Obviously, this sort of thread isn't going to suit those pathetic Linux fanbois who like to pretend that nothing ever goes wrong, but in reality, sometimes it does and hopefully this sort of info here, will make it much easier to get past any early hurdles you may have.
1. Make full use of the Synaptic Package Manager (Adept in Kubuntu)
Packages are not only programs. They are also additional stuff, like codecs, themes, plugins, etc. You want the Adobe Flash plugin? the first place you go to is your Package Manager and use Search. Makes life so much easier, normally no need to do symlinks, etc, etc.
2. Try to leave xorg.conf and other files alone.
Not to be taken literally, but just be aware that the innocent looking xorg.conf file, has the ability to leave your life in ruins, if you so much as look at it. If you are coming from Windows, think System32 type stuff and you'll get the drift. The fstab is another, nowhere near as bad, just very tiresome.
Be very wary of any old Linux user who starts by saying, 'Oh yes, just edit your xorg.conf with...'
3. Recovery Mode.
a. Reboot.
b. Hit Esc key as Grub (the black and white stuff) loads.
c. Select the most recent kernel recovery mode.
d. Push out a few zzzz's until it gets to the root command line.
4. Use the cp command to back up files.
Please note : for this example we are using the xorg.conf file, but the following principle applies to any files.
- using a known good xorg.conf, back it up by opening Terminal (Konsole) and entering
sudo cp /etc/X11/xorg.conf /etc/X11/xorg.conf.bak
Enter your username password. You're done.
Restoring that backup using cp.
In Terminal, enter
sudo cp /etc/X11/xorg.conf.bak /etc/X11/xorg.conf
5. Recovery Mode - restoring a backup.
Please note : for this example we are using the xorg.conf file, but the following principle applies to any files.
At the command line in recovery mode (see #3 above) enter -
cp /etc/X11/xorg.conf.bak /etc/X11/xorg.conf
Type - exit
6. Recovery mode - using nano.
Note : Only to be used if you know exactly what to edit!
Please note : for this example we are using the xorg.conf file, but the following principle applies to any files.
Let's say that you ignored #2 and are now reading this in Windows, because you have totally messed up your Ubuntu by editing xorg.conf, despite following things to the letter and now see a black screen, where you would like to see a 'Login' screen. Will you ever see your beloved Ubuntu/Kubuntu ever again? ....No...haha...just kidding.
a. At the command line in recovery mode (see #3 above) enter -
nano /etc/X11/xorg.conf
b. Edit the file
c. Enter Ctl+o to save your changes.
d. Enter Ctl+x to quit.
e. Type exit
f. Fall to knees and praise your God of choice, as your Login screen appears again.
Note : With the entries above, you can just copy and paste them into Terminal. But please do remember that the way the stuff is laid out, with the spaces, etc (syntax) is not there for laughs. As with any other code stuff, get the syntax wrong and...the stuff won't work.
Here's one from tqft ...
tqft wrote:Learn wget
Want to download something and leave it running, resume downloading after you have broken your connection/rebooted your machine - at the command line wget -c <URL>
There are gui's for wget - search Synaptic/Adept for wget a really quick search shows up gwget.
Want to download everything under a certain directory on a website - wget -cr (gwget also has options you can choose to do this).
Great for iso's - that way you can crash your browser and not have to worry, restart your machine and start it up again from where you left off.
Title edited (again) to reflect new release... It reverted following system crash... Steviex, Moderator
