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#1 2023-08-26 23:12:10

Charon795
Member
Registered: 2023-08-25
Posts: 55  

Browsers won't launch

Hi all! Recently finally managed to install Devuan daedalus.
Since I am new to linux and basically spent most of my life in windows, installing Devuan was difficult for me.
But, okay. Now it's not about that.
After installing Devuan, I wanted to open firefox, but for some reason it does not open!!
I tried to install through the Chromium terminal, but for some reason even it does not start
What's wrong with this OS?

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#2 2023-08-27 00:17:47

golinux
Administrator
Registered: 2016-11-25
Posts: 3,302  

Re: Browsers won't launch

Installation of packages is handled by apt either via the command line or the synaptic package manager. Have you read this page?

https://www.devuan.org/os/packages

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#3 2023-08-27 00:22:53

Charon795
Member
Registered: 2023-08-25
Posts: 55  

Re: Browsers won't launch

golinux wrote:

Installation of packages is handled by apt either via the command line or the synaptic package manager. Have you read this page?

https://www.devuan.org/os/packages

No. I have not read this page. In order for firefox to start, you need to install a package for it?

Last edited by Charon795 (2023-08-27 00:23:50)

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#4 2023-08-27 00:26:10

golinux
Administrator
Registered: 2016-11-25
Posts: 3,302  

Re: Browsers won't launch

Did I misread something again . . . sigh . . .

This is what confused me because I have no idea what that means:

I tried to install through the Chromium terminal . . .

What desktop did you install? FF should be installed by default.

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#5 2023-08-27 00:32:27

Charon795
Member
Registered: 2023-08-25
Posts: 55  

Re: Browsers won't launch

golinux wrote:

Did I misread something again . . . sigh . . .

This is what confused me because I have no idea what that means:

I tried to install through the Chromium terminal . . .

What desktop did you install? FF should be installed by default.

There are 2 browsers:
firefox and chromium. Firerox was installed by default and does not start.
I installed Chromium myself, through the terminal using the command: "sudo apt install chromium" and it also does not start
When installing the system, instead of Xfce, I chose to install Gnome.

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#6 2023-08-27 00:42:48

golinux
Administrator
Registered: 2016-11-25
Posts: 3,302  

Re: Browsers won't launch

Charon795 wrote:
golinux wrote:

What desktop did you install? FF should be installed by default.

When installing the system, instead of Xfce, I chose to install Gnome.

Why? I never could figure out the gnome3 desktop. That's when I stopped using it a very long time ago. So sorry, can't help except to mention the Mate desktop which uses gnome2.

I will drop here a link from over 10 years ago for your reading pleasure big_smile:
GNOME (et al): Rotting In Threes

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#7 2023-08-27 00:57:20

Charon795
Member
Registered: 2023-08-25
Posts: 55  

Re: Browsers won't launch

golinux wrote:
Charon795 wrote:
golinux wrote:

What desktop did you install? FF should be installed by default.

When installing the system, instead of Xfce, I chose to install Gnome.

Why? I never could figure out the gnome3 desktop. That's when I stopped using it a very long time ago. So sorry, can't help except to mention the Mate desktop which uses gnome2.

as I wrote above, I am new to linux. Therefore, I'm not familiar with all these desktops yet. Gnome is used in Ubuntu and I more than liked it, so I installed it.
And judging by the screenshots on the Internet, MATE, which you mentioned, is somewhat reminiscent of the Windows desktop, and I'm tired of Windows. Want something new

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#8 2023-08-27 01:02:00

golinux
Administrator
Registered: 2016-11-25
Posts: 3,302  

Re: Browsers won't launch

Well then you can ignore the link I just added above. If you are used to gnome, carry on. Hope you can get things working and sorry for the noise . . .

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#9 2023-08-27 01:38:11

alexkemp
Member
Registered: 2018-05-14
Posts: 338  

Re: Browsers won't launch

Some small notes to try to quickly key you in to the way Devuan works cf Windows.

The original Windows was a text-based OS that later (1995) got a graphical desktop added to it. They then later tried to convince the world that Windows was a graphical masterpiece and oh, there was a sort-of command window added to it.

Devuan is a software kernel (common to all versions of 'Linux', which is the Operating System (OS)) which has options for a terrifyingly-large number of user-shells. The shells - only one of which is required - are the means for a human to interface with the underlying OS to 'get stuff done'.

Software writers tend to be used to dealing with text, and therefore are used to working within a command-terminal, which is a text-terminal. Confusingly, these are often called "Terminal Emulators". There are a great many of them available (Linux's problem is usually "too much stuff" rather than "too little stuff"). The most common OS for the terminal is BASH, known as the "GNU Bourne-Again SHell" (first was the 'Bourne Shell", known as 'BSH'). There are also lots & lots of different shells that can be used in a Terminal.

The great advantage of text-terminals is that they require far less resources than graphical shells, and that makes them inherently far, far faster.

The next option to operate your computer is via a Graphical shell which, for Linux, is normally a version of the X Window System. Linux *always* starts in text-mode, then at a point during startup it will launch startx (or maybe the local-shell's version of that command), and the X-Session will begin showing you a GUI ("Graphical User Interface") rather than a TUI ("Text User Interface").

The default GUI for Devuan is XFCE which is renowned as a stable, lightweight Desktop. There are scores of others that can be used.

The final point to make is that, with Devuan, both GUI & TUI are on an equal footing. BASH is extremely stable & useful as an interface, as is XFCE.

That's a heck of a lot of 'small notes'. HTH.

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#10 2023-08-27 01:47:22

Charon795
Member
Registered: 2023-08-25
Posts: 55  

Re: Browsers won't launch

alexkemp wrote:

Some small notes to try to quickly key you in to the way Devuan works cf Windows.

The original Windows was a text-based OS that later (1995) got a graphical desktop added to it. They then later tried to convince the world that Windows was a graphical masterpiece and oh, there was a sort-of command window added to it.

Devuan is a software kernel (common to all versions of 'Linux', which is the Operating System (OS)) which has options for a terrifyingly-large number of user-shells. The shells - only one of which is required - are the means for a human to interface with the underlying OS to 'get stuff done'.

Software writers tend to be used to dealing with text, and therefore are used to working within a command-terminal, which is a text-terminal. Confusingly, these are often called "Terminal Emulators". There are a great many of them available (Linux's problem is usually "too much stuff" rather than "too little stuff"). The most common OS for the terminal is BASH, known as the "GNU Bourne-Again SHell" (first was the 'Bourne Shell", known as 'BSH'). There are also lots & lots of different shells that can be used in a Terminal.

The great advantage of text-terminals is that they require far less resources than graphical shells, and that makes them inherently far, far faster.

The next option to operate your computer is via a Graphical shell which, for Linux, is normally a version of the X Window System. Linux *always* starts in text-mode, then at a point during startup it will launch startx (or maybe the local-shell's version of that command), and the X-Session will begin showing you a GUI ("Graphical User Interface") rather than a TUI ("Text User Interface").

The default GUI for Devuan is XFCE which is renowned as a stable, lightweight Desktop. There are scores of others that can be used.

The final point to make is that, with Devuan, both GUI & TUI are on an equal footing. BASH is extremely stable & useful as an interface, as is XFCE.

That's a heck of a lot of 'small notes'. HTH.

Thanks for such interesting information, but..
back to the topic...
What to do with browsers?

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#11 2023-08-27 02:27:28

rbit
Member
Registered: 2018-06-12
Posts: 46  

Re: Browsers won't launch

Sometimes when a GUI application doesn't start up properly, it can help to start it within a terminal window.
Open up your favorite terminal emulator, and enter the command firefox
What response appears in the terminal?

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#12 2023-08-27 02:28:50

HelenSmith
Member
Registered: 2023-08-25
Posts: 18  

Re: Browsers won't launch

Perhaps you need to write down the full name of your Devuan.iso, the session(Gnome/KDE_plasma/Mate/XFCE, etc),

and how you installed the firefox,

for example:devuan_daedalus_5.0.0_amd64_desktop.iso

so other people may test it again.

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#13 2023-08-27 02:30:14

Charon795
Member
Registered: 2023-08-25
Posts: 55  

Re: Browsers won't launch

rbit wrote:

Sometimes when a GUI application doesn't start up properly, it can help to start it within a terminal window.
Open up your favorite terminal emulator, and enter the command firefox
What response appears in the terminal?

i tried launching firefox via terminal like you said.
Nothing happens. The browser does not appear, and the terminal does not write anything in response

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#14 2023-08-27 02:55:40

ExposeGlobalistsMadness
Member
Registered: 2023-08-17
Posts: 41  

Re: Browsers won't launch

Devuan Daedalus offers Firefox ESR, which is the 'Extended Support Release', and which I have installed.  When I try typing firefox in a terminal in my Daedalus installation, Firefox (the Firefox ESR version) does launch.  Maybe your link or wrapper that points to firefox-esr isn't working properly somehow, so try typing firefox-esr in a terminal, which is the actual package name, followed by the 'Return' key.

As for chromium, and similarly for firefox-esr, when you install using sudo apt install chromium, as you indicate, does the terminal report that the package (or more associated packages) was installed?  A report such as that one is required to ensure that the package was installed.  Also, for firefox, make sure that you have typed sudo apt install firefox-esr - not  sudo apt install firefox.

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#15 2023-08-27 09:39:09

alexkemp
Member
Registered: 2018-05-14
Posts: 338  

Re: Browsers won't launch

Charon795 wrote:

What to do with browsers?

Use the command terminal to discover the state of your firefox install (or whichever of the 200 different browsers you want to use).

  • the following piece of code is issued from a Terminal

  • it is likely that you will need to type sudo before issuing the command
    the apt command requires that you are the root user before you issue it
    sudo is a "do as root" command.

  • If you do not yet have sudo installed then follow the instructions in this link (one-time only);

  • the '$' prefix indicates that you are working in the command window as an ordinary user;
    a '#' prefix would indicate that you are the root user (only ever do that for administration; always work as an ordinary user);
    you do NOT have to enter either char to get the prefix

$ apt search firefox-esr | head

WARNING: apt does not have a stable CLI interface. Use with caution in scripts.

Sorting...
Full Text Search...
firefox-esr/stable-security,stable-proposed-updates,now 102.14.0esr-1~deb12u1 amd64 [installed]
  Mozilla Firefox web browser - Extended Support Release (ESR)

firefox-esr-l10n-ach/stable-security,stable-proposed-updates 102.14.0esr-1~deb12u1 all
  Acoli language package for Firefox ESR

firefox-esr-l10n-af/stable-security,stable-proposed-updates 102.14.0esr-1~deb12u1 all
  Afrikaans language package for Firefox ESR

The important part of the result is the word "[installed]". If that does not exist then do a apt install firefox-esr or use synaptic to install it. Once you have done that you will get a menu-link under the "Internet" sub-link for Firefox. Once you get used to your Desktop you can place logos as links for your most-common utilities within the Panel.

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#16 2023-08-27 10:23:55

soren
Member
Registered: 2023-04-30
Posts: 142  

Re: Browsers won't launch

golinux wrote:
Charon795 wrote:
golinux wrote:

What desktop did you install? FF should be installed by default.

When installing the system, instead of Xfce, I chose to install Gnome.

Why? I never could figure out the gnome3 desktop. That's when I stopped using it a very long time ago. So sorry, can't help except to mention the Mate desktop which uses gnome2.

I will drop here a link from over 10 years ago for your reading pleasure big_smile:
GNOME (et al): Rotting In Threes

This is not helpful at all. Gnome is a desktop that is offered in the devuan daedalus netinstall iso. Ive not been able to get it to work properly either. Maybe gnome desktop should be left off the chosen list of desktop environments as it relies far too heavily on systemd.

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#17 2023-09-04 10:03:53

amaro
Member
Registered: 2022-02-08
Posts: 95  

Re: Browsers won't launch

Charon795 wrote:

as I wrote above, I am new to linux. Therefore, I'm not familiar with all these desktops yet. Gnome is used in Ubuntu and I more than liked it, so I installed it.
And judging by the screenshots on the Internet, MATE, which you mentioned, is somewhat reminiscent of the Windows desktop, and I'm tired of Windows. Want something new

Charon795 wrote:

This is not helpful at all. Gnome is a desktop that is offered in the devuan daedalus netinstall iso. Ive not been able to get it to work properly either. Maybe gnome desktop should be left off the chosen list of desktop environments as it relies far too heavily on systemd.

I guess the issue could be due to some missing GNOME dependencies since you went with the 'netinstall.iso'. Did you try the full 'desktop.iso'?

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#18 2023-09-04 20:06:38

Devarch
Member
Registered: 2022-10-03
Posts: 62  

Re: Browsers won't launch

Did you try to purge firefox completelly ( ex.: "apt-get remove --purge firexox-esr" or "apt-get remove --purge firexox"  and reinstall it?

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#19 2023-09-05 07:01:48

alexkemp
Member
Registered: 2018-05-14
Posts: 338  

Re: Browsers won't launch

firexox: speling

$ apt search firexox
Sorting... Done
Full Text Search... Done
# (nothing)

Could be the source of your problems.

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#20 2023-09-05 11:13:36

stopAI
Member
Registered: 2023-04-04
Posts: 173  

Re: Browsers won't launch

Hello.

Please, open the terminal and type in terminal

chromium

Chromium should launch. If not, paste terminal output here.

Same procedure valid for firefox-esr.

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#21 2023-09-05 11:39:57

bai4Iej2need
Member
From: Ortenau
Registered: 2021-04-25
Posts: 108  

Re: Browsers won't launch

whoami
ps ax | grep -E "slim|lightdm"
set | grep -i display
echo $DESKTOP_SESSION
which firefox-esr
w

please run this code and paste the result to tell us more of your system


The devil, you know, is better than the angel, you don't know. by a British Citizen, I don't know too good.
One generation abandons the enterprises of another like stranded vessels. By Henry David Thoreau, WALDEN, Economy. Line 236 (Gutenberg text Version)
broken by design :
https://bugs.debian.org/cgi-bin/bugrepo … bug=958390

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#22 2023-09-12 09:25:15

groog.17
Member
Registered: 2018-08-05
Posts: 4  

Re: Browsers won't launch

I have just installed Daedalus with Gnome DE, chose it during installation, then updated it. By default it has Firefox-ESR as browser. So, Firefox starts in the background and can be seen in System Manager and not by eyes smile Libreoffice which comes with distro either DOES NOT start at all. The same thing with Synaptic package manager, it requests admin pass and does not start.

I ask myself, how could this be released if part of software do not even run? But you can run sudoku and some other games smile but its not what we usually use a linux for smile

Last edited by groog.17 (2023-09-12 09:26:16)

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#23 2023-09-12 11:00:03

Charon795
Member
Registered: 2023-08-25
Posts: 55  

Re: Browsers won't launch

groog.17 wrote:

I have just installed Daedalus with Gnome DE, chose it during installation, then updated it. By default it has Firefox-ESR as browser. So, Firefox starts in the background and can be seen in System Manager and not by eyes smile Libreoffice which comes with distro either DOES NOT start at all. The same thing with Synaptic package manager, it requests admin pass and does not start.

I ask myself, how could this be released if part of software do not even run? But you can run sudoku and some other games smile but its not what we usually use a linux for smile

Good afternoon. I'm sorry you encountered the same problem as me. Unfortunately, I still didn’t understand what to do with this problem, so I simply reinstalled Devuan, but during the installation I chose XFCE rather than Gnome. It's much better than Gnome and everything works in it

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#24 2023-09-14 18:49:48

groog.17
Member
Registered: 2018-08-05
Posts: 4  

Re: Browsers won't launch

Charon795 wrote:
groog.17 wrote:

I have just installed Daedalus with Gnome DE, chose it during installation, then updated it. By default it has Firefox-ESR as browser. So, Firefox starts in the background and can be seen in System Manager and not by eyes smile Libreoffice which comes with distro either DOES NOT start at all. The same thing with Synaptic package manager, it requests admin pass and does not start.

I ask myself, how could this be released if part of software do not even run? But you can run sudoku and some other games smile but its not what we usually use a linux for smile

Good afternoon. I'm sorry you encountered the same problem as me. Unfortunately, I still didn’t understand what to do with this problem, so I simply reinstalled Devuan, but during the installation I chose XFCE rather than Gnome. It's much better than Gnome and everything works in it

I decided to move to Chimaera, everything works just perfect with manual setup Xorg and Gnome.

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#25 2023-09-14 19:08:18

Charon795
Member
Registered: 2023-08-25
Posts: 55  

Re: Browsers won't launch

groog.17 wrote:

I decided to move to Chimaera, everything works just perfect with manual setup Xorg and Gnome.

chimaera is an old version of devuan. It is quite stable and can also be used. I'm glad that everything works in this version, but I would recommend that you still switch to the daedalus version It has certain new features that are not present in the Chimaera version:
Based on Debian Bookworm (version 12) with Linux kernel 6.1
Rootless startx uses libseat1
Wayland GUI without elogind

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