We believe that your issue has been closed by the upload of
Version 0.3.73 of grml-etc-core from Michael Prokop <mika@grml.org>.
The explanation is attached below

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Hash: SHA1

Format: 1.8
Date: Tue, 28 Jul 2009 17:53:08 +0200
Source: grml-etc-core
Binary: grml-etc-core
Architecture: source all
Version: 0.3.73
Distribution: unstable
Urgency: low
Maintainer: Michael Prokop <mika@grml.org>
Changed-By: Michael Prokop <mika@grml.org>
Description: 
 grml-etc-core - core ecetera files for the grml system
Changes: 
 grml-etc-core (0.3.73) unstable; urgency=low
 .
   [ Frank Terbeck ]
   * zshrc: Fix a problem when calling compinit can seem to cause zsh startup
     to hang forever. Reported by Rasmus Steinke.
   * zshrc: Fix problems related to TERM=mostlike in zshrc. Again reported by
     Rasmus Steinke.
   * zshrc: Give check_com a -g option to test for global aliases, too.
   * zshrc: Get rid of whence, once and for all.
   * zshrc: Insert a condition for loading /etc/default/locale
     [Closes: issue706]
   * zshrc: Set options a lot earlier and include noshwordsplit explicitly.
   * zshrc: Make functions insusceptible to user option settings.
   * zsh: move completion.d and functions.d to usr/share
   * zshrc: Include the current directory in the persistent directory stack.
 .
   [ Michael Prokop ]
   * zshrc: add deborphan, pal and hnb to compdef _gnu_generic. Thanks for
     the suggestion to Carsten Hey.
   * Drop all 'Latest Change' leftover references in several config files.
   * Minor Debian packaging updates (to make recent lintian versions happy):
     - update Standard version to 3.8.2
     - depend on debhelper >= 5
     - don't call true binary with full path in preinst script
     - update debian/overrides
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 66ab9f6c593d56b9b8c990b4aa6dad1504a8ffee 114893 grml-etc-core_0.3.73.tar.gz
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Files: 
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* Frank Terbeck <ft@bewatermyfriend.org> [20090708 12:56]:
> Michael Prokop <bts@bts.grml.org>:

[...]

> And FWIW, I think ZSH_NO_DEFAULT_LOCALE is a good name.

> The fix would look like this:

[...]

> iso-term would need to inject ZSH_NO_DEFAULT_LOCALE=1 into its
> environment.

Applied and tested: works fine.

> Please ACK this and I'll push with an appropriate commit message.

ACK

Thanks!

regards,
-mika-

Frank Terbeck <ft@bewatermyfriend.org>:
> -xsource "/etc/default/locale"
> +if (( ZSH_NO_DEFAULT_LOCALE == 0 )); then
> +    echo ping

Obviously this is test code, which won't make it into the commit. :)

> +    xsource "/etc/default/locale"
> +fi

Michael Prokop <bts@bts.grml.org>:
> Alright, discussing this issue in #grml Thorsten 'mira' Glaser
> brought up the following idea:
> 
> * do not source /etc/default/locale if something like
>   $ZSH_NO_DEFAULT_LOCALE is set
> * $ZSH_NO_DEFAULT_LOCALE isn't set by default, but:
> * iso-term can set $ZSH_NO_DEFAULT_LOCALE and avoid sourcing
>   /etc/default/ locale via /etc/zsh/zshrc therefore
> 
> This should prevent us from yet another change in the locale hell.
> 
> Frank, what do you think?

Since this is pretty much what I was after:
    ft » mika: kannst du steuern, wie iso-term die zsh startet?
    [...]
    mika » ft: grml-skript, das einfach utf-8 in iso wandelt im
           environment:
    [...]
    ft » mika: dann könnte man darin eine Variable setzen, die das
         Laden von default/locale verhindert. (was die Sache in der
         zshrc wieder komplizierter macht, aber hey. :))

And FWIW, I think ZSH_NO_DEFAULT_LOCALE is a good name.

The fix would look like this:

[snip]
diff --git a/etc/zsh/zshrc b/etc/zsh/zshrc
index 43dab29..5527ec8 100644
--- a/etc/zsh/zshrc
+++ b/etc/zsh/zshrc
@@ -252,6 +252,7 @@ GRML_ZSH_CNF_HANDLER=${GRML_ZSH_CNF_HANDLER:-/usr/share/command-not-found/comman
 BATTERY=${BATTERY:-0}
 GRMLSMALL_SPECIFIC=${GRMLSMALL_SPECIFIC:-1}
 GRML_ALWAYS_LOAD_ALL=${GRML_ALWAYS_LOAD_ALL:-0}
+ZSH_NO_DEFAULT_LOCALE=${ZSH_NO_DEFAULT_LOCALE:-0}
 
 if isgrmlcd ; then
     GRML_WARN_SKEL=${GRML_WARN_SKEL:-0}
@@ -483,7 +484,10 @@ zrclocal() {
 #}}}
 
 # locale setup {{{
-xsource "/etc/default/locale"
+if (( ZSH_NO_DEFAULT_LOCALE == 0 )); then
+    echo ping
+    xsource "/etc/default/locale"
+fi
 
 for var in LANG LC_ALL LC_MESSAGES ; do
     [[ -n ${(P)var} ]] && export $var
[snap]

iso-term would need to inject ZSH_NO_DEFAULT_LOCALE=1 into its
environment.

Please ACK this and I'll push with an appropriate commit message.

Regards, Frank

Alright, discussing this issue in #grml Thorsten 'mira' Glaser brought up the 
following idea:

* do not source /etc/default/locale if something like $ZSH_NO_DEFAULT_LOCALE is 
set
* $ZSH_NO_DEFAULT_LOCALE isn't set by default, but:
* iso-term can set $ZSH_NO_DEFAULT_LOCALE and avoid sourcing /etc/default/
locale via /etc/zsh/zshrc therefore

This should prevent us from yet another change in the locale hell.

Frank, what do you think?

regards,
-mika-

Michael Prokop <bts@bts.grml.org>:
> The following snippet in zshrc causes iso-term to fail:
> 
> xsource "/etc/default/locale"
> for var in LANG LC_ALL LC_MESSAGES ; do
>     [[ -n ${(P)var} ]] && export $var
> done
> 
> iso-term tries to replace UTF-8 in the environment with iso885915 (useful if 
> you have to edit iso88591 encoded documents in the shell) but as the global 
> zshrc sources /etc/default/locale and exports environment variables again this 
> doesn't have any effect.

Well well well. If it's not locale hell all over again.
I _so_ hate it... :-/

Anyway, git blame says I introduced this in git commit
76706fcdd9c160d7f3212e597d2139f45531da72 - and I think I did it
because someone (gebi?) asked for it.

The Changelog entry (and I had to look at the changelog, because my
git commit message is a pile of crap...) says:

    Always read /etc/default/locale. Users are expected to adjust
    locale settings via '.zshrc.local'.

And I think that's still correct. If your system is UTF8 by default,
we should just take that. If the user wants ISO, he/she should set
their shell up for it.

Regards, Frank

The following snippet in zshrc causes iso-term to fail:

xsource "/etc/default/locale"
for var in LANG LC_ALL LC_MESSAGES ; do
    [[ -n ${(P)var} ]] && export $var
done

iso-term tries to replace UTF-8 in the environment with iso885915 (useful if 
you have to edit iso88591 encoded documents in the shell) but as the global 
zshrc sources /etc/default/locale and exports environment variables again this 
doesn't have any effect.

Frank, do you have any ideas for an elegant solution? :)

regards,
-mika-