Hi,

This question is posted by a newbie. Please keep that in mind as you read!!!

I looked online and in bookstores to get information on this issue but I can't find anything that helps a newbie to understand the intricacies. If you can point me in the right direction I'd be grateful!

I am trying MEPIS linux. MEPIS installs KDE by default. I used Synaptic Package Manager to install GNOME, BlackBox and Window Maker.

After installing GNOME:
- The Synaptic Package Manager and Gnome Apt Software Management didn't work.

After installing BlackBox I ran into the following problem:
- Once BlackBox loaded there was the task bar on the bottom...that's all! The only apparent thing I could access was right clicking the desktop and I could select xterm, Restart, Exit. Where'd the links to the programs go?

After installing Window Maker I ran into the following problem:
- Window Maker loaded and then I clicked a program on the desktop and suddenly the desktop changed to the GNOME desktop. After it changed it unfortunately didn't have the functionality of either GNOME or Window Maker. I had to open a terminal to restart the computer.

How come MEPIS works fine using the default desktop? And how come it breaks by trying a new desktop?

Wouldn't it waste less time if there was some consistency between Start Menus and desktops?

Thank you for taking your time to read my question.

Have a great week!

~LG

> Window Maker loaded and then I clicked a program on
> the desktop and suddenly the desktop changed to the
> GNOME desktop. After it changed it unfortunately
> didn't have the functionality of either GNOME or
> Window Maker. I had to open a terminal to restart
> the computer.

Dunno what you did. I guess it was a gnome application, which caused the whole gnome environment to load afterwards.
As soon as you know more about Linux, you won't have to restart you computer in such a case (or hardly ever).

> Once BlackBox loaded there was the task bar on the
> bottom...that's all! The only apparent thing I could
> access was right clicking the desktop and I could
> select xterm, Restart, Exit. Where'd the links to the
> programs go?

BlackBox is meant to be that way. Contrary to KDE and GNOME, it is just a window manager, not a desktop environment. It is also a quite minimalistic one.
There are utilities available to configure it to your liking (bbconf, bbappconf), but my guess is you'll have a more satisfying experience if you just stick with KDE or GNOME.

Have you tried all three mouse buttons? Perhaps your distro is configured with the middle mouse button to access the applications menu?

Since MEPIS is Debian-based, it is worth a try to install the package 'menu' and run update-menus.

> How come MEPIS works fine using the default desktop?
> And how come it breaks by trying a new desktop?

Because the immense diversity of Linux software is a two-edged sword in this case and it is beneficial to the usability of a distro to just focus on one or two environments, assuming most users wouldn't want to change anyway. All window managers have differently formatted configuration files in which the application menus are defined and it is a considerable effort to try to support them all consistently.
Debian tries its best to make all installed applications available to all window managers, but as a matter of fact, these bare-bones window managers are there to satisfy a special part of the user base, not the common user. In some cases, you are meant to study the documentation and edit the configuration files yourself according to your preference.

> Wouldn't it waste less time if there was some
> consistency between Start Menus and desktops?

Yeah, that would be great...
Was that your question you couldn't find an answer to?
Try another distro.
Debian GNU/Linux 4.0 is soon to be released. Since I know that Debian still tries to keep all available window managers and desktop environments at least functional, I'll suggest you to give it a try.

As a newbie myself, I went through six different distros before I settled on the one I use (OpenSuse 10.2). I cannot tell you why you have problems with Mepis, but as was suggested, I can suggest you try to use a different distro. Opensuse 10.2 for instance offers three different options. A standard KDE desktop, a specially modded desktop (the default for OpenSuse 10.2 and something that I find people either love or hate. Haven't seen anyone indifferent -- personally I love it) or Gnome. As a newbie, you probably want to stick to either KDE or Gnome. Those two have by far the most support and will likely get you more answers. . .

Eric

Hi,

Thanks to both of you for responding to my post. You answered my questions. You both gave me valuable information that I wasn't able to find in books about Linux.

Have a great weekend!

Or there is always the option of opting for I distro like ubuntu or xubnntu. Or mabye even a distro like Dabian , but be warned I f you should decide to opt for Debian You will need to install each window manager by it self, I'll tell you from experience that you might want to sit there and read a book while you wait for Debian to install with your desired graphical user interfaces.