Oldsoldier2003
March 7th, 2008, 03:58 PM
Things absolute beginners should NOT do:
This list is not all inclusive and is aimed at helping beginners. So of the advice here can be completely ignored by intermediate and advanced users. But hey if you are one of those you don't NEED the advice!
never use automatix. Regardless of what you may have heard, automatix is a bad idea. The program has a high likelihood of trashing your system to the point that the only fix is a reinstall
never run scripts or commands you don't understand. Although the people here on the forum are very helpful, you should never ever run a command you don't understand. When in doubt use man <command> or google the term. If you still don't understand post here and someone can help clarify it to you. example: NEVER run sudo rm -rf /
never install software from unknown or untrusted sources. At first stick to the default Ubuntu repositories. If you need something specific that isn't available, be careful of where you get it. remember that not everything you find out there is stable on all operating system versions and some is just plainly malicious.
[**]corollary:never use source code from untrusted sources.
never run makefs on a partition you need. makefs will reformat that partition, destroying the exiting data. Never do it without first being absolutely sure you want to wipe the data and create a new blank partition.
don't enable root. if you need to enable the root account, then you are not an absolute beginner. The forums do not support doing this for a bunch of reasons... read the sticky and you'll see why.
don't move your /home directory to a ntfs partition. it breaks logins. Noted here because although moving /home to another drive or partition isn't exactly a beginner task, many people will consider it.
don't change your repositories to a newer version of Ubuntu. this isn't the proper way to upgrade your installation, and could overwrite critical packages, placing your OS in a unstable state.
don't pm the mods for a tech issue. if you do that, you lessen the number of people that will see your issue, thus lessening your chance for a quick and helpful resolution. (besides it's just pretentious)
don't be afraid to ask questions. If you are here, then you've found the best resource for friendly advice given by people that have "been there". Take a few moments to think through the issue and post it as clearly and concisely as you can. If you include all the pertinent info, the chances of resolving your problem are a lot higher.
This list is not all inclusive and is aimed at helping beginners. So of the advice here can be completely ignored by intermediate and advanced users. But hey if you are one of those you don't NEED the advice!
never use automatix. Regardless of what you may have heard, automatix is a bad idea. The program has a high likelihood of trashing your system to the point that the only fix is a reinstall
never run scripts or commands you don't understand. Although the people here on the forum are very helpful, you should never ever run a command you don't understand. When in doubt use man <command> or google the term. If you still don't understand post here and someone can help clarify it to you. example: NEVER run sudo rm -rf /
never install software from unknown or untrusted sources. At first stick to the default Ubuntu repositories. If you need something specific that isn't available, be careful of where you get it. remember that not everything you find out there is stable on all operating system versions and some is just plainly malicious.
[**]corollary:never use source code from untrusted sources.
never run makefs on a partition you need. makefs will reformat that partition, destroying the exiting data. Never do it without first being absolutely sure you want to wipe the data and create a new blank partition.
don't enable root. if you need to enable the root account, then you are not an absolute beginner. The forums do not support doing this for a bunch of reasons... read the sticky and you'll see why.
don't move your /home directory to a ntfs partition. it breaks logins. Noted here because although moving /home to another drive or partition isn't exactly a beginner task, many people will consider it.
don't change your repositories to a newer version of Ubuntu. this isn't the proper way to upgrade your installation, and could overwrite critical packages, placing your OS in a unstable state.
don't pm the mods for a tech issue. if you do that, you lessen the number of people that will see your issue, thus lessening your chance for a quick and helpful resolution. (besides it's just pretentious)
don't be afraid to ask questions. If you are here, then you've found the best resource for friendly advice given by people that have "been there". Take a few moments to think through the issue and post it as clearly and concisely as you can. If you include all the pertinent info, the chances of resolving your problem are a lot higher.