Re: [Tails-dev] Not happy with my tails experience

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Author: sajolida
Date:  
To: The Tails public development discussion list, p.hansen.1982
Subject: Re: [Tails-dev] Not happy with my tails experience
Peter Hansen wrote:
> Hello!
> I have tried to use tails to no success.
> The time spent is some hours over the last 3 days.
> My linux experience is about 15 years, I'm a part time linux user.
> Mostly using Windows for 100% time and from time to time using windows
> and linux 50:50.
> My linux level is average.


Thanks for your detail report. Note that the correct mailing lists for
user support are:

- public channel: tails-support@???
- private channel: tails-support-private@???

> second choice is windows hiding: what in hell is her the on and the off state of
> this choice?
> clicking on the string-field gives either a dark grey or a lighter grey
> apearance of the text box


I agree with you. The behavior of those buttons is confusing, and we are
planning to fix this:

https://labs.riseup.net/code/issues/7372
https://labs.riseup.net/code/issues/7801

> Why not use a simple checkbox? On Off would be clear.
> third choice is mac spoofing. Same unclear staus as above: What is on
> waht is off?


Note that we are working on a completely new version of the Greeter, and
it will have toggle On/Off buttons like recommended in the GNOME guidelines:

https://tails.boum.org/blueprint/greeter_revamp_UI/

Feel free to join in the current discussions about this on
tails-ux@???:

https://mailman.boum.org/pipermail/tails-ux/2014-October/000078.html
https://mailman.boum.org/pipermail/tails-ux/2014-October/000085.html

> fourt choice should be a dual choice thing with 2 fields:
> gateway etc 1) unproblematic versus 2) some work to do
> but the fields don't toggle each other.


I think this is already covered by the current plans for a new Greeter.

> got tails running, created a second stick from within tails to use persistent
> storage.
> the creation process stopped at 98%. no more advance even 15 minutes later
> maybe, the open, but unused tor browser (ok, it's iceweasel, but would help
> naming it TOR in the menue)
> was hindering the process.


That shouldn't have happened. If you managed to reproduce this error,
please report a bug as described here:

https://tails.boum.org/doc/first_steps/bug_reporting/

> One of the major points for me for using this personal setting is choosing the
> german
> keyboard layout. And of course having some bookmarks persistant is a good thing too.
> So I set german keyboard, english surrounding, set some bookmarks
> As I thought, these settings would be updated in the persistent storage at the
> moment or at least before rebooting the machine. nope no german keyboard layout, no bookmarks.
> Is there a special procedure necessary that I might have missed?


This is not possible for the moment, as explained here:

https://tails.boum.org/support/faq#persistent_features

But we are working on it (see the mockups of the new Greeter).

> Btw: I have put this stick (persistent) into the first mentioned AMD64K8 machine
> and it is
> seen in the bios, but while booting , the stick is completely overrun and the
> first stop
> is at my grub. Could that have to do with the special type of partition used here?


Maybe, but we need more information to be able to help you. Please refer to:

https://tails.boum.org/doc/first_steps/bug_reporting/tails_does_not_start/

> I AM angry, but not angry on somebody of the tails team, but angry on this
> situation.


I understand.

> As a fallback and proven solution I have my linux boxes with debian linux and TOR
> installed. What I was hoping of from tails was a universal dedicated safe and
> anon linux
> 'to go' and use on many different machines. Wasn't that the intention?


It is. But it is also really hard work. Tails started as a really small
free software project and we are still a very small team (at least
compared to our number of users) working mostly as volunteers.

So we need time and help to make it better:

https://tails.boum.org/contribute/

> Some minor points, that are more a personal liking thing:
> I don't like gnome, all my machines have kde on them. This gnome comes with the
> menue/status
> line on top instead on bottom of the screen. makes me crave. Can that pe
> persistently set to
> be on the bottom line?


We prefer sticking to the default in Debian and GNOME unless we have a
very good reason to diverge from that. This is what make Tails
sustainable on the long-run:

https://tails.boum.org/contribute/relationship_with_upstream/

> The network settings can be stored in the persistent storage. I just had a peek
> at it from my
> debain running. Is it really a good idea to store that data? When going from one
> machine
> to another with this one stick, wouldn't it possibly mess things up? With a
> working dhcp it
> should not really cost time to live without persistence.


This is why we advertise our users to understand the different features
of persistence and use it to the minimum:

https://tails.boum.org/doc/first_steps/persistence/warnings/

On the other hand, it is really handy to be able to save the passphrases
of the Wi-Fi networks to which you connect to on a daily basis.

> The 'nm-systems-connections' folder is at least populated with data.
> The 'Persistent' folder is empty
> The 'bookmarks' folder contains a places.sqlite file, which seems to be without
> any links in it
> The 'dotfiles' folder is empty
> The 'open-ssh-client' folder is empty, now wonder, haven't used ssh on the tails
> machine, so no keys
> The gpg and othe folders are obviously populated with default files
> The persistence.conf file in the TailsData partittion contains this:
> --
> So to sum it up:
> Is the german keyboard layout pewrsitently possible?


Not for the moment.

> What's about the bookmarks?


That should work:

https://tails.boum.org/doc/first_steps/persistence/configure/#index10h2

> manually copy them to persistence folder?
> A last thought: both machines struggling to run tails at all were AMD K8 machines.
> The syslinux files seem to hae two general options: AMDK8 or 486 (includes intel
> celeron, I think)
> Could that be a cause for the readerrors, not finding kernel, not finding the
> xxxyyyzzz.c32
> startfile of (I think) syslinux?


Please send that to tails-bugs@???.

--
sajolida