Which Debuntu version's problem can be fixed?

[SubGothius]

I have (more-or-less) successfully installed in succession (doing a nuke'n'pave between each install to cleanse my palate, of course ) each of the following Debian and Ubuntu versions:

• Debian 3.1 Sarge;
• (X)Ubuntu 6.10 Edgy;
• (X)Ubuntu 7.04 Feisty;
• Debian 4.0r0 Etch.

However, each of these has its own, unique problem that, for me, renders the system unacceptable for full-time regular use (actually, I don't know what issue(s) Sarge might have had, as post-install updates ran me out of space on the too-small / partition I'd initially made, so I decided to apply lessons learned there towards trying to install Xubuntu Edgy instead of fixing/reinstalling Sarge). If anyone can tell me how to fix any of the following problems, I will then wholeheartedly adopt that corresponding system (see links for more relevant details, kernel boot messages, etc.):

• Debian 4.0r0 Etch (2.6.18-series powerpc-smp kernel) boots up with perfect console text display and good HW detection (including all drives), but two problems conspire to preclude my full adoption:
  • In a rootless install (no root user login configured), the original user created during installation should have Admin/sudo privileges across the installed system, but while 'sudo' commands do work fine in a CLI shell, the user cannot authenticate as an Admin when attempting to launch/perform Admin tasks within GNOME (e.g. all Desktop > Administration menu items prompt for an Admin PW but will not accept the user's PW as an Admin) -- as installed, the user does appear listed in /etc/sudoers but is not part of the sudo group in /etc/group, tho' adding the user to the sudo group in /etc/group still does not fix the Admin authentication problem in GNOME;
  • Hair-trigger keeeybbbbboardd-rreeepppeaat issues are maddening! Every time I think I've fixed it with some tweak to the keyboard repeat/delay variables in GNOME prefs, or in my xorg.conf, or just running a shell command (IIRC, something like 'kbdrate -r 10.0 -d 500'), something makes it start going crazy again. The F-key virtual consoles are the worst -- I can't even log in there at all, except for brief periods of calm after a temporary fix (and I'm never sure what seems to briefly fix it, if it's anything I do at all).
• Ubuntu 7.04 Feisty (2.6.20-series powerpc-smp kernel) also boots up with perfect console text display and good hardware recognition, except for one serious flaw: Feisty can only access one hard disk (a Wide SCSI Seagate drive adapted to my mobo's Fast SCSI-2 bus), out of 3 hard drives and 2 CD drives in my system, so CDs are useless, and I cannot access any other hard drives at all, let alone spread my system out among other partitions on those drives;
• Ubuntu 6.10 Edgy (2.6.17-series powerpc-smp kernel) boots up with an all-black-on-black display signal, then after X starts all my F-key virtual console text display is distorted/jittery (looks like the horizontal scanlines are misaligned/malsynced? Also applies to shutdown kernel messages, too) -- this means all text-mode consoles are practically useless, so I am limited to using only X-based terminals (the Edgy installer also had this display problem, but I muddled thru the distorted display well enough to complete an install).

So there you have'em. If anyone could help me just get any of these systems past any of their teething problems, I would be a grateful and happy Linux nerd n00b!

[jombeewoof]

the only thing I could possibly help with would be the sudo in X thing.

try gksudo instead of sudo.

[joeyh]

The gnome sudo issues in etch with root-passwordless installs are a known bug, that is already fixed in lenny. The fix is scheduled to be backported to etch in an upcoming minor update.

You can manually configure gksu to use sudo as follows:

update-alternatives --set libgksu-gconf-defaults \
/usr/share/libgksu/debian/gconf-defaults.libgksu-sudo

update-gconf-defaults

[SubGothius]

If I did a 'testing' install of Etch, does that mean I actually am using Lenny already? If so, and unless it was fixed, say, just last night, it's still a bug. Does this issue affect only GNOME, or would Xfce4 share the same issue? Strangely, altho' I installed Etch/Lenny from the Xfce4 version of the CD .iso (with network mirrors enabled during install as well), I didn't seem to get Xfce4 in my final system at all, at least not that I can see as an option in the Session menu at login.

[Lavene]

If I did a 'testing' install of Etch, does that mean I actually am using Lenny already? If so, and unless it was fixed, say, just last night, it's still a bug.

There are no such thing as 'testing Etch' unless you managed to install an old version from before Etch went stable. Etch is Stable, Lenny is Testing.

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cat /etc/debian_version

will tell you which one you have

Tina

[SubGothius]

Ah thx, I used the Etch installer but did a 'testing' install, so I actually do have Lenny, then; therefore, since I ran upgrades just last night, Lenny apparently still does have this bug. Apple-polly-loggies for any confusion on/by my part.

FWIW, manually running 'gksudo' from a shell does bring up the panel asking for what command to run as what user, haven't tried actually entering anything in that panel yet, since I'm more concerned about the authentication dialog that automatically pops up when selecting any admin task from within the GUI. I had tried something to set the value of the key (IIRC) /apps/gksu/sudo-mode to 'true', which seemed to register that value as intended, but didn't solve the problem. Will try joeyh's manual cfg. suggestions next...

[joeyh]

Ah thx, I used the Etch installer but did a 'testing' install, so I actually do have Lenny, then; therefore, since I ran upgrades just last night, Lenny apparently still does have this bug. ;)

The bug is in the installer; you used the etch installer; QED.

[Jeff]

I'm glad I'm not the only one with that issue, that bug is why I'm using Ubuntu 7.04 instead of Etch.
I did notice that if I ran

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sudo synaptic

(I think) then it worked, you just couldn't do it from the GUI.

Jeff

[SubGothius]

You can manually configure gksu to use sudo as follows:

update-alternatives --set libgksu-gconf-defaults \
/usr/share/libgksu/debian/gconf-defaults.libgksu-sudo

update-gconf-defaults

bash: update-alternatives: command not found

Allso,, aanyy takeers onn the kkeybboard reeppeeat isssue?? Thiis iis exaaccllyy aas ttyypped, nno corrreecttiioons ffor deemonnsttratiion purpoossees.. ::roll:

[chrismortimore]

bash: update-alternatives: command not found

Are you running it as root?

[SubGothius]

bash: update-alternatives: command not found

Are you running it as root?

Um, that's the issue; I don't have a root PW confiigured, and it's hard to run sudo commands when my ppasssword is bbeingg innpput like tthiisss.

[chrismortimore]

I'd suggest setting up a root password (even if it is just one character) just until you get this issue sorted. It's quite easy to remove again once you get sudo working how you want it to be.

[Jeff]

The gnome sudo issues in etch with root-passwordless installs are a known bug, that is already fixed in lenny. The fix is scheduled to be backported to etch in an upcoming minor update.

It isn't fixed on the default Lenny installer. I just installed and it's still messed up like Etch was, see my previous post.

You can manually configure gksu to use sudo as follows:

update-alternatives --set libgksu-gconf-defaults \
/usr/share/libgksu/debian/gconf-defaults.libgksu-sudo

update-gconf-defaults

That seems to have worked, thanks.

Jeff

[SubGothius]

So you got those commands to run, then? What method did you use: shell command in terminal, or something you entered in the gksu panel that pops up from the 'sudo gksu' command, or did you have to temporarily set a root PW to run it as root, or what?

[Jeff]

So you got those commands to run, then? What method did you use: shell command in terminal, or something you entered in the gksu panel that pops up from the 'sudo gksu' command, or did you have to temporarily set a root PW to run it as root, or what?

Applications-->Accessories-->Terminal

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you@computer:~$ sudo update-alternatives --set libgksu-gconf-defaults \
> /usr/share/libgksu/debian/gconf-defaults.libgksu-sudo
Using `/usr/share/libgksu/debian/gconf-defaults.libgksu-sudo' to provide `libgksu-gconf-defaults'.
you@computer:~$ sudo update-gconf-defaults

Worked on Lenny, I just did it again on Etch, works great! Copy and paste his instructions line-by-line, add 'sudo' where ever there's a $ first.

Jeff