Ubuntu 8.10 - No internet

Hi. I just installed ubuntu 8.10 out of curiosoty. I have a few problems:

1. The internet doesn't work with it. I use a cable modem connected with an ethernet cable to my laptop(packard bell MV86-003- see sig). I think the network card (realtek 10/100) is detected (it appears as "eth0"), but it just doesn't work. Under windows it connects automatically and the internet works right away. No other settings are necessary.

2. All the Fn keys except the volume up/down don't work. this is a problem since i can't enable wireless and bluetooth. In windows they work whitout any drivers.

3. Is there power management in ubuntu? Like vista's power plans. I loooked for it, but all i could find was settings for the monitor to turn off after a time.

PS: this is only my second contact with linux and the first didn't go very well( i managed to break it ). So i'm an absolute beginner in it.

Thank you in advance.

 

hah.

good luck.

 

For the power management use:

Code:

sudo dpkg-reconfigure gnome-applets

Agree with whatever it asks you.
Then click on the panel. And add the cpu scaling monitor. With that you'll be able to control your cpu frequency.

 

On the networking problem:
It sounds as though you are not using a router, just plugging an ethernet cable straight from your cable modem to the laptop, right? I ask, because you might need to configure your laptop to provide connection info (like the account and password to your cable account) to the cable modem. If this is right, you might also need to run a ppp or poe client on your laptop.

You might want to try (from a terminal window) sudo pppoeconf The man page for ppoeconf says " The pppoeconf program is user-friendly dialog based setup tool for pppd (and pppoe if needed). It will look for existing ethernet cards
and look for ADSL hardware connected to one of them. You can add an
interface name iface to force pppoeconf to use it.

On power mgmt: I have an icon of either a battery or electrical plug in my upper taskbar. Right-clicking that gets me to some simple power options.

You might want to search or ask questions on the official Ubuntu forums, http://ubuntuforums.org/index.php

-John

 

Who's your ISP? Comcast won't cooperate with a Linux PC. Drop a router in between and you're in business. I believe Verizon puts up similar stupid road blocks.

 

I don't have a username or password. I just plug in the network cable, the small network icon in the system tray says "aquiring network adress..." for a few seconds and then it just works. I don't need to set anything. In windows, that is.

UPC, but i doubt you heard about it, since i live in romania. Some time ago i tried a live cd linux (can't remember which one) and it worked flawlessly. Now i also tried kubuntu and opensuse 11.1 and none of them managed to connect properly.

 

While it's a lousy way to try to get a connection established, have you tried switching the cable modem off/on?

 

You're a genius. That worked Thanks. The strange thing now is that the net doesn't work with vista until i reset the modem again.

Stupid question: how do i install programs? I downloaded google earth linux and it comes in a bin file that gives me an error if i try to open.

I also went to Administratio>Hardware drivers to install my video card drivers. It shows an "ATI Flgrx(or something like that) video driver" there. I click activate, it asks for the root password. I enter it, click activate. A box saying "downloading files(or something like that)" appears for a second then dissapears. Nothing happens. what is wrong?

 

Try using the " add/remove programs" option and read this tutorial on how to use " Synaptic" to add/remove programs.

When having just installed Ubuntu, sometimes the first updates or installations of software can take a while, so be patient when installing, for instance, an ATI driver. However, I don't understand why a 'message box' would dissappear all together. Anyone else?
Cheers.

 

I tried it again. this time it that message box appears again, but this time it just stays at 0%...

Meanwhile, i tried to install programs through Applications>Add/remove. But no matter what i try to install, this thing appears:

E: Could not get lock /var/cache/apt/archives/lock - open (11 Resource temporarily unavailable)
E: Unable to lock the download directory

what does it mean?

 

I have read before that for some users it can take up to two hours before a driver installation is finished so while it stays at 0%, try to be patient.

The lock /var... message is probably because there are two different programs trying to update/install a program.
To explain, with Ubuntu there are different ways to install/update.
You can use the command-line/terminal, you can use synaptic and you can use Applications>Add/Remove programs.
But you can only use one at a time.
So you cannot use Synaptic and Applications>Add/Remove programs simultanuously.
So wait for the first program to finish (or simply stop the program) before starting another.
Cheers.

 

Right, that explains it. I was trying to install a program AND the ati driver at the same time. Good to know in the future.

I successfully installed 7zip, but where do i start it from? I can't find it in the applications menu.

 

Afaik 7zip works only from the command-line/terminal, it has no GUI.
You can however extract a (rar/tar etc.) file by simply right-clicking it and choosing extract.

 

you need logoff and login again for them to appear in the Main Menu

 

Thanks, that worked. But how about programs that aren't in that database? Like google earth? If i donwload it ti comes as a bin file. what do i do with it?

And can i install drivers from manufacturer's websites? For example, ubuntu doesn't detect my laptop's subwoofer. I had the same problem with vista, but simply installing a realtek driver solved it.