chances of an easy install?

[Meat_PoPsiclez]

I've installed and used mandrake linux before (6.2 I believe), but I don't have much knowledge in linux.

Now, however, I'm starting again on a new system.

dell motherboard (intel ca810e with network and sound ripped)
p3 500e
128mb pc100
onboard 810e video (will it work?)
intel pci 10mbit ethernet card
creative labs pci128 sound card
fujitsu 8gb udma 66 hard drive
jvc 2x2x24 ide burner =OR=
aopen 12x ide cdburner
dell (?) 48x ide cdrom

What are my chances of an easy installation of mandrake 7.2? I'd be doing it from cd. I'd also have a windows millenium partition that I must keep intact. At some point I'd be adding a second network card, using the intel card to connect to a high speed internet (@home or adsl) service. The second card will be a 10/100 card to connect to my network.

I'm still tossing up whether to use linux again or win2kpro (which I already have). I need a system that will stay up for a few days at a time easily, be stable for cd burning, work as a network server for lan games etc.

My main reservations have to do with the intel 810e video, it has no vesa mode support, is in general a shoddy card, and I'm really worried that it won't work at all.
The jvc cdburner throws me for a loop too, if it won't work under linux, I'd have to get a new one, or keep booting back to win me to burn cd's.

Also, will linux make use of the udma 66 throughput? I will probably have a lot of network drive access and don't want it bogging down at all.

[elinor]

Mandrake 7.2 supports more hardware than any other distro I've seen. I can't speak directly to the chances of your video card's being supported, but I can tell you that I burn cd's all the time with Mandrake 7.2. Grub practically installs itself where it needs to go... so dual booting is a breeze, too. Good luck to ya!

http://www.linuxnewbie.org/ubb/smile.gif

[Derango]

The largest problem you might have is getting the high speed connection to work. I have heard reports of some people having a hard time getting it to recognize that they have the connection. Keep in mind, these are reports...I'm unlucky enough to be stuck on a dial-up.

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This space For Rent

[conman]

I've installed Drake 7.2 on a system very similar to yours. The lack of frame buffer support for that card simply means you can't run Aurora during bootup but Drake knows this and doesn't try to start it. (Aurora is a utility which graphically shows you which services are being started and allows you to choose run level and reboot/shutdown etc... looks nice but is just for looks.) Otherwise the machine runs beautifully (no CDR though so can't speak for that)

[conman]

It supports UDMA by default also. All you need to do is append "idebus=66" to your bootloader options and it will work.

[knavely]

im running drake 7.1 with an adsl connection ala sympatico. Works great,just download pppoe from www.roaringpenguin.com/pppoe/ (http://www.roaringpenguin.com/pppoe/) it a breaz.

[Meat_PoPsiclez]

Thanks for the answers. Hmm, running Sympatico adsl (mts) right now under windows me.

Good to know that my hardware should all work good. Now the only remaining question, if I did wish to, will that 810e video do any 3d ops? I somehow doubt it does, or ever will, but I might as well ask. Running quake 2/3 would be a nice way to pass the time when my other system is indisposed.