Can't Add Applications

[Peter Garrett]

On Wed, 14 Feb 2007 08:49:30 -0600 (GMT-06:00)
Staar <michael_staar at earthlink.net> wrote:

> So I installed Ubuntu 6.06 (Desktop Version).  
> When I attempt to add any applications using Add/Remove Applications I receive an error: "Could not add application to the application database".  I was connected to the internet via a really slow dialup connection (12kbps).  Could that be what the problem was?

What happens if you open a terminal ( Applications - Accessories -
Terminal ) and type

sudo apt-get update            ?

You should see the list of available applications being downloaded and
updated from the repositories as defined in /etc/apt/sources.list .

Your dialup connection sounds unusually slow. When I was using Ubuntu with
dialup ( until May last year ), my connections were usually at least 32
kbps and more often 40 or above. Is it a bad line ? Does the modem connect
faster in other operating systems?

> 
> I dont know if it's significant but when I first booted from the cd I was unable to select the first option - Start Ubuntu.  When I did, the pc would reboot and the same screen would appear.  When I selected 'Start Ubuntu in safe graphics mode' it was able to continue.

How much RAM does this machine have ?

Peter