && test -d "$TEX" && unset TEX
   }
   test_local
   test $foo = bar
-) || local () {
-  case $1 in
-    *=*) eval "$1";;
-  esac
-}
+) ||
+eval '
+  local () {
+    case $1 in
+      *=*) eval "$1";;
+    esac
+  }
+'
 
 
 # cd_orig
-- 
1.7.4.1