How do I start Gnome!

[oswaldkelso]

Hi

Having just tried Ubuntu and liked it I thought I'd jump in and see if I could get Debian and Gnome running.. I installed the Debian cd 1 (base) but it failed to read the 2nd cd so I selected the ftp option and installed more packages (apt-get install Gnome), then it did read the 2nd cd and seemed to install eveything.

So now I have a big black screen full of white text. I am logged in and it's waiting for me to tell it some thing!

I want to tell it to start Gnome and give me the GUI. If someone could tell me how I'd be most thankful.

Thank you Oswald

Ps. It's an eMac ppc

[squirrelplayingtag]

startx

[drakebasher]

If 'startx' doesn't work, try 'gdm'.

[oswaldkelso]

Still no luck

I logged in as root and tried startx and gdm.

On both it returns "command not found"

Any ideas wecome

[nalg0rath]

Log in as a normal user and then run

# gdm

To add a user use the useradd command, read the manual if you don't know hot to do this.

# man useradd

[d38dm8nw81k1ng]

apt-get install gnome

to make sure gnome is actually installed. then do:

apt-get install gdm

this will install gdm, which you can then use to login to gnome. happy hunting

[oswaldkelso]

After many hour and different types of reinstalls I'm at a loss. The only Linux I have that runs with a GUI is Ubuntu.

Yellowdog 4 and Debian serge both report xserver faults , I take it thats why # startx failed.

"process set to priority -1 instead of requested priority 0" and "fatal IO error104 (connection reset by peer) on xserver

Thanks to all that tried to help I'll have another go tomorrow

oswald

[drakebasher]

The only Linux I have that runs with a GUI is Ubuntu.

Sounds like your problem is either with the driver for the video adapter or with something in your X configuration file (I think that's /etc/X11/xorg.conf). If you can run Ubuntu from a LiveCD, start it up and then print, copy or write down xorg.conf so that you can then compare the Ubuntu xorg.conf against the Debian xorg.conf and make changes as needed.

[oswaldkelso]

The only Linux I have that runs with a GUI is Ubuntu.

Sounds like your problem is either with the driver for the video adapter or with something in your X configuration file (I think that's /etc/X11/xorg.conf). If you can run Ubuntu from a LiveCD, start it up and then print, copy or write down xorg.conf so that you can then compare the Ubuntu xorg.conf against the Debian xorg.conf and make changes as needed.

# /etc/X11/xorg.conf (xorg X Window System server configuration file)
#
# This file was generated by dexconf, the Debian X Configuration tool, using
# values from the debconf database.
#
# Edit this file with caution, and see the /etc/X11/xorg.conf manual page.
# (Type "man /etc/X11/xorg.conf" at the shell prompt.)
#
# This file is automatically updated on xserver-xorg package upgrades *only*
# if it has not been modified since the last upgrade of the xserver-xorg
# package.
#
# If you have edited this file but would like it to be automatically updated
# again, run the following command:
# sudo dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-xorg

Section "Files"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/misc"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/cyrillic"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/100dpi/:unscaled"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/75dpi/:unscaled"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/Type1"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/CID"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/100dpi"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/75dpi"
# paths to defoma fonts
FontPath "/var/lib/defoma/x-ttcidfont-conf.d/dirs/TrueType"
FontPath "/var/lib/defoma/x-ttcidfont-conf.d/dirs/CID"
EndSection

Section "Module"
Load "GLcore"
Load "i2c"
Load "bitmap"
Load "ddc"
Load "dri"
Load "extmod"
Load "freetype"
Load "glx"
Load "int10"
Load "type1"
Load "vbe"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Generic Keyboard"
Driver "kbd"
Option "CoreKeyboard"
Option "XkbRules" "xorg"
Option "XkbModel" "pc105"
Option "XkbLayout" "gb"
Option "XkbOptions" "lv3:lwin_switch"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Configured Mouse"
Driver "mouse"
Option "CorePointer"
Option "Device" "/dev/input/mice"
Option "Protocol" "ImPS/2"
Option "Emulate3Buttons" "true"
Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
EndSection

Section "Device"
Identifier "ATI Technologies, Inc. Radeon 7500 (RV200 QW)"
Driver "ati"
BusID "PCI:0:16:0"
Option "UseFBDev" "true"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
Identifier "iMac"
Option "DPMS"
HorizSync 71-73
VertRefresh 70-140
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Default Screen"
Device "ATI Technologies, Inc. Radeon 7500 (RV200 QW)"
Monitor "iMac"
DefaultDepth 24
SubSection "Display"
Depth 1
Modes "1024x768"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 4
Modes "1024x768"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 8
Modes "1024x768"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 15
Modes "1024x768"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 16
Modes "1024x768"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 24
Modes "1024x768"
EndSubSection
EndSection

Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "Default Layout"
Screen "Default Screen"
InputDevice "Generic Keyboard"
InputDevice "Configured Mouse"
EndSection

Section "DRI"
Mode 0666
EndSection

Is that the right one? I have these also that looked like they may be important.

Template: xorg-common/experimental_packages
Type: note
Description: experimental version of XFree86 packages
You are using an experimental version of XFree86 packages for Debian. Please
do not file bugs with the Debian Bug Tracking System against this version of
the packages, since they have not been released to the Debian distribution
yet.
.
If you experience problems with these packages or would like to submit
patches, please send mail to the Debian X mailing list. You can read more
about this mailing list on the World Wide Web:
http://lists.debian.org/debian-x/
.
If you do not want to be running experimental X packages, you need to do two
things:
1) Ensure that you do not have experimental package repositiories in
your /etc/apt/sources.list file;
2) Instruct apt to downgrade XFree86 to an appropriate released version;
you can do this by appending a package suite name to the package name
with "apt-get" -- for example:
apt-get install xfree86-common/unstable
or
apt-get install xfree86-common/stable
You may need to specify downgrades for several packages.



I read a similar thing when Debian tried to load the screen?



/.
/usr
/usr/X11R6
/usr/X11R6/man
/usr/X11R6/man/man7
/usr/X11R6/man/man7/XConsortium.7x.gz
/usr/X11R6/man/man7/XStandards.7x.gz
/usr/X11R6/man/man7/Xsecurity.7x.gz
/usr/X11R6/man/man7/X.7x.gz
/usr/X11R6/man/man7/X.Org.7x.gz
/usr/X11R6/man/man7/XProjectTeam.7x.gz
/usr/X11R6/lib
/usr/X11R6/lib/X11
/usr/share
/usr/share/doc
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/CHANGELOG.R5.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/changelog.Debian.old.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/README.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/README.fonts.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/RELNOTES.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/Versions.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/README.Debian
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/copyright
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/CHANGELOG.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/CHANGELOG.ND.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/changelog.Debian.gz
/etc
/etc/X11
/etc/X11/Xresources
/etc/init.d
/etc/init.d/xorg-common
/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/rgb.txt



Above is the common list?


#!/bin/sh
# Debian xfree86-common package configuration script
# Copyright 2002, 2003 Branden Robinson.
# Licensed under the GNU General Public License, version 2. See the file
# /usr/share/common-licenses/GPL or <http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.txt>.


set -e

# source debconf library
. /usr/share/debconf/confmodule

THIS_PACKAGE=xorg-common
THIS_SCRIPT=config

SOURCE_VERSION=6.8.2-77
OFFICIAL_BUILD=yes

# Use special abnormal exit codes so that problems with this library are more
# easily tracked down.
SHELL_LIB_INTERNAL_ERROR=86
SHELL_LIB_THROWN_ERROR=74
SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR=99

# old -> new variable names
if [ -z "$DEBUG_XORG_PACKAGE" ] && [ -n "$DEBUG_XFREE86_PACKAGE" ]; then
DEBUG_XORG_PACKAGE="$DEBUG_XFREE86_PACKAGE"
fi
if [ -z "$DEBUG_XORG_DEBCONF" ] && [ -n "$DEBUG_XFREE86_DEBCONF" ]; then
DEBUG_XORG_DEBCONF="$DEBUG_XFREE86_DEBCONF"
fi

# initial sanity checks
if [ -z "$THIS_PACKAGE" ]; then
cat >&2 <<EOF
Error: package maintainer script attempted to use shell library without
definining \$THIS_PACKAGE shell variable. Please report the package name,
version, and the text of this error message to the Debian Bug Tracking System.
Visit <http://www.debian.org/Bugs/Reporting> on the World Wide Web for
instructions, read the file /usr/share/doc/debian/bug-reporting.txt from the
"doc-debian" package, or install the "reportbug" package and use the command of
the same name to file a report against version $SOURCE_VERSION of this package.
EOF
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

if [ -z "$THIS_SCRIPT" ]; then
cat >&2 <<EOF
Error: package maintainer script attempted to use shell library without
definining \$THIS_SCRIPT shell variable. Please report the package name,
version, and the text of this error message to the Debian Bug Tracking System.
Visit <http://www.debian.org/Bugs/Reporting> on the World Wide Web for
instructions, read the file /usr/share/doc/debian/bug-reporting.txt from the
"doc-debian" package, or install the "reportbug" package and use the command of
the same name to file a report against version $SOURCE_VERSION of the
"$THIS_PACKAGE" package.
EOF
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

trap "message;\
message \"Received signal. Aborting $THIS_PACKAGE package $THIS_SCRIPT script.\";\
message;\
exit 1" HUP INT QUIT TERM

reject_nondigits () {
# syntax: reject_nondigits [ operand ... ]
#
# scan operands (typically shell variables whose values cannot be trusted) for
# characters other than decimal digits and barf if any are found
while [ -n "$1" ]; do
# does the operand contain anything but digits?
if ! expr "$1" : "[[:digit:]]\+$" > /dev/null 2>&1; then
# can't use die(), because it wraps message() which wraps this function
echo "$THIS_PACKAGE $THIS_SCRIPT error: reject_nondigits() encountered" \
"possibly malicious garbage \"$1\"" >&2
exit $SHELL_LIB_THROWN_ERROR
fi
shift
done
}

reject_whitespace () {
# syntax: reject_whitespace [ operand ]
#
# scan operand (typically a shell variable whose value cannot be trusted) for
# whitespace characters and barf if any are found
if [ -n "$1" ]; then
# does the operand contain any whitespace?
if expr "$1" : "[[:space:]]" > /dev/null 2>&1; then
# can't use die(), because I want to avoid forward references
echo "$THIS_PACKAGE $THIS_SCRIPT error: reject_whitespace() encountered" \
"possibly malicious garbage \"$1\"" >&2
exit $SHELL_LIB_THROWN_ERROR
fi
fi
}

reject_unlikely_path_chars () {
# syntax: reject_unlikely_path_chars [ operand ... ]
#
# scan operands (typically shell variables whose values cannot be trusted) for
# characters unlikely to be seen in a path and which the shell might
# interpret and barf if any are found
while [ -n "$1" ]; do
# does the operand contain any funny characters?
if expr "$1" : '.*[!$&()*;<>?|].*' > /dev/null 2>&1; then
# can't use die(), because I want to avoid forward references
echo "$THIS_PACKAGE $THIS_SCRIPT error: reject_unlikely_path_chars()" \
"encountered possibly malicious garbage \"$1\"" >&2
exit $SHELL_LIB_THROWN_ERROR
fi
shift
done
}

# Query the terminal to establish a default number of columns to use for
# displaying messages to the user. This is used only as a fallback in the
# event the COLUMNS variable is not set. ($COLUMNS can react to SIGWINCH while
# the script is running, and this cannot, only being calculated once.)
DEFCOLUMNS=$(stty size 2> /dev/null | awk '{print $2}') || true
if ! expr "$DEFCOLUMNS" : "[[:digit:]]\+$" > /dev/null 2>&1; then
DEFCOLUMNS=80
fi

message () {
# pretty-print messages of arbitrary length
reject_nondigits "$COLUMNS"
echo "$*" | fmt -t -w ${COLUMNS:-$DEFCOLUMNS} >&2
}

observe () {
# syntax: observe message ...
#
# issue observational message suitable for logging someday when support for
# it exists in dpkg
if [ -n "$DEBUG_XORG_PACKAGE" ]; then
message "$THIS_PACKAGE $THIS_SCRIPT note: $*"
fi
}

warn () {
# syntax: warn message ...
#
# issue warning message suitable for logging someday when support for
# it exists in dpkg; also send to standard error
message "$THIS_PACKAGE $THIS_SCRIPT warning: $*"
}

die () {
# syntax: die message ...
#
# exit script with error message
message "$THIS_PACKAGE $THIS_SCRIPT error: $*"
exit $SHELL_LIB_THROWN_ERROR
}

internal_error () {
# exit script with error; essentially a "THIS SHOULD NEVER HAPPEN" message
message "internal error: $*"
if [ -n "$OFFICIAL_BUILD" ]; then
message "Please report a bug in the $THIS_SCRIPT script of the" \
"$THIS_PACKAGE package, version $SOURCE_VERSION to the Ubuntu Bug" \
"Tracking System. Include all messages above that mention the" \
"$THIS_PACKAGE package. Visit " \
"<http://bugzilla.ubuntu.com> on the World Wide Web for" \
"instructions."
fi
exit $SHELL_LIB_INTERNAL_ERROR
}

usage_error () {
message "usage error: $*"
message "Please report a bug in the $THIS_SCRIPT script of the" \
"$THIS_PACKAGE package, version $SOURCE_VERSION to the Debian Bug" \
"Tracking System. Include all messages above that mention the" \
"$THIS_PACKAGE package. Visit " \
"<http://bugzilla.ubuntu.com> on the World Wide Web for" \
"instructions."
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
}


maplink () {
# returns what symlink should point to; i.e., what the "sane" answer is
# Keep this in sync with the debian/*.links files.
# This is only needed for symlinks to directories.
case "$1" in
/etc/X11/xkb/compiled) echo /var/lib/xkb ;;
/etc/X11/xkb/xkbcomp) echo /usr/bin/xkbcomp ;;
/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/app-defaults) echo /etc/X11/app-defaults ;;
/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/xkb) echo /etc/X11/xkb ;;
/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/xserver) echo /etc/X11/xserver ;;
*) internal_error "maplink() called with unknown path \"$1\"" ;;
esac
}

analyze_path () {
# given a supplied set of pathnames, break each one up by directory and do an
# ls -dl on each component, cumulatively; i.e.
# analyze_path /usr/X11R6/bin -> ls -dl /usr /usr/X11R6 /usr/X11R6/bin
# Thanks to Randolph Chung for this clever hack.

#local f g

while [ -n "$1" ]; do
reject_whitespace "$1"
_g=
message "Analyzing $1:"
for _f in $(echo "$1" | tr / \ ); do
if [ -e /$_g$_f ]; then
ls -dl /$_g$_f /$_g$_f.dpkg-* 2> /dev/null || true
_g=$_g$_f/
else
message "/$_g$_f: nonexistent; directory contents of /$_g:"
ls -l /$_g
break
fi
done
shift
done
}

find_culprits () {
#local f p dpkg_info_dir possible_culprits smoking_guns bad_packages package \
# msg

reject_whitespace "$1"
message "Searching for overlapping packages..."
_dpkg_info_dir=/var/lib/dpkg/info
if [ -d $_dpkg_info_dir ]; then
if [ "$(echo $_dpkg_info_dir/*.list)" != "$_dpkg_info_dir/*.list" ]; then
_possible_culprits=$(ls -1 $_dpkg_info_dir/*.list | egrep -v \
"(xbase-clients|xfree86-common|xorg-common|xfs|xlibs)")
if [ -n "$_possible_culprits" ]; then
_smoking_guns=$(grep -l "$1" $_possible_culprits)
if [ -n "$_smoking_guns" ]; then
_bad_packages=$(printf "\\n")
for f in $_smoking_guns; do
# too bad you can't nest parameter expansion voodoo
p=${f%*.list} # strip off the trailing ".list"
_package=${p##*/} # strip off the directories
_bad_packages=$(printf "%s\n%s" "$_bad_packages" "$_package")
done
_msg=$(cat <<EOF
The following packages appear to have file overlaps with the X.Org packages;
these packages are either very old, or in violation of Debian Policy. Try
upgrading each of these packages to the latest available version if possible:
for example, with the command "apt-get install". If no newer version of a
package is available, you will have to remove it; for example, with the command
"apt-get remove". If even the latest available version of the package has
this file overlap, please file a bug against that package with the Debian Bug
Tracking System. You may want to refer the package maintainer to section 12.8
of the Debian Policy manual.
EOF
)
message "$_msg"
message "The overlapping packages are: $_bad_packages"
else
message "no overlaps found."
fi
fi
else
message "cannot search; no matches for $_dpkg_info_dir/*.list."
fi
else
message "cannot search; $_dpkg_info_dir does not exist."
fi
}

# we require a readlink command or shell function
if ! which readlink > /dev/null 2>&1; then
message "The readlink command was not found. Please install version" \
"1.13.1 or later of the debianutils package."
readlink () {
# returns what symlink in $1 actually points to
perl -e '$l = shift; exit 1 unless -l $l; $r = readlink $l; exit 1 unless $r; print "$r\n"' "$1"
}
fi

check_symlink () {
# syntax: check_symlink symlink
#
# See if specified symlink points where it is supposed to. Return 0 if it
# does, and 1 if it does not.
#
# Primarily used by check_symlinks_and_warn() and check_symlinks_and_bomb().

#local symlink

# validate arguments
if [ $# -ne 1 ]; then
usage_error "check_symlink() called with wrong number of arguments;" \
"expected 1, got $#"
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

_symlink="$1"

if [ "$(maplink "$_symlink")" = "$(readlink "$_symlink")" ]; then
return 0
else
return 1
fi
}

check_symlinks_and_warn () {
# syntax: check_symlinks_and_warn symlink ...
#
# For each argument, check for symlink sanity, and warn if it isn't sane.
#
# Call this function from a preinst script in the event $1 is "upgrade" or
# "install".

#local errmsg symlink

# validate arguments
if [ $# -lt 1 ]; then
usage_error "check_symlinks_and_warn() called with wrong number of" \
"arguments; expected at least 1, got $#"
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

while [ -n "$1" ]; do
_symlink="$1"
if [ -L "$_symlink" ]; then
if ! check_symlink "$_symlink"; then
observe "$_symlink symbolic link points to wrong location" \
"$(readlink "$_symlink"); removing"
rm "$_symlink"
fi
elif [ -e "$_symlink" ]; then
_errmsg="$_symlink exists and is not a symbolic link; this package cannot"
_errmsg="$_errmsg be installed until this"
if [ -f "$_symlink" ]; then
_errmsg="$_errmsg file"
elif [ -d "$_symlink" ]; then
_errmsg="$_errmsg directory"
else
_errmsg="$_errmsg thing"
fi
_errmsg="$_errmsg is removed"
die "$_errmsg"
fi
shift
done
}

check_symlinks_and_bomb () {
# syntax: check_symlinks_and_bomb symlink ...
#
# For each argument, check for symlink sanity, and bomb if it isn't sane.
#
# Call this function from a postinst script.

#local problem symlink

# validate arguments
if [ $# -lt 1 ]; then
usage_error "check_symlinks_and_bomb() called with wrong number of"
"arguments; expected at least 1, got $#"
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

while [ -n "$1" ]; do
_problem=
_symlink="$1"
if [ -L "$_symlink" ]; then
if ! check_symlink "$_symlink"; then
_problem=yes
warn "$_symlink symbolic link points to wrong location" \
"$(readlink "$_symlink")"
fi
elif [ -e "$_symlink" ]; then
_problem=yes
warn "$_symlink is not a symbolic link"
else
_problem=yes
warn "$_symlink symbolic link does not exist"
fi
if [ -n "$_problem" ]; then
analyze_path "$_symlink" "$(readlink "$_symlink")"
find_culprits "$_symlink"
die "bad symbolic links on system"
fi
shift
done
}

remove_conffile_prepare () {
# syntax: remove_conffile_prepare filename official_md5sum ...
#
# Check a conffile "filename" against a list of canonical MD5 checksums.
# If the file's current MD5 checksum matches one of the "official_md5sum"
# operands provided, then prepare the conffile for removal from the system.
# We defer actual deletion until the package is configured so that we can
# roll this operation back if package installation fails.
#
# Call this function from a preinst script in the event $1 is "upgrade" or
# "install" and verify $2 to ensure the package is being upgraded from a
# version (or installed over a version removed-but-not-purged) prior to the
# one in which the conffile was obsoleted.

#local conffile current_checksum

# validate arguments
if [ $# -lt 2 ]; then
usage_error "remove_conffile_prepare() called with wrong number of" \
"arguments; expected at least 2, got $#"
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

_conffile="$1"
shift

# does the _conffile even exist?
if [ -e "$_conffile" ]; then
# calculate its checksum
_current_checksum=$(md5sum < "$_conffile" | sed 's/[[:space:]].*//')
# compare it to each supplied checksum
while [ -n "$1" ]; do
if [ "$_current_checksum" = "$1" ]; then
# we found a match; move the confffile and stop looking
observe "preparing obsolete conffile $_conffile for removal"
mv "$_conffile" "$_conffile.$THIS_PACKAGE-tmp"
break
fi
shift
done
fi
}

remove_conffile_commit () {
# syntax: remove_conffile_commit filename
#
# Complete the removal of a conffile "filename" that has become obsolete.
#
# Call this function from a postinst script after having used
# remove_conffile_prepare() in the preinst.

#local conffile

# validate arguments
if [ $# -ne 1 ]; then
usage_error "remove_conffile_commit() called with wrong number of" \
"arguments; expected 1, got $#"
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

_conffile="$1"

# if the temporary file created by remove_conffile_prepare() exists, remove it
if [ -e "$_conffile.$THIS_PACKAGE-tmp" ]; then
observe "committing removal of obsolete conffile $_conffile"
rm "$_conffile.$THIS_PACKAGE-tmp"
fi
}

remove_conffile_rollback () {
# syntax: remove_conffile_rollback filename
#
# Roll back the removal of a conffile "filename".
#
# Call this function from a postrm script in the event $1 is "abort-upgrade"
# or "abort-install" is after having used remove_conffile_prepare() in the
# preinst.

#local conffile

# validate arguments
if [ $# -ne 1 ]; then
usage_error "remove_conffile_rollback() called with wrong number of" \
"arguments; expected 1, got $#"
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

_conffile="$1"

# if the temporary file created by remove_conffile_prepare() exists, move it
# back
if [ -e "$_conffile.$THIS_PACKAGE-tmp" ]; then
observe "rolling back removal of obsolete conffile $_conffile"
mv "$_conffile.$THIS_PACKAGE-tmp" "$_conffile"
fi
}

run () {
# syntax: run command [ argument ... ]
#
# Run specified command with optional arguments and report its exit status.
# Useful for commands whose exit status may be nonzero, but still acceptable,
# or commands whose failure is not fatal to us.
#
# NOTE: Do *not* use this function with db_get or db_metaget commands; in
# those cases the return value of the debconf command *must* be checked
# before the string returned by debconf is used for anything.

#local retval

# validate arguments
if [ $# -lt 1 ]; then
usage_error "run() called with wrong number of arguments; expected at" \
"least 1, got $#"
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

"$@" || _retval=$?

if [ ${_retval:-0} -ne 0 ]; then
observe "command \"$*\" exited with status $_retval"
fi
}

register_x_lib_dir_with_ld_so () {
# syntax: register_x_lib_dir_with_ld_so
#
# Configure the dynamic loader ld.so to search /usr/X11R6/lib for shared
# libraries.
#
# Call this function from the postinst script of a package that places a
# shared library in /usr/X11R6/lib, before invoking ldconfig.

#local dir ldsoconf

_dir="/usr/X11R6/lib"
_ldsoconf="/etc/ld.so.conf"

# is the line not already present?
if ! fgrep -qsx "$_dir" "$_ldsoconf"; then
observe "adding $_dir directory to $_ldsoconf"
echo "$_dir" >> "$_ldsoconf"
fi
}

deregister_x_lib_dir_with_ld_so () {
# syntax: deregister_x_lib_dir_with_ld_so
#
# Configure dynamic loader ld.so to not search /usr/X11R6/lib for shared
# libraries, if and only if no shared libaries remain there.
#
# Call this function from the postrm script of a package that places a shared
# library in /usr/X11R6/lib, in the event "$1" is "remove", and before
# invoking ldconfig.

#local dir ldsoconf fgrep_status cmp_status

_dir="/usr/X11R6/lib"
_ldsoconf="/etc/ld.so.conf"

# is the line present?
if fgrep -qsx "$_dir" "$_ldsoconf"; then
# are there any shared objects in the directory?
if [ "$(echo "$_dir"/lib*.so.*.*)" = "$_dir/lib*.so.*.*" ]; then
# glob expansion produced nothing, so no shared libraries are present
observe "removing $_dir directory from $_ldsoconf"
# rewrite the file (very carefully)
set +e
fgrep -svx "$_dir" "$_ldsoconf" > "$_ldsoconf.dpkg-tmp"
_fgrep_status=$?
set -e
case $_fgrep_status in
0|1) ;; # we don't actually care if any lines matched or not
*) die "error reading \"$_ldsoconf\"; fgrep exited with status" \
"$_fgrep_status" ;;
esac
set +e
cmp -s "$_ldsoconf.dpkg-tmp" "$_ldsoconf"
_cmp_status=$?
set -e
case $_cmp_status in
0) rm "$_ldsoconf.dpkg-tmp" ;; # files are identical
1) mv "$_ldsoconf.dpkg-tmp" "$_ldsoconf" ;; # files differ
*) die "error comparing \"$_ldsoconf.dpkg-tmp\" to \"$_ldsoconf\";" \
"cmp exited with status $_cmp_status" ;;
esac
fi
fi
}

# is this an unofficial Debian package?
if [ -z "$OFFICIAL_BUILD" ]; then
observe "unofficial build detected; issuing debconf note as warning"
run db_register xorg-common/experimental_packages \
xorg-common/nag
run db_input high xorg-common/nag
run db_go
run db_unregister xorg-common/nag
fi

exit 0

# vim:set ai et sts=2 sw=2 tw=0:



above is the shell script if it helps. In the morning I try and install again and see if I can find the failed scripts. (then I just have to work out how to change them)

[oswaldkelso]

The only Linux I have that runs with a GUI is Ubuntu.

Sounds like your problem is either with the driver for the video adapter or with something in your X configuration file (I think that's /etc/X11/xorg.conf). If you can run Ubuntu from a LiveCD, start it up and then print, copy or write down xorg.conf so that you can then compare the Ubuntu xorg.conf against the Debian xorg.conf and make changes as needed.

# /etc/X11/xorg.conf (xorg X Window System server configuration file)
#
# This file was generated by dexconf, the Debian X Configuration tool, using
# values from the debconf database.
#
# Edit this file with caution, and see the /etc/X11/xorg.conf manual page.
# (Type "man /etc/X11/xorg.conf" at the shell prompt.)
#
# This file is automatically updated on xserver-xorg package upgrades *only*
# if it has not been modified since the last upgrade of the xserver-xorg
# package.
#
# If you have edited this file but would like it to be automatically updated
# again, run the following command:
# sudo dpkg-reconfigure -phigh xserver-xorg

Section "Files"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/misc"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/cyrillic"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/100dpi/:unscaled"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/75dpi/:unscaled"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/Type1"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/CID"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/100dpi"
FontPath "/usr/share/X11/fonts/75dpi"
# paths to defoma fonts
FontPath "/var/lib/defoma/x-ttcidfont-conf.d/dirs/TrueType"
FontPath "/var/lib/defoma/x-ttcidfont-conf.d/dirs/CID"
EndSection

Section "Module"
Load "GLcore"
Load "i2c"
Load "bitmap"
Load "ddc"
Load "dri"
Load "extmod"
Load "freetype"
Load "glx"
Load "int10"
Load "type1"
Load "vbe"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Generic Keyboard"
Driver "kbd"
Option "CoreKeyboard"
Option "XkbRules" "xorg"
Option "XkbModel" "pc105"
Option "XkbLayout" "gb"
Option "XkbOptions" "lv3:lwin_switch"
EndSection

Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Configured Mouse"
Driver "mouse"
Option "CorePointer"
Option "Device" "/dev/input/mice"
Option "Protocol" "ImPS/2"
Option "Emulate3Buttons" "true"
Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
EndSection

Section "Device"
Identifier "ATI Technologies, Inc. Radeon 7500 (RV200 QW)"
Driver "ati"
BusID "PCI:0:16:0"
Option "UseFBDev" "true"
EndSection

Section "Monitor"
Identifier "iMac"
Option "DPMS"
HorizSync 71-73
VertRefresh 70-140
EndSection

Section "Screen"
Identifier "Default Screen"
Device "ATI Technologies, Inc. Radeon 7500 (RV200 QW)"
Monitor "iMac"
DefaultDepth 24
SubSection "Display"
Depth 1
Modes "1024x768"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 4
Modes "1024x768"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 8
Modes "1024x768"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 15
Modes "1024x768"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 16
Modes "1024x768"
EndSubSection
SubSection "Display"
Depth 24
Modes "1024x768"
EndSubSection
EndSection

Section "ServerLayout"
Identifier "Default Layout"
Screen "Default Screen"
InputDevice "Generic Keyboard"
InputDevice "Configured Mouse"
EndSection

Section "DRI"
Mode 0666
EndSection

Is that the right one? I have these also that looked like they may be important.

Template: xorg-common/experimental_packages
Type: note
Description: experimental version of XFree86 packages
You are using an experimental version of XFree86 packages for Debian. Please
do not file bugs with the Debian Bug Tracking System against this version of
the packages, since they have not been released to the Debian distribution
yet.
.
If you experience problems with these packages or would like to submit
patches, please send mail to the Debian X mailing list. You can read more
about this mailing list on the World Wide Web:
http://lists.debian.org/debian-x/
.
If you do not want to be running experimental X packages, you need to do two
things:
1) Ensure that you do not have experimental package repositiories in
your /etc/apt/sources.list file;
2) Instruct apt to downgrade XFree86 to an appropriate released version;
you can do this by appending a package suite name to the package name
with "apt-get" -- for example:
apt-get install xfree86-common/unstable
or
apt-get install xfree86-common/stable
You may need to specify downgrades for several packages.



I read a similar thing when Debian tried to load the screen?



/.
/usr
/usr/X11R6
/usr/X11R6/man
/usr/X11R6/man/man7
/usr/X11R6/man/man7/XConsortium.7x.gz
/usr/X11R6/man/man7/XStandards.7x.gz
/usr/X11R6/man/man7/Xsecurity.7x.gz
/usr/X11R6/man/man7/X.7x.gz
/usr/X11R6/man/man7/X.Org.7x.gz
/usr/X11R6/man/man7/XProjectTeam.7x.gz
/usr/X11R6/lib
/usr/X11R6/lib/X11
/usr/share
/usr/share/doc
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/CHANGELOG.R5.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/changelog.Debian.old.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/README.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/README.fonts.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/RELNOTES.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/Versions.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/README.Debian
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/copyright
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/CHANGELOG.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/CHANGELOG.ND.gz
/usr/share/doc/xorg-common/changelog.Debian.gz
/etc
/etc/X11
/etc/X11/Xresources
/etc/init.d
/etc/init.d/xorg-common
/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/rgb.txt



Above is the common list?


#!/bin/sh
# Debian xfree86-common package configuration script
# Copyright 2002, 2003 Branden Robinson.
# Licensed under the GNU General Public License, version 2. See the file
# /usr/share/common-licenses/GPL or <http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.txt>.


set -e

# source debconf library
. /usr/share/debconf/confmodule

THIS_PACKAGE=xorg-common
THIS_SCRIPT=config

SOURCE_VERSION=6.8.2-77
OFFICIAL_BUILD=yes

# Use special abnormal exit codes so that problems with this library are more
# easily tracked down.
SHELL_LIB_INTERNAL_ERROR=86
SHELL_LIB_THROWN_ERROR=74
SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR=99

# old -> new variable names
if [ -z "$DEBUG_XORG_PACKAGE" ] && [ -n "$DEBUG_XFREE86_PACKAGE" ]; then
DEBUG_XORG_PACKAGE="$DEBUG_XFREE86_PACKAGE"
fi
if [ -z "$DEBUG_XORG_DEBCONF" ] && [ -n "$DEBUG_XFREE86_DEBCONF" ]; then
DEBUG_XORG_DEBCONF="$DEBUG_XFREE86_DEBCONF"
fi

# initial sanity checks
if [ -z "$THIS_PACKAGE" ]; then
cat >&2 <<EOF
Error: package maintainer script attempted to use shell library without
definining \$THIS_PACKAGE shell variable. Please report the package name,
version, and the text of this error message to the Debian Bug Tracking System.
Visit <http://www.debian.org/Bugs/Reporting> on the World Wide Web for
instructions, read the file /usr/share/doc/debian/bug-reporting.txt from the
"doc-debian" package, or install the "reportbug" package and use the command of
the same name to file a report against version $SOURCE_VERSION of this package.
EOF
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

if [ -z "$THIS_SCRIPT" ]; then
cat >&2 <<EOF
Error: package maintainer script attempted to use shell library without
definining \$THIS_SCRIPT shell variable. Please report the package name,
version, and the text of this error message to the Debian Bug Tracking System.
Visit <http://www.debian.org/Bugs/Reporting> on the World Wide Web for
instructions, read the file /usr/share/doc/debian/bug-reporting.txt from the
"doc-debian" package, or install the "reportbug" package and use the command of
the same name to file a report against version $SOURCE_VERSION of the
"$THIS_PACKAGE" package.
EOF
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

trap "message;\
message \"Received signal. Aborting $THIS_PACKAGE package $THIS_SCRIPT script.\";\
message;\
exit 1" HUP INT QUIT TERM

reject_nondigits () {
# syntax: reject_nondigits [ operand ... ]
#
# scan operands (typically shell variables whose values cannot be trusted) for
# characters other than decimal digits and barf if any are found
while [ -n "$1" ]; do
# does the operand contain anything but digits?
if ! expr "$1" : "[[:digit:]]\+$" > /dev/null 2>&1; then
# can't use die(), because it wraps message() which wraps this function
echo "$THIS_PACKAGE $THIS_SCRIPT error: reject_nondigits() encountered" \
"possibly malicious garbage \"$1\"" >&2
exit $SHELL_LIB_THROWN_ERROR
fi
shift
done
}

reject_whitespace () {
# syntax: reject_whitespace [ operand ]
#
# scan operand (typically a shell variable whose value cannot be trusted) for
# whitespace characters and barf if any are found
if [ -n "$1" ]; then
# does the operand contain any whitespace?
if expr "$1" : "[[:space:]]" > /dev/null 2>&1; then
# can't use die(), because I want to avoid forward references
echo "$THIS_PACKAGE $THIS_SCRIPT error: reject_whitespace() encountered" \
"possibly malicious garbage \"$1\"" >&2
exit $SHELL_LIB_THROWN_ERROR
fi
fi
}

reject_unlikely_path_chars () {
# syntax: reject_unlikely_path_chars [ operand ... ]
#
# scan operands (typically shell variables whose values cannot be trusted) for
# characters unlikely to be seen in a path and which the shell might
# interpret and barf if any are found
while [ -n "$1" ]; do
# does the operand contain any funny characters?
if expr "$1" : '.*[!$&()*;<>?|].*' > /dev/null 2>&1; then
# can't use die(), because I want to avoid forward references
echo "$THIS_PACKAGE $THIS_SCRIPT error: reject_unlikely_path_chars()" \
"encountered possibly malicious garbage \"$1\"" >&2
exit $SHELL_LIB_THROWN_ERROR
fi
shift
done
}

# Query the terminal to establish a default number of columns to use for
# displaying messages to the user. This is used only as a fallback in the
# event the COLUMNS variable is not set. ($COLUMNS can react to SIGWINCH while
# the script is running, and this cannot, only being calculated once.)
DEFCOLUMNS=$(stty size 2> /dev/null | awk '{print $2}') || true
if ! expr "$DEFCOLUMNS" : "[[:digit:]]\+$" > /dev/null 2>&1; then
DEFCOLUMNS=80
fi

message () {
# pretty-print messages of arbitrary length
reject_nondigits "$COLUMNS"
echo "$*" | fmt -t -w ${COLUMNS:-$DEFCOLUMNS} >&2
}

observe () {
# syntax: observe message ...
#
# issue observational message suitable for logging someday when support for
# it exists in dpkg
if [ -n "$DEBUG_XORG_PACKAGE" ]; then
message "$THIS_PACKAGE $THIS_SCRIPT note: $*"
fi
}

warn () {
# syntax: warn message ...
#
# issue warning message suitable for logging someday when support for
# it exists in dpkg; also send to standard error
message "$THIS_PACKAGE $THIS_SCRIPT warning: $*"
}

die () {
# syntax: die message ...
#
# exit script with error message
message "$THIS_PACKAGE $THIS_SCRIPT error: $*"
exit $SHELL_LIB_THROWN_ERROR
}

internal_error () {
# exit script with error; essentially a "THIS SHOULD NEVER HAPPEN" message
message "internal error: $*"
if [ -n "$OFFICIAL_BUILD" ]; then
message "Please report a bug in the $THIS_SCRIPT script of the" \
"$THIS_PACKAGE package, version $SOURCE_VERSION to the Ubuntu Bug" \
"Tracking System. Include all messages above that mention the" \
"$THIS_PACKAGE package. Visit " \
"<http://bugzilla.ubuntu.com> on the World Wide Web for" \
"instructions."
fi
exit $SHELL_LIB_INTERNAL_ERROR
}

usage_error () {
message "usage error: $*"
message "Please report a bug in the $THIS_SCRIPT script of the" \
"$THIS_PACKAGE package, version $SOURCE_VERSION to the Debian Bug" \
"Tracking System. Include all messages above that mention the" \
"$THIS_PACKAGE package. Visit " \
"<http://bugzilla.ubuntu.com> on the World Wide Web for" \
"instructions."
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
}


maplink () {
# returns what symlink should point to; i.e., what the "sane" answer is
# Keep this in sync with the debian/*.links files.
# This is only needed for symlinks to directories.
case "$1" in
/etc/X11/xkb/compiled) echo /var/lib/xkb ;;
/etc/X11/xkb/xkbcomp) echo /usr/bin/xkbcomp ;;
/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/app-defaults) echo /etc/X11/app-defaults ;;
/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/xkb) echo /etc/X11/xkb ;;
/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/xserver) echo /etc/X11/xserver ;;
*) internal_error "maplink() called with unknown path \"$1\"" ;;
esac
}

analyze_path () {
# given a supplied set of pathnames, break each one up by directory and do an
# ls -dl on each component, cumulatively; i.e.
# analyze_path /usr/X11R6/bin -> ls -dl /usr /usr/X11R6 /usr/X11R6/bin
# Thanks to Randolph Chung for this clever hack.

#local f g

while [ -n "$1" ]; do
reject_whitespace "$1"
_g=
message "Analyzing $1:"
for _f in $(echo "$1" | tr / \ ); do
if [ -e /$_g$_f ]; then
ls -dl /$_g$_f /$_g$_f.dpkg-* 2> /dev/null || true
_g=$_g$_f/
else
message "/$_g$_f: nonexistent; directory contents of /$_g:"
ls -l /$_g
break
fi
done
shift
done
}

find_culprits () {
#local f p dpkg_info_dir possible_culprits smoking_guns bad_packages package \
# msg

reject_whitespace "$1"
message "Searching for overlapping packages..."
_dpkg_info_dir=/var/lib/dpkg/info
if [ -d $_dpkg_info_dir ]; then
if [ "$(echo $_dpkg_info_dir/*.list)" != "$_dpkg_info_dir/*.list" ]; then
_possible_culprits=$(ls -1 $_dpkg_info_dir/*.list | egrep -v \
"(xbase-clients|xfree86-common|xorg-common|xfs|xlibs)")
if [ -n "$_possible_culprits" ]; then
_smoking_guns=$(grep -l "$1" $_possible_culprits)
if [ -n "$_smoking_guns" ]; then
_bad_packages=$(printf "\\n")
for f in $_smoking_guns; do
# too bad you can't nest parameter expansion voodoo
p=${f%*.list} # strip off the trailing ".list"
_package=${p##*/} # strip off the directories
_bad_packages=$(printf "%s\n%s" "$_bad_packages" "$_package")
done
_msg=$(cat <<EOF
The following packages appear to have file overlaps with the X.Org packages;
these packages are either very old, or in violation of Debian Policy. Try
upgrading each of these packages to the latest available version if possible:
for example, with the command "apt-get install". If no newer version of a
package is available, you will have to remove it; for example, with the command
"apt-get remove". If even the latest available version of the package has
this file overlap, please file a bug against that package with the Debian Bug
Tracking System. You may want to refer the package maintainer to section 12.8
of the Debian Policy manual.
EOF
)
message "$_msg"
message "The overlapping packages are: $_bad_packages"
else
message "no overlaps found."
fi
fi
else
message "cannot search; no matches for $_dpkg_info_dir/*.list."
fi
else
message "cannot search; $_dpkg_info_dir does not exist."
fi
}

# we require a readlink command or shell function
if ! which readlink > /dev/null 2>&1; then
message "The readlink command was not found. Please install version" \
"1.13.1 or later of the debianutils package."
readlink () {
# returns what symlink in $1 actually points to
perl -e '$l = shift; exit 1 unless -l $l; $r = readlink $l; exit 1 unless $r; print "$r\n"' "$1"
}
fi

check_symlink () {
# syntax: check_symlink symlink
#
# See if specified symlink points where it is supposed to. Return 0 if it
# does, and 1 if it does not.
#
# Primarily used by check_symlinks_and_warn() and check_symlinks_and_bomb().

#local symlink

# validate arguments
if [ $# -ne 1 ]; then
usage_error "check_symlink() called with wrong number of arguments;" \
"expected 1, got $#"
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

_symlink="$1"

if [ "$(maplink "$_symlink")" = "$(readlink "$_symlink")" ]; then
return 0
else
return 1
fi
}

check_symlinks_and_warn () {
# syntax: check_symlinks_and_warn symlink ...
#
# For each argument, check for symlink sanity, and warn if it isn't sane.
#
# Call this function from a preinst script in the event $1 is "upgrade" or
# "install".

#local errmsg symlink

# validate arguments
if [ $# -lt 1 ]; then
usage_error "check_symlinks_and_warn() called with wrong number of" \
"arguments; expected at least 1, got $#"
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

while [ -n "$1" ]; do
_symlink="$1"
if [ -L "$_symlink" ]; then
if ! check_symlink "$_symlink"; then
observe "$_symlink symbolic link points to wrong location" \
"$(readlink "$_symlink"); removing"
rm "$_symlink"
fi
elif [ -e "$_symlink" ]; then
_errmsg="$_symlink exists and is not a symbolic link; this package cannot"
_errmsg="$_errmsg be installed until this"
if [ -f "$_symlink" ]; then
_errmsg="$_errmsg file"
elif [ -d "$_symlink" ]; then
_errmsg="$_errmsg directory"
else
_errmsg="$_errmsg thing"
fi
_errmsg="$_errmsg is removed"
die "$_errmsg"
fi
shift
done
}

check_symlinks_and_bomb () {
# syntax: check_symlinks_and_bomb symlink ...
#
# For each argument, check for symlink sanity, and bomb if it isn't sane.
#
# Call this function from a postinst script.

#local problem symlink

# validate arguments
if [ $# -lt 1 ]; then
usage_error "check_symlinks_and_bomb() called with wrong number of"
"arguments; expected at least 1, got $#"
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

while [ -n "$1" ]; do
_problem=
_symlink="$1"
if [ -L "$_symlink" ]; then
if ! check_symlink "$_symlink"; then
_problem=yes
warn "$_symlink symbolic link points to wrong location" \
"$(readlink "$_symlink")"
fi
elif [ -e "$_symlink" ]; then
_problem=yes
warn "$_symlink is not a symbolic link"
else
_problem=yes
warn "$_symlink symbolic link does not exist"
fi
if [ -n "$_problem" ]; then
analyze_path "$_symlink" "$(readlink "$_symlink")"
find_culprits "$_symlink"
die "bad symbolic links on system"
fi
shift
done
}

remove_conffile_prepare () {
# syntax: remove_conffile_prepare filename official_md5sum ...
#
# Check a conffile "filename" against a list of canonical MD5 checksums.
# If the file's current MD5 checksum matches one of the "official_md5sum"
# operands provided, then prepare the conffile for removal from the system.
# We defer actual deletion until the package is configured so that we can
# roll this operation back if package installation fails.
#
# Call this function from a preinst script in the event $1 is "upgrade" or
# "install" and verify $2 to ensure the package is being upgraded from a
# version (or installed over a version removed-but-not-purged) prior to the
# one in which the conffile was obsoleted.

#local conffile current_checksum

# validate arguments
if [ $# -lt 2 ]; then
usage_error "remove_conffile_prepare() called with wrong number of" \
"arguments; expected at least 2, got $#"
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

_conffile="$1"
shift

# does the _conffile even exist?
if [ -e "$_conffile" ]; then
# calculate its checksum
_current_checksum=$(md5sum < "$_conffile" | sed 's/[[:space:]].*//')
# compare it to each supplied checksum
while [ -n "$1" ]; do
if [ "$_current_checksum" = "$1" ]; then
# we found a match; move the confffile and stop looking
observe "preparing obsolete conffile $_conffile for removal"
mv "$_conffile" "$_conffile.$THIS_PACKAGE-tmp"
break
fi
shift
done
fi
}

remove_conffile_commit () {
# syntax: remove_conffile_commit filename
#
# Complete the removal of a conffile "filename" that has become obsolete.
#
# Call this function from a postinst script after having used
# remove_conffile_prepare() in the preinst.

#local conffile

# validate arguments
if [ $# -ne 1 ]; then
usage_error "remove_conffile_commit() called with wrong number of" \
"arguments; expected 1, got $#"
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

_conffile="$1"

# if the temporary file created by remove_conffile_prepare() exists, remove it
if [ -e "$_conffile.$THIS_PACKAGE-tmp" ]; then
observe "committing removal of obsolete conffile $_conffile"
rm "$_conffile.$THIS_PACKAGE-tmp"
fi
}

remove_conffile_rollback () {
# syntax: remove_conffile_rollback filename
#
# Roll back the removal of a conffile "filename".
#
# Call this function from a postrm script in the event $1 is "abort-upgrade"
# or "abort-install" is after having used remove_conffile_prepare() in the
# preinst.

#local conffile

# validate arguments
if [ $# -ne 1 ]; then
usage_error "remove_conffile_rollback() called with wrong number of" \
"arguments; expected 1, got $#"
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

_conffile="$1"

# if the temporary file created by remove_conffile_prepare() exists, move it
# back
if [ -e "$_conffile.$THIS_PACKAGE-tmp" ]; then
observe "rolling back removal of obsolete conffile $_conffile"
mv "$_conffile.$THIS_PACKAGE-tmp" "$_conffile"
fi
}

run () {
# syntax: run command [ argument ... ]
#
# Run specified command with optional arguments and report its exit status.
# Useful for commands whose exit status may be nonzero, but still acceptable,
# or commands whose failure is not fatal to us.
#
# NOTE: Do *not* use this function with db_get or db_metaget commands; in
# those cases the return value of the debconf command *must* be checked
# before the string returned by debconf is used for anything.

#local retval

# validate arguments
if [ $# -lt 1 ]; then
usage_error "run() called with wrong number of arguments; expected at" \
"least 1, got $#"
exit $SHELL_LIB_USAGE_ERROR
fi

"$@" || _retval=$?

if [ ${_retval:-0} -ne 0 ]; then
observe "command \"$*\" exited with status $_retval"
fi
}

register_x_lib_dir_with_ld_so () {
# syntax: register_x_lib_dir_with_ld_so
#
# Configure the dynamic loader ld.so to search /usr/X11R6/lib for shared
# libraries.
#
# Call this function from the postinst script of a package that places a
# shared library in /usr/X11R6/lib, before invoking ldconfig.

#local dir ldsoconf

_dir="/usr/X11R6/lib"
_ldsoconf="/etc/ld.so.conf"

# is the line not already present?
if ! fgrep -qsx "$_dir" "$_ldsoconf"; then
observe "adding $_dir directory to $_ldsoconf"
echo "$_dir" >> "$_ldsoconf"
fi
}

deregister_x_lib_dir_with_ld_so () {
# syntax: deregister_x_lib_dir_with_ld_so
#
# Configure dynamic loader ld.so to not search /usr/X11R6/lib for shared
# libraries, if and only if no shared libaries remain there.
#
# Call this function from the postrm script of a package that places a shared
# library in /usr/X11R6/lib, in the event "$1" is "remove", and before
# invoking ldconfig.

#local dir ldsoconf fgrep_status cmp_status

_dir="/usr/X11R6/lib"
_ldsoconf="/etc/ld.so.conf"

# is the line present?
if fgrep -qsx "$_dir" "$_ldsoconf"; then
# are there any shared objects in the directory?
if [ "$(echo "$_dir"/lib*.so.*.*)" = "$_dir/lib*.so.*.*" ]; then
# glob expansion produced nothing, so no shared libraries are present
observe "removing $_dir directory from $_ldsoconf"
# rewrite the file (very carefully)
set +e
fgrep -svx "$_dir" "$_ldsoconf" > "$_ldsoconf.dpkg-tmp"
_fgrep_status=$?
set -e
case $_fgrep_status in
0|1) ;; # we don't actually care if any lines matched or not
*) die "error reading \"$_ldsoconf\"; fgrep exited with status" \
"$_fgrep_status" ;;
esac
set +e
cmp -s "$_ldsoconf.dpkg-tmp" "$_ldsoconf"
_cmp_status=$?
set -e
case $_cmp_status in
0) rm "$_ldsoconf.dpkg-tmp" ;; # files are identical
1) mv "$_ldsoconf.dpkg-tmp" "$_ldsoconf" ;; # files differ
*) die "error comparing \"$_ldsoconf.dpkg-tmp\" to \"$_ldsoconf\";" \
"cmp exited with status $_cmp_status" ;;
esac
fi
fi
}

# is this an unofficial Debian package?
if [ -z "$OFFICIAL_BUILD" ]; then
observe "unofficial build detected; issuing debconf note as warning"
run db_register xorg-common/experimental_packages \
xorg-common/nag
run db_input high xorg-common/nag
run db_go
run db_unregister xorg-common/nag
fi

exit 0

# vim:set ai et sts=2 sw=2 tw=0:



above is the shell script if it helps. In the morning I try and install again and see if I can find the failed scripts. (then I just have to work out how to change them)