Gtk-Warning **: Cannot open display

[Barnaby Scott]

John Nielsen wrote:
> On Tuesday 16 May 2006 17:07, Barnaby Scott wrote:
>> Kevin Kinsey wrote:
>>> Barnaby Scott wrote:
>>>> So, I installed Firefox from ports, having made sure everything was
>>>> bang up to date. Evrything seemed to go perfectly well, but lo and
>>>> behold, first attempt to use it and I get this:
>>>>
>>>> (firefox-bin:582): Gtk-Warning **: Cannot open display
>>>>
>>>> What the..?
>>>>
>>>> I have searched for this problem and found plenty of references
>>>> similar error messages, but none of it seems to apply in my case. I am
>>>> not trying to run Firefox as root, I am not doing it from a remote
>>>> terminal, I am not standing in a bucket of water, I have the computer
>>>> plugged in.
>>> I think these are Good Things(tm), 'though I have been able to operate
>>> a browser whilst standing in a bucket of water.
>>>
>>> Q: Are you running an X display at the time this message is given,
>>> or are you attempting to run Firefox from the console?
>>>
>>> Kevin Kinsey
>> I have tried both. It is running from the console that gives the message
>>   quoted - if I am running an X display at the time it fails with no
>> message at all.
> 
> This is a Firefox oddity.  It needs to be run as root one time after it is 
> installed (or [sometimes] upgraded).  Do this from an xterm:
> 
> cd
> su
> cp .Xauthority /root
> firefox
> 
> Assuming the browser window comes up, you can just close it.  You should be 
> able to run it as a regular user afterwards.
> 
> JN

Thanks for both bits of advice - one of them worked, though I'm not sure 
which!

So now I can strat Firefox from an xterm, but 2 things still puzzle me 
though:
1) Forgive my stupidity, but why can I not start Firefox from the 
console? Or rather, what could I do to make it do so with a single command?
2) I thought Firefox wasn't going to start from the xterm, but really it 
just took ages - far longer than I am used to with my old OS (same 
machine). Is there something I am missing here too?