my friend and I just put Mandrake 9.2 on my computer, and the install went great and everything, but I want to run gnome. I had had 8.1 on there, and gnome worked, and I liked it, but now, when I start the computer, it's just the blue background. When I left-click, I get a menu, but I have to hold the left click down or else the menu closes. How do I switch to gnome, and have the desktop and everyhting like I did on 8.1?

I just installed 9.2 also. I hear a lot of people talk about gnome, and I'd like to try it, but its not an option for me either. I just use KDE.

but how do I change GUI at all in 9.2?

hmm, If I remember right... you where able to install the gnome desktop when selecting your software during the install. I think it is the gnome-destkop binary you need (but I am not shure).
try: 'urpmi gnome-desktop'
Maybe try the forums on http://gnomesupport.org/forums/ they will help you out.

Greetingz,
elluva

to chage gui's, click on K>Logout "<username>". When it gives you a choice for login, there is a pulldown menu, and the gui's are in it. If, like me, you have yet to install gnome, then it wont be there, I have KDE, IceWM, and one other for options.

when I go to login, it doesn't give me a dropdown. it goes straight into whatever I'm running. I told it to use gnome, and it IS running gnome now I think, but I'm not sure. It has the games from gnome, but it doesn't have the menus on the bottom of the screen, or anything on the desktop

Do you get a task bar? When you left/right click on the desktop, do you get a menu? Can you chose Gnome apps from it?

IF you do NOT have a taskbar at the bottom, then you may have a sporked Gnome install... Check the /var/log/XFree86.0.log <-- on most systems , for any errors. Check /var/log/messages for any errors.

If you can do ALT+F2 to get a "Run" dialog, or if you have a "Run" choice on any menu you CAN get, then run -> gdmconfig, you most likely have this:

Automatic Login:
[ X ] Login a user automatically on first bootup

Or edit the file : /etc/X11/gdm/gdm.conf and change the line:
AutomaticLoginEnable=true to false.

You also probably are booting straight to init 5 (does it say that when you see the boot messages?) Look here:

vi /etc/inittab and change this line.

id:5:initdefault: <-- to id:3:initdefault

then when you want the GUI, to go to X type init 5

A safe bet is to <I> always </I> boot into text mode, that way you can at least do something if there is something wrong with X, otherwise you're staring at an unusable box.

**Last ditch if you just dont wanna mess with it, hit CTRL+ALT+F1 or 2 or 3 or 4 or 5 or 6 to get a "virtual terminal" - a standard text login. Do you have apt? If so its really easy to reinstall, just :
apt-get -f update
rpm -e --nodeps gnome-desktop <--
rpm -e --nodeps remove gdm <-- I believe these are two primary ones you would need
to reinstall if there is a problem with them. Then:
apt-get install gdm
apt-get install gnome-desktop , or
from your CD's do
rpm -ivh gdm
rpm -ivh gnome-desktop