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Ubuntu Linux 8.04 (Hardy Heron)

Using VLC or Totem, playing a video file hangs my entire system. The audio still plays, and I can still use the mouse, but my keyboard does not work, and I can't kill X.

This is annoying, seeing as I could play video files two nights ago. The problem seemingly arose after I updated to the new kernel (which was a necessary update, said Ubuntu)

alex@alex-laptop:~$ uname -a
Linux alex-laptop 2.6.24-18-rt #1 SMP PREEMPT RT Wed May 28 23:38:58 UTC 2008 i686 GNU/Linux
alex@alex-laptop:~$

Does anyone have any suggestions or a solution for my problem?

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Dani AI

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Short summary and context from the thread: described a system where video playback left audio and the mouse working while the keyboard stopped responding and X could not be killed. The poster later reported that installing the subsequent kernel release resolved the hang. That pattern is most commonly seen with kernel regressions or a problematic interaction between the graphics/video driver and the input stack.

Useful diagnostics to collect when the hang is reproducible (collect logs immediately after the event; remote access is helpful so X can be inspected while the machine still responds on the network):

dmesg | tail -n 200
sudo tail -n 200 /var/log/syslog
sudo tail -n 200 /var/log/kern.log
sudo tail -n 200 /var/log/Xorg.0.log
lspci -nnk | grep -i -A3 vga
dpkg -l | grep linux-image

Practical mitigations and next steps that have helped in similar cases: boot an earlier kernel from the GRUB menu to confirm a kernel regression; keep the newer kernel if it fixes the issue; try switching the video output mode in the player (disable hardware-accelerated output) or change the graphics driver (proprietary vs open) to isolate driver vs kernel causes. If the behavior is repeatable, file a bug against the kernel package including the kernel version, the captured logs above, Xorg.0.log and a short recipe to reproduce. Note: realtime/RT kernels can expose different timing and driver behaviors than stock kernels, so test both branches when possible.

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This is why I love the Linux community. I didn't even post my problem at another forum, and in less than two weeks, a new kernel was released (2.6.24-19), and my problem was fixed.

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