Installing urw-core35-fonts screws with system default font

[HarveyDevel]

Please confirm there isn't an open report for this issue

• I have searched through bug reports

Summary

poppler needs Zapf Dingbats typeface compatible font.

The addition of this rundep had to be reverted due to it changing the font used system wide.

Issue noticed by several Solus staff members, using various applications including Firefox and Alacritty during unstable testing.

With urw-core35-fonts:

Without urw-core35-fonts:

Possible solutions (Untested)

• Use another Zapf Dingbats typeface compatible font.
• Creating a subpackage for only the font required.

Steps to reproduce

Install urw-core35-fonts and relaunch Firefox or Alacritty.

Expected result

Installing a new font should not mess with the default font selection.

Actual result

It changed the default font.

Environment

• Is system up to date?

Repo

Unstable

Desktop Environment

Plasma

System details

System:
  Host: sokar Kernel: 6.17.8-324.current arch: x86_64 bits: 64
  Desktop: KDE Plasma v: 6.5.4 Distro: Solus 4.8 opportunity
Machine:
  Type: Desktop Mobo: ASRock model: X570 Taichi serial: <superuser required>
    Firmware: UEFI vendor: American Megatrends v: P5.65 date: 03/19/2025
CPU:
  Info: 12-core AMD Ryzen 9 3900X [MT MCP] speed (MHz): avg: 4261
    min/max: 563/4674
Graphics:
  Device-1: Advanced Micro Devices [AMD/ATI] Navi 48 [Radeon RX 9070/9070
    XT/9070 GRE] driver: amdgpu v: kernel
  Display: wayland server: X.org v: 1.21.1.21 with: Xwayland v: 24.1.9
    compositor: kwin_wayland driver: X: loaded: amdgpu
    unloaded: fbdev,modesetting,radeon,vesa dri: radeonsi gpu: amdgpu
    resolution: 1: 3840x2160~60Hz 2: 1920x1080~60Hz 3: 3840x2160~60Hz
  API: OpenGL v: 4.6 compat-v: 4.5 vendor: amd mesa v: 25.3.2 renderer: AMD
    Radeon RX 9070 XT (radeonsi gfx1201 ACO DRM 3.64 6.17.8-324.current)
  Info: Tools: api: clinfo, eglinfo, glxinfo, vulkaninfo
    de: kscreen-console,kscreen-doctor gpu: amdgpu_top,lact wl: wayland-info
    x11: xdpyinfo, xprop, xrandr
Network:
  Device-1: Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX200 driver: iwlwifi
  Device-2: Intel I211 Gigabit Network driver: igb
Drives:
  Local Storage: total: 16.37 TiB used: 9.7 TiB (59.2%)
Info:
  Memory: total: 48 GiB available: 46.96 GiB used: 7.7 GiB (16.4%)
  Processes: 542 Uptime: 1d 2h 22m Shell: fish inxi: 3.3.40

Other comments

No response

[sheepman4267]

Another possible solution is to fix our fontconfig so that the correct (configured) fonts are actually used, no matter what other fonts are installed. I think the whole system would do well to live up to the expected result:

Installing a new font should not mess with the default font selection.

It would be really great to get fontconfig sorted out once and for all- this has been a recurring issue for ages.

But, in the short term, it would probably be good to do one of your proposed solutions as well so we can follow the poppler packaging guidelines.