[Bug 7150] live CD locked password, hoary live/install differences

[Matt Zimmerman]

On Fri, Mar 04, 2005 at 02:44:34AM +0000, Chip Piller wrote:

> I booted a recent hoary-live-i386.iso, did some work on the computer, selected
> "lock screen" from the menu, and left my computer.  I returned later and found I
> was unable to unlock the screen and resume my session.  The xscreensaver prompts
> for a password, says "verifying", and then it fails.  This is a recent change in
> behaviour, previously a user could successfully lock/unlock the screen.
> 
> So, how should the live CD handle the default user account and passwords? 
> Should there be a difference in the user account setup for the live CD and the
> install CD?  Should an application behave the same way for both the "live" and
> "install" versions?
> 
> I think that the differences between the "live" and "install" versions should be
> kept to a minimum. Presently when booting the live CD one is asked for boot
> options, language, and keyboard layout.  Why not ask for user name and password
> as well?   

The live CD is a different use case, and it's important that it ask a
minimum of questions.  Sessions are typically short (such as demos and
recovery/maintenance operations), after which the modifications to the
system, if any, are thrown away.  It doesn't make much sense to spend time
configuring a system which is going to disappear in a few minutes; it's
better to give the user a working desktop as simply as possible.

This is the same reason why the live CD doesn't ask what time zone the user
is in.  The user can specify these by preseeding them on the command line,
or using expert mode, if it's truly useful to them.

Certainly, the current situation with the Lock Screen feature is a bug, but
I think we should fix its behaviour, rather than force the user to set a
password.

-- 
 - mdz