A Few Necessary Installation Adjustments

What needs to be changed, and where is it?

We have three tasks.

The anaconda installer configures your system to invoke the graphical interface during bootup. We prefer it not do so, leaving us initially in the character mode shell. The file in which the default interface is specified is /etc/inittab.

The dual-boot option menu defaults to Windows. If you want linux you can choose it, but you have only 2 seconds in which to do so before Windows boot commences. 2 seconds is not enough. The file in which the timeout interval is specified is /boot/grub/grub.conf.

The system has a "root" user account. Anaconda offers the option at the end of the installation process to create another user account, but you don't have to do it. If you did not do it, you'll now create a "student" user account. The "useradd" and "passwd" commands do the job.

The exercise for you to perform:

Boot the machine into linux-- quick now! You only have 2 seconds. Bring up the GUI text editor, gedit.

1) Using the text editor is straightforward. Under File/Open choose Filesystem, navigate to /etc/inittab, and open it. This is a very critical system file. If it isn't right your system won't boot. First thing, use File/SaveAs to save a copy under the name inittab.org. Now, find the line containing "initdefault," which is the first non-comment in the file (lines that begin with "#" are comments). It contains "5" but we want it to read "3" as below: Change it to 3 and save.

2) Now open /boot/grub/grub.conf. Again, File/SaveAs to save a copy under the name grub.conf.org. There's a "timeout=" line. Change the value (number of seconds) to 20 and save.

3) Create a user named student. Bring up a terminal window. Easiest way is to right click the desktop and "Open Terminal." Or through the menus Applications/System Tools/Terminal. Create the new user account as follows, using the standard and universal class password we have chosen:

There is now a new user named "student" in the system. Unix keeps a list of existing users, in /etc/passwd. You should dump that file to the screen (cat /etc/passwd) and note with satisfaction the presence of "student" in its final line, result of your efforts.

Follow-up

Reboot the system ("reboot" command in the terminal window). When it comes up it should settle into character mode. No GUI. Launch the GUI manually, "startx &" is the command.

Press ctrl-alt-F2. Observe what happens. Login as student. Then press ctrl-alt-F7. Observe what happens.