Re: [tlug] Help with Mint

[Thomas Blasejewicz <nyuwa@example.com>]

On 2015/06/26 8:56, Stephen J. Turnbull wrote:
> The second-best option is to reinstall from scratch, getting advice
> here as you go.
As of now, I cannot see any smarter solutions.
It was mentioned on another list for another flavor, that I should set 
up certain partitions.
Could somebody please direct me, since I have always choose the "use 
entire disk" options ...
I also tried the "LVM" thing, but I really do not understand, what that 
is all about.

> Setting either of those up will require some care, but the benefit is
> that you'll have a working machine if your experiments fail
> disasterously.
I ***DO*** a working machine: the WinXP one.
With a nice cable I am currently using at home, I can run TWO computers 
sharing monitor, mouse and keyboard
and switch between them with a little button. (was something like 8 USD)
> Such a multipurpose setup
> isn't recommended, but if your budget for hardware is constrained it
> might be your best option.
THAT is for sure!
But as I said, the XP machine is working just fine. I just want to "make 
the transition" ...
> There are plenty of people on this list who can help with either
> strategy.
Thank you!
> There's nothing so fancy about the techniques necessary to avoid
> reinstalling at every difficulty.  You just need to learn to work step
> by step, and to keep detailed notes on every change you make to the
> system so you can undo things that don't work, or report to those who
> are more experienced in the case of more complex problems.
Well, this is the problem.
I have experienced this MANY(!!!) times ... I just look at the machine, 
or press any button ... and boom. Everything goes down the drain.
You cannot really remember and/or document EVERY single operation you 
perform on a computer.
No offense, but the frequency of these "disasters" is with Windows (or 
Mac) in my experience a lot lower than with Linux.

As soon as I notice something strange, I always try to retrace my steps 
and "undo" what I just did.
But I could never succeed with this using Linux.
The case in question here: If there was anything I "did", it was an 
attempt at setting the locale in Wine.
Nothing out of the ordinary happened at THAT time, but the next time I 
boot up the computer, I am stuck with irreparable errors.

I am NOT a Windows fan (should be clear by now). BUT, Windows has this 
little trick, where you can return the machine to a point in time,
you know it was working properly. For example the day before, or a week 
earlier.
You may loose everything you set up in that period of time, but that is 
still much easier and less painful than doing everything from scratch 
again ...

Does Linux has this kind of trick?
If so, I would love to learn it.
Thomas