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[Bug 77010] Re: Overuse of system beep without volume control

 

Stumbled over this bug while unblacklisting 'pcspkr' in
/etc/modprobe.d/blacklist.conf. There was a reference to this bug
number.

I hate the beeps for the most part, but unloading the kernel module
means the `beep`  utility doesn't work. I like to use it for
notifications as I only have headphones on my desktop.

This Debian post has a better fix in my opinion:
https://www.debianadministration.org/article/110/Removing_annoying_console_beeps

`beep` still works, but terminals and vim don't beep at me.

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https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/77010

Title:
  Overuse of system beep without volume control

Status in Ayatana:
  Invalid
Status in One Hundred Papercuts:
  Fix Released
Status in libgnome package in Ubuntu:
  Fix Released
Status in linux package in Ubuntu:
  Won't Fix
Status in module-init-tools package in Ubuntu:
  Fix Released
Status in pulseaudio package in Ubuntu:
  Confirmed
Status in libgnome source package in Karmic:
  Fix Released
Status in linux source package in Karmic:
  Won't Fix
Status in module-init-tools source package in Karmic:
  Fix Released
Status in pulseaudio source package in Karmic:
  Won't Fix

Bug description:
    System 'beeps' have become omnipresent in gnome.  When I unplug my
  power cord, the notification system emits a system beep.  When I try
  to do quick find in Firefox and I type a word that doesn't exist in
  the document, it beeps.  When I tab-autocomplete in a gnome-terminal,
  it beeps if there are no completions.  There are numerous other
  software packages that behave similarly.

  This is a problem for multiple reasons.

  First of all, there are some cases where the beep is used
  inappropriately -- I really *don't care* that my power cord is
  unplugged - in fact I unplugged it!  I appreciate the technology
  advances that gnome-power-management has made in recent history, but I
  feel like I just want it to `go away' most of the time - I don't care
  about most of the things it informs me (besides low battery).  Firefox
  has color feedback in the "Find" bar, why do I need auditory feedback
  too?

  Second of all, I can't control the volume of the beep, or disable it
  in all cases.  In the case of the gnome-terminal I can disable the
  console "bell", but that only solves a single instance of the problem.
  In most other cases, there is nothing I can do to prevent the beeps.
  This can be very obtrusive in quite environments, and simply annoying
  in other cases.  On my laptop (recent Dell Latitude D620) the beep is
  incredibly loud - it is very noticeable.  It would be great to have a
  toggle button in the system "sound" preferences, or better yet, a
  volume slider for the system bell.

    This is a large problem, affecting multiple packages and systems - I
  don't know the best way to fix it, but I do know that it is definitely
  an overall gnome UI issue.  I've read that some programs literally
  just have the ASCII "BEL" coded into the source, so in some cases the
  problem may be unavoidable - I don't know enough of the technical
  details to recognize an appropriate solution.

  Any help dividing this into specific fixes for multiple projects or
  identifying the best place for an overall fix would be appreciated.

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