Can't install (lost Admin-password)

[Colin Law]

On 25 November 2011 19:41, Tom Rausner <tom at rausner.dk> wrote:
> Hi again, again...
>
>> fre, 25 11 2011 kl. 16:59 +0000, skrev Colin Law:
>
>> > The password you have to enter when installing s/w is the password of
>> > the current user.  Having managed to set up a root password then you
>> > need to set the password of the actual user using the passwd command.
>> >
>> > Colin
>
> Well, it seems I can't use the GUI for installing anything, no matter
> what I do. I've changed the password for my wifes account several times
> (with succes) but neither that nor the root password works in GUI...
> But as I wrote earlier everything works in CLI. Something MUST be broken
> between the two of them.

Can I just confirm what is happening - it is important in questions
like this to be quite clear.
1. If your wife logs out is she then able to log back in using her password?

2. What happens if, in a terminal, your wife types
sudo ls
and enters her password when asked

3. Describe exactly what it is that happens in the gui when she has
the problem.  Exactly please, what app is she running and what is the
sequence of operations.

Colin