Debian giving me a headache
 

Hi all

I just installed debian from a bootable usb and I already spent my day getting it to actually install.

So right now after every boot I have to start the Panel myself. OK no problem

I just need virtual box to run. So I can cheat and not use debian ever.

I used apt-get install virtual box. It worked no shit.

Oh no it didn't gave me this error "please insert cdrom...."
So back to my 100 google tabs for searching debian errors. I needed to remove cdrom in /etc/apt/sources.list

Alright....

First I did the su and the root password then went in that file or directory and put the # in front of cdrom now no way to save. So I tried closing it and opening to see if it was saved. And now when I enter /etc/apt/sources.list it tells me.

PERMISSION DENIED.

While I'm root.

I already google it and I get all these commands that won't do anything.

Why have you installed Debian at all?

Sounds like you should be using Ubuntu or Mint.

By the way, what does "went in that file" mean?

Read this:
http://www.catb.org/esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

Try LMDE (Linux Mint Debian Edition) - it's Debian packages plus some Mint stuff to improve the GUI.

/etc/apt/sources.list is not an executable file, so of course you will get a permission denied error when you try to run it, because the executable flag is not set.

Hi...

While I welcome you to the forum, please watch the language. Folks of all ages can access these forums, including little ones. ;)

Thanks!

The first thing you need to do is update the sources list, in a terminal, as the root user,
then you will be able to install software.

Thanks you for all the replies I thought this would be dead.ill watch my language my apologies.

I installed debian because it is supposed to be a very stable and safe OS. I used xubuntu before that did work very well. And I meant to go into that file to edit it.

I will look into that LMDE sounds very good. I am using XFCE debian now. Altough I have been fixing issues for so long now that am I am going to get this to work no matter what.

And you are right with that sources file I used nano which worked. Took me some time to edit and save. just saying "Change this and that then exit and save" is not working for someone who doesn't know how to save. It's ctrl+x then Y and enter.for those who want to save their time watching youtube videos. Why does it even show the commands "^G Get Help" ... how do you get them to work?

I also had a problem with that panel like I said removing the cache sessions worked after doing it a few times. Did not work with commands though but ok.

Also virtualbox did not want to save any machines made I could not assign it any RAM. I was unable to press "next" which was magically solved after rebooting a 100 times. Changing the read & write permission adding deb http://download.virtualbox.... to that sources file for downloading and reinstalling virtualbox.

And right now my Internet loses connection about every 5 to 10 minutes. Which works again when I shut it down and start it up again. Any way to solve this? I couldn't find many topics about this on Google. Should I make a new topic for this?

I think that you should.
But, I suggest you posting the link to this thread in the new topic.

Is there any solution in https://www.google.com/?gws_rd=ssl#q...ose+connection ?

Welcome to the forums. Perhaps you ought to consider a different username. I find it a poor choice to enter into a forum with some negative intent as part of your username, but to each their own.

I do second the recommendation that you try LMDE.

What exactly are you trying to set up, a desktop Linux environment, a server?

The ^G means 'CTRL+G'. What you see at the bottom of the editor are the help commands.

nano is actually an 'easy' editor when compared to vi/vim

nano is the editor of choice for small configuration files.

LMDE is based upon Debian Stable + Debian Testing.

Debian Stable is super-stable but tends to be rather dated software.
It doesn't crash, so is ideal for servers.

Debian Testing has been tested & should eventually move to Stable.
It is relatively up to date and so ideal for desktops.

I second the suggestion to use another distribution, probably Mint or Xubuntu, until you learn a little more about Linux. It sounds like you've some goal or project in mind that you're running towards without stopping to check everything else is set up.
Debian is fairly easy to install and use, once you've had a little practice and read around a bit. However, trying to use it without learning anything of the command line and rushing to install VirtualBox before you know why you don't have a panel (I do seem to recall one of the options when starting XFCE could be "No panels" so perhaps that's it) will only lead to frustration as you have found out.

About trying a different distribution I don't want to do that. It won't help me. First time I ever used linux was a few months ago and it was debian. Which I ended up deleting after a few days because we'll you can guess why. Then I used xubuntu for a few months and once I had virtualbox and everything else I needed setup I was done. Not learning anything about linux after that. Now I am back with debian and even with some months on xubuntu it didnt change that much. It's still a ...Beautifully designed easy to use Operating System. Wink.
But i am going to get it too work.

Kiyop
I looked in those links you gave me and I found this

/etc/network/interfaces:
auto eth0
iface eth0 inet dhcp

Which I found before only with a # in front of the second line like this.

#iface eth0 inet dhcp

Which didn't do anything because # makes the line irrelevant like a //comment right?
So I removed it and funny thing happened.

My complete internet connection is gone.
Saying:
Ethernet Network
device not managed

While device not managed is supposed to be my connection 1 I am using cable so I know it's eth0

I think my username is ok comparing it to the average song on the radio. If you still want me to change or delete it then alright.

Just a desktop linux environment.

Thank you cynwulf very helpful. Finally found that out.

Debian LMDE sound really good probably a lot easier to use but I am not going to delete this one again. Already gave my hdd enough reinstalling.

That testing means I will be able to get errors or bugs that are not found yet? Or still need to be fixed? Meaning more trouble while I can't even handle stable? Stable still does not sound very well. How many people are actually testing these new versions? How stable is it?

And the panel thing was a little more than me forgetting to check some option. I got about 3 errors when starting up. Saying to quit or to execute. Pressing nonstop on execute made the panel pop up and telling me I was not allowed to change anything. same thing happened when rebooting. It was fixed by going Settings-Session and Startup-Session then Quit Program on almost everything and clear saved sessions then rebooting going back to this options then checking "Automatically save session on logout"

Thanks for all the help

The 'auto' is a clue.
The dhcp line is not needed or wanted.
A # marks the beginning of a comment
A // does not.
So perhaps you are a misogynist?

Debian Stable is extremely stable. Many distros rely on it.
Debian Testing is more stable than many other distros stable.:cool:

Debian stable is stable.

Debian testing and unstable are not stable.

All you need to know.