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Social Enemy
10-22-2003, 11:36 AM
Hey guys, I'm new to Linux. I am wanting to install Mandrake Linux 9.1 on a computer of mine.
Will Mandrake Linux 9.1 run on the system listed below?
ASUS A7S333 motherboard
1.53 Ghz AMD Athlon XP 1800+
256 Mb PC2100 DDR RAM
40 Gb 5400 RPM Samsung hard drive
56X BenQ CD-ROM drive
nVidia GeForce4 Ti4200 w/ 64 Mb of RAM*
Soundblaster Audigy Gamer soundcard
Linksys 10/100 network card
Lexmark X75 printer(maybe)
I already showed some other guy those system specs, and he said I shouldn't have a problem, but I just wanted to post them here to make sure.
I've been waiting to this for awhile, the reason I've been waiting so long is that 40 gig hard drive is in my Windows XP machine and it's the only hard drive I have. So, I thought about formatting it and putting it in my Linux machine to install Mandrake Linux 9.1 on. But the only thing I'm worried about is, what if I'm installing Linux and the thing screws up and doesn't install, then I'm stuck with no computer. But I do have a copy of Windows 98 SE that I can install on my past Windows XP machine incase that happens, so that way I'll have at least one computer that works.
*-not sure on the brand name of this Video Card.
Satanic Atheist
10-22-2003, 12:08 PM
Yes, you'll have no problem running Linux on that machine.
I suggest that when you download the ISOs, check the MD5 (there is a Windows program to do that) and compare them. If they are different, you have a bad copy and should re-download them.
Download Knoppix well. This means you won't have a dead computer (you can boot it from the CDROM drive).
Just make sure Knoppix is working before you kill Windows. If you're flattening the whole drive, I recommend you get "Cleardrv" which will wipe Sector 0 meaning that there's no old Windows data lying around in odd places to cause you grief. I've had trouble in the past installing Linux over the top of Windows for this reason. I haven't had any trouble recently.
James
You should have no problems with that at all.
Have you thought about partitioning your harddrive and dual-booting XP and Mandrake - that way you'll have the best of both worlds....it's always an option until you can get another harddrive for the other box.
Jme
Social Enemy
10-22-2003, 01:08 PM
Originally posted by Satanic Atheist
I suggest that when you download the ISOs, check the MD5 (there is a Windows program to do that) and compare them. If they are different, you have a bad copy and should re-download them.
I've downloaded and burned the all 3 .iso images of Mandrake Linux 9.1 from http://www.linuxiso.org.
How do I check the "MD5"?
Originally posted by Satanic Atheist
Download Knoppix well. This means you won't have a dead computer (you can boot it from the CDROM drive).
Which version should I get because I heard some stuff about Knoppix 3.3 not working right? I think my motherboard can boot from a CD-ROM drive.
EDIT: I have just verified my motherboard can boot from a CD when I put the Mandrake Linux 9.1 CD 1 into the drive and the computer booted off the CD just fine.
Originally posted by Satanic Atheist
If you're flattening the whole drive, I recommend you get "Cleardrv" which will wipe Sector 0 meaning that there's no old Windows data lying around in odd places to cause you grief.
Where can I get "Cleardrv"? Is it a DOS program?
Originally posted by jme
Have you thought about partitioning your harddrive and dual-booting XP and Mandrake - that way you'll have the best of both worlds....
I thought about that, but the thing is, that my Windows XP machine is a completely different computer, so I'm not 100% sure that Linux will run on it.
MD5sums (http://www.linuxiso.org/viewdoc.php/verifyiso.html)
:)
Social Enemy
10-22-2003, 04:30 PM
Do I have use MD5sums to check the .iso files?
Because I already burned the images to a CD and deleted the .iso files off of this computer. I wish I would've known about this earlier.
Also, about the hard drive partitions.
Can I just make one big partition or do I have to have a bunch of partitions?
Originally posted by Social Enemy
Prior to the installation you only need on partition to install mandrake...Actually, you don't need any partitions at all before the install- Mandy will just make use of free space and partition/format it as part of the installation process.
As for how many partitions you want to make, that's a personal choice. Some people go with just one or two partitions, others create more. There are pros and cons to either method, some of which are outlined here (http://justlinux.com/nhf/Installation/How_to_Create_a_Multiple_Partition_System.html).
Social Enemy
10-22-2003, 04:55 PM
Originally posted by jme
Prior to the installation you only need on partition to install mandrake as during the install you set the other partitions that Linux needs such as:
/
/swap
/boot
etc... out of the larger partition that you have already created!
So, I'm guessing it sets the size of those partitions automatically or do I have to manually input sizes for each partition?
If I do have to set them manually, what size should I set them to?
Also, where can I get this "Cleardrv" program?
jme,
My apologies- I acidentally overwrote your post while trying to make one of my own.
Friggin' moderator powers gone wonky- D-oh! :eek:
------------------------
Mandrake will either perform the partitioning automatically our give you the option of doing it manually yourself.
As for the sizes, a swap partition equal to 1.5-2 times your physical RAM should do. If you just make one / (root) partition, give it as much room as you want. If you make multiple partitions the sizes will somewhat depend on how many you make and what duties the computer will perform (workstation, file server, etc.).
It's all very subjective, but for a normal workstation, here are some rough suggestions:
/ - needn't be more that a couple of gigs if you're creating separate /usr and /home partitions. Give it a few more if you aren't.
/home - a gig or more
/boot - 100M or less
/usr - 4 or more Gigs
/var - 500M - 1G
/tmp - 500M
Originally posted by Social Enemy
So, I'm guessing it sets the size of those partitions automatically or do I have to manually input sizes for each partition?
If I do have to set them manually, what size should I set them to?
Mandrake will either perform the partitioning automatically our give you the option of doing it manually yourself.
I believe that there is an 'automatic partition' button that you can hit and it will automatically partition the part of the harddroive that you want linux on. If you did have to partition the drive yourself I would adise the following (althoguh every one will have a slightly different idea - Im not trying to start a flame war!!)
/boot = 45-75MB
/swap = anywhere between the amount of RAM you have and twice as much...for example if you have 128MB RAM anywhere between 128MB - 256MB of space for SWAP.
/ (root partition - not to be confused with /root)
That is a really basic partition and you could have seperate partitions for /home, /var, /usr but you don't really need it to be like that - let's not over complicate it!!
Hope this helps,
Jme
Originally posted by DMR
jme,
My apologies- I acidentally overwrote your post while trying to make one of my own.
Friggin' moderator powers gone wonky- D-oh! :eek:
------------------------
Mandrake will either perform the partitioning automatically our give you the option of doing it manually yourself.
:mad: :mad: :mad:
DMR - don't worry about it! :D
Jme
Originally posted by jme
:mad: :mad: :mad:
DMR - don't worry about it! :D
Jme Sorry- I are a doofus... :p
Social Enemy
10-22-2003, 08:15 PM
I think I'm just gonna let Mandrake take care of the partitions for me since I don't know alot about partitioning and I don't want to screw anything up.
Does anyone know anything about that ClearDrv program?
Is it required to prepare the hard drive for Linux or will the Linux partitioning/formatting take care of all that?
JohnT
10-22-2003, 08:32 PM
Originally posted by DMR
Sorry- I are a doofus... :p
Listen to him.....he knows what he's talking about....partitions, I mean:p
JohnT
10-22-2003, 08:34 PM
Originally posted by Social Enemy
I think I'm just gonna let Mandrake take care of the partitions for me since I don't know alot about partitioning and I don't want to screw anything up.
Does anyone know anything about that ClearDrv program?
Is it required to prepare the hard drive for Linux or will the Linux partitioning/formatting take care of all that?
"The Linux partitioning/formatting takes care of all that". Sometimes there can be a difficulty with NTFS, but as a rule..NO. If its NT and you have a problem come back and post.
Social Enemy
10-22-2003, 08:40 PM
This hard drive I'm gonna install Linux on is Fat32 at the moment. Will that cause any problems?
Originally posted by JohnT
Listen to him.....he knows what he's talking about....partitions, I mean:p Yes, well, ahem-
Don't forget that I have The Wet Trout, John (and I'm not afraid to use it!).
:D
Originally posted by Social Enemy
This hard drive I'm gonna install Linux on is Fat32 at the moment. Will that cause any problems? Personally I'd just delete the existing partition to avoid any possible hassles, but Mandy should just ask you if you want to reformat the partition during the install.
JohnT
10-22-2003, 10:42 PM
Originally posted by DMR
Yes, well, ahem-
Don't forget that I have The Wet Trout, John (and I'm not afraid to use it!).
:D
Yes...but I have recently garnered the Carp-laying-on-the-beach-ripening-in-the-hot-sun-for-three-days, which as anyone knows counters the "Wet Trout".:p
Social Enemy
10-22-2003, 11:12 PM
Well, I have installed Mandrake Linux 9.1, everything went smoothly, but now my sound doesn't work.
Any suggestions why it doesn't work?
mrcoffee12
10-22-2003, 11:33 PM
Heh, ya I had that exact same problem when I first installed about a week ago, (this was the first time I'd ever installed linux and had a friend walk me through it) all you need to do is go to the equivelant of the start menu and go to Multimedia > Sound > Volume Control in GNOME or KMix in KDE, in KMix you need to unmute the one on the farthest left then change the slider up/down, in GNOME its straight forward and needs no explanation. Hope this helps, add me to your aim I can probably help you with most of your simple questions as I am on a lot and just went through it myself so it's all pretty fresh in my mind.
Originally posted by JohnT
Yes...but I have recently garnered the Carp-laying-on-the-beach-ripening-in-the-hot-sun-for-three-days, which as anyone knows counters the "Wet Trout".:p Yes, but the advantage goes to he who slaps first...
Dave-->http://www.stevewolfonline.com/Downloads/DMR/Visuals/fishwhack.gif<--John
Gotcha!
:D
Social Enemy
10-23-2003, 02:01 AM
Thanks for the help guys.
But I have decided to not use Linux anymore. Nothing personal, Linux just wasn't for me.
No sweat-
One of my favorite phrases when it comes to things like this is: "use the right tool for the right job".
If Linux isn't for you- don't use it, and don't respond to any flames that you might catch for not doing so.
:)
Satanic Atheist
10-23-2003, 09:46 AM
Bit late for this, but Cleardrv is downloadable from the Internet. It's a DoS program that will sit quite happily on a boot disk. It wont' run from Windows (shame).
Just search Google for "Cleardrv" and "download" and see what you get.
James
Social Enemy
10-23-2003, 11:05 AM
Now that I think about it, it doesn't seem like I really gave Mandrake Linux a chance to prove itself. I mean, all this kinda makes me look like a quitter, but I probably would've enjoyed linux more if I was better prepared and researched on it some more. I might go back to linux sometime in the future, I even thought about going back to it today. Because when I woke up this morning, that's when I started thinking about all this.
I have a couple of questions:
1: last night when I was messing around with Mandrake, I restarted my comp for some reason, then it went to this command prompt type thing. It had on the screen "localhost login". So, I typed in my name that I used to login, then it gave me a "password" prompt, I tried to type in my password for that username, but nothing would register. It was like I was typing nothing.
Here's how it was
localhost login myloginname
password
Anyone know why it did this?
2: Will the integrated sound on that ASUS A7S333 motherboard be compatible with Linux?
Satanic Atheist
10-23-2003, 12:55 PM
The password field doesn't show any characters by default in Linux. Your password is being registered, it just won't show the blanking characters.
If you want to go back to Linux, there are plenty of HowTos on the net and this forum is chock full of info. If you're totally stuck, you can always post a specific question.
One thing that you get with a Linux installation is satisfaction of setting up the machine to be perfect for you. All the Windows machines I've seen are relatively samey.
The choice is yours, but I recommend you at least give it another go.
James
Social Enemy
10-23-2003, 08:07 PM
Originally posted by Satanic Atheist
The password field doesn't show any characters by default in Linux. Your password is being registered, it just won't show the blanking characters.
So, my password is being typed on the screen when I type it on the keyboard, even though the cursor doesn't move?
Is their a way around all that? I know their's some option where I can have it automatically log on one account when I start the computer up.
Originally posted by Satanic Atheist
The choice is yours, but I recommend you at least give it another go.
Yeah, I thought about giving it another go. Because when I first installed it I was kinda frustrated and I have a bad habit of giving up on something when I'm frustrated.
Also,
how do I log on as "root"?
and
Can I change the "account type" of the name I use to log on to linux(i.e. super user, or whatever it's called)?
mrcoffee12
10-23-2003, 08:34 PM
I'm not sure if you can change the account type (I'm a *nix newbie) but to log in as root you only have to log out and log back in with username: 'root' and the password you set for the root account.
Social Enemy
10-23-2003, 08:38 PM
Ok, I think I halfway get how to log in as "root".
Also, when I reboot, does the "command prompt" always appear? Is their a way I can get it to boot straight to the desktop(like in Windows)?
Yes- you can either configure one of the graphical login managers (kdm if you use KDE; gdm if Gnome), or just see what happens when you tell the system to boot directly to the GUI. To do that, open your /etc/inittab file in a text editor and edit it as follows:
Look for the line which reads "id:3:initdefault:" and change the "3" to "5". That will telll your system to boot to runlevel 5, which is the GUI runlevel.
JohnT
10-23-2003, 11:43 PM
Originally posted by DMR
Yes, but the advantage goes to he who slaps first...
Dave-->http://www.stevewolfonline.com/Downloads/DMR/Visuals/fishwhack.gif<--John
Gotcha!
:D
I had hoped I wouldn't have to resort
to this........http://koolhabenero.com/smash_head.gif
Ah, but you see- now you force me to resort to this:
http://www.stevewolfonline.com/Downloads/DMR/Visuals/Axe_anim.gif
and this: http://www.stevewolfonline.com/Downloads/DMR/Visuals/biggrinshot.gif
and this:
http://www.stevewolfonline.com/Downloads/DMR/Visuals/flamethrower.gif:(
and even this, perhaps:
http://www.stevewolfonline.com/Downloads/DMR/Visuals/headshot.gif
Had enough yet? If not, I've more of 'em...
:D :D
JohnT
10-24-2003, 09:47 AM
Whoops!! Looks like you need to be de-contaminated........Step in here .....Please.
Now Smilehttp://koolhabenero.com/smileys/king2.gif
http://koolhabenero.com/smileys/microwave.gif
My, my something seems amiss!!http://koolhabenero.com/smileys/king2.gif
H2O-linux
11-01-2003, 10:45 PM
I have the same network setup. It was far easier to format a swap and ext3 partition on the drive using Partition magic (search on kazaa "free) on the existing hardrive.
Then you can keep windows without the hassle of newbie mistakes when creating partions under drake.
my 2 cents