[saikee]

I once commented should Window die one day one of the knives that stab into its heart would be a Linux Live CD.

A Linux Live CD is a full Linux system that runs on a CD without the need of being installed into any hard drive. Better ones come with a hard disk installer. If you manage to get Knoppix 3.4 upward, load it up, click the terminal and drop into the command mode, type su to become the "root" user (to get privileage as an administrator) and type "knoppix-installer". You can time the clock. This is a full Linux system with many features superior to XP but can be loaded in 5 minutes flat without the need of asking you for a driver or a question. A knoppix CD can also be used to clone a XP partition and make it bootable too.

Redeon 9800+ is a high end video card and may not be supported by older kernels of Linux. You should be able to run it using the generic driver "radeon" which is the one I use for my ATI radeon 9200SE.

You can only use the vi editor after the kernel has been successfully loaded. In such case you are in an equivalent of the DOS mode. The file that tells you what is wrong with the failed video is in /var/log/XFree86.0.log (I think) and the file that you have have to edit is /etc/X11/XF86Conf-4 or /etc/X11/xorg.cof (check directory first as the name can be slightly different between distros).

Basically you use "ls" to look at the directories first, repeat the command with up arroew key, position the "ls" and replace it with "vi" to edit the exact file. To view the file you use "more" or "less" like "more /etc/X11/xorg.conf".

[AvvY]

ok, so knoppix 3.6 is a live cd version of linux which can be installed onto ur comp. i have just searched out a bitttorrent download and ill do it now. it is only 700mb in size, and the mandrake cds (3 of them) were over 2gb. what is the real difference then?

[AvvY]

wait, whats this kernal business, i dont understand the concept being a windows boy.

[saikee]

You should find Mandrake supplies also the programs in source form enabling you to customise the system later on. The source programs for knoppix have to be download from their site if you want them.

A Linux has 3 distinct parts to me. A bootloader that control booting, a kerenl that control/interface the computer resources for you and the Graphic User Interface.

The kernel is equivalent to DOS in Windows but it is probably 100 times more powerful. It operates only in command prompt. A good Linux (well written and developed) will give you the kernel back if it experience difficulty in reaching the GUI stage. An experienced Linux user can then edit the nesccessary files to fire up the GUI manually.

[AvvY]

ok so how do i actually access this kernal to tell it what video card i have, and thus can go ahead with the install. or should i try knoppix instead?

[saikee]

By the sound of it you haven't managed much with Mandrake. Cut your loss and concentrate on Knoppix first. You can go back to try Mandrake later after you pick up a bit of experience with Knoppix.

May be you appreciate my 5Gb/distro advice now.

[AvvY]

ok sounds like a plan!

[AvvY]

Hello again. well i finished downloading the Knoppix live cd .iso, burnt it and booted it. but one small problem, when i try and boot it, it crashes!. it opens the boot window, and i type in knoppix into the command line, it starts loading, checking all the hardwear, it gets to 100% and then it stops doing anything... maybe my computer isnt very linux friendly...

[lynch]

It's running everything from ram. You may have to wait a bit for it to get started. How long did you let it run before deciding that it had crashed?
lynch

[AvvY]

umm, on 3 occasions... the longest i gave was 2-3minutes...

[saikee]

What version of Knoppix are you using? Current one is 3.6

The ATI Radeon 9800 is a top end video card and I do expect older versions of Linux may have a problem with it. In fact you should prepared for a long haul. I orginally started my Linux adventure on a machine with a nVidia 5200FX. I managed to boot 16 Linux but failed with 2. Instead of acquiring a driver for it I moved the Linux distros to a older machine with an ATI Radeon 9200 and ran into a lot less video problem. So there is a price to pay for a technology too new to Linux. Having said that I am sure I came across a few distros displaying support for the ATI 9800 when I examine its XF86Config-4 files. Thus I am hopeful that you will get there.

Try press just the return to boot knoppix (without typing anything, as I never did).

Now my guess is that you are half way there and should have a kernel. Knoppix may not have hung. It is there but could not communicate with you through the graphic interface because of the video card problem.

Press crtl+alt+F1 should allow you to see Knoppix's bash shell or command prompt. Read my previous post to navigate in bash shell and tell us what you have found. If the kernel is live and kicking you can just editing the XF86Config-4, save it, type "startx" to fire up the desktop and until it works.

[lynch]

Originally Posted by saikee

The kernel is equivalent to DOS in Windows but it is probably 100 times more powerful. It operates only in command prompt.

The kernel is responsible for resource allocation, low-level hardware interfaces, security, etc. It's the basic part of any OS. It is not equivalent to DOS because DOS is an OS which has it's own kernel. It's the underlying component of the OS wether you run in command line or GUI mode.

A good Linux (well written and developed) will give you the kernel back if it experience difficulty in reaching the GUI stage.

Do you mean it will give you the shell(CLI) back if X fails? It will return you to a CLI if X fails.

An experienced Linux user can then edit the nesccessary files to fire up the GUI manually.

Yep.

lynch

[saikee]

lynch,

Thanks for pointing out my loose association with the kernel and the Command Line Interfaces (CLI) shell. I shall refer to it as BASH shell from now on.

[lynch]

No problem. I wont even mention how long it took for me to figure all that out when I started using Linux.
bigavvystyle, I think you should give us a list of what hardware you're running. It'd be a big help. The Radeon 9800 should work.
lynch

[AvvY]

ok.

AMD64 3000+ processor
1024mb ram
9800+ Radeon
Creative Audigy ZS
200GB HDD
Pioneer DVD-/+RW DVR-108
LiteOn DVD-Rom SOHD 167-T
TV capture card (cant remember specs).. its HDTV
externally:
LG Flatron L1710S LCD monitor
Logitec MX Duo (Wireless keyboard and mouse)
Canon MP390 (all in one office centre USB)
Netgear RP614v2 Cable/ADSL router (Ethernet)

thats everything! hope this assists