[Resolved] Letters and icons not working after upgrading from 19.3 to 20

[shadiahm]

Hiya:

Just upgraded Mint last night from 19.3 to Mint 20 but after rebooting, many of the letters and icons are showing up as numbers or blank squares. Like this:



Except I can't seem to figure out how to upload a picture. When I click the picture icon it just inserts the code. LOL I'm not a programmer type. If you tell me what to type in a Terminal screen, I'm comfortable with that. But my technical skills are limited.

I'm on a Lenovo ThinkPad 450s. I'd upload a screen grab of all the hardware details using the sudo lshw command but...see issue with uploading images above.

I'd be every so grateful for any help! I did do the Timeshift snapshot but can't read anything in almost any menu.

[RIH]

Except I can't seem to figure out how to upload a picture.

The easy way is to upload your picture to a free hosting site (like Imgur). That will offer you a URL to post to (words something like) a BB board.
Just copy that URL & paste in your next reply..

[Cosmo.]

We also need at least to know your desktop environment, Cinnamon, Mate or xfce? Better the complete information, you find it and can copy it from the system report.

[AndyMH]

Assuming cinnamon, PrtScn will take a screenshot of the desktop, Alt + PrtScn will take a screenshot of the active window. You will get a popup asking where to save, default is in Pictures.

On the forum, below the reply window is the attachments tab, click on it. Click on add files and you can upload a file. Once uploaded, you will get a 'place inline' button. This will insert the code for the screenshot at your cursor position in the reply/compose window. Use the preview button to confirm it works.

The forum has a 200kb limit on files, if your file is larger (a screenshot of your desktop is usually bigger), first convert the screenshot from png format to jpg, You can do this with the standard image viewer - double click on the image file in your file manager, in image viewer 'save as' and select jpg. This will often get a file under the 200kb limit. If not you have to use a remote imaging site like imgur and use the rimg tags to insert your image.

[shadiahm]

Ah, thank you all so much for your assistance.

I've uploaded a screen grab of an example of the problem and a second screen grab of the sudo lshw command details and lastly the inxi fxxxrz command from Terminal to Google Drive.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1QEt6Po ... sp=sharing

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lrcZ3x ... sp=sharing

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1sVVqrp ... sp=sharing

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1mddvos ... sp=sharing

Let's see if that works. I would upload attachments per AndyMH's suggestion except it's damn near impossible to read much of anything using menus outside of Firefox and, oddly enough, file names on the desktop.

I believe I'm on Cinnamon. To be honest, I've haven't used this computer much in the last two years so I'm trying to remember how to use Linux again and what specifics are here.

Again, thank you all so much for your quick replies. I'm always so heartened by how helpful the Linux community is.

[shadiahm]

Damn. Apparently my Google Drive links did not work.

ETA: Sorry, should have saved the pics as urls rather than img. Fixed.

[Cosmo.]

I believe I'm on Cinnamon. To be honest, I've haven't used this computer much in the last two years so I'm trying to remember how to use Linux again and what specifics are here.

Because of such difficulties I wrote, that you shall use the system report. It is in the menu. Believing is a bad advisor.

I looked at the first of those pictures. It seem, that some fonts are missing. Possibly there went something terribly wrong in the upgrade process. If you have a Timeshift snapshot as advised in the upgrade instructions revert back and try again.

[shadiahm]

Yes it is Cinnamon as the inxi fxxxrz command details in that last pic I posted show. And yes, to be sure, something is indeed wrong with the fonts. Unfortunately the GUI is pretty much impossible to use as a result so I would need to revert to the Timeshift snapshot via command line.

After upgrading to 19.3 a couple of years ago, I kept having issues with the trackpad not scrolling properly after going into sleep mode. Which was getting just annoying enough to look at trying to revert back when my dad bought me a MacBook. Since then I've only used my Linux machine to rip the odd audiobook on CDs via cdparanoia.* I was hoping that upgrading was going to fix the trackpad problem (which I think maybe it has?) but the GUI/font issues are so much worse. I'm starting to wonder if a fresh install might be in order?

*iTunes downloads each and every track of an audiobook on CD, which can run into the hundreds with longer books, while cdparanoia downloads the book in nice, neat 70-80minute equal parts that are simple to then convert to mp3 format. I still prefer my mp3 clip player to my phone.

[Cosmo.]

You do not need the command line for Timeshift. Boot the live system and launch Timeshift there and point it to your snapshots.

[shadiahm]

And how would I boot the live system and launch Timeshift without using the GUI or command line? Because that is the problem here. The GUI is pretty much useless because I can't read anything in any menu (or folder or anything except, oddly enough, on the desktop). Everything is just empty boxes or boxes with numbers in them.

[Cosmo.]

The GUI is pretty much useless because I can't read anything in any menu (or folder or anything except, oddly enough, on the desktop). Everything is just empty boxes or boxes with numbers in them.

As far as I understood, this is the problem in your installed system. Did I miss anywhere the information, that the live system is also affected? In the live system cannot any fonts get lost and there cannot happen any upgrade problems.

[shadiahm]

I'm so sorry, but I don't know enough to know the difference between the live system and the installed system. All I know is that I turn on my computer, I get the IBM screen on boot up. Then a dialogue box opens asking my password -- or I assume that's what it's asking as all of the text is simply boxes of numbers but when I type in my password and hit the highlighted button, it lets me on. All of the menus at that point are with text that is simply boxes of numbers as shown in that first picture I posted. Text within Firefox works (but not the menus of Firefox). Text within Terminal works but again, not the menus for it.

Sorry I'm so slow in responding. Juggling too many things at the moment lol!

[Cosmo.]

When you installed Mint, you had at first to download the ISO-file for installation. Then you burnt this ISO-file either to a DVD or to an USB stick. That is the live system. Insert it again and reboot to load the live system.

[shadiahm]

Cheers for that explanation. I had thought my reply got posted but I think my Firefox was acting up. Anyhoo, 1.) Mint was actually already installed on my computer when we bought it from the good folks at Free Geek (they install MInt on all of the refurbished computers they sell). 2.) I just went ahead and did a fresh install of Mint 20 last night and frankly, I should have just done that from the beginning after not using the computer for so long rather than just updating it. It went far smoothly than the updates did. It seems to be working great now. So, I guess this issue is resolved?

[Cosmo.]

So, I guess this issue is resolved?

You decide. Your description sounds so.