June 26, 2006 Installation: Use SPACEBAR to select "Desktop Environment", not just the Enter key.
During installation of Debian on a PC, you come to a screen that asks you to select the packages you want to install. It appears that "Desktop Environment" is highlighted. One might think that simply pressing the Enter key would cause this package to be installed. WRONG! You must press the SPACEBAR to select this item before you press the enter key. Failure to press the spacebar will not cause any error messages. The installation simple proceeds. Eventually it finishes, the system reboots, and you have a working Linux system with a command line user interface. No GUI, and no indication why not. Before you get to the package selection screen there are a few other screens which either: 1) require you to select one item from a list, where the default selection is highlighted, and pressing the Enter key is all you need to do, or 2) you need to enter some text, or simply accept the text that is already there. In any case you finish by pressing the Enter key. When you get to the package selection screen, it appears that once again there is a "select one item from a list", and the default selection is highlighted. Nowhere does it say anything about pressing the spacebar. Blah, blah, blah I am very angry. I am elated. I have spent the better part of a month trying, in a sporadic and inattentive manner, to get Linux installed on an old PC. There were a number of problems, a wild goose chase or two, but this problem with the spacebar takes the cake. But I now I have Debian installed and running, with a GUI on two different systems. ccp -- To UNSUBSCRIBE, email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with a subject of "unsubscribe". Trouble? Contact [EMAIL PROTECTED]
