problem with lock file when committing file

[Julian Opificius]

A user gave me this problem/sequence of events:

1. user tags some of the files in a directory (successful)
2. user executes checkout against tag to new directory (successful)
3. user edits one file
4. user tries to check in changes (unsuccessful), gets ...
"cvs commit: sticky tag `PL069_V18' for file `uc_interface.vhd' is not a
branch
cvs [commit aborted]: correct above errors first! "
5. I repeat checkout/change process on my own machine, update directory 
using clearing sticky tags, and get additional files that were not 
tagged, (I don't care about that, though I don't know what I should have 
done to not get the other files)
6. I try to to check in changed file, and get ...
cvs [commit aborted]: could not open lock file 
"`/usr/local/cvsroot/JPL069/PL069/FPGA/PL069_V01/,arinc_interface.vhd,': 
Permission denied"
Which is a real problem, because I have CVS server configured to put log 
files in /var/log/cvs, not /usr/local/cvsroot.

Can anyone give me insight into what we're doing wrong here?

Thanks!

julian.