Beginning your Session

We assume that you are sitting in front of a running Mandrakelinux computer which, when turned on, automatically displays the graphical login screen. If this is not the case and you are facing a black screen with something like:

Mandrakelinux release 10.1 (Official) for i586
Kernel 2.6.8.1-10mdk on an i686 / tty1
machine_name login:

with a flashing cursor, type your user name (as defined during installation or by your system administrator), then your password. You should now be “logged in”. Now type startx and the graphical interface will be launched (KDE by default, see Chapter 7, Using KDE). If this doesn't work, please refer to the section called “X Doesn't Start”. In order to automatically start your system in graphical mode, refer to the section called “Controlling the Graphical Configuration”.

The Mandrakefirsttime Wizard

The first time you access your Mandrakelinux system, you will encounter the Mandrakefirsttime Wizard (Figure 5.1, “The Mandrakefirsttime Wizard”). It will help you register your product and set up a Mandrakeclub account.

[Note]Note

If you are using the download edition of Mandrakelinux, you will first be asked to fill out a questionnaire which will help Mandrakesoft understand its user-base better.

Figure 5.1. The Mandrakefirsttime Wizard

The Mandrakefirsttime Wizard

You will now be prompted to create a personal Mandrakeclub account, which will give you instant access to the many valuable on-line services offered by Mandrakesoft, such as special commercial software downloads (complete with automatic download and install procedures), dedicated multilingual forums, the option to vote for your favorite software packages to be included in the Mandrakelinux distribution, special discounts, and more. Your Mandrakelinux package includes a trial Mandrakeclub account, so you can evaluate the many available services and then later extend your account if you like their features (and we are sure you will!).

Moreover, if you already have a Mandrakeclub account or are going to activate one now, Mandrakefirsttime Wizard will also help you configure your system to allow easy downloading and installation of special updates from the Mandrakeclub web site directly, using our user-friendly Software Manager. Please remember that e-mail addresses and user names are unique on Mandrakeclub, so you will not be able to open a trial account if you are already subscribed.

Identifying Yourself

You are currently in front of the following display (Figure 5.2, “The Login Window”). To log into the system, you need to supply both your login name and password.

Figure 5.2. The Login Window

The Login Window

The login procedure takes place in four simple steps:

  1. Click on the icon corresponding to your login name.

  2. Type your secret password once that field is displayed[2]

  3. Choose your favorite graphical environment from the Session type pull-down menu[3]. The session you last chose is selected by default, but if this is the first time that you have logged in, the default environment is KDE.

  4. Finally click on the Login button to begin your session. Be patient! It may take a few seconds before your desktop is ready to be used.

If you are the only user of your new Mandrakelinux system, and you are annoyed by having to type your login name and password every time you start a new session, there is a way to avoid this step: by booting directly into your favorite desktop environment. This feature is known as auto-login (see the section called “Configuring the Login Mode”).

[Warning]Warning

Be careful with this option as no password will be asked for, therefore anybody can access your system.



[2] The actual password will not be displayed but will be replaced by little stars (*). Remember: passwords under GNU/Linux are case sensitive, which means that if your password is Very_Secret and you type Very_secret, access will be denied!

[3] This step is optional and allows you to choose a specific graphical environment. While we encourage you to try the various available choices so you can find the one you prefer, we strongly suggest you start with either KDE.