Ok...

[gidgiddonihah]

Im a total newb to Linux just installed it last nite. Im a windows freak and can use pretty much any feature of windows...

The problem for Linux:

One installing programs... Totally lost (Tried installing xine... ya that didnt work) THERE ISNT A EXE file!!!! man o man ;(

Two It wont let me change anything... Im not set as an administrator... I cant create accounts. When i go to 'edit' the account there are a bunch of stuff that arnt checked... So i want FULL access to the computer... ;a)

Please i really need help and im not sure how im going to do this... Im so frustrated i really might just delete Linux and end the pain even though the only problems ive encountered are these...

Using 9.10 and im using the watchamicall it desktop thingy GNOME (Hey is there anymore online that i could try??)

Thanks Ahead Guys!!!

 

[linux_0]

There's no exe files

To install things go to the top left click applications Add/Remove Software.

Just about everything you'll ever want can be installed this way. There's thousands of apps you can get.

Use the account you created when you installed it's an admin account.

Good luck

 

[randomizer]

Any account can perform tasks as long as you know your password. Administrator privileges are not handed out by default like they are on Windows with UAC disabled (or in XP with no changes at all) because the last thing you want is malware or an attacker having full access to your PC as soon as they get in. There is far less malware available for Linux, but it does exist, and precautions are taken to prevent it being a problem.

Usually any task that requires administrator (called "root" in Linux) privileges will automatically cause a prompt to pop up asking for a password as soon as you try to perform it. For Ubuntu this is simply your user password unless root is given its own separate password (a good idea if you have kids that may want to mess around with your PC ). If entered correctly, you'll have elevated privileges and be able to complete the task as though you were the root user. As far as I know, these privileges are temporary, but I'm fairly new to Linux myself so I'm not certain. You do not want to run as the root user all the time, as it is an unnecessary security risk. I am using Linux Mint, not Ubuntu, so I'm not sure exactly how the interface is set out and what you need to do to bring up this prompt, but perhaps this screenshot is similar to what you see (since Mint is based off Ubuntu):

 

[linux_0]

When you run something that needs administrator privileges, like installing applications, ubuntu will normally ask for the password.

If your account has administrator privileges, it'll ask you for your password and not the root password.

Once you authenticate it will remember the authentication for a while.

Good luck

 

[randomizer]

Ah, I never really understood how Ubuntu's user configuration worked. Most other distributions require root's password to perform admin tasks whereas Ubuntu never seems to by default.

 

[gidgiddonihah]

Thanks Guys... Is it possible to install Windows Games? Im building a computer and for a while untill i can afford it am planning on using Linux (Ubuntu).

 

[linux_0]

Native Linux games will always work best so use a native version of the game if it exists.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_source_games

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_open_source_games

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freeware_games

http://www.tuxgames.com/browse.cgi?&category=all


Some windows games will work great under WINE, which is free and open source, check the WINE AppDB for details http://appdb.winehq.org/objectManager.php?sClass=application&sTitle=Browse%20Applications&sOrderBy=appName&bAscending=true

http://wiki.winehq.org/FAQ

http://www.codeweavers.com/products/

Codeweavers makes crossover games and Transgaming makes Cedega, these are modified commercial versions of WINE.

http://www.cedega.com/

As the WINE FAQ states you need to be very careful because WINE can allow windows viruses and malware to infect your system.

Linux without WINE or similar tools is safe from windows viruses and malware.

Good luck

 

[gidgiddonihah]

Thanks sooo much!

 

[linux_0]

http://www.tuxgames.com/browse.cgi?&category=all has commercial Linux games you can buy and it has demos you can download for free.

The Doom and Quake engines run on Linux so most Doom and Quake based games run on Linux or can be ported.

For starters, try OpenArena, Glest, warzone2100, VegaStrike, FlightGear and Wesnoth, all of which are free and open source. Click Applications Add/Remove Software most should be available from the ubuntu repositories.

Good luck