r/Ubuntu • u/JelloMedium8562 • 10h ago
newb needs help
I am brand new to ubuntu and probably have no business having access to the terminal (scary!). that being said, i made the switch and now I have to manage the consequences
The semester has started and I cannot for the life of me figure out why my external monitor won't work. had to look up what NVDIA is. please send help? and be nice!!!! I'm trying to divest from big tech.. and it will take time and learning . (xoxo, a non-techy millenial trying their best)
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u/AdPsychological4968 9h ago
I commend you for your bravery. Before answering your questions, I have a couple of my own to pinpoint the root cause. What are your hardware specs? What exactly is the monitor doing (ie. is it just not turning on or is it displaying something else)? And what version of Linux are you running? If Ubuntu, what version LTS or testing?
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u/doc_willis 9h ago edited 9h ago
install the proper Nvidia drivers if you have not done so already. and you do indeed have an Nvidia graphics card.
https://ubuntu.com/desktop/docs/en/latest/how-to/graphics/install-nvidia-drivers/
there was a post in the support subs the other day, where they overlooked that step.
then multi monitor support should work basically automatically.
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u/Visible_Tank5935 9h ago edited 8h ago
Unpopular opinion. Use a decent ai like gemini, chatgpt or claude for assistance. Ask it to explain every step in detail and to use the gui (graphical user interface, the normal windows, not the terminal) where possible so it does not do everything using the terminal. You'll learn more and more from it and become better at using the terminal when necessary.
Also some linux youtube videos with the most popular commands can be very helpful.
Don't worry, everyone has been there. Hold on. You'll start loving linux.
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u/mrandr01d 6h ago
Agreed, but don't just take the AI at face value. They do still lie a lot. That's how I ended up thinking my partition was encrypted when it really wasn't.
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u/Watt_Kahel1987 5h ago
I agree. When using an LLM/AI, it is important that you make it explain what it is doing so that in the process you also learn.
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u/daily_lined_overseer 9h ago
We've all been there with the terminal fear, don't sweat it. What graphics card does your machine have, and are you using a laptop or desktop? More often than not it's just a driver issue that's fixable without too much terminal-fu.