(no subject)

[mike newman]

On Tue, 1 Apr 2003, Benjamin Dembroski wrote:
> One wee problem. If I use the graphical login option to X, the mouse
> pointer is dead. All is fine with the text based login. ANy suggestions
> where to start? I googled looking for the answer, but the link to the
> solutions page in YDL seems to be broken. (points to a page discussing
> updating to YDL 3).

i have almost exactly the same problem, except that it only happens if a
logout and try to login again. ie: the first boot goes normally. then i
decide for some reason to logout (NOT reboot). the login screen appears
momentarily with a frozen mouse in the middle. all functionality is still
there, in that i can tab around, use keys, etc, but the mouse doesn't
move.

i don't have a fix, but i do have a workaround. it seems you need to
restart X. at the login screen, TAB over to the "Menu" button and hit the
spacebar to reveal the "restart X" option, then RET, or alternatively just
hit ALT-E.

i am now using ydl 2.3; never noticed this before with ydl 2.1.



> Also, if there are any general suggestions of how to make the
> workstations as user friendly as possible, I'd love to hear them.

my own 2cents from dealing with (in my case) computerphobic people.
user-friendliness is more about user-confidence than any objective
property of the computer. the more they feel like they are on a process of
learning and mastering a useful new skill, the more confident they'll be,
and the more user-friendly the whole experience will become.

good luck with the computer lab, sounds like a neat project.

mike