Reinstalling Ubuntu.

[Jude DaShiell]

If you had more command line experience than you have I could use that as 
a basis to provide some help.  Now I'm going to explain something to you 
and any other would-be new user of ubuntu on this list who doesn't have 
much command line experience.  In order to update anything with aptitude 
or apt-get, you're going to have to use a text editor to modify 
/etc/apt/sources.list.  If you don't know your way around any of the text 
editors you've just come to a full and complete stop.  The reason it's 
necessary to modify /etc/apt/sources.list is that out of the box, ubuntu 
has all repositories listed in that file commented out.  Those have to be 
uncommented before any updating can get done.  If you can work on a test 
file first so anything done won't have system-wide consequences that would 
be a good thing.  ubuntu probably has ed available as a command.  It's a 
very simple text editor.  If you can log in try typing man ed <enter> and 
listen and learn.  Then put a file together like this type these commands 
in on gnome-terminal.  To get to gnome-terminal type control-alt-f1.  Now 
test to see if you're in gnome-terminal and hit the backspace key.  If you 
hit it and your computer beeps repeatedly, you're in gnome-terminal and 
can do things on a command line by just typing. Oh, once you get into 
gnome-terminal type man ed <return> and listen. For the test file in 
gnome-terminal type: echo "# deb" >>test.txt <return> echo "#rose" 
>>test.txt echo "#deb-src" >>test.txt <return> There should have been a 
<return> at the end of that second echo statement too.  Okay now for the 
exercise.  Given what you've read, how might you change all lines in 
test.txt beginning with #deb so they read deb?  I'll give you a small hint 
here; first type ed test.txt <return> in the gnome-terminal.  Good luck.