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I would like to suggest more consistent methods may help us with some of our questioners seeking help.

Nearly always, we need more info, so I have created a little boilerplate I trot out when folks haven't included hardware info, i.e.:

Please help us help you by doing sudo dmidecode -s baseboard-product-name && sudo dmidecode -s baseboard-manufacturer && sudo lshw | grep product | head -n1 && lshw | grep -v "loop" && lsb_release -a and paste the result into your question after clicking [edit].

Please do not click on Add Comment as new comments can shove old comments off screen; your information about your PC and the Ubuntu installation should all go in the Question so we can all see your findings.

One public-spirited responder queried why, to which I offered the post http://askubuntu.com/questions/1157538/ as one example where comments get pushed off screen when they pile up. I have seen many OPs overlook comments hidden behind "Click Here", and want to encourage being more parsimonious in Comments, especially when OPs should be responding by editing their questions to give us the needed info.

In addition, a standardized request for hardware and software info is something I would like to encourage; the constant on-off, bespoke, boutique responses of folks trying to help consumes much time and energy, and I want to lead from the front in encouraging us to think about how we might better serve our OPs either a methodical and consistent approach (but, then, I was raised a Methodist).

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The first bit is a really neat idea, but the only thing you can do is to lead by example and post it under all questions that need it and other people will pick it up because there is no way to force people to do anything. I would tell OPs to edit instead of not using comments, so I shamelessly stole the first bit and put it in my canned comments like this:

Welcome to [ubunte.se]! ;-) Please press [Ctrl][Alt][T] and copy-pasting sudo dmidecode -s baseboard-product-name && sudo dmidecode -s baseboard-manufacturer && sudo lshw | grep product | head -n1 && lshw | grep -v "loop" && lsb_release -a, into the terminal and press [enter] and then [edit] your question and paste the results in there so your question itself stands all by itself. Thank you for helping us help you!

The codez:

Welcome to [ubunte.se]!  **;-)**  Please press [Ctrl][Alt][T] and copy-pasting `sudo dmidecode -s baseboard-product-name && sudo dmidecode -s baseboard-manufacturer && sudo lshw | grep product | head -n1 && lshw | grep -v "loop" && lsb_release -a`, into the terminal and press [enter] and then [edit] your question and paste the results in there so your question itself stands all by itself. **Thank you for helping us help you!**
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    Have you compared the output of the code suggested with that of inxi -Fxxxz or, if necessary, sudo inxi -Fxxxz? Even if the output of inxi has significantly less information than the proposed code, the formatting is nicer, more compact and suitable for an initial "snapshot", IMHO. inxi isn't part of most Ubuntu flavors but is in Xubuntu and Ubuntu Mate. I had posted about inxi here ;)
    – DK Bose
    Jul 15, 2019 at 11:14
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    @DKBose Please add a new answer as that seems intriguing. I'm willing to look at it with an open mind! ;-)
    – Fabby
    Jul 15, 2019 at 20:23
  • I'm not sure adding a new answer is of value. Years ago, at the time Jorge Castro was active, there was just such a meta discussion. I'll see if I can dig it out. But I can't remember the outcome. Of course, I may just be imagining things because the related questions column doesn't point to anything similar!
    – DK Bose
    Jul 16, 2019 at 10:47
  • this maybe what I remembered. Search for Hardware.
    – DK Bose
    Jul 16, 2019 at 10:50

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