How to install Mandriva?

[filozofus87]

Dear Linux users!

I ask you to give me advice what to do during installation of Mandriva Linux 7 Spring.

After restarting it demands an answer for "localhost".

I am alone, without a network, yet. (This post is from another computer.)

I did not write any password, and it is standard by security level.


What should I write to localhost?

Thank you in advance.

filozofus87

[GregBrannon]

Is the question you're getting in terminal mode? In other words, are you seeing the question in a graphical format, or is it just text on a blank screen? If it's text on a blank screen, try logging on as root or by using the username and password you established at install and then start the graphical interface with the startx command.

If I'm way off, try to provide more info. Explain exactly what you're seeing on the screen, or a screen shot would be helpful. Why did you start with Mandriva 7, by the way? Mandriva 2010.x is the latest.

[filozofus87]

Thanks, Greg!

We are in black screen, saw "localhost login:", typed "root", and got

[root@localhost ~]#

If I type my login name, I get

-bash: my login name: command not found

I have no idea what should I type.

Earlier I had a Hungarian Linux, called Uhu - that was more similar to Windows.

Answering your question, Mandriva 7 is the newest Linux I have now, and I need it because I have just bought a laptop with 64 bit.

filozofus87 - Tibor

[GregBrannon]

Okay, now I have a better understanding of where you are; not how you got there or how to fix it, but I have some ideas.

Your install was not completed. Why? I don't know. What wasn't done, or how to resume and complete? I don't know, but here are some general things to think about and try:

You may find discussion of your incomplete install on the web. The hits I found based on your first post weren't that helpful, so you'll have to use better search words than I did to find something useful. The hits I got pointing to the Mandriva forum where you'd hope to get the most help would not finish loading, so I don't know if there's help there or not.

After booting your laptop, you may be already logged in as the default regular user you created on install. Try typing:

[root@localhost ~]#logname

If that results in your username, then you are logged in. From there, just start the GUI (KDE) with the following:

[root@localhost ~]#startx

If root is the result of the logname command, you're already logged in as root, and you should be able to start the GUI interface (KDE) with the command:

[root@localhost ~]#startx

(If that doesn't work, then let us know.)

You don't want to stay logged in as root all of the time, so you need to create another regular user. Use YaST to do that. I don't know which version of KDE you have, or even if you have KDE in that version of Mandriva, so you may have to explore the menu to find the user manager.

Once you get another user created, you may want to log out and log back in as the new, regular user, or you may want to restart. If restarting dumps you back into the terminal, then verify which user you're logged in as using the logname command, and start the GUI interface as you did before.

I'm flying blind here, so forgive my incomplete instructions, but stick with us - mostly the others in this forum who are much smarter than me - and we'll get you through this.

However you get logged in and your GUI started, explore your system. Is your hard drive mounted? Do you see your files there, if you had any? Do other programs run? Do you have networking, or can you configure networking? Does sound work? Etc. Let us know what works and what doesn't.

If things are generally working, then we should be able to get you booting into the GUI each time you start up. If not, there's more work to do.

Come back and let us know what's happening.

By the way, there are other options for running 64-bit Linux. I don't know what your ability is to obtain other distros, and I'm not trying to talk you out of Mandriva 7 (maybe it's more current than I realize), but using a current distro would be better for you and easier to support. Just a thought, but use what you're comfortable with and have to use.

[yancek]

The prompt you posted

[root@localhost ~]#

means you are logged in as root user. If you want to log in as a regular user and you created a regular user during the installation, type the following at the prompt indicated above: su - filozofus87 (put whatever your actual user name is), hit enter and you should then be prompted for the user password, again hit enter. If you have no gui, try the startx command as suggested above. If that doesn't work, post back as there may be problems with graphics card or the installation may not have completed. You may want to post graphics card info and some information on your hardware to help.

Mandriva doesn't use Yast, only Suse Linux/Opensuse.

[filozofus87]

Thanks, Greg!

I will try this.

filozofus87 - Tibor