Total newbie needs help for Ubuntu 8.10

[AldinH]

Hi everyone, I'm new user of Ubuntu 8.10.I installed it last night,and I've used only Web programs and they work great.But now I have a lot of problems.
1.I have downloaded 8 versions of drivers for Nvidia GeForce 5200 FX for Linux and none works.
2.I wasnt able to find drivers for sound card CMI8738 for Linux
3.Downloaded program called Wine,but then i got lost.Cannt install it,and cannt apply it?????
4.MP3 and AVI isn't supported (2 most importatnt media files )
Are there some codes to resolve this.

Is there is any chance to resolve this except smashing my PC.

Thx anyway.

[bigtomrodney]

Hi AldinH, welcome to the forums

1.I have downloaded 8 versions of drivers for Nvidia GeForce 5200 FX for Linux and none works.

Do you have an internet connection? There is an item on the System > Administration menu:Hardware Drivers. It should be able to download and install the correct driver for you.

2.I wasnt able to find drivers for sound card CMI8738 for Linux

I'm not familiar with this card I'm afraid, I'd check under the same Hardware Drivers in case it requires some firmware.

3.Downloaded program called Wine,but then i got lost.Cannt install it,and cannt apply it?????

When using Linux you should always stick to your package manager. Package managers have catalogues full of software preprepared for you. It may seem a little strange at first but within a short time of using it you'll wonder how you ever got by before! Go to System > Administration > Synaptic Package Manager and search for wine there. You may also be able to find an application called winedoors (maybe wine-doors) which will make things more graphical for you.

4.MP3 and AVI isn't supported (2 most importatnt media files )
Are there some codes to resolve this.

You can install ubuntu-restricted-extras through Synaptic to get most things playing back for you. If you attempt to play a file it should prompt you to install a codec automatically. If it does you can allow it to get the packages itself.

Please ask if you have anymore questions. There is a sharp learning curve, but you seem to have come across a lot of the things that can go wrong. Hopefully we can get things sorted out quickly for you

[AldinH]

When I open Hardware drivers,there is only option to install Video drivers.(No option save them)
There isn't option for sound drivers.
2.For Wine it asks me for some kind of link,which I don't have.
3.Well MP3 works,avi doesn't.(No sound drivers no sound )

thx for fast posting

[scutiform]

I've been saying this for a while - 8.10 can be difficult to install on some machines. If it's not going to make problems for you, can you install 8.04.1? It's a lot more stable and installs most of the drivers from the start, including the nVidia drivers. You can download 8.04.1 from DistroWatch for free. Download the MD5 file as well to check that you have a perfect download.

[AldinH]

Woahh, with my connection, it's impossible to download anything bigger than 250 MB.

[scutiform]

Fogot to mention - the files are ISO and you need a good ISO burner program. Install K3B for a stress free burning. Once you are happy with the disk, just install 8.04.1 over the disk/sector you used for 8.10.

[coopstah13]

are you sure the volume controls aren't set properly? I'm not at home so I don't quite remember, but I'm fairly certain I have a sound card with that chip and it worked out of the box on 8.10, i just had to adjust the PCM and master volume

When I open Hardware drivers,there is only option to install Video drivers.(No option save them)

what do you mean by this? why do you need to save them? all you need to do is click install and it should be ok

go to applications->accessories->terminal and type in this code

sudo apt-get install ubuntu-restricted-extras vlc

then you should have no problems playing those media files

[scutiform]

Go to OnDisk ( On-Disk.com ) and order it by post it will cost you $3.99 (about £2.00) plus post, and you will be helping the cause!

[AldinH]

well I often reinstall the system, and format the disk.It become slower,so every 15 days system goes down.That is why I need it to save.
Thx for this code.

[AldinH]

I resolved problem with Wine.
I resolved problem with codecs.
I think I can resolve problem with sound card.
I have drivers for video card, but can they be saved somehow, on cd or something like that for later use.

Please someone answer me.
THX