test_venv is now passing on 3.x OpenIndiana: http://buildbot.python.org/all/builders/x86%20OpenIndiana%203.x/builds/7129/steps/test/logs/stdio

Ubuntu LTS buildbot is still unhappy: http://buildbot.python.org/all/builders/AMD64%20Ubuntu%20LTS%203.x/builds/3221/steps/test/logs/stdio

And looking at the environment armed with the improved error details, this is likely the culprit:

  PIP_REQUIRE_VIRTUALENV=true

I'll hack the test to delete it from the subprocess invocation for now, but I think there's a pip bug here: -E (and, equivalently, -I) should likely cause pip to ignore *its* environment variables as well.