OT - Greetings from Ubuntu! ... again

DreamStalker · Post by **DreamStalker** » Fri May 23, 2008 8:38 pm

I posted this message earlier this afternoon and it seems to have disappeared. Is Bill Gates and/or Steve Jobs members of this forum? Why would anyone delete it?

Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks to Bill (NightHawkeye), Yardbird, and others who encouraged me to migrate over to this cool and free Linux operating system. I installed it last Tuesday night along with Virtualbox. Then I installed Windows XP onto a virtual machine created in Virtualbox but it took me two nights to get it and all the updates installed (2 service packs and over 95 security updates .... jeeze!).

I have yet to install any MS software onto the XP install (maybe sometime this weekend) but I have been playing around with Ubuntu and I like it a lot so far. I still have a bit of a learning curve ahead but so far it has been rather painless getting it up and running. Thanks again to the wonderful cpaptalk members of this great forum!

goose · Post by **goose** » Fri May 23, 2008 9:23 pm

Right on Roberto....
I have a Ubuntu install to do myself. I just have to cable the machine to the switch so I can use the keyboard and monitor on my wife's XP box....Right now my "old" machine is running Fedora Core 4 or 5 and Windows 2000, but I haven't even powered it up for a couple years.....
Got the Ubuntu disk a while back to load on an old IBM T20 but the BIOS is pre Y2K so it wouldn't install. I just haven't gotten around to flashing the BIOS yet.....Lazy??? Who??? Me??

I'll definitely have to check out VirtualBox....

Thanks for the post -- good info!!!!
cheers
goose

Fredman · Post by **Fredman** » Fri May 23, 2008 9:29 pm

I have Ubuntu, and when I boot I have the choice of XP or Ubuntu. BUT something happened not so long ago and now when I boot and I choose Ubuntu...it goes to a flashing cursor and won't progress onto the login screen

I am going to try to boot from my Ubuntu set up CD and see if I can fix it. Even if I choose the Ubuntu safe boot it still goes to the flashing cursor!!!! Arggh Ubuntu is not really user friendly, but I do like the clean and simple interfaces! I also like the free updates and you don't have to wait a couple of years for a new OS!

Any advice or thoughts...please PM me! Thanks!

NightHawkeye · Post by **NightHawkeye** » Fri May 23, 2008 9:30 pm

DreamStalker wrote:Anyway, I just wanted to say thanks to Bill (NightHawkeye), Yardbird, and others who encouraged me to migrate over to this cool and free Linux operating system. I installed it last Tuesday night along with Virtualbox.

Glad to hear you like it, DreamStalker. Hope it meets your needs.

DreamStalker wrote:Then I installed Windows XP onto a virtual machine created in Virtualbox but it took me two nights to get it and all the updates installed (2 service packs and over 95 security updates .... jeeze!).

ROTFL. Funny thing, that.

DreamStalker wrote:I have yet to install any MS software onto the XP install (maybe sometime this weekend) but I have been playing around with Ubuntu and I like it a lot so far. I still have a bit of a learning curve ahead but so far it has been rather painless getting it up and running. Thanks again to the wonderful cpaptalk members of this great forum!

Have fun with it, but don't build up unrealistic expectations for it. Windows games, in particular, don't work well in Ubuntu, even in Virtual Box. Copy protection schemes are pretty sensitive to operating system changes. The only Windows program that's been finicky for me was Encore Pro, but it's pretty finicky on genuine Windows boxes. Make sure USB is working properly in Virtual Box and you shouldn't have any more problems installing Encore Pro than normal.

Regards,
Bill

NightHawkeye · Post by **NightHawkeye** » Fri May 23, 2008 9:38 pm

Fredman wrote:I have Ubuntu, and when I boot I have the choice of XP or Ubuntu. BUT something happened not so long ago and now when I boot and I choose Ubuntu...it goes to a flashing cursor and won't progress onto the login screen

Fredman have you posted your problem at http://www.ubuntuforums.org?

They aren't always as responsive as folks here are, but they often provide very detailed answers. Sometimes, it's even faster to search the forum there and find how someone else solved the problem.

To me, it kinda sounds like your X video server is not working. I don't understand enough about it to point you in a good direction, but someone there will.

Regards,
Bill

Fredman · Post by **Fredman** » Fri May 23, 2008 9:49 pm

Thanks Bill that is a good idea. I will do that. I keep forgetting that Linux is a community based OS as opposed to a publicly traded entity designed to build in obsolescence and sell new product as the greatest bestest thing that you got to have that they could have given you but didn't because as their marketing strategy dictated that they could offer it to you as a new OS and make obscene profit, even though they had designed it years ago (or got it from a company at a bargain basement price) and if you want support, you have to dig deep into the Internet, pay for support, or spend inordinate amount of time during your "free support" time on a Support phone line waiting for an answer that probably won't work.

Am I bitter?

Snoredog · Post by **Snoredog** » Fri May 23, 2008 10:16 pm

I think Ubuntu is the closest you'll find to windows,

FYI: Virtual box does NOT yet support USB on Mac Leopard and XP Pro w/Sp3.

Haven't tried it yet on ubuntu/virtbox/xpPro, but that might work. I use the Prolific driver with my RS232 which is natively supported with Leopard but that combo wouldn't talk to it to connect to my 420e.

Roberto:

there was some gibberish from a post earlier I seen looked like what you'd get coming here with a Japanese browser or incorrect font, wonder if that wasn't you? It looked like spam so someone probably blew it away thinking it was spam, if you were still selecting languages that might have been it.

NightHawkeye · Post by **NightHawkeye** » Sat May 24, 2008 4:50 am

Snoredog wrote:FYI: Virtual box does NOT yet support USB on Mac Leopard and XP Pro w/Sp3.

Haven't tried it yet on ubuntu/virtbox/xpPro, but that might work. I use the Prolific driver with my RS232 which is natively supported with Leopard but that combo wouldn't talk to it to connect to my 420e.

Yep, it does. USB works well in Virtual Box on Ubuntu.

yardbird · Post by **yardbird** » Sat May 24, 2008 7:35 am

If you're using Ubuntu and installing VirtualBox, do NOT use the VirtualBox that is in the Ubuntu repositories (the one you see in Synaptic package manager). You want the free version available directly from VirtualBox.org.

Why?

Because the version that is in the official Ubuntu repositories does not have USB capabilities built-in and you may have to stand on your head to try and get it working. (If it says "OSE" in the package name... you don't want that one)

There are instructions for making a couple of very minor changes (edit a couple of files... easy) to enable USB support and then you can craete a filter so that every time you connect your smart card reader, the WindowsXP virtual machines gets control of that device. Before creating the filter, it would still work, but sometimes I had to go into the "USB Devices" menu in the virtual machine to "attach" it. When you create a filter the virtual machine gets it right every time.

Regarding the issue of a dual boot machine not booting correctly. If you have windows and linux (any linux.... not just Ubuntu) dual booting, are you using the linux boot loader (GRUB)? You should be. Ubuntu would set it up this way by default. If you "repair" the windows install at any time, there's a good possibility you'll screw up the boot loader because windows is... well... windows. It wants exclusivity. Learning to maintain a linux install isn't really hard. It's just a little different. Probably no more of a learning curve than going from a PC to a Mac. It really is user friendly once the user knows how to be friends

ubuntuforums.com is a nice comunity for help. If you have a windows machine and an IRC client (online chat) you can log on to the Freenode networkand /join #ubuntuforums and chat with folks and get real-time assistance. Jokes, jabs, etc may be the flavor of teh day there. All volunteer, but generally knowledgeable folks and they'll try to walk you through getting something fixed if necessary. Depends on who is in there. Timing can be a factor. Like... who is there that can help you. Many are watching the chat room while doing other things.

Anyways... Ubuntu user (no windows except in a virtual machine) since August of 2005. Was it worth it? Hell yeah.

NightHawkeye · Post by **NightHawkeye** » Sun May 25, 2008 10:39 am

For some reason nobody can explain, even the Ubuntu devotees are perplexed by it, the newly released version 8.04 of Ubuntu comes with Firefox version 3 beta as the "standard" browser. It's a wonderful browser when it works. I had hear others complain about the browser crashing and even experienced a crash a week or so ago which wasn't too catastrophic.

I should have know better. I should have gone to Firefox version 2, but didn't. My bad. This morning Firefox crashed on me again, costing the loss of about an hour's worth of work.

MORAL: Use Firefox 3 beta only when playing. Use Firefox 2 if you want stability.

BTW, the Firefox crash doesn't affect Ubuntu in the least. Ubuntu remains rock solid stable. The browser just goes Poof!

Regards,
Bill

yardbird · Post by **yardbird** » Sun May 25, 2008 11:03 am

odd... I'm using FireFox beta without a single crash.
Does it grey out and become unresponsive or does it just shut down and disappear?

NightHawkeye · Post by **NightHawkeye** » Sun May 25, 2008 12:06 pm

yardbird wrote:odd... I'm using FireFox beta without a single crash.
Does it grey out and become unresponsive or does it just shut down and disappear?

In a flash, it's just gone. No warnings, no recovery, just poof! Suddenly I was looking at my background wallpaper. Kinda funny (sort of). . Maybe it's just the 64-bit version, don't know. I have read others complaining about it though and wondering why the stable release of Ubuntu was bundled with an unstable beta version browser. (What were they thinking?) I'm sure there must be more to the story.

After the crash, when you start Firefox back up, it will reload all the pages where you were. That doesn't help much when you're composing a post for cpaptalk.com though.

FWIW, I've also experienced a similar problem when posting from Internet Explorer in the not too distant past. I didn't care for it much then either. .

Regards,
Bill

goose · Post by **goose** » Sun May 25, 2008 6:48 pm

Well - I have it loaded, updated and running on the old desktop box....
It's one version back 7.something. The auto updater wants to upgrade it and I'll do that, but for now......I'm a happy camper.....

Haven't had it running long enough to note any anomalies with Firefox, but give it a few days.....
Haven't dealt with a Linux machine for about 3 years, so it's interesting to "do it" again.....

Thanks for the post Roberto -- gave me the impetus to "git 'er done".....

cheers
goose

NightHawkeye · Post by **NightHawkeye** » Sun May 25, 2008 7:15 pm

goose wrote:It's one version back 7.something. The auto updater wants to upgrade it and I'll do that, but for now......I'm a happy camper.....

Haven't had it running long enough to note any anomalies with Firefox ...

You shouldn't have any problems with Firefox in the older versions of Ubuntu which used the earlier stable versions of Firefox. Only the latest version of Ubuntu, 8.04 defaults to the beta version of Firefox. It's easy enough to default to the stable version of Firefox, but ya gotta do it manually, something I hadn't done.

Enjoy your Ubuntu test drive, Goose.

Regards,
Bill

yardbird · Post by **yardbird** » Mon May 26, 2008 5:45 am

NightHawkeye,

Did you say you're using the 64-bit version? If so I would ask why.

And "in a flash" seems appropriate. Does it crash on web sites that have flash content?

Graphics card... ATI, nVidia, or integrated Intel? (or other?)

Right after a crash there should be something in the system log that says why it crashed, but it may be rather cryptic (kinda like windows errors)

Funny story about system errors.... I once had an error box pop open in windows that JUST had a big exclamation point in it. No text, and a button that said, "OK". that's all. No "Cancel", no explanation. Just like.... windows was very surprised! hehehe... maybe it farted unexpectedly. I'm not sure.

OT - Greetings from Ubuntu! ... again

OT - Greetings from Ubuntu! ... again

Re: OT - Greetings from Ubuntu! ... again

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