Re: OT: Strange boot behavior after upgrade on Asus chromebook
On Tue, 2 Sep 2014 00:39:49 -1000
Joel Roth <joelz@pobox.com> wrote:
> This posting is slightly off-topic because the OS in
> question is Ubuntu, which I ended up using because the
[clip]
> The PC is a $200 chromebook that I set up for my dad to use.
> I visit him a few couple times a year, so I try
> to keep the system simple and reliable as possible.
>
> After logging on I get a message something like this on the
> console:
>
> Hey! An upgrade is available for your LTS Trusty
> installation. It includes 265 security updates.
> run "do-release-upgrade" to get the goods.
>
> I'm thinking it will be simple. And security
> is good, right? Hah hah!
[clip all of Joel's work to keep the thing half functional]
Without taking sides in the Debian/Ubuntu thing (each carries out its
intended purpose beautifully), Joel's upgrade experience doesn't
surprise me one bit. I've used RT/11, CPM, DOS, Windows 3-98, and
Linux from Red-Hat 5.1 (before the Fedora split) to Debian Wheezy, and
in every case except CPM, I've found version upgrades to be the highway
to heartache. With CPM, I didn't use it long enough to need to upgrade.
In my opinion, upgrading, as opposed to wiping and fresh-installing,
enhances the opportunity to have small mistakes accumulate over time.
Both user and the developer small mistakes. It lets no-longer-used
packages accumulate. It sometimes favors older ways of doing things,
ways that were compatible with the old software, but not as compatible
with modern software. As one keeps upgrading, version after version,
the computer is haunted by ghosts of operating systems past.
Also, developers test heavily for the main case, but they can't test
every edge case. Version upgrades, almost by definition, put the
computer in an edge case situation.
Oppositely, a wipe plus fresh install puts the computer at a known
state. It's like spring cleaning (and I do it once or twice a year). It
gets rid of all the dusty crud in the closets.
Of course, wipe-reinstall takes some serious time. You must completely
back up all data. You must decide whether partitions need to be
resized. You might need to buy a bigger hard disk. You need to install
all necessary software, and automation can help you only so much there.
And toughest, you must selectively copy over some config from your old
$HOME while leaving other config the way the new install left it.
It's not easy, but neither is cleaning your house every May. Both are
difficult and time consuming, and both prevent an accumulation of
productivity-hindering clutter.
The other thing is, version upgrading often puts the computer in a
state where you must wipe and reinstall anyway, but unpreparedly so.
I hear this coming spring Jessie will become the stable release. When
that happens I'll take a day or more out of my schedule, back up, wipe,
and install Jessie.
SteveT
Steve Litt * http://www.troubleshooters.com/
Troubleshooting Training * Human Performance
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