Can't boot up two versions of linux after software upgrades.

[pegazuz]

Just wondering how frequent crashes result from routine upgrades. I had installed all the recommended upgrades in Mepis for several weeks but then after one routine install of upgrades I lost ability to see any wireless networks and still haven't been able to get it working yet.

I had Kubuntu on a different hard drive and added some programs trying to get streaming videos to play and then it wouldn't boot up anymore. I tried re-installing a later version several times and still can't get it to boot up again. The Live CD's work fine.

I had two versions that partially worked, but now have neither.

Thus my question is if it generally is a good idea to keep doing upgrades to try to get things to work better?

[ehawk]

I installed Dapper Drake via instlux, and then did a dist-upgrade to edgy eft, and then another dist-upgrade to feisty fawn. Everything seems to have gone smoothly. Did you do the kubuntu upgrades via synaptic?

The *ubutu community seems quite helpful. Maybe you should ask them about this, with more specifics supplied.

[pegazuz]

I installed Dapper Drake via instlux, and then did a dist-upgrade to edgy eft, and then another dist-upgrade to feisty fawn. Everything seems to have gone smoothly. Did you do the kubuntu upgrades via synaptic?

The *ubutu community seems quite helpful. Maybe you should ask them about this, with more specifics supplied.

I think I might have used wrong word since these were regular updates to programs already installed, although I had also added new programs frequently trying to obtain additional functions under linux. I just clicked the button for updates available and installed them all. This worked fine for several times. I installed all programs through synaptic or other program installer.

I haven't done any distro upgrades yet and couldn't anyway after I lost internet ability on one and ability to boot up on the other. Being a new user I am not very proficient or skilled in these matters so I am just trying to figure out now how to re-install a version and get it working again.

[IsaacKuo]

Thus my question is if it generally is a good idea to keep doing upgrades to try to get things to work better?

There isn't an answer that applies to all Linux distributions. Both of the ones you mention use Ubuntu's software repositories, so really you should be asking whether it's a good idea in Ubuntu. I don't use Ubuntu, so I don't know how..."quirky"...the Ubuntu repositories are. I get the impression that many people never have a problem, but some people do. Obviously, it's also going to depend on which branch of Ubuntu you use.

Personally, I like stuff to "just work" and then I don't like to have updates which blindside me by breaking things. However, I don't think the answer is to not update software--that means missing out on security updates also. Instead, I stick to the only choice which keeps versions of software frozen while also maintaining security updates (Debian Stable).

[ehawk]

When you did the updates, did any windows come up asking you questions about settings or configuration of the packages? I had that problem when doing a dist-upgrade from Debian's Sarge to Etch, hence my going back to Ubuntu. Ubuntu seems to automatically assign default settings more than Debian, which doesn't want to do anything behind your back, so it's easier in Debian (with all the choices) to accidentally shoot yourself not just in the foot, but in the head (lose X completely or even create a kernel panic). I took a configuration option the package manager said should be ok, rather than leaving my X settings alone, and lost X. I gotta say that when I returned to Ubuntu, I was pretty impressed with the TWO successive, back-to-back dist-upgrades that went flawlessly (the second one even prompted me to do the upgrade from the normal update utility!).

The reason I left Ubuntu before was the terrible Xorg update fiasco, where a package breaking X was left in the repository for about 12 hours after people started complaining. Losing X scares most people in to distro-hopping (I had only about a week invested in Ubuntu at that point). Now I know to breathe slowly and use my other computer to look at the forums for a fix. They say nothing of the sort will happen again. Hope they're right....

Here are options for posting to ubuntu web forums or even asking via live chat:

http://www.ubuntu.com/support/communitysupport

I left PCLinuxOS (again a great distro) after I accidentally caused a kernel panic while poking around under the hood (again, only a week invested in it).

[IsaacKuo]

Well, we don't know how Ubuntu will handle an upgrade on the order of Sarge->Etch. Sarge used XFree while Etch used Xorg. That transition needed to be made sooner or later, and they did rather well making the transition as smooth as possible.

In contrast, Ubuntu is young enough that it started off with xorg. Someday Xorg may be superseded the way XFree was. Will Ubuntu handle the transition as smoothly as Debian handled it? Who knows?