Ciao @unklebonehead ! Happy New Year to you, and thank you sincerely for your help here!

Yes, it was a fresh install - some months ago, and I only started using it properly this month, as I am travelling...
I tried to install some apps (after the initial install), with very little success. They seem to be inside the computer, but not making any sense/ not installing/ not updating. The laptop is a Pinebook.

I tried doing the procedure you suggest above, but got:

"sudo: apt: command not found" for both commands.

:-/

My keyboard does not correspond to the actual keys, and so I must need to reset it.... This too is eluding me! (Which likely is why the screenshot is not working.)

Sorry for being such a beginner; I promise, I have been doing a fair bit of research, but it is not getting any clearer: I may need to go back to basics, or even reinstall the OS, once I am home again.