The Use init system toggle in the new-box form says:
Adds systemd support - ignore if you're not sure
That is true as far as it goes, and it leaves out the half that surprises people. distrobox create --init does more than add systemd; from distrobox-create --help:
--init/-I: use init system (like systemd) inside the container.
this will make host's processes not visible from within the container. (assumes --unshare-process)
may require additional packages depending on the container image
So the toggle makes the box more isolated, not less - it unshares the process namespace. Nothing in BoxBuddy hints at that.
I turned it on expecting the opposite. My reasoning was the ordinary one: I wanted a box that could reach more of the system, saw an option about the "init system", and read "adds systemd support" as "makes the box behave more like a full system, closer to the host". The result is the reverse, and the only place that says so is distrobox's own --help, which someone using a GUI has no reason to read.
The wording also gives no clue about when the option is actually wanted - running services inside the box - or about its cost, which the same help mentions: it may need extra packages depending on the image.
Suggested wording
Subtitle:
Runs systemd inside the box and hides the host's processes from it
and a tooltip with the rest:
Turn this on for services that have to run inside the box. It is not needed to use the host's tools, and it makes the box more isolated, not less.
Checked before proposing: the current string is only in po/boxbuddy.pot, not translated in any of the shipped .po files, so changing it costs no existing translation.
PR follows.
The Use init system toggle in the new-box form says:
That is true as far as it goes, and it leaves out the half that surprises people.
distrobox create --initdoes more than add systemd; fromdistrobox-create --help:So the toggle makes the box more isolated, not less - it unshares the process namespace. Nothing in BoxBuddy hints at that.
I turned it on expecting the opposite. My reasoning was the ordinary one: I wanted a box that could reach more of the system, saw an option about the "init system", and read "adds systemd support" as "makes the box behave more like a full system, closer to the host". The result is the reverse, and the only place that says so is distrobox's own
--help, which someone using a GUI has no reason to read.The wording also gives no clue about when the option is actually wanted - running services inside the box - or about its cost, which the same help mentions: it may need extra packages depending on the image.
Suggested wording
Subtitle:
and a tooltip with the rest:
Checked before proposing: the current string is only in
po/boxbuddy.pot, not translated in any of the shipped.pofiles, so changing it costs no existing translation.PR follows.