Quoting Pariksheet Nanda <pariksheet.nanda@(protected)>:

> Most likely the stars and asterisks difference is because your 2 desktops
> are using different themes.
> (Or one of the desktops uses a modified theme by the same name)
>

An Ubuntu patch indeed. For those interested:

zoolook@(protected)
/usr/portage/local/zoolook/x11-libs/gtk+/files/gtk+2.0_2.12.0-1ubuntu3-invisible-char.patch
Index: gtk+2.0-2.11.3/gtk/gtkentry.c
===================================================================
--- gtk+2.0-2.11.3.orig/gtk/gtkentry.c 2007-06-15 20:07:37.000000000 +0200
+++ gtk+2.0-2.11.3/gtk/gtkentry.c     2007-06-16 14:25:47.000000000 +0200
@@(protected) @@
                        g_param_spec_unichar ("invisible-char",
                                     
P_("Invisible character"),
                                      P_("The
character to use when masking entry contents (in \"password mode\")"),
-                                     '*',
+                                     (gunichar) 0x25CF,
                                     
GTK_PARAM_READWRITE));

  g_object_class_install_property (gobject_class,
@@(protected) @@

  entry->editable = TRUE;
  entry->visible = TRUE;
- entry->invisible_char = '*';
+ entry->invisible_char = (gunichar) 0x25CF;
  entry->dnd_position = -1;
  entry->width_chars = -1;
  entry->is_cell_renderer = FALSE;
@@(protected) @@
 * gtk_entry_set_visibility() has been called to set text visibility
 * to %FALSE. i.e. this is the character used in "password mode" to
 * show the user how many characters have been typed. The default
- * invisible char is an asterisk ('*'). If you set the invisible char
- * to 0, then the user will get no feedback at all; there will be
- * no text on the screen as they type.
+ * invisible char is a black circle (Unicode character 25CF). If
+ * you set the invisible char to 0, then the user will get no
+ * feedback at all; there will be no text on the screen as they type.
 **/
void
gtk_entry_set_invisible_char (GtkEntry *entry,


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