Multimedia :: installed k3b and system hanging



I set about installing k3b on my Libretto from the myDSL multimedia directory.

Things of note:  I have a Frugal 4.2.1 install running with a persistant /home/dsl.  Also the Libretto only has 64Mb memory.  I am also using the jwm desketop.

It did the download but did not seem to finish.

I rebooted the computer.  The computer seemed to hang on backing up things (I have to reread how not to backup /home/dsl with persistance, I had also downloaded a 540Mb iso file).

I pulled batteries and restarted.  It got to the point of loading k3b where it sat for some time then messages started streaming across the screen.  The last ones are about tar and either no such file or directory or no space left on device.

So it appears that k3b is not for me.

How do I boot and remove k3b?  What should I be using for burning iso images to CD?

Your problem started when you said the download didn't seem to finish and then you tried rebooting. It's better to wait -- especially with a slower, RAM-challenged machine -- than to force a crash by powering down like that. The window manager you're using isn't germane to this.

You didn't say if you use swap. One suggestion: k3b may seem like an easier way to crack nuts, but it has some pretty heavy libraries. I would match your machine to apps or utilities that don't have that kind of weight -- learn how to do it via commandline (lowest resource) or a curses app, or find a GTK1 app like gcombust. (Edit: Try google for help on using cdrecord, which is a commandline tool in DSL quite capable of burning ISOs; it's a lot better suited for 64MB than k3b, imo.)

As far as fixing things, you can try booting from CD or USB stick and then finding whatever needs to be cleaned up on your hard drive. You may have to delete your backup file and start fresh, which shouldn't be a problem since your home is already there and you're running extra cycles and taking up space writing a tarball (presumably) on the same partition.

If you don't feel comfortable with commands, did you try gnome toaster? Your Libretto will appreciate apps that require fewer resources. The gnome toaster extension is 2.7 MB compared to k3b at 48 MB.
All cleaned up.

booted in DSL 2.  System still tried to load myDSL apps, but a <cntl-C> seemed to stop it.  Then changed my boot line for grub, booted and found all the k3b files.  Rebooted and back as I was.

It does not seem to be easy to remove a myDSL addin...

For future reference, you can edit grub before you actually boot. Read the information below the boot options (e.g., e to edit). Adding "base norestore" would do the trick to skip MyDSL and your backup. If you're using frugal install, it's very easy to remove MyDSL extensions because they should be in one file in one directory instead of stretched out across various directories.
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