python - pygame.error: No available video device

Question

I have this setup:

 $ python -V
Python 2.7.2+
 $ python -c "import pygame; print pygame.__version__"
1.9.1release

When I run a pygame script, I get this error:

Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "/home/santosh/tmp/pygameHelloWorld.py", line 8, in <module>
    windowSurface = pygame.display.set_mode((500, 400), 0, 32)
pygame.error: No available video device

I am using Ubuntu and have install pygame with apt-get. Additionally I have install all dependencies mentioned on this pygame wiki page.

Answer 1

If you are running Pygame on a UNIX system, like a Linux server, try using a DummyVideoDriver:

import os
os.environ["SDL_VIDEODRIVER"] = "dummy"