Ubuntu Ibex second monitor problem

[John Abreau]

This is a complete shot in the dark, but maybe the problem is two
separate instances of Gnome fighting over the same config files?


On 11/29/08, David Kramer <david-8uUts6sDVDvs2Lz0fTdYFQ at public.gmane.org> wrote:
> Right before the installfest we just had, I replaced Ubuntu 8.04 with
> Ubuntu 8.10 on my Dell D620, which I use with my TV as a second 1380x768
> monitor running a separate X screen 1 using NVidia's tool, the built-in
> monitor being screen 0 at 1600x1050 (IIRC).  I also moved from KDE to
> Gnome, in part because I had big problems with KDE[0], and in part
> because I despise KDE 4.1[1].
>
> I was having problems getting the dual screen setup to work, and I
> actually brought the TV with me.  JABR found out the problem was that
> the NVidia tool has to run as real root or the program fails silently to
> write out the config file; sudo was not enough.  Easy fix.  Thanks.
>
> I'm now facing a strange problem I can't even begin to theorize the
> cause of.  It comes up with dual screens OK, and I get the wallpaper and
> menus on my TV.  When I try to run a program on the TV screen from the
> menus (like mythfrontend), it works.  If I run it from the icon on the
> gnome panel (to the right of the menu), even though it's executing the
> same command, I get a dialog box titled "Error" with absolutely nothing
> in it.  Clicking on the X to close the window makes it flash, but it
> doesn't go away.  At that point, neither menu or gnome panel icons work,
> and top says gnome-panel is taking 100% CPU (which I believe, because
> the fans go crazy.  But this is a Core2Duo, so I can still do other things).
>
> I can kill 15 the gnome-panel process and everything works again, until
> I click on another icon on the TV screen's gnome panel.
>
> I guess this isn't a big critical problem, but it is unusual, and I
> would like to know the cause to better understand X/Gnome/Dual screen.
>
> Any clues?
> Thanks.
>
> [0] The task bar and menus wouldn't come up in consistent places, then
> somehow I deleted them, and I couldn't get everything back the way it
> was.  Also, it got confused over the screen size, and the desktop (the
> whole desktop, including taskbar, etc) only covered part of the screen,
> with the rest covered by the grey-and-white checker pattern you see in
> GIMP when there's nothing there.  Lastly, it absolutely refused to put
> even wallpaper and menus on the second monitor.  The mouse cursor would
> appear on it, but that was it.
>
> [1] I used the think all the ripping on KDE for eliminating
> functionality and making the interface too simple and "Vista-like" was
> unfounded.  Then I tried to work with it.  I was severely disappointed.
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John Abreau / Executive Director, Boston Linux & Unix
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