i got a problem here...after the localhost login:abc
password:abc then last login:XXXX...come out this "[abc@localhost abc]$" what command should i use to enter to the GUI?i tried to use the startx to enter but still failed.Did i set something wrong during the installation?

What was the error message when it failed? The part we really need starts with

That will be followed by something like 'no screens found' or something like that.

Post the error here and we'll know where to start.

Later

after using startx command ..it shows something like this

using authority file /home/abc/.Xauthority
writing authority file/home/abc/.Xauthority

execve failed for /etc/Xll/X (errno13)
giving up
xinit:No such file or directory (errno2): unable to connect to X server
xinit:No such process(errno3):Server error.

I hate to do this but it may be easier to reinstall. It appears that x was not installed. X is the GUI or windows part.

Read this how to:

http://easylinuxguide.jsutnoni.com/viewtopic.php?t=418

It will explain a bit about the packages to install. If you do reinstall you should select install not upgrade. You can use the same partitions you set up the first time.

Someone may post another solution so give it a bit and see what someone else thinks.

Later.

if i didn't put any login name and password during the installation .... i cannot enter to linux GUI right?

You did put in a root password right? You should at least have a root account. Try to login with it. If you can do that someone can tell you how to add a user then.

Does the GUI still not start?

Back later.

u mean i should key in the login name and the password during the installation? actually it come to the part which require me to key in the login name , password and choose the interface(example=gnome) as well before enter to it. By the way What is the root actually? Thanks for helping.!

Let me see if I can muddy up the waters.

Root has access to everything period. No exception, that I know of anyway. Regular user accounts is what you should login with. You can enter the root password when needed to access certain commands and programs, which is not very often I may add.

You must have a root account. You should have at least one, preferably two, user accounts.

You should only use root when you have to. You should not ever surf the web while logged in as root. This is especially true if you have broadband. Usually if you are doing something that requires root access, it will ask for the password.

The difference between windoze and Linux, user wise anyway, is that you only use root when you have to in Linux. You are always root on a single user windoze system. That is also why the viruses can have a hay day in windoze. If it is on, they can run till it crashes.

Since you are new to Linux, you may want to try KDE at first. After you learn your way around a bit you can switch around and try other desktops and such. There are many that you can download too. With Linux you can tweak and change to your hearts content. Try that in windoze.

I would suggest that you read the Documentation that should be on the system, I assume you installed it. If the GUI is working there should be a entry in there that will tell you a lot. Click the Start thingy and then Documentation then Help. There is also How to's in the same location.

For the time being be carefull what you do. Linux is not windoze. Things are setup different and work very differently. After a while you will see that you can do more with Linux than you would ever dream of in windoze. Linux is yours, you just rent windoze. It still belongs to Billy boy.

Don't run away though. Give it a chance. It may take a while but it will grow on you and you will fall in love.

Tried to keep it basic for now.



Anybody want to add a bit to this little ramble??

where can i learn all the Linux Mandrake command? Does the command different from the previous version..for example the linux mandrake 8.2?

There ae lots of websites that have info. This is one:

http://www.tldp.org/docs.html#howto

If you download a tar file, you should be able to double click and then select 'extract' and 'all files' and click OK. Make sure you notice where it will extract too. It may say /home/<user name>/Documents. I usually change to /home/<user name>/Desktop. That puts it on the Desktop and is easier to find then.

Note that <user name> is the user you are logged in as. Example, mine would be /home/dale/Desktop. Also note that ALL directories and commands are case sensative. Desktop is not the same as desktop. Dale is not the same as dale etc. That is very important to know and took me a while to get used to.

If Ark does not open the tar file, open a term and use this command to extract the file:

Make sure the name is exact, including uppercase and lowercase stuff. If you ever run into a file name that includes a space in it, you will need to put quote marks around it. Linux is not space friendly. If you create a file you should use dashes instead of spaces. Makes the world easier.

When you use the command above a new directory will be created, same name, that will contain all the files that were tarred.

A tar file is a bunch of files that have been made into one file. It usually contains a program, the make and configure files, and a read me on how to install the program.

All this may be muddy right now but after you use Linux a while it will be like you knew it forever.

Oh, tar -xvf means x = extract, v = verbose or something me and you can read, f = the file name you give. Makes sense huh?

Just read a play around a bit. Have a question, ask. We have all been where you are too. Newbies that is.

Forgot second question.

Most commands are the same for all Linux distros. There may be some that are different but not many. I haven't seen one yet.

That said, the GUI can be very different. Each distro has it's on setup and can vary widely. Mandrake and Redhat use rpm's, Redhat Package Manager, Gentoo uses emerge another, I think Slackware, uses apt-get. These are just different ways to install software.

Hope that helps.