Ubuntu Live CD problem ! Any ideas........

Hi Folks

Thought I'd give Ubuntu a try from Live CD as it seems a no risk way of delving into Linux.

Got the download ok - tried the disc in Windows which gave me the option to install Open Office etc and also to reboot with the Live CD installed to try Ubuntu - did so but my it wouldn't display properly - wiggly lines and colours and no proper GUI - tried Ubuntu's forums which had threads with similar experiences but no solution I could see.

Any one here had a similar experience that they were able to resolve ?

Cheers

Jon

 

Hmmm ... I'm not sure what you mean by this

Normally, you just boot directly from the CD. Hit F12 to bring up the boot options when starting your PC - select the optical drive (insert the disc) ... Hit enter and it'll do its things. If this is different from the way you've tried can you try it like this?

Other than that, it sounds like it isn't recognizing your monitor / video card ... when it's loading and it doesn't find suitable matches for your hardware ... you have the option of changing the setup it will use ... can you try changing resolutions etc.?

 

the livecd has some windows programs on it so those were windows programs you can install on you windows OS.

it could be the refresh rate of your monitor try putting it to as slow as it will go maybe 60mhz

if not you might have to edit one of the config files. the only way i know how to do that is pretty complicated and you need 1 gig of ram and lots of HDD space

 

try reading through this. click on one which sounds like the problem you have.
http://www.ubuntux.org/search/node/monitor

 

you might find the answer if you search here it's another live cd based on Debian like Ubuntu but the most popular livecd so there should be more answers. the solution should be the same or very close.

 

Hi there Dog

I'm not sure either This is my first dip ito Linux waters. Basiaclly, I've booted into Windows as normal, inserted the disc which says I can install a few apps OR leave the disc in my drive, reboot to try Ubuntu 'live'.

Are you suggesting I change my boot order to boot from CD and go from there ? I'll try your suggestion anyway as you've described it

Thanks Iceni60 - I'll look at that link too - just a try out so complications are probably a step too far for me at this stage

Thanks to both of you as always - I'll let you know how it goes

Cheers

Jon

 

lol, i can't do the method i was thinking of, so i wouldn't have been much help talking you through it, i've got it written down in a magazine somewhere though - you have to recompile the OS

have you ever left a cd in the drive then turned off the computer? if so does the computer boot normally when you next boot or does it try to, and maybe succeed, booting from the cd? if it boots normally you will need to change the boot order in the BIOS, making the cd drive first in the order. if it tries to boot from the cd, or maybe gives an option to, then you should be OK and it could be the monitor that's the problem.

 

Hi Iceni60

Yep, did that and it booted to Ubuntu fine - gave me the option for advanced options or hit enter to go to normal mode.

That's when I hit the problem with the display so I'm sure yo're right that it's a monitor problem.

Where I do go to amend the refresh rate ?

Cheers

Jon

 

i don't know anything about hardware, but you could try reading here. or doing a search here. you could also try here. try searching for the make and model of your monitor along with the word livecd. you did try www.ubuntuforums.org/ there's https://wiki.ubuntu.com/

do you use IRC? if so you can try

#ubuntu
irc.freenode.net

i'll have a look at the forum tomorrow. if you haven't got it to work i could ask if any of the ubuntuforum people could help.

 

Hi Iceni60

Thanks for all your input and links - been working toooo much so haven't had time to in depth look at your links. However, there does seem to be some probs with laptop screens with my particular chipset.

To be honest, I thought it was worth a go but I'm certainly not experienced enough to start messing with hardware settings........so please, really don't worry about expending any more effort on this issue

I'll look into it again another time with perhaps another offering - I'll do the research prior to make sure it's potentially viable on my machine.

Thanks again to yourself and Dog

Cheers

Jon

 

OK, you could try something else, Knoppix doesn't display for me. Damn Small Linux would be alot less to download so you could try that, but because it's smaller it uses a window manager which is pretty light so don't think all Linux distros look like that
http://www.damnsmalllinux.org/

here are some screenshots of DSL
http://shots.osdir.com/slideshows/s...lide=3&title=damn small linux 2.1 screenshots

if you want to find something else have a look at Distrowatch. here are the livecd's and descriptions too.
http://distrowatch.com/dwres.php?resource=cd

and for screenshots have a look at the Open Source Screenshots, or whatever it's called
http://shots.osdir.com/

it took me a while to get something working, but that was mainly because i didn't have a dvd rewriter for awhile you can also have alook at magzines, there's normally a livecd on the cover. Linux Format is very good. don't give up though because Linux so good, it's open source which mean it's free in every sense of the word, if you want to change something you can. i find it runs so much better on my PC too everything happens faster and there are no crashes!

 

Good on you Iceni60

Can't fault your efforts to assist help such as this is what hooked me on the forum in the first place.

Workload permitting, I'll look at all your threads as soon as I get chance and I'll persevere with this project because I'm intrigued by the nature of Linux and it's possiblities.

I have so much to learn

Cheers

Jon