In SVN 27277 (Gentoo Linux) there is still the problem that some font styles are selectable in the dialog box but do not display in the actual text object.
To see this in action, one needs a font like Helvetica Neue installed:
1. Select "Thin" as the style; the sample changes to something that looks pretty much like a thin version of the font.
2. Click on "Apply"; the style changes to "Ultra-light", the sample display changes to this new style, as does the actual on-the-page text object.
3. Re-select "Thin"; the example text changes once more to the thin style.
4. Re-apply; the dialog box ignores this, apparently thinking that this is the style already in use. The sample text remains thin but the text object is not changed.
5. Close dialog.
6. Re-open the dialog (keeping the text object selected); the style is listed as "Ultra-Light" but we appear to be back at the state represented by point 3, not that represented by step 1.
That's about all I've got and it is font-dependant in that the styles available differ from font to font, so for Futura the issue shows up for the style Medium (which changes to Bold on application), while Frutiger switches Ultra-heavy to just plain Heavy.
The really odd bit is that the font dialog has no obvious problem displaying these styles.
TWW