Email note to class regarding installation issues around video drivers and text editors.

Summary:  If you can't boot into an X-Windows GUI (gnome, kde) after installing RH Linux 9, then open a text session, log in as root and enter the command redhat-config-xfree86 (all lowercase). This will permit you to change the system's default video settings.

An alternative is to search the Internet and locate a copy of the graphic configuration file for your  video system. This is a text file called "XF86Config." If you find one on the Internet, you can download it and copy it to the /etc/X11 directory. Then try rebooting and see if the video settings  work.

The default text editors installed with RH Linux 9 are EMACs and VI.  Both are a bit counter-intuitive to use until you learn their command structure.

A Wordstar-like text editor called JOE can be downloaded and installed as a separate package from here.

To use EMACS in an emergency open a text login and enter EMACS [filename]
Scroll through and make whatever changes you need to make.

Enter the command "ctrl+x, ctrl+s" to save the file, followed by "ctrl+x, ctrl+c" to return to the shell prompt.