can't login after using k3bsetup

Stefan Kluth skluth at mppmu.mpg.de
Mon Oct 4 12:39:11 UTC 2004


On Mon, 4 Oct 2004, Daniel Stone wrote:

> On Mon, Oct 04, 2004 at 02:08:52PM +0200, Stefan Kluth wrote:
> > This might illuminate a wider issue with disabling the root account: it
> > actually breaks applications outside of ubuntu/main.  Now ubuntu
> > officially "doesn't care" as only ubuntu/main is promised to work.
> > However, installing ubuntu with a working root account while still only
> > advertising the "sudo" way for system administration in the documentation
> > might make ubuntu/main more compatible with the rest of the universe,
> > which sometimes expects a root account.  As a result there will be fewer
> > users stuck completely after having foolishly run k3b(setup), which might
> > be real showstopper for some.
>
> The issue is that when you enable root, it runs with HOME=/root, as
> opposed to /home/username, so you get separate .ICEauthority files.

Ok.  My message is slightly different though: with an enabled root account
this trap would not have existed and I (not the only one) would not have
fallen into it.  Repackaging e.g. k3b to wrap its commands it so it works
with ubuntu is a hassle and likely to not get accpeted back in debian.

I think the usability and acceptance of your already great distro would be
enhanced significantly by setting up a working root account using the
*same password* as the first user during install.  In this way a dumb user
(like most of us) would just type his/her password e.g. into the k3bsetup
prompt "as usual on ubuntu" and everything would behave as it should.

Cheers, Stefan

---Stefan Kluth, PhD----------Wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter-----------
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