ubuntu-users Digest, Vol 66, Issue 187

[Rafiq Hajat]

> Subject: Re: Login screen disappeared - karmic
> To: "Ubuntu user technical support,     not for general discussions"
>        <ubuntu-users at lists.ubuntu.com>
> Message-ID:
>        <36dec4ff1002140603i3fe0f0dcg1534f8a75e65522f at mail.gmail.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
>
> On Sun, Feb 14, 2010 at 05:47, Rafiq Hajat <ipi.malawi at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Hi guys,
>> I desperately need your help. I've lost my log in screen and cant boot
>> into my gui. This has happened immediately after I installed Bit
>> Defender and rebooted.
>> I dont get any GRUB screen or restore options...all that happens is
>> the boot sequence seems to proceed with the ubuntu logo onscreen and
>> then goes blank and shows my terminal command line i.e. aitch-laptop
>> login - at which point I enter my password and I don't know what to do
>> from thereon.
>> I have an urgent deadline to meet and must access my working files
>> today and complete the assignment.
>> I'm using puppy on the same laptop to communicate with you in the hope
>> that you will be kind enough to shed some some light on my quandary.
>> Thanks very much!
>
> First of all, now is when you realize that you should really learn how
> to use something other than a point and click interface in Linux.
> Linux is built around the shell, with the GUI as a convenience placed
> on top, unlike certain other Operating Systems that integrate the GUI
> into the OS itself.
>
> If you don't know how to use the command line, terminal, shell in
> Linux, then you're only half way there.
>
> NOW...
>
> You say it takes you to a command line, you enter your password, and
> don't know what to do from there...
>
> the first thing to do would be to run "startx" and see if the GUI
> launches at all.  If not, what errors are you seeing?
>
> You can also look in /var/log for the files "messages" and something
> like "Xorg.0.log"
>
> To get there, you need to change directories "cd /var/log"
>
> and to look at the files, use less "less messages" or "less
> Xorg.0.log" which lets you read the files and navigate them with the
> arrow keys.  protip: when you're done, press q to quit.
>
> that should give you some idea as to what is going on, whether X is
> not starting and you're being dumped to a terminal, or something else
> is happening.
>
> The REAL question, however, is what does bitdefender have to do with
> it anyway?  Bitdefender is a windows AV program.
>
> How are your Linux filesystems formatted?  Are they accessible from
> within Linux?
>
>
>
>Dear Mike,
thanks for making the effort to reply to my plea....in response I
offer the following:
1) You're absolutely right, I have to to wean myself away from point
and click ...and veer more towards learning my way around
Linux...indeed, I think I'm a lot less than halfway there yet and have
a long way to go;
2) I'll follow your advice, and see what startx brings up on the screen;
3) Why Bitdefender? Well, I'm sick and tired of having to manually
clean up my flashdrives whenever they've visited a Windows PC (the
rate of infection's worse that AIDS!!), so I thought that having a
scanner to remodel the crap would be a useful tool to have and
followed online instructions on how to install Bitdefender on
Karmic...well you know the rest.
4) My Linux systems were set up by a clean install from a Karmic DVD
which I instructed to use the entire drive for the purpose, I thus
have no other partititions or filesystems aside from the default
(which I think is now ext 4?) and yes, they are accessible from Linux.

5) At this juncture, allow me to show you what I see on my screen in sequence:

Grub Loading
Ubuntu Logo
Ubuntu 9.10 aitch-laptop tty1
aitch-laptop login: (I enter my username & password)
Last login: Sun Feb 14, 12:15:54 CAT 2010 on tty1
Linux aitch-laptop 2.6.3`-19-generic #56-UBUNTU SMP Thu Jan 28
01:26:53 UTC 2010 i 686

aitch at aitch-laptop: ~$

That's what I get onscreen and it's driving me crazy! Thanks for
rescuing me from sheer insanity.

Rafiq Hajat
Executive Director
Institute for Policy Interaction,
P. O. Box E14, Post Dot Net,
Blantyre - Malawi.
Tel/Fax: +265 1 874 964
Cell: +265 999 968 800
www.ipimalawi.org