Bug#337889: scrollkeeper-update crashes, leads to failing apt install

[linas]

On Mon, Nov 07, 2005 at 11:22:40AM +0100, Loic Minier was heard to remark:
>         Hi,
> 
> On dim, nov 06, 2005, Linas Vepstas wrote:
> > Overview: scrollkeeper-update crashes, preventing apt-get from working 
> > correctly. I note that reportbug and querybts are also crashing, and so
> > is mutt.  (In other respects, the system works fine; I'm running X11, 
> > playing music on xmms etc. I am using the old-fashioned "mail" to write 
> > this email. I didn't notice anything else broken till I tried to report
> > this.)
> 
>  If mutt, and reportbug, and querybts are crashing, this is certainly
>  not a scrollkeeper bug, it looks like a system-wide problem such as a
>  libc issue.  The only dynamic library I could find in common between
>  the crasher you mention is:
>         libdl.so.2
>  (which is in libc6)
> 
>  Please followup with your arch and libc6 version, and please try
>  downgrading libc6 and booting on a livecd (to confirm this is not a
>  hardware issue, such as bad RAM).

The bug report had arch and libc info in it.  The system works fine 
in other respects: it boots, it runs the full complement of daemons, 
X11 works, I can log in, run various apps, compile, and listen to 
music (both totem and xmms work).  Solitaire works.  Both konqueror 
and firefox work.  This would seem to rule out bad ram and a bad libc6.

Its possible that maybe there's an obscure libdl bug that only affects
a small number of subsystems. 

How do I downgrade libc6?

--linas