upgrading ubuntu

[michael weaver]

i think i am going to have to wwait until there is a bit more of 
a stable lucid or until final release and just do a fresh install 
of ubuntu.
as i don't have the technical knowledge to be able to install 
speakup i don't know if an upgrade would be easier via a text 
terminal and i have not had any luck creating the file to be able 
to get accessible admin as regards the gui and i don't always 
have a sighted person around to be able to at least see if an 
upgrade is actually working.
i remember once trying to do an upgrade where my local linux 
group used to hold meetings which i don't think has happened for 
a while because the main people have moved areas to leeds and the 
like and it would have taken to long to upgrade anyway but when i 
had someone look at what i was doing, they seemmed to think that 
the upgrade had not started when i went through the alt plus f2 
update-manager dash d because when i had entered on ok, i seemed 
to have to tab to another upgrade button without speech access, 
hit enter on it and possibly had to re-type my password.
it is like the interface for update-manager is slightly different 
with upgrading from that of updating where if you just do a 
standard up-date, you can tab around and get orca feedback to say 
that you have updates and when you hit the install and are maybe 
asked for the password, away it goes and downloads them whereas 
with the upgrade, you see that the upgrade is there if you run 
the update-manager from alt f2 with the dash d command at the 
end, it shows you the upgrade notes, you hit the upgrade button, 
you enter the password and ok it and i think to someone with 
sight you have to locate the upgrade button again which someone 
without sight can't access because i think a dialogue box pops up 
with buttons for check for updates, upgrade, and cancel and you 
have to go to the correct button and enter on the upgrade and 
possibly re-type admin password, ok and then it starts.
i think that is what confuses people without sight like it is a 
double confirmation, when you see the notes about the new release 
you can accept and it is like it brings up another dialogue box 
after you first ok your password like "are you sure you want to 
do this."
i think i only found this out because the chap who was trying to 
help me said the upgrade hadn't started even though i had chosen 
the upgrade button, entered my password and hit ok.
i think if i knew perhaps the number of tabbs when i have to get 
to the upgrade button in the dialogue box where orca doesn't 
appear to read i could possibly do it but without a family who 
are not linux users and with me not having a sighted partner or 
any sighted family member around looking at the pc or laptop 
screens for me i am only guessing there is this second dialogue 
appears before the actual upgrade is actually started.