Arch linux + I3 + URXVT: ROFI opens nano editor in bash instead of URXVT

Question

The bash script that uses ROFI is:

xdg-open "$(locate home | rofi threads 0 -dmenu -i -p "locate:")"

This works fine from URXVT (command line), but when I bind this to a key and open ROFI, Every thing works (for example the directory opens in thunar) except when I try to open a text file like .Xdefault

I have already checked my mime settings and it works, because the file opens fine with nano using mimeopen and xdg-open.

Something happens in the background, because when I exit out of I3, I see the file open in nano along with some gibberish. I can X out of nano to get to the bash prompt.

Normally I don't ask questions, but I am not even sure how to check for a solution. please let me know how this can be fixed.

Edit: Just be clear when I open the same text file in I3 using xdg-open it opens it in nano (in the same urxvt terminal). "xdg-mime query default text/plain" returns "nano.desktop"

I also have a nano.desktop entry and I updated my mime database with update-mime-database — Prashant Thomas, Jun 10 '17 at 16:36
sorry, I had mentioned I could open the file using mimeopen but there is an error "can't exec "x-term": no such file or directory — Prashant Thomas, Jun 10 '17 at 18:17
Solved: Finally realized that I needed to install xterm. now it opens up nicely in xterm using nano. Not very pretty, but I can fix that. — Prashant Thomas, Jun 10 '17 at 18:55
Still don't understand why it needs a XTERM when it should open it in urxvt (btw i replaced xdg-open with mimeopen) — Prashant Thomas, Jun 10 '17 at 18:56

score 0 · Answer 1 · answered Jun 10 '17 at 10:30

There is no mime-type associated with a command-string, so xdg-open runs the shell command in the parent terminal (outside i3) rather than opening a terminal to run the command.

You can work around this limitation by making a ".desktop" file to launch the command as suggested in Set default xdg-open application to terminal program

score 0 · Answer 2 · answered Jun 10 '17 at 18:58

0

I was able to find a temp fix by installing xterm and have the text files open in xterm using nano. However I do not understand why it does not use URXVT and nano to do the same thing

answered Jun 10 '17 at 18:58

Prashant Thomas

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Arch linux + I3 + URXVT: ROFI opens nano editor in bash instead of URXVT

2 Answers2