The ttf-mscorefonts-installer doesn't work from Ubuntu Software Center because of EULA, breaks APT

Support & Help Requests
#1

https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/msttcorefonts/+bug/1437764

This bug is really bad. I’ve switched quite a few people over to Ubuntu Mate recently, but this bug is so bad that it’s really making me have my doubts. It’s not technically the Mate edition’s fault, but it is nevertheless present in Ubuntu Mate. This bug affects Ubuntu proper and Ubuntu Mate, and probably other spinoffs too that I don’t use. It’s been present since at least 14.04, if not longer.

In summary: The ttf-mscorefonts-installer gets installed as a dependency of many super-common packages such as ubuntu-restricted-extras and Wine. Practically every Ubuntu user will run into this bug if they install anything from the Software Center. It results in failed installation of ttf-mscorefonts-installer because Ubuntu Software Center can’t show the EULA, and the entire APT system ends up seriously broken, requiring manual terminal intervention.

If you have seen this bug, please hit the “This bug affects me” link so that Ubuntu devs finally take this bug seriously.

#2

I get the EULA. One problem I had initially was figuring how to get the “accept” option to be highlighted. Eventually, I figured out it was the tab key. That was when I installed, say, Wine from a terminal. From the Ubuntu Software Centre, the EULA always comes up as a standard window for me where I can simply choose the “accept” option with a mouse.

#3

Hmm, that hasn’t been my experience unfortunately. I don’t get the EULA, at least not in Mate 14.04, and not in Ubuntu 15.04 either.

#4

Have you tried “sudo apt-get install ttf-mscorefonts-installer” from a terminal?

#5

Yes, but unfortunately that doesn’t help new users. Ubuntu Mate is so easy to install that normally I would feel comfortable giving it to a new Linux user for him/her to install on his own. But with this nasty bug, I know that as soon as they try to install common functionality they will end up with a broken package system and the Update Manager throwing nasty error windows on every login.

#6

I didn’t say it helped other users. I was trying to help you. As I said, earlier, I have never experienced this problem. However, given that you have said you have experienced it, I have no reason to doubt you and so the above method presumably solves your problem (let me know on here if it does not, in which case I, or someone else on here, will probably come up with some other fix). In terms of others having this problem, again, I had not heard that. But, if you say you have read that they do, then file it as a bug.

Believe me, I have every sympathy for someone experiencing difficulty trying to get their Linux installation to do what they want it to do. Sometimes this is due to a bug, sometimes it is due to something really unusual they want it to do that the devs could not be reasonably expected to account for and sometimes it might be described technically as a bug, but which seems to affect very few people. The thing to always remember is that Linux is an open source OS created and maintained largely by volunteers. This inevitably means it is going to be slightly fuzzier around the edges than a commercially produced OS. It also means it is far more customizable though.

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#7

Hi,

change your software download location (Download from) and try again, see the guide:

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