[1002richards]

Hi trekguy,
You can get Ubuntu sent to you free on a disc, from here:
https://shipit.ubuntu.com/

Takes a couple of weeks (or up to ten) or so but it's the real deal when it arrives & no more incomplete downloads.

Richard.

[trekguy]

Originally Posted by RootbeaR

I'm not too keen on Fedora. My biggest beef is their servers take too long to download from.

PCLinuxOS repositories download @ max speed for me, 10 Mb/s, whereas Fedora is a small fraction of that. Makes me feel like I am on dial-up.



I downloaded Ubuntu two days ago via torrent. Took 12 1/2 minutes.

Wow... that must be nice.

After ditching Windows download manager, and installing Free Download Manager, I actually have Ubuntu 7.10 on a disk! It took about 5 hours. I have DSL, but I am rural, and not too close to the main switch... beats dial-up, though. I can get 30-50 Kbs.

[trekguy]

Originally Posted by 1002richards

Hi trekguy,
You can get Ubuntu sent to you free on a disc, from here:
https://shipit.ubuntu.com/

Takes a couple of weeks (or up to ten) or so but it's the real deal when it arrives & no more incomplete downloads.

Richard.

Thanks for the link.

Woohoo, I managed to get Ubuntu 7.10 on a disk!

And, these distros are on their way.

Kubuntu 7.10
PCLinuxOS 2007
Zenwalk 5
SuSe

I will be going with one of these 5, so any info, or opinions??

What exactly are the differences between them? Is it just the way they look? Are some easier to learn than others? Will some be better at finding/working with the hardware on my PC?

And, if I choose one, and later want to change, is that a major process??

[trekguy]

Update:

Tried booting the desktop PC/new hard drive with the Ubuntu liveCD... no go.

There must be something else wrong, besides the hard drive???

I'm heading over to the Hardware forum, to see if anyone has any ideas.

[tomdkat]

Did you get any error messages? If so, what did you get?

Peace...

[trekguy]

Originally Posted by tomdkat

Did you get any error messages? If so, what did you get?

Peace...

I got nothing... zero... the monitor does not even come out of "amber light" mode.

Graphics card? Processor? MB?

[tomdkat]

Ok, the amber light on the monitor means there is no video signal coming from the computer. This means something probably crashed during the boot process. Even though your ISO downloaded, maybe it's bad? Dunno...

Peace...

[trekguy]

Originally Posted by tomdkat

Ok, the amber light on the monitor means there is no video signal coming from the computer. This means something probably crashed during the boot process. Even though your ISO downloaded, maybe it's bad? Dunno...

Peace...

I have booted my laptop with the Ubuntu disk I made, so I know the disk will boot. I'm thinking the desktop has a hardware problem other than the hard drive.

I don't know where to start with it, or if it's even worth trying to fix it.

Maybe I should try to build a new one from scratch... I think that might be fun. I have the OS taken care of already!

[valis]

okay, time for my stupid question. downloading fedora core 8.0, will the x-86-64 work on a 32 bit system? I'm assuming so, as the only other options are for apple or 386? I've got a good connection to a mirror site, but want to make sure that the 86-64 will fly on my 32 bit rig......

any more questions, I'll create my own thread.....sorry trekguy......

[tomdkat]

Originally Posted by valis

okay, time for my stupid question. downloading fedora core 8.0, will the x-86-64 work on a 32 bit system?

Nope.

Peace...

[tomdkat]

Originally Posted by trekguy

I have booted my laptop with the Ubuntu disk I made, so I know the disk will boot. I'm thinking the desktop has a hardware problem other than the hard drive.

I don't know where to start with it, or if it's even worth trying to fix it.

Ok, it might not be a hardware "problem" but that the liveCD doesn't like a piece of hardware in your system. I've had intermittent problems in the past with some liveCDs booting on a given machine and others not.

EDIT: What are the hardware specs of the desktop machine?

Peace...

[trekguy]

Originally Posted by tomdkat

Ok, it might not be a hardware "problem" but that the liveCD doesn't like a piece of hardware in your system. I've had intermittent problems in the past with some liveCDs booting on a given machine and others not.

EDIT: What are the hardware specs of the desktop machine?

Peace...

AMD Sempron... 1.2ghz?
M848A V2.1
1536 mb ram
ATI Radeon Force RV6DE-NA3
PS-Austin DR-B300ATX
CD
DVD-RW

I just powered it up again, and this it what happens... power supply comes on...CD light comes and stays on.... hard drive light comes on and stays on.

It does this with or without the Ubuntu LiveCD.

Shouldn't it at least do the POST thing, if the MB is good??

And another interesting thing... I can't power it down by holding the power button down.... I have to switch it off on the back of the box. ?????

BTW, I am writing this from the Firefox browser on my Ubuntu LiveCD on the laptop!!!

I can connect to the internet with a direct connection to my router... but the wireless card will not, for some reason. It shows my network, and provides a place to enter the passphrase, and the lights on the card flash like they should, but it doesn't happen on the screen.

And, how do I make the title bar smaller?? It's like 2 inches wide at the top of the screen.

[tomdkat]

Originally Posted by trekguy

I just powered it up again, and this it what happens... power supply comes on...CD light comes and stays on.... hard drive light comes on and stays on.

It does this with or without the Ubuntu LiveCD.

Ok, this sounds like a hardware conflict of some kind. Are the CD-ROM drive and the hard drive on the same IDE cable? If so, they are both probably set to cable select or master. Disconnect the hard drive and see if the liveCD boots. Be sure to configure the BIOS to boot from the CD-ROM drive.

Peace...

[trekguy]

Originally Posted by tomdkat

Ok, this sounds like a hardware conflict of some kind. Are the CD-ROM drive and the hard drive on the same IDE cable? If so, they are both probably set to cable select or master. Disconnect the hard drive and see if the liveCD boots. Be sure to configure the BIOS to boot from the CD-ROM drive.

Peace...

The new hard drive's jumpers were set the same as the old one.

I disconnected the new drive... still no BIOS.

Is there any way to tell if it's the mobo, or the video card?? With no display, and nothing to go by on the monitor, I'm lost.

[tomdkat]

Originally Posted by trekguy

The new hard drive's jumpers were set the same as the old one.

Unless the new hard drive is the exact same make/model as the old hard drive, the jumper settings being "the same" doesn't necessarily mean those jumper settings are correct. Is the hard drive jumpered as master or cable select?

I disconnected the new drive... still no BIOS.

Ok, what happens if you disconnect the CD drive?

Is there any way to tell if it's the mobo, or the video card?? With no display, and nothing to go by on the monitor, I'm lost.

If you have a spare video card laying around, you could certainly try that and see. The golden rule is: "if it's swappable, swap it"

Also, do you hear any beeps or anything when you turn on the machine?

Peace...