gparted doesn't work

[mikeblas]

I downloaded the gparted live image CD, and booted to it.

The gparted window takes up less than a quarter of my screen. What's wrong with it?


I don't get a mouse cursor; just an [X] cursor in the center of the screen. Why doesn't my mouse work?

After it starts, I can't click on anything, since there's no mouse cursor. I also can't use ALT+nmemonics to drop down any menus. Why is that? It just says "0 operations pending", so I don't think it's busy doing anything.

Is there a different version that will work? I downloaded the current version, which is 0.3.4-10.

 

[unhappy_mage]

I downloaded the gparted live image CD, and booted to it.

The gparted window takes up less than a quarter of my screen. What's wrong with it?

What resolution is your screen? It takes up a good chunk of space on my screen at 1024x768.

I don't get a mouse cursor; just an [X] cursor in the center of the screen. Why doesn't my mouse work?

What kind of mouse is it, USB or PS/2? Have you got one of the other sort you could try? The [X] is the standard X11 cursor, rather than the one the window manager. What color is the background on your screen? If it's stippled gray rather than yellow, that could be an indication the window manager isn't starting properly.

After it starts, I can't click on anything, since there's no mouse cursor. I also can't use ALT+nmemonics to drop down any menus. Why is that? It just says "0 operations pending", so I don't think it's busy doing anything.

This is another strong indicator that the window manager hasn't started. Here's a screenshot with fluxbox running:

and without:

A quick fix, if this is the case, is to press control+alt+F1; this will give you a terminal. Enter the following:
DISPLAY=:0.0 fluxbox &
A whole bunch of warning messages will come up; ignore them. Press alt-F7 and you should be able to use alt+mnemonic to navigate. The mouse may still not work, but I'm not sure what's going on there.

Is there a different version that will work? I downloaded the current version, which is 0.3.4-10.

Have you checked your ISO file for validity? The MD5 sum of the copy I downloaded is ea35e53c1f4d8ce0001f123b2b682a5e, and the SHA-1 is 2c41fe78b57690d15875091765c6b9149ab43651. If you've got VMware or something similar installed, does it work in that?

 

[mikeblas]

Hi, Unhappy!

My screen is 1600 x 1200. I booted the CD on another rig, and got a desktop and a movable window, as you show below. On the machine that needs fixin', the application appears alone, with no desktop background and no other icons. The background is plain black, and the application's window is at the top left of the screen.

I'm using a USB mouse. It's a Microsoft Laser Mouse 6000.

I don't think the file is corrupt -- I think the problem is that this is just more broken Open Source software.

C:\Documents and Settings\mikeblas\Desktop>fsum gparted-livecd-0.3.4-10.iso
MD5 Checksum calculation and verification utility. [1.9.0.149] EN
(C) 2003-2005 Kirill Zinov and Vitaly Rogotsevich. Web site: www.fastsum.com

C:\Documents and Settings\mikeblas\Desktop\gparted-livecd-0.3.4-10.iso EA35E53C1F4D8CE0001F123B2B682A5E

I've already managed to fix my disks with Windows' built-in tools, so I'm not in much of a rush to try and figure this out now. Thanks for trying to help, tho!

 

[unhappy_mage]

Hi, Unhappy!

My screen is 1600 x 1200. I booted the CD on another rig, and got a desktop and a movable window, as you show below. On the machine that needs fixin', the application appears alone, with no desktop background and no other icons. The background is plain black, and the application's window is at the top left of the screen.

I'm using a USB mouse. It's a Microsoft Laser Mouse 6000.

The 6000 is a wireless mouse, no? A wired one might work better, maybe. The reviews I find seem to indicate that it works with Linux, but there might be different versions involved there.

I don't think the file is corrupt -- I think the problem is that this is just more broken Open Source software.

Since the MD5s match, I'd say you've got a good chance of being right

I've already managed to fix my disks with Windows' built-in tools, so I'm not in much of a rush to try and figure this out now. Thanks for trying to help, tho!

Glad you got the problem resolved. For future reference, you can use a command-line interface to the partition editor tools by pressing control-alt-F1 and typing 'parted'. It's not quite as user-friendly, but it gets the job done.

On an unrelated note, I noticed your name in the credits of Half-Life 2 Episode 2. Is this the same Mike? If so, what was your involvement in the game? Just curious; I really enjoyed the game and was rather surprised to recognize a name from the credits.

 

[mikeblas]

The 6000 is a wireless mouse, no?

It's wired.

On an unrelated note, I noticed your name in the credits of Half-Life 2 Episode 2. Is this the same Mike? If so, what was your involvement in the game? Just curious; I really enjoyed the game and was rather surprised to recognize a name from the credits.

I quit Microsoft in December of 2006 and I started working at Valve in February.