Bug#816437: apt displays “Command line option is not understood” when the subcommand is wrong

[nicolas@braud-santoni.eu]

Package: apt
Version: 1.2.3
Severity: minor

Dear Maintainer,


When apt(8) is involed with a non-existing subcommand and an option,
  an error is reported about the option rather than about the subcommand:

> % apt lits --upgradable
> E: Command line option --upgradable is not understood in combination with the other options


Would it be posible, instead, to report first errors about
  non-existing subcommands?


Best,

  nicoo

-- Package-specific info:

-- /etc/apt/preferences --

Package: *
Pin: release n=stretch
Pin-Priority: 900

-- (/etc/apt/sources.list present, but not submitted) --


-- System Information:
Debian Release: stretch/sid
  APT prefers testing
  APT policy: (900, 'testing')
Architecture: amd64 (x86_64)

Kernel: Linux 4.3.0-1-amd64 (SMP w/4 CPU cores)
Locale: LANG=en_US.UTF-8, LC_CTYPE=en_US.UTF-8 (charmap=UTF-8) (ignored: LC_ALL set to en_US.UTF-8)
Shell: /bin/sh linked to /bin/dash
Init: systemd (via /run/systemd/system)

Versions of packages apt depends on:
ii  adduser                 3.113+nmu3
ii  debian-archive-keyring  2014.3
ii  gnupg                   1.4.20-4
ii  gnupg2                  2.1.11-5
ii  gpgv                    1.4.20-4
ii  libapt-pkg5.0           1.2.3
ii  libc6                   2.21-9
ii  libgcc1                 1:5.3.1-8
ii  libstdc++6              5.3.1-8

apt recommends no packages.

Versions of packages apt suggests:
pn  apt-doc     <none>
ii  aptitude    0.7.5-3
ii  dpkg-dev    1.18.4
ii  python-apt  1.1.0~beta1

-- no debconf information