Installer TOOOOOO many questions

[kfkehua]

I'm simply here to give some feedback.
The Ubuntu install is asking too many useless questions. 15+ questions that you have to answer to get the installer going.
Most of which can be defaulted.
I install CENTOS and it installs with 7 questions.

[QIII]

Not a support request. Moved to the Cafe.

If you would like to suggest to the developers what you believe to be the best defaults, the Ubuntu Forums are not the place to do that. We are all volunteer users. We don't work for Canonical.

Bear in mind that Ubuntu is not CentOS, so whatever defaults may apply to the latter may have no bearing on the former.

You may get in touch with the developers here:

ubuntu-devel-discuss@lists.ubuntu.com

[yoshii]

What are those 7 questions?

[buzzingrobot]

There is some information *any* installer needs to perform appropriately. If it doesn't ask, then it will make assumptions. Those assumptions may or may nor satisfy every user.

CentOS/RHEL currently support two releases and two very different installers. CentOS 6/RHEL6 date to 2010 and use an install from that time. CentOS 7 uses the newer Anaconda installer developed by Fedora. That does not follow a traditional linear path like the CentOS 6 installer, or Ubuntu's installer, or the many installers based on it. Instead, all functions of the installer are displayed on a single "hub". Areas that need a response or an action by a user are highlighted. The installer will not proceed until all these issues are dealt with.

So, in the current version of CentOS the number of "questions" a user will need to respond to will vary from user to user and their individual situation.

[izznogooood]

Whats the useless questions?

[grahammechanical]

1) Name?
2) User name?
3) Password?
4) Computer name?
5) Location?
6) Erase disk or?
7) install updates?
8) Third party software?
9) Try or Install?
10) Credit card details?

Make Erase disk the default And be done with it! I cannot think of any more questions. Which is fine as I can only count up to 10. I have only got 8 fingers & 2 thumbs, you see. Don't ever suggest that I take my shoes & socks off. consequences.

[lisati]

So I'm a first time user, who wants to keep Windows on their machine, and wants to see if Ubuntu suits them. I accept the default "Erase disk" and "Install" without realizing that tomorrow I'll need the copy of Windows that used to be on the machine, I forgot to backup some important files, or the particular flavour of Ubuntu I chose won't work properly on my machine. Aaaargh!

:D

[ventrical]

1) Name?
2) User name?
3) Password?
4) Computer name?
5) Location?
6) Erase disk or?
7) install updates?
8) Third party software?
9) Try or Install?
10) Credit card details?

Make Erase disk the default And be done with it! I cannot think of any more questions. Which is fine as I can only count up to 10. I have only got 8 fingers & 2 thumbs, you see. Don't ever suggest that I take my shoes & socks off. consequences.

Thanks for the visual , Graham. I really needed this this morning. (shheesh ) :)

regards..

[yoshii]

I'm thankful for the choices. I don't want somebody else's preferences or native language or timezone.

[coldraven]

Just install CentOS and be happy.

[user1397]

huh?

[uRock]

Whats the useless questions?

I was thinking the same thing, as I install VMs quite often to make my boring YouTube vids(most of which never get uploaded because I fell asleep while QCing them) and I've not seen anything being asked that I didn't want to be asked.


<snip> I have only got 8 fingers & 2 thumbs, you see. Don't ever suggest that I take my shoes & socks off. consequences.

Too funny!

I like being asked about partitioning. I think new users need to be asked, too. It may cause them to Google a question about partitioning and help them learn something. Not to mention thinking twice about wiping out their current OS.

I like being asked about downloading updates and installing codecs. Sometimes I don't need the codecs and I prefer to run updates separately.

I like being asked about the keyboard and language just because I have multi-lingual friends who have keyboards from different regions of the world.

I like being asked which time zone. Looking at the clock and seeing UTC time with every new install would bother me. Just a little, but, yeah.

I like being asked to name my user account and password. I'll leave the default root and toor user id and password to those OSes that normally come with them, because I don't store anything on those.

Do I want to encrypt? Heck yeah! I have two camera servers. If they get stolen, I can live with that. I wouldn't want them to have easy access to the videos in the home folder though.

[SantaFe]

That's why I always install Ubuntu-MATE. No useless questions there! :D

Am wondering if this is yet another drive by poster?

[vasa1]

... I have only got 8 fingers & 2 thumbs, you see. ...
Major and minor knuckles (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knuckle)?

[buzzingrobot]

We may be seeing people coming to Ubuntu, or any PC platform, for the first time after being weaned on phones, where we have to deal with few, if any, questions, and, as a consequence, have little control.

In many cases, it's "control" that people probably would rather avoid. Does anyone really miss not being required to partition your phone's storage before using it?

[uRock]

My phone is encrypted, but I have installed very few apps and store very little on it. AT&T makes sure I have no real control over it.

Setting my phone up required answering ten times more questions and none of them really gave me control over anything. Especially considering that 99% of the apps require permissions for in app purchases, access to contacts, GPS, call history, texts, files, camera, and microphone.

Too bad we can't install ubuntu from scratch on our phones.

[buzzingrobot]

Mine's a Nexus from Google and I don't recall many setup questions beyond the carrier info and my Google account. The ever-present updates of things I don't use is, I admit, annoying.

I think the larger point, though, is that phones do not expose people to partitioning, file systems, and much of the other bits and pieces of any PC platform. That's the experience I think is shaping expectations for any computing platform. The hoops that we need to jump through with current PC operating systems will simply be avoided by people who just want a phone/tablet experience with a real keyboard and a big display. What we see as a lack of control won't even be on their radar.

[vasa1]

But rooting is quite popular. That indicates, to me at least, that there are quite a few users who do want control.

[uRock]

Mine's a Nexus from Google and I don't recall many setup questions beyond the carrier info and my Google account. The ever-present updates of things I don't use is, I admit, annoying.

I think the larger point, though, is that phones do not expose people to partitioning, file systems, and much of the other bits and pieces of any PC platform. That's the experience I think is shaping expectations for any computing platform. The hoops that we need to jump through with current PC operating systems will simply be avoided by people who just want a phone/tablet experience with a real keyboard and a big display. What we see as a lack of control won't even be on their radar.For me their was Samsung wanting me to create an account with them so they can lock my phone if it were stolen and so they can put a name to all of the Samsung Health apps monitoring every step I take. Having to go in and disable all of the syncing of my images and other apps. It makes me appreciate how little effort I have to put into installing and setting up ubuntu.


But rooting is quite popular. That indicates, to me at least, that there are quite a few users who do want control.
I've looked into this a few times and I am dissuaded by all of the warnings of getting my phone bricked. It's just not worth the risk when all of the data I want to protect is still going to be mined by Google and my carrier.

[SantaFe]

For me their was Samsung wanting me to create an account with them so they can lock my phone if it were stolen and so they can put a name to all of the Samsung Health apps monitoring every step I take. Having to go in and disable all of the syncing of my images and other apps. It makes me appreciate how little effort I have to put into installing and setting up ubuntu.

Doesn't bother me, though my name on my S4 is GooglePoopHeads. And location's turned off. Let them track that all they want. ;)

How they ever let me choose that name is beyond me. :D

[kfkehua]

Hi All, sorry for not being specific. Just in case you're wondering I was referring to the server install not the desktop.
I gave it another go this morning and here are the "questions"

1. Pick Lang
2. Install options
3. Pick Lang ( the first one was to pick the lang of the os I presume, and the second is to pick the lang of the install process ...)
4. Select location
5. Detect Keyboard? (if yes, you will have another series of questions to answer)
6. Select country of keyboard
7. Keyboard layout
8. hostname
9. full name of user
10. username
11. passw
12. retype passw
13. encrypt home dir / drive?
14. set timezone
15. partition method
16. Select disk (there is only one dammit..)
17. write changes?
18. amount of vol to partition
19. are you sure you want to write changes?? (really??)

and off it goes... and just when you think you can go get your coffee... oh wait more questions..

20. configure package manager
21. configure updates
22. software selection?

damn... ok, lets go get coffee... OH WAIT...!!!

23. Install Grub? (really??)

FINISH....

I didn't do an exact count the first time, thats why I said 15+ questions... so its actually 23+..
I am not here to preach CentOS, or step on Ubuntu (eventhough we're a CentOS shop). I only think that a great product such as Ubuntu has room to improve.
I am so used to the CentOS install that when I did the first Ubuntu install it kinda ticks me off.
I know we don't do installs every day, and the install process itself is not a big of a deal. It's the product that matters.
But then again, little things count...
I hope Ubuntu server can adopt the anaconda installer?

[ventrical]

The installer is just being thorough . It is trying to cover all the bases. Leave no stone unturned .. etc.. :)

regards..

[izznogooood]

Hi All, sorry for not being specific. Just in case you're wondering I was referring to the server install not the desktop.
I gave it another go this morning and here are the "questions"

1. Pick Lang
2. Install options
3. Pick Lang ( the first one was to pick the lang of the os I presume, and the second is to pick the lang of the install process ...)
4. Select location
5. Detect Keyboard? (if yes, you will have another series of questions to answer)
6. Select country of keyboard
7. Keyboard layout
8. hostname
9. full name of user
10. username
11. passw
12. retype passw
13. encrypt home dir / drive?
14. set timezone
15. partition method
16. Select disk (there is only one dammit..)
17. write changes?
18. amount of vol to partition
19. are you sure you want to write changes?? (really??)

and off it goes... and just when you think you can go get your coffee... oh wait more questions..

20. configure package manager
21. configure updates
22. software selection?

damn... ok, lets go get coffee... OH WAIT...!!!

23. Install Grub? (really??)

FINISH....

I didn't do an exact count the first time, thats why I said 15+ questions... so its actually 23+..
I am not here to preach CentOS, or step on Ubuntu (eventhough we're a CentOS shop). I only think that a great product such as Ubuntu has room to improve.
I am so used to the CentOS install that when I did the first Ubuntu install it kinda ticks me off.
I know we don't do installs every day, and the install process itself is not a big of a deal. It's the product that matters.
But then again, little things count...
I hope Ubuntu server can adopt the anaconda installer?

I'm sorry but if you dont like configuring why / how can you run a server?

[HermanAB]

Well, you could install Slackware and then you may wish that the installer had some questions...
;)

Anyhoo, if it becomes tedious, then you need to automate the install. There are multiple ways to do that.

[uRock]

Just saw that you're doing the server install. I would definitely want all of those questions for a server install.
I just went through an install,

1. Select language (no input required, as you can change the default later)
2. Select updates and 3rd party (no input required)
3. Select partitioning (no input required)
4. Click continue for partitioning. (no input required)
5. Select location (no input required)
6. Select keyboard (no input required)
7. Enter your name
8. Enter computer name (no input required)
9. Enter username (no input required)
10. Password
11. Confirm password
12. Selections for login automatically and encrypt my home (no action required)
13. Click the Restart button upon completion.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oj5pYYZvKOA

[QIII]

I hope Ubuntu server can adopt the anaconda installer?

If you would like your server to install like a Red Hat server, then there are probably other servers that might suit your needs better.

[Linuxratty]

The installer is just being thorough . It is trying to cover all the bases. Leave no stone unturned .. etc.. :)

regards..

And I like it that way. Whaaaaa,credit card details? 'Ive never been asked that.

[mastablasta]

some "questions" could be on same screen which i think they are in desktop.

only one disk on server? really? i started with 3, one was system the other two were RAID1 array.