arm-c
April 27th, 2008, 08:35 AM
Ubuntu is a great Linux Distro, but there are some things that just make me want to scream!
BLUF (Bottom Line Up Front) [save the long read for the solution]:
a: Java in 8.04 is broke out of box. Remove OpenJava and install the Sun Java. Fixed Java for me.
b: Installing Firefox 2 still has java broke. Make a sim link to the java plugin in the usr/lib/firefox/plugins directory that points to the usr/lib/jvm/java1-6.... /plugins/i386/ns7/(name of java plugin)
c: VirtualBox is broke. Have to goto synaptic and remove the virtualbox pkg and install the virutalbox-ose + the various other packages for your version of kernel (for me it was the "generic" endings. After doing that, I was once again up and running.
d: PLUCKER: Package upgrade is broken due to PyPlucker files being in a different directory than expected. Place a symbolic link in the /usr/lib/python2.5/site-packages directory that points to /usr/lib/python2.4/site-packages/PyPlucker directory.
------------------------------
First, the upgrade went fairly smoothly, however there were a couple of items that really didn't work for me and made me pull my hair out.
First, my mistake was to not wait a few weeks (a month?) to upgrade. Upgrading at the peak time was just too slow for me. Still, the problems that persisted could have been made more manageable.
JAVA. I use it all the time and I must say that changing the system to "OpenJava" was a mistake. Too many bugs and I lost an entire day trying to get to a java site that just would not function. I thought it was the Firefox Beta, but it was not. After pulling my hair out for over 1/2 a day, I finally installed the old Firefox, but that didn't work until I figured out how to install the link necessary to point to the java plugin. Once that happened, I was up and running there. Still, I felt VERY close to solving the 3.0b issue, so I continued. Turns out, it was using the IceTea plugin, which would not function for the website I needed to access. Solution, remove the OpenJava and the plugin from semantic. For me, I guess I was fortunate I had done a upgrade and still had the latest Java installed.
VIRTUAL BOX. VirtualBox doesn't work after an upgrade. A bit frustrating, since the packages changed, I guess it wasn't upgraded. Recommend uninstall VirtualBox and install the OpenSourceEdition and associated supporting files total of about 5). Ensure that you select the appropriate series, which for me was the ones ending in "generic". After that, my existing virtual machines ran fine.
PLUCKER: Plucker didn't work for me either. The problem was that it couldn't find the appropriate PyPlucker files and it was looking in the Python2.5 area; however, they were in python2.4 sitepackages director. I placed a symbolic link in the usr/lib/python2.5/site-packages directory. Once I did that, I ran synaptic and installed a package. It picked up the unfinished plucker install and finished without error.
XGalaga: What I don't have a solution to is the fact that this wonderful little game no longer works from the keyboard interface. Mouse worked, but keyboard did not. Sound hasn't worked since Feisty, and still doesn't work now. I did submit a bug on both of these, but the keyboard input is the most important one of the two. Anyone able to provide a solution or assistance I would appreciate it.
TABLET PC: I am using a Tablet PC. One thing that brought me to Ubuntu was that my tablet stylus worked right out of the box on Feisty. I was hopeful that Heron would fix what broke in Gusty, but it hasn't. It was the little things like pen support that brought me to Ubuntu... but failure to fix this configuration issue certainly bothers me.
So, that has been my experience so far. Some other small annoyances, but have worked through them and cant recall the majority of them.
Finally, I will close with a few rants. What I really want in Ubuntu is full Dual Monitor / Extended Desktop support. Given my difficulties, I probably won't step up to next iteration until they offer me this as an option. I know they made progress in this, but I was let down by the absence of it in Heron.,
Given my troubles, I would have rather waited a little while longer for them to work out the bugs and give me an excellently working system. I could have survived with this if they had not attempted the Java thing.
SO: ALL, Please forgive my failure to put the "copy / paste" solutions. I didn't have time to do that, BUT I did want to write my experiences and hope that they will help someone else out.
BLUF (Bottom Line Up Front) [save the long read for the solution]:
a: Java in 8.04 is broke out of box. Remove OpenJava and install the Sun Java. Fixed Java for me.
b: Installing Firefox 2 still has java broke. Make a sim link to the java plugin in the usr/lib/firefox/plugins directory that points to the usr/lib/jvm/java1-6.... /plugins/i386/ns7/(name of java plugin)
c: VirtualBox is broke. Have to goto synaptic and remove the virtualbox pkg and install the virutalbox-ose + the various other packages for your version of kernel (for me it was the "generic" endings. After doing that, I was once again up and running.
d: PLUCKER: Package upgrade is broken due to PyPlucker files being in a different directory than expected. Place a symbolic link in the /usr/lib/python2.5/site-packages directory that points to /usr/lib/python2.4/site-packages/PyPlucker directory.
------------------------------
First, the upgrade went fairly smoothly, however there were a couple of items that really didn't work for me and made me pull my hair out.
First, my mistake was to not wait a few weeks (a month?) to upgrade. Upgrading at the peak time was just too slow for me. Still, the problems that persisted could have been made more manageable.
JAVA. I use it all the time and I must say that changing the system to "OpenJava" was a mistake. Too many bugs and I lost an entire day trying to get to a java site that just would not function. I thought it was the Firefox Beta, but it was not. After pulling my hair out for over 1/2 a day, I finally installed the old Firefox, but that didn't work until I figured out how to install the link necessary to point to the java plugin. Once that happened, I was up and running there. Still, I felt VERY close to solving the 3.0b issue, so I continued. Turns out, it was using the IceTea plugin, which would not function for the website I needed to access. Solution, remove the OpenJava and the plugin from semantic. For me, I guess I was fortunate I had done a upgrade and still had the latest Java installed.
VIRTUAL BOX. VirtualBox doesn't work after an upgrade. A bit frustrating, since the packages changed, I guess it wasn't upgraded. Recommend uninstall VirtualBox and install the OpenSourceEdition and associated supporting files total of about 5). Ensure that you select the appropriate series, which for me was the ones ending in "generic". After that, my existing virtual machines ran fine.
PLUCKER: Plucker didn't work for me either. The problem was that it couldn't find the appropriate PyPlucker files and it was looking in the Python2.5 area; however, they were in python2.4 sitepackages director. I placed a symbolic link in the usr/lib/python2.5/site-packages directory. Once I did that, I ran synaptic and installed a package. It picked up the unfinished plucker install and finished without error.
XGalaga: What I don't have a solution to is the fact that this wonderful little game no longer works from the keyboard interface. Mouse worked, but keyboard did not. Sound hasn't worked since Feisty, and still doesn't work now. I did submit a bug on both of these, but the keyboard input is the most important one of the two. Anyone able to provide a solution or assistance I would appreciate it.
TABLET PC: I am using a Tablet PC. One thing that brought me to Ubuntu was that my tablet stylus worked right out of the box on Feisty. I was hopeful that Heron would fix what broke in Gusty, but it hasn't. It was the little things like pen support that brought me to Ubuntu... but failure to fix this configuration issue certainly bothers me.
So, that has been my experience so far. Some other small annoyances, but have worked through them and cant recall the majority of them.
Finally, I will close with a few rants. What I really want in Ubuntu is full Dual Monitor / Extended Desktop support. Given my difficulties, I probably won't step up to next iteration until they offer me this as an option. I know they made progress in this, but I was let down by the absence of it in Heron.,
Given my troubles, I would have rather waited a little while longer for them to work out the bugs and give me an excellently working system. I could have survived with this if they had not attempted the Java thing.
SO: ALL, Please forgive my failure to put the "copy / paste" solutions. I didn't have time to do that, BUT I did want to write my experiences and hope that they will help someone else out.