Trying over and over again

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1

Hello,

I’m new in SUSE and Linux in general, so please forgive me not knowing the exact terminology :shame:

I have trying to setup a working system and somehow I always fail. I’m no sure what I’m doing wrong but after some time I’m always faced with a problem that I can’t fix. When trying different solutions offered on this and other forums I make things even worse. Eventually I end up with completely (for me) unfixable system. The only solution is to install fresh SUSE and start all over again.

So far I have installed it 14 times and I’m getting tired. I hope someone on this forum can give me a push in the right direction.

This is my experience so far:
I’m installing SUSE 11 on HP nc6000 notebook. The installation goes without problems. It is a dual boot system with SUSE and Win. XP. I let SUSE create two partitions for me SWAP and /, and mount the Win. partitions.
At this point everything works perfectly and all my hardware is functioning correctly, USB, Wireless, VIDEO, Sound… I can read Windows drives too.
The problems usually start occurring after I install some applications and start using updates. I do not know what I’m doing wrong, I’m using “Community Repositories” that are offered by YAST. I assume that these are safe to use.

In my first SUSE experiences I was using KDE 4.0 window manager. I like it a lot, especially when I turn on the Compiz feature. However, when I start configuring my window decorations and desktop icons everything gets mixed up and I can’t fix it any more. At some point I loose the window decoration, or desktop icons become white squares. That’s it for me, I have to reinstall SUSE to fix it.

After many retries I got fed up of KDE 4.0 and switched to KDE 3.5, which is supposed to be more stable. I have to admit that I like the visual appearance of KDE 4.0 more. In my experience KDE 3.5 is indeed more stable, but I managed to find some problems there as well.
First my screen saver was always (no matter what I set) fixed at 3 minutes and blank screen.
Online update announces that there are 30 updates waiting. When I accept the updates, it is finished immediately and after short time again the same 30 updates are waiting for me. I found the work around to install the critical updates first and then the security updates. However, I newer managed to start Compiz on KDE 3.5.

I decided to give SUSE one more chance. This time I installed it with GNOME windows manager. So far I like GNOME the best. Both visually and functionally it appeals to me. It is also the most stable one. I was happily using my system for the whole week before it got sick. Again the usual symptoms, loosing the window decorations. However in GNOME I can fix it by turning off Compiz (this did not work in KDE).
Still I would like to have Compiz, so I tried to fix this using “sax2 -r -m 0=fglrx” and “compiz-manager --replace”. I do not know how, eventually I fixed it, but my video became too slow and it was not funny any more to watch these slow-motion wobbling windows.
So far, I reinstalled SUSE with GNOME several times and I’m starting to notice some behavioral patterns. My Compiz and windows decoration problems start usually after installing and configuring VLC VideoLan Client.
But sometimes also some software updates make things worse. Now it is broken again. After trying to fix Compiz by installing some GNOME updates, my Thunderbird has lost the inbox. I can’t get it back. Tried reinstalling Thunderbird but it didn’t help. So, I’ll just reinstall SUSE again.

I’m now tired of reinstalling SUSE all over again. I would like to start understanding what is happening when software/updates are installed. There must be a better way to fix problems.

So far this is the list of my questions:

**

  1. The things that I’m experiencing with SUSE, are these known bug or am I doing something fundamentally wrong?

  2. I’m installing software only from the “Community Repositories”. Are these repositories safe? Is this software compatible with SUSE 11?

  3. I notice that Compiz gets affected after installing VLC or some updates. Can VLC change Compiz files, or it just changes some configuration files in /home/user/ directory?

  4. I tried removing Compiz and installing again, but it did not help. So what could VLC change to affect Compiz and window decoration?

  5. Where software gets installed in SUSE? Where should I first look if problems occur? Is there some central place where the software dependencies are defined? Does Linux have some kind of registry as Windows or something equivalent?

  6. I also tried to use System Backup and System Restoration (YAST modules) but I ended up with non-bootable system “Error 15: File not found”. What is the recommended way to use System Backup and Restoration? What should I backup anyway?

  7. I would like to have the following software on my Linux system: OpenOffice, Firefox, Thunderbird, Wine, VLC and Compiz. Can this software work together? Is there a particular order in which these applications must be installed?
    **

Thanks in advance!

2

Hi
I admire your perseverance :slight_smile: I imagine it’s a combination of
VLC/Compiz and your video card. Do you need VLC I have always found
mplayer/smplayer and the mplayer plugin to be all I need :slight_smile:

Now, I would, for a start only use oss, non-oss, updates and get
your basic system up and running.

Add packman to start with and don’t use VLC if you can and see how it goes.

I do have other repositories but the only ones enabled are the above
four.

–
Cheers Malcolm °¿° (Linux Counter #276890)
openSUSE 11.0 x86 Kernel 2.6.25.16-0.1-default
up 12:28, 2 users, load average: 0.77, 0.65, 0.31
GPU GeForce 6600 TE/6200 TE - Driver Version: 177.80

3

Thanks! Your advice really helped me. Indeed I do not need VLC, but I was unaware of the alternatives.
I’m very satisfied with mplayer.

My system is now up and running. Freshly installed openSUSE 11 with GNOME.
I’m following your guidelines regarding the repositories. So far everything works perfectly.
Compiz and MPlayer are not interfering with each other.

In Software Management tool I see that many upgrades are available for different applications. Many of them are in the System and GNOME categories.
Is it safe to upgrade these applications?

Although I did not include following repositories
openSUSE BuildService - Mozilla
openSUSE BuildService - OpenOffice.org
openSUSE BuildService - Wine CVS Builds
I can still install Wine, Thunderbird and OpenOffice plug-ins.
What is the added value of these BuildService repositories?

4

In Software Management tool I see that many upgrades are available for different applications. Many of them are in the System and GNOME categories.
Is it safe to upgrade these applications?

I just realized that this may sound like a stupid question. Therefore, I would like to explain my concern.
My policy is; if it isn’t broken don’t fix it. So, I should maybe rephrase my question.
Should I just blindly upgrade anything that is available in the list or should I upgrade selectively (i.e. only the applications that are not functioning properly)?

5

I generally upgrade by consuming all the updates. So far it has never let me down, except once. The one time it broke, there was a simple workaround that did the trick.

I went through the list of problems you are facing. Most of them are quite common and you can find solutions to them on the forums.

On a general note, my suggestions since your a newbie:

  1. Never re-install unless its absolutely necessary.
  2. If you face any problems with absolutely anything then “google” search for the solution “or” start a post on the problem you are facing. This is probably the most friendly and useful community among all the distros.
  3. Each problem you face should be on a separate post. Do not combine multiple problems into 1 post. Like what you have done in this post ;). It will be much easier for people to go thru.
  4. When u report an issue you are facing, give as much description as possible. Which desktopn you are using, H/W Configuration, version of the application etc etc.

All the best.

  • Thejaswi Raya
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do not use both the Packman and VLC repositories, Use only one and that will depend on what you wish to do. Packman for the high end, but harder to work with. VLC for a normal system.

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Thank you all for good advice.
In future I’ll post my questions as separate threads.
By the way, I have consumed all upgrades and my system still works properly.