"Unable to install"
 

I just get "unable to install" whatever I try to install with the Application Manager (2006OS, obviously). Examples: fbreader-maemo2, ntpdate

Am I missing some dependency, or what?

Error message from log
 

Here is the error message copied from App Manager's log:

Installing fbreader-maemo2 0.7.4g-1
/bin/sh: /usr/sbin/dpkg-preconfigure: not found
E: Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg received a segmentation fault.

Does this help anyone?

Try reflashing your OS, sounds like something's got corrupted.

If that doesn't fix it it's probably a hardware fault.

Got the same after installing a lot of stuff from various repositories the first day I got mine. Reflashed the OS and hasn't appeared again until now.

Bye, tira.

same here after l install a bunch of crap the db got corrupted.... reflash and you shoul be ok....

Thanks
 

Thank you all for the advice :) I reflashed and restored from backup, and now install works as expected.

However, learned one less nice thing: Backup does not backup the repository/package list from Application Manager. So I had to rebuild all the repositories. This leads to following question: is there a more productive way than copy/paste to enter the repositories with their parameters? A solution needing root access is not acceptable.

You dont need root acces to copy the repository list just use xtem to nv the file system and ue cp
to copy the list.... it should be in a .conf file for apt-get i could be wrong.

It's /etc/apt/sources.list - it'll require root to write to it, but not to read it.

LukeWorm: why is root access unacceptable? Especially with simple debs like `becomeroot' it's trivial and arguably necessary if you want to take shortcuts like these.

True aflegg to write to it you have to be root but not read or copy it.
Yea why root is not an option?
If you dont want to do R&D mode you can all wais use SSH :)
Is what I use to become root and also scp to it making file transfer a breze :P

Because I'm just a "normal" enduser, and not familiar with Linux internals. Maybe a bit more advanced than "normal" since I'm writing in this forum. Diving into root stuff may be risky, nevertheless.

Not if you're careful; besides if you're reflashing there's nothing you can't recover from (unless you go out of your way and know what you're doing, and even then...)

I can't believe there isn't an easier way for this to get fixed, or rebuilt. Is it something that gets backed up, so you can go to an earlier backup?

Thanks