How can I uninstall linuxmint 15 mate

[joelpaz]

Recently I installed linuxmint 15 mate on a new notebook with 320 GB hard disk but first I couldn't get wireless and now I have great difficulty to boot in it. I want to install linuxmint 15 cinnamon and I tried the terminal command that was recomended but it didn't work. The recomendation was to make the following command within the linuxmint 15 mate OS: sudo apt-get install cinnamon mint-meta-cinnamon
sudo apt-get remove mate-desktop
But it didn't work.
So I just want help telling me how to uninstall the linuxmint 15 mate so I can install the cinnamon version. I want to uninstall it because I've had a hard time with it and simply want to start fresh. Please help.

[karlchen]

Hello, joelpaz.

What does the sentence

But it didn't work.

mean in detail?

Basically the procedure will work like this:

• You are logged on to your Mate desktop.
• You use Synaptic package manager, select mint-meta-cinnamon (including all dependent packages) for installation. You click the [Apply] button.
  Alternative commandline way:

  Code: Select all

  sudo apt-get update
  sudo apt-get install mint-meta-cinnamon

• You logoff from your Mate desktop thus returning to the logon screen.
• Inside the logon screen you select Cinnamon as your new desktop environment and logon.
• Let us assume Cinnamon works fine for you. You have used it for several days and want to uninstall the previous Mate desktop software.
• You are logged on to your Cinnamon desktop.
• You use Synaptic package manager, select mint-meta-mate for removal. You click the [Apply] button.
  Alternative commandline way:

  Code: Select all

  sudo apt-get update
  sudo apt-get remove mint-meta-mate

Actually there is no real need to uninstall Mate once you have added Cinnamon and made Cinnamon your default desktop environment. Yet, it is feasible.

Kind regards,
Karl

[joelpaz]

Hello, joelpaz.Hello Karl,
It didn't work means that the terminal's answer was that it couldn't find the remove command. I just tried it again and it couldn't find the command. I tried your recommended alternative commands also but something similar and the end result was no change. I logged into Mate, used Synaptic package manager, selected mint-meta-cinnamon for installation and clicked the Apply button. A window showed up that said it was installing but saw no progress in the line that shows the amount of installation, so after 5 or 10 minutes I got out of that window and another window said that "it couldn't install the packages because something strange had happened in the process". I also tried to install the network manager with Synaptic but I got the same result. I think that these commands wont work without being connected to the internet. Then I restarted the computer and selected "recovery mode" and tried "enable networking" for the nth time and it shows that it starts the network connection manager but after five or ten minutes it sends me back to the boot selection. Then I select linuxmint 15 mate and it starts the logging but in the process, on the upper left of the screen, this text appears: Waiting for network configuration. Then after a while: Will wait another 60 seconds for network configuration. And finally: starting without full network configuration....
So I log in and when I click on the network icon, on the right bottom of the screen it tells me that the network manager is not running, and on the wireless connections it tells me that "wireless disabled by a hardware switch". I've tried to turn this switch on but it doesn't stay on. When I tried the cinnamon desktop that I have in a usb drive, wireless worked fine the first session only and then I couldn't keep the switch that enables wireless ON and it would inmediately return to OFF.
I have an older Acer laptop with Ubuntu 12.04 and Windows 7 installed and that's where I'm answering you from right now. Before I installed linuxmint 15 mate in the EKT new mini laptop I checked the usb drive, where I now have the cinnamon version, in the Acer laptop and wireless went on effortlessly, without moving anything.
So my basic problem is enabling the network manager to enable wireless when I log into linux mint 15 mate, or cinnamon, in the new mini laptop (that connects wireless ok with windows 7). What confuses me is that it worked once. When I try the bootable usb drive on the Acer laptop wireless works always! I've been using the ubuntu OS for about 18 months and love to use it. I first struggled with windows for the first 18 months, since I've' had the Acer laptop for around three years. I very rarely log into windows now that I know about ubuntu. So now I read about linuxmint and decided to give it a try, although I consider myself a newbie. I'm not trying to get rid of linuxmint 15 mate. I'm trying to use it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yours truly,
Joel Paz
What does the sentence

But it didn't work.

mean in detail?

Basically the procedure will work like this:

• You are logged on to your Mate desktop.
• You use Synaptic package manager, select mint-meta-cinnamon (including all dependent packages) for installation. You click the [Apply] button.
  Alternative commandline way:

  Code: Select all

  sudo apt-get update
  sudo apt-get install mint-meta-cinnamon

• You logoff from your Mate desktop thus returning to the logon screen.
• Inside the logon screen you select Cinnamon as your new desktop environment and logon.
• Let us assume Cinnamon works fine for you. You have used it for several days and want to uninstall the previous Mate desktop software.
• You are logged on to your Cinnamon desktop.
• You use Synaptic package manager, select mint-meta-mate for removal. You click the [Apply] button.
  Alternative commandline way:

  Code: Select all

  sudo apt-get update
  sudo apt-get remove mint-meta-mate

Actually there is no real need to uninstall Mate once you have added Cinnamon and made Cinnamon your default desktop environment. Yet, it is feasible.

Kind regards,
Karl

[karlchen]

Hello, joelpaz.

I guess I misunderstood your statement

first I couldn't get wireless

and assumed that this problem no longer existed. Oh, yes, it does.
In this case my reply is not of much use to you, because you need internet access in order to proceed like explained. No matter whether the access is wireless or by ethernet cable.
So provided I understand the situation correctly now the minor problem is replacing the mate desktop by a cinnamon desktop and the major problem is enabling networking on the Mint 15 mini notebook.
Could you run

Code: Select all

inxi -Fx

on the mini notebook and post the output here, please. This will give a concise overwiew on the Mint 15 machine.

Kind regards,
Karl
--
Corrected: The blank in the commandline has got to be between inxi and -Fx. The command name is inxi, not inxi-.

[joelpaz]

Dear Karl,
This time it took me more than an hour to boot into Linuxmint. First, I tried the simple Enter method but it kept failing to log in by the text that appears on the left upper screen: Waiting for network configuration; waiting 60 more seconds for network configuration; and...Booting system without full network configuration. And then it would send me back to the boot selection. This happened about three times until I tried the recovery mode again. I selected "fix all broken packages" then "enable networking" and "update grub boot" and everytime I do this, especially the "enable networking" it does a lot of text but finally freezes with the text CPUO... I waited an hour but nothing happened so I forced the shut down by unplugging the power. I turned it on again after lunch and it finally logged in after another half hour of trying.
I went directly to the terminal and typed in "inxi- Fx" (without the commas) and the output was "Command not found". This time I went to the Synaptic package manager again because I had seen inxi there but it stopped reponding and I couldn't even make it appear again on the screen. So I went back to the terminal and tried "inxi" (without the commas) and this is the output:
CPU~Dual core Intel Atom CPU N2600 (-H-MCP-) clocked at Min:600.000 Mhz Max: 1600.000 Mhz Kernel ~3.8.0-19 generic i686 Up~45 min Mem~221.3/1977.9 MB HDD~320.1 GB (1.2% used) Procs~162 Client~Shell inxi~1.8.4

I think it would be easier to uninstall and try a fresh installation, but I ask you guys because I don't want to use the windows method. My trust is with you so I prefer to wait for your kind advice.
With gratitude,
Joel

[karlchen]

Hi, Joel.

Oh sh.., my typing mistake. The commandline has got to read

Code: Select all

inxi -Fx

The command is named inxi. -Fx is the commandline option. So the blank is between the command name inxi and the option -Fx.
Can you try this commandline please.
The idea behind asking for the complete "inxi -Fx" output is to find out whether there is a problematic piece of hardware present, e.g. a wifi adapter which is known to require special proprietary driver software.
As long as the wifi adapter does not work properly, have you got the chance of connecting the machine to your router using an ethernet cable?
Because in case you decide to install from the scratch, it will be very helpful if the machine can connect to the internet during the installation. A wired connection will be perfectly ok.
The internet connection will be used to download and install e.g. language support files, updates and maybe even the needed wifi driver software, in case this is required.

Karl

[joelpaz]

Dear Karl,
I'm connected to my brother-in-law's internet, via wireless, who lives next door but he's out of town for vacations and will return in about a week or 10 days the most. He'll surely let me in his house to wire to the internet. Maybe I could go to some other relative or friend's house if it's absolutely indispensable that I use a wired connection. I would hate to bother anybody, even my brother in law, but if you say it's unavoidable...I'll do it. Actually I'm anxious to start using Linuxmint 15, and I don't think I can wait a whole week or so to fix whatever has to be fixed. So please check out the terminal's output very carefully and give me precise instructions so I don't have to bother anybody twice. I'll just go and install and quick whatever has to be done. So maybe you should include instructions on how to uninstall what I have now so I can just worry about a fresh installation, and I want to do it as soon as possible.
Although I had the usual trouble logging to Linuxmint 15, I did it and went directly to the terminal and got the following output which I will have to write down myself so excuse the lack of blue color of some words but they are usually the ones that go before the double dots (:).
System: Host: joel-w210CUQ kernel: 3.8.0-19-generic i686 (32 bit, gcc:4.7.3
Desktop: N/A Distro: LInux Mint 15 Olivia
Machine: System CLEVO model: w210CUQ version: D0.1 Bios: Phoenix version: CT_2.1.0.371 IA32 date: 07/18/2012
CPU: Dual core Intel Atom CPU N2600 (-HT-MCP-) cache: 512 KB flags: (lm nx sse see2 sse3 ssse3) bmips 6383.74
Clock Speeds: 1: 600.00 Mhz 2: 1200.00 Mhz 3: 600.00 Mhz 4: 600.00 Mhz
Graphics: Card: Intel Atom Processor D2xxx/N2xxx Integrated Graphics Controller bus-ID 00:02.0
X.Org: 1.13.3 drivers: vesa (unloaded:fbdev) Resolution: 1024x600 @60.0 hz
GLX Renderer: Gallium 0.4 on llvmpipe (LLVM 3.2, 128 bits) GLX Version: 2.1 Mesa 9.1.1 Direct Rendering: Yes
Audio: Card: Intel NM10/ICH7 Family High Definition audio Controller driver: snd_hda_intel bus-ID: 00:!b.0
Sound: Advanced Linux sound Architecture ver: k3.8.0-19-generic
Network: Card-1: JMicron JMC 260 PCI Express Fast Ethernet Controller
driver: jme ver: 1.0.8 ports: 2100 2000 bus-ID: 03:00.0 IF: eth0 state: down mac:00:90:f5:da:26:1b
card 2: Realtek RTL 8188 CE 802.11b/g/n Wifi Adapter driver : rtl8192ce port: 3000 bus-ID: 01:00.0
IF: wlan1 state: down mac: 20:68:9d:47:ff:8e
Card-3: Ralink RT2870/RT3070 wiereless Adapter usb-ID: 148f:3070 IF: N/A State: N/A mac: N/A
Drives: HDD Total Size: 320.1GB (1.2% used) 1: id: /dev/sda model: TOSHIBA_MQ01ABDO size: 320.1GB
Partition: ID: / size: 130G used: 3.5G (3%) fs: ext4 ID: swap-1 size: 2.11GB used: 0.00GB (0%) fs: swap
RAID: No RAID devices detected- /proc/mdstat and _md_mod kernel raid module present
Sensors: None detected -is lm-sensors installed and configured?
Info: Processor: 164 Uptime: 4min Memory: 194.5/ 1977,9MB Run Level:2 Gcc sys:4.7.3 Client: Shell inxi:1.84


Please excuse the possible mistakes of an omitted space or capital letter but this is a 2 hour job I just did. Please don't make me take unnecessary steps and if we can avoid using wired connection it would be better. What I'm using now hasn't failed me in 10 months since I bought it new. I will greatly appreciate your kind help.
Sincerely,
Joel

[karlchen]

Hello, Joel.

I installed linuxmint 15 mate on a new notebook with 320 GB hard disk but first I couldn't get wireless

I do understand that your wireless does not work.
Yet, any notebook has got an ethernet adapter, too. So it can be connected to the DSL router which connects it to the internet using the wired ethernet adapter, if wifi does not work.
If I understand you right, you cannot use the wired connection, either.
This means you are in a plight.
The usual way of fixing wireless problems is by connecting the affected machine to the internet using the wired ethernet card and download any missing driver software this way.
If you cannot connect your notebook to the internet at all, then this means that you will have to find out exactly

1. which software packages you need on your notebook
2. download exactly these software packages on a second machine that has got internet access
3. transfer the downloaded software packages from the second machine to a USB pendrive and from the USB pendrive to your notebook
4. install the software packages on your notebook using gDebi and pray that you have not missed a single software package in step 1, because in case you have the installation will fail and you will have to go back to step 1.

You may like it or not, but today everybody simply supposes that you are able to connect to the internet in some way. And if you cannot, you are in real technical problems.

Creating and posting the requested output of

Code: Select all

inxi -Fx

should have taken only a few minutes. You might have saved the output to a file on the internet-less notebook, copied the file to a USB pendrive and posted the file from a second machine which can connect to the internet.
Again if gaining access to such a machine is difficult and time consuming to you, you are in a technical plight.

How do assume should anybody be able to give you any step-by-step instructions if you cannot feed this person with all the needed technical details about your notebook which this person needs in order to give any advice?

Telling from your

Code: Select all

inxi -Fx

output, in particular from these lines

card 2: Realtek RTL 8188 CE 802.11b/g/n Wifi Adapter driver : rtl8192ce port: 3000 bus-ID: 01:00.0
IF: wlan1 state: down mac: 20:68:9d:47:ff:8e
Card-3: Ralink RT2870/RT3070 wiereless Adapter usb-ID: 148f:3070 IF: N/A State: N/A mac: N/A

it seems as if there are two wireless adapters: an internal card 2 and an external USB wifi adapter card 3.
inxi seems to confirm that Mint has not loaded a driver for either of the two.
The question is which of the two should be used? The internal wifi adapter or the external wifi adapter?

This would be the point where under normal circumstances I would ask you to run another diagnostic script and post the resulting logfile. This logfile would give a series of technical details why the wireless adapters do not function. Cf. [url=http://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?p=766779#p766779]here[/url].
Yet, in the given situation I doubt that this approach makes any sense.

Quite frankly, I do not see too much sense in continuing to participate in this thread. Telling from [url=http://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?p=766815#p766815]your last reply[/url] it seems to be your expectation that I should give you a step by step instruction on how to solve a problem (or a number of problems?), although we have not yet fully analyzed what the problem really is. Sorry, I cannot give you such a step by step instruction based on the incomplete analysis which has been achieved so far.

You will be better off re-installing Linux Mint 15 Cinnamon desktop from the scratch. Do yourself a favour. Make sure that during the installation your notebook is connected to the internet through the wired ethernet card. Make sure you do not leave this place before you are sure that both network connections, the wired connection (card 1 in the inxi output) and the internal wireless card (card 2 in the inxi output) work fine. And in case you need the external wifi card (card 3 in the inxi output), too, make sure that it has been setup correctly, before you leave the place where you have got wired access to the internet.

Good luck,
Karl
--
P.S.:
Here is one small piece of advice that I can give:
If you expect to get the right help quickly and your most relevant problems are
+ that your Mint 15 does not boot reliably
+ that you cannot make your wireless adapters work
then do not start a thread titled "How can I uninstall linuxmint 15 mate" asking how to replace Mate by Cinnamon thus misleading the readers on the wrong track.
Start a thread about the most severe problem instead and feed the readers with as many relevant details about the problem as possible.

[joelpaz]

Dear karl,
Whatever you say!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks alot and Merrey Christmas!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wishing you good luck also,
Joel.
P.S. I never tried to confuse anybody.

[karlchen]

Hello, Joel.

I never tried to confuse anybody.

Not willingly, I agree.
Nonetheless, reviewing the thread I come to the conclusion that based on your own statements the most relevant problems/tasks that should be solved seem to be these, starting with the most severe one:

1. Booting problem:

   now I have great difficulty to boot in it.

   This time it took me more than an hour to boot into Linuxmint.

   If there is a problem that needs looking into and that needs fixing then it is the problem that your Mint 15 does not boot up properly.
   It will be neccessary to explain exactly what the booting problems are. Quote error messages that you receive. Post logfiles like /var/log/dmesg and /var/log/syslog.
   In case the booting problems cannot be fixed within a reasonable timespan, then re-installing from the scratch will be the more efficient approach.
   Re-installing would also give you the chance of achieving task #3 as a side effect.
2. Making wireless network function:

   I couldn't get wireless

   Code: Select all

   card 2: Realtek RTL 8188 CE 802.11b/g/n Wifi Adapter driver : rtl8192ce port: 3000 bus-ID: 01:00.0
   IF: wlan1 state: down mac: 20:68:9d:47:ff:8e
   Card-3: Ralink RT2870/RT3070 wiereless Adapter usb-ID: 148f:3070 IF: N/A State: N/A mac: N/A

   The point here is this:
   You should explain which of the two wireless devices needs to be funtional in the first place, internal card 2 or external card 3.
   Internal card 2 will e.g. allow you to connect to a DSL router much in the same way as a wired ethernet adapter can do, only wireless.
   As it became obvious in the course of this thread that you do not seem to have a DSL router yourself, I assume that it is the external card 3 which is the one that you really need.
   If I am not totally mistaken then the Ralink RT2870/RT3070 wireless usb adapter is in fact what we call a "surf stick" here - sorry, this will not be the appropriate English term.
   A surf stick is a wireless usb device which will be equipped with a mobile phone SIM card.
   On the one hand this card could be used in a mobile phone in order to make telephone calls. On the orher hand the same card can be used to make data connections to the internet.
   Here such wireless USB devices having a mobile SIM card are marketed under the slogan of "WebToGo".
   
   If by now I understand your networking situation correctly, then your only connection to the internet depends on the wireless Ralink USB adapter. As long as this USB adapter does not function, you are hacked off from the internet.
   This in turn brings you in a technical plight:
   Without access to the internet, it will hardly be possible to get the software packages that you will need in order to fix problems #1 and #2.
   But without fixing problem #2, you will not have access to the internet whenever you need it.
   
   This is why I gave the advice:
   Re-install from the scratch. No matter how you can manage to do so, make sure that during the whole installation process your notebook is connected to the internet. And do not go away giving up the internet connection, before everything works as it should. And in particular not before your wireless connection works reliably.
   
   Today the software producers simply assume that whoever needs a piece of software can simply download it from the internet. The idea that the software which you need might be the software which enables you to access the internet does not seem to occur to them. - This somehow is the old hen and egg problem: No hen, hence no egg. No egg, hence no hen. - In order to ecape from this vicious circle you need someone who is willing to grant you access to his internet connection so that you have got the chance of enabling your own internet access.
3. Replacing Mate by Cinnamon:

   I want to install linuxmint 15 cinnamon

   Once problems #1 and #2 have been solved, accomplishing this task will be pretty trivial.

Kind regards,
Karl

[joelpaz]

Dear Karl,
The main reason for wanting to install the Cinnamon version of Linuxmint was because when I tried it the first session wireless worked fine and I already was unable to get wireless on the Mate version. So I think I could stay with Mate. My ignorance lies in the fact that I don't know much about partitions and think that by uninstalling the Mate version I would have a clean fresh installation of the same Mate or Cinnamon version. I don't recall that the instructions for the installation demanding being connected to the internet, although I thought I was. My confusion also lied in the fact that both versions (Mate and Cinnamon) worked fine and connected to the wireless THE FIRST TIME only, and that they connect fine to the wireless ALWAYS on the older Acer laptop.
Now if you want to bear with me, as a newbie and in no way expert in computing, we can try to fix the booting problem but reinstalling from scratch would be simpler although I might miss some good lessons. So I'm getting ready (as soon as I can get a wired connection) to try a fresh installation of Mate. I just need a little TRUSTED help from you guys since my doubt is if I should reinstall with or without uninstalling the Mate file that I now have with the partition of the harddisk as it is now (around 50% for each OS). Before I get rid of Windows forever I would like to keep the partition as it is. Then latter I can make another installation that will leave the whole disk to Linuxmint by erasing Windows completely. For this I know I wont need any help because the installation process gives that choice. So please give the the steps to re-install from scratch.
Ralink RT2870/RT3070 needs to be functional in the first place. I have been using this adapter since around 10 months because it works better than the other adapter that is still useful. Actually, I used the Realtek RTL 8188 Ce 802.11b/g/n adapter for about a year. If possible I would like to install the driver's for both but if l'm left with only one choice then I would prefer the Ralink adapter. Last night I checked them both on the EKT notebook on the Windows 7 OS and they both worked. I checked the drivers installed and it has for both. Is there something extra that I have to do to install this driver, or drivers, when re-installing Linuxmint (connected to the internet of course)?
Yours,
Joel

[karlchen]

Hi, Joel.

What is so confusing about the story is that with every new message that you post the focus of things shift.
When you complained about having trouble getting into the internet [url=http://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?p=766815#p766815]in this post[/url] I thought that you might have to use somebody else's internet connection in order to post here, too.
Now having read the latest reply, it seems as if your Mint 15 machine is not a pure Mint machine, but that it has got two operating systems on it: Windows and Mint. So it seems to be a dual boot system. And when Windows is up and running using the wireless connection is no problem at all (which is good).

Am I right in assuming that the Mint machine (Machine: System CLEVO model: w210CUQ) is a dual boot machine, running Windows and Mint 15?
Or is there a second machine available which you use to connect to the internet and write your posts here?

The answers to these questions are relevant. Because if the problematic Mint machine itself can connect to the internet when booted to Windows, transferring requested logfiles (needed for analysis purposes) from the machine here and downloading needed software packages to the Mint machine can be done with the help of the Windows system.
Mint can read files on the Windows disk partitions (drives in Windows language) and write files on the Windows partitions. The opposite is not true.

Kind regards,
Karl

[joelpaz]

Hello Karl,
I said it from the very beginning... but I'll say it again. I recently installed Linuxmint 15 Mate in a new mini laptop, EKT model GL-1201, etc., etc., AND Windows 7 OS installed. I chose to install Linuxmint ALONG SIDE WITH windows 7. So you can dual boot in Linuxmint or Windows. There is no issues with Windows and I can connect to the internet always. I used it to download the Linuxmint file and Unebootin with which I made the usb bootable drive that I used to install the Linuxmint 15 Mate OS. But once installed the wireless connection WORKED FINE only once and I have trouble logging in. I have no trouble logging into Windows nor connecting to the internet.
I have ANOTHER machine (Acer laptop) where I also have 2 operating systems, Windows7 and Ubuntu 12.04 that I installed about 18 months ago. Since then I always log into Ubuntu OS and this is where I'm communicating with you since the beginning. This is an older machine that I bought in March, 2010. It has a hard disk drive capacity of 160 GB and it's almost full plus I'm having some problems with the audio. I practically started learning a few things about the computer world with this first laptop!!! I've had no teachers.
So YES the Mint machine is a dual machine, running windows and Mint 15. This is the new EKT notebook.
And YES there is a second machine available (the Acer laptop) which I'm using from THE SAME INTERNET CONNECTION to write my posts here.

If we can fix the problem on the new machine with the help of Windows, lets do it. But please consider that I don't understand this language very much and you'll have to condescend and give me step by step recommendations in this new world that I'm trying to get into.

Yours,
Joel

[karlchen]

Hi, Joel.

Thank you very much for explaining your technical setup so clearly. Now even the old man who lost his way in the course of this thread understands.
One more little detail would be of interest: Both of your machines establish a wireless connection to a DSL router, I guess. Is this correct?
--
In order to find out why on your EKT mini notebook, Mint 15 is not able to use either of the two wireless cards, neither the internal card 2, nor the external Ralink USB device, I would like to suggest this procedure:

1. Boot your notebook to Windows and download the small archive file [url=http://forums.linuxmint.com/download/file.php?id=14701]wireless_script_xtd.zip[/url]. (It holds a script which I would like you to execute on Mint 15)
2. Boot your notebook to Mint 15.
3. Pick up the archive file wireless_script_xtd.zip from the Windows partition and store it on the Mint partition inside your home folder.
4. Extract the script wireless_script_xtd.sh from it and save it in your home folder, too.
5. Check its content in order to verify that no-one is trying to make you run destructive code on your machine. (You do not have to trust me. Check it.)
6. Next make the script executable:

   Code: Select all

   chmod +x ~/wireless_script_xtd.sh

7. Run it:

   Code: Select all

   cd
   ./wireless_script_xtd.sh

   The script will ask for your password once. The reason is that some of the commands need to run using sudo.
   The script may take a few seconds before it tells you it has created the file wireless_info.txt.
8. The file wireless_info.txt will be located in the same folder from which you launched wireless_script_xtd.sh.
   Inspect the file and camouflage any confidential detail which the script may have failed to camouflage.
9. Transfer the file wireless_info.txt back to your Windows partition.
10. Boot your notebook to Windows.
11. Upload the file wireless_info.txt to [url=http://www.pastebin.com]http://www.pastebin.com[/url]. Once you have uploaded it there. The address bar of your browser will change from http://www.pastebin.com to something like http://pastebin.com/7tEfFaqp. Post the corresponding address in your reply.

[/color]
Notes:

• As you can see Windows only serves as the transporter (like in the movie with Jason Statham).
  Therefore if you want to avoid booting into Windows, next into Mint and back into Windows again, you might use your Acer laptop as the transporter and transfer the files between the Acer laptop and the EKT mini notebook with the help of a USB pendrive e.g.
• You may find what the script wireless_script_xtd.sh is all about in this post here [url=http://forums.linuxmint.com/viewtopic.php?p=766779#p766779]Not detecting any networks[/url]. The script will not change anything. It merely collects technical details about the status quo.

In case any step is unclear or in case anything needs clarification do not hesitate to ask.

Kind regards,
Karl

[joelpaz]

Hello Karl,
Yes, both machines estabish both macines establish a connection to the internet.
I have something to do right now but will be able to start your recommendatios in a couple of hours. So let me ask you a couple of questions.
In step number 3, First, How do I get into the partition in Mint? Would it be through GParted? and second, how do I "pick up" the archive file from the Windows partition and store it the Mint partition? and How do I do that "inside" my home folder?
In step 5, How can I tell when a code is destructive?
In step 8, What's supposed to be camouflaged?
In step 9, "Tranfer" the files back into the window's partition means using the copy and paste method? Or How is it done correctly?
And finally, If I use the Acer laptop, do I download the file logged into Wnidows or logged into Unbuntu? And if I do use the Acer laptop, how do I do step 11? Is uploading done with copy and paste?
And I guess after this process which I will do today you can help me with the booting issue.

Yours,
Joel

[karlchen]

Hi, Joel.

Would you be more comfortable with using the Acer notebook in order to download from the internet and to upload to the internet?
This would spare you the need to reboot from Windows to Mint 15 and back to Windows on the EKT mini notebook.
The price for not having to reboot twice is that you will need a USB pendrive in order to transfer files between Acer notebook and minit notebook.

If you prefer to use you Acer notebook to do the download and upload work, you might as well run it on Ubuntu (though in fact it does not matter).

I'll answer the questions which you asked sometime during the evening. Will take a little bit of time to write down the steps and create a few helpful screenshots.

Kind regards,
Karl

[karlchen]

Good evening, Joel.

In step number 3, First, How do I get into the partition in Mint? Would it be through GParted? and second, how do I "pick up" the archive file from the Windows partition and store it the Mint partition? and How do I do that "inside" my home folder?

Please, remember that when executing step 3 you will be logged on to your Mint 15.
This is important, because Mint can access Windows partitions, but the opposite is not true (needs some extra software on Windows)
GParted is not needed in this case, because the Mint filemanagers are able to mount / umount Windows partitions.
So launch your filemanager.
(Note: I will be using nemo, yours will be caja, but they should work in much the same way)

You will be accessing your Windows partition (drive C: in Windows language) from your Mint 15.

[rimg]http://i.imgur.com/gtrXKo0.png[/rimg]
Filemanager - Home folder

The Windows partition will be listed in the section Devices. It will have a harddisk icon. In my case it its named "system". Yet, this need not be the case on your machine.
You can simply click on a device listed under Devices and it will be mounted. The right panel of the filemanager will change and list the content of the newly mounted device. (see screenshot below.)
You should be able to tell from the content of the mounted device whether it is the Windows partition (drive) that you wanted to to mount.
If it is not, then click on the same device again and it will be umounted.
Go to the next device and click on it thus mounting it till you have found your Windows partition (drive). Keep it mounted.

[rimg]http://i.imgur.com/eQGYiOf.png[/rimg]
Windows partition (drive C:) mounted on Mint

Once this has been achieved we will copy the file wireless_script_xtd.zip from the Windows download folder to the Mint home folder.

Navigation in the Mint filemanagers is pretty similar to navigation in Windows Explorer. So on the Windows filesystem (drive) navigate to the folder where you downloaded the file wireless_script_xtd.zip to.

In order to copy the file to your home folder on the Mint filesystem follow the steps illustrated in the screenshot below.

[rimg]http://i.imgur.com/hqf4iRX.png[/rimg]
Copy file from Windows partition to Mint home folder

Once the file has been copied, inside the filemanager, lefthand panel click on "Home" under "My Computer". In the righthand panel you should be able to locate the copied file wireless_script_xtd.zip.
Right click on its name and select "Extract here". This will extract the only file inside the archive, wireless_script_xtd.sh, to the same folder, i.e. to your Mint home folder.
It should be visible inside the filemanager within a second.

do not forget umount the Windows 7 filesystem by clicking on the appropriate device in the section "Devices" in the filemanager - lefthand panel - again.

Step 3 completed.

In step 5, How can I tell when a code is destructive?

Well, you might go through the script line by line. For each command which is used you might run

Code: Select all

man name_of_command

in order to find out what the command will do. Proceeding like this will take some time, but in the end it should be clear that the script really does not change your system, but only queries system settings related to networking.
I put in step 5 in order to remind you and any other potential reader of this thread that running a script provided by some other user implies a certain risk. Therefore it is advisable to check the content of a script before running it.

In step 8, What's supposed to be camouflaged?

The script queries your system hardware and system configuration and logs details about it to a file for diagnostic purposes.
There are configuration details, however, which should never be made available to the public: e.g. the MAC addresses of your network cards and network devices.
MAC addresses are unique world wide. Knowing them would allow to identify you. This is not required to solve a technical problem. Therefore the script itself replaces all MAC addresses which it find by a placeholder (camouflaging the MAC address).
You might simply like to go through the logfile in order to check whether a confidential detail has been logged in detail.

In step 9, "Tranfer" the files back into the window's partition means using the copy and paste method? Or How is it done correctly?

Actually, this is the same procedure as explained for step 3, only the copy direction is reverted:
In step 3 a file was copied from the Windows filesystem to the Mint home folder.
In step 9 the file wireless_info.txt is copied from the Mint home folder to the Windows filesystem.
Hm, yes, as the Mint filemanagers are not too different from Windows Explorer, copy and paste is possible, much in the same way as in Windows Explorer. Drag and drop will work, too.

Final question: How does one upload text to pastebin.com?
Yes, you open the file wireless_info.txt in a text editor, mark everything with <ctrl>a, copy it to the clipboard and paste it on http://www.pastebin.com into the textbox. You will see and understand once you have opened http://www.pastebin.com.
Do not forget to post the resulting address which pastebin will put in your browser addressbar here. Else no-one will be able to find the uploaded text.

Kind regards,
Karl

[joelpaz]

Hello Karl,
The archive file wireless_script_ xtd.zip...Is it the communication with blenderbug "Not detecting any networks"? Well I copied it and pasted it into a usb pendrive, although it came out in a different way and in blue print, in html, logged on Ubuntu in the Acer laptop. Then I finally booted into Mint in the EKT notebook and tried to file the contents of the usb pendrive to the home folder, it kept failing to do so and told me that it couldn't read the file, to try again later. If this is the correct file, what am I doing wrong? Also, I opened the terminal and pasted in the first command that I copied from the "Not detecting any Networks" file and it answered "command not found". Since I have Mint logged on, and the Acer laptop on too, I'm going to give it another try. I might have to do it with the first long method that you so kindly have explained. But before I do...
1.- How would I do it if I used both machine and the pendrive? and
2.- Is the file that I described above the one you want me to download? I'm somewhat puzzeled and confused if this is the right file you are talking about and it is important because it affects both methods.
I download the file again into the usb, but when I connect the usb to the Mint machine I can't file in the home folder and when I open the file in the usb it has two choices one is a folder with 14 or so figures and the other is the html version. I'm I on the correct path?
On standby,
Joel

[karlchen]

Hello, Joel.

The archive file wireless_script_ xtd.zip...Is it the communication with blenderbug

No, the post to blenderbug holds the link to the ZIP file. I will repeat it here, so you don't have to look it up once more: [url=http://forums.linuxmint.com/download/file.php?id=14701]wireless_script_ xtd.zip[/url]
It is a small ZIP file. In the ZIP file, there is the script file wireless_script_ xtd.sh.
I had to put it in the ZIP file, because this forum allows me to upload a ZIP file, but it does not allow me to upload a script file.

As you mention something in HTML format. No, this does not sound right.
Either your browser downloaded the right file, just gave it a wrong extension. In this case renaming wireless_script_ xtd.html to wireless_script_ xtd.zip should fix the problem. And you will be able to extract the script from the ZIP file.
Or the browser really downloaded an html page. This page will be useless.

When you left click on the link [url=http://forums.linuxmint.com/download/file.php?id=14701]wireless_script_ xtd.zip[/url], your browser should simply download the ZIP file wireless_script_ xtd.zip. Period.
If this does not happen, try right-clikcing the link and from the context menu select "Save target as ..." This should finally do the trick. Hm, even on - what's its name - I.E.?

Kind regards,
Karl

[joelpaz]

Hello, Joel.

The archive file wireless_script_ xtd.zip...Is it the communication with blenderbug

No, the post to blenderbug holds the link to the ZIP file. I will repeat it here, so you don't have to look it up once more: [url=http://forums.linuxmint.com/download/file.php?id=14701]wireless_script_ xtd.zip[/url]
It is a small ZIP file. In the ZIP file, there is the script file wireless_script_ xtd.sh.
I had to put it in the ZIP file, because this forum allows me to upload a ZIP file, but it does not allow me to upload a script file.

As you mention something in HTML format. No, this does not sound right.
Either your browser downloaded the right file, just gave it a wrong extension. In this case renaming wireless_script_ xtd.html to wireless_script_ xtd.zip should fix the problem. And you will be able to extract the script from the ZIP file.
Or the browser really downloaded an html page. This page will be useless.

When you left click on the link [url=http://forums.linuxmint.com/download/file.php?id=14701]wireless_script_ xtd.zip[/url], your browser should simply download the ZIP file wireless_script_ xtd.zip. Period.
If this does not happen, try right-clikcing the link and from the context menu select "Save target as ..." This should finally do the trick. Hm, even on - what's its name - I.E.?

Kind regards,
Karl

O.k. I finally downloaded it and succesfully loaded it into the usb which I will try now directly on the Mint machine. I suppose I have to file it into the home folder first... Then I'll try to follow the steps that you recommended....