[Bug 33510] xscreensaver and gnome-screensaver conflict

[David Britton]

Public bug reported:
https://launchpad.net/malone/bugs/33510

Affects: gnome-screensaver (Ubuntu)
       Severity: Normal
       Priority: (none set)
         Status: Unconfirmed

Description:
Hi, I searched for this issue but couldn't find it.

http://www.ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?t=137408

The above contains some concerns about gnome-screensaver, and preference
of xscreensaver over gnome-screensaver.

Not wanting to debate personal preference, I think it should be
considered a bug that ubuntu lets gnome-screensaver and xscreensaver be
installed at the same time.  Furthermore, when you attempt to install
xscreensaver and then uninstall gnome-screensaver, the ubuntu-desktop
package is uninstalled which (potentially, and almost inevetibly) breaks
future dist upgrades.

Wouldn't it make sense to handle the situation in the same manner as
totem-xine and totem-gstreamer?  When one is installed the other can't
be, and if you try, it will simply remove the other and install the one
you request.

Since the screensaver is a background daemon (over which the average
user doesn't even have a say when/where/how it starts), it wouldn't make
any sense to me to allow these to be installed at the same time.

But putting that point aside -- since xscreensaver is a standalone
program -- if it did make sense to have them installed at the same time
(which it might, I don't claim to know all the use cases here), an
ubuntu user should at least have the option of removing gnome-
screensaver without breaking the install by forcing the remove of
ubuntu-desktop (since xscreensaver is a full supported replacement).

I know this has some pieces in xscreensaver and probably some higher-
level place.  I apologize if it's filed incorrectly.  Feel free to
recategorize it as you see fit.