Counterspy

As a guess, after you have checked the md5sums on the downloaded iso's, watch carefully which file it is that the install chokes on. If possible, (i.e. not a mandatory package) use individual package selection and leave that one out. It may be that once an error occurs, the installer might have choked and refused to install the rest. Counterspy

I notice you are using an older kernel for Red Hat 9.0. You can get a new one from up2date along with a number of other REd Hat fixes assuming you are still using it. If you are locked out of up2date and want back in, I'll help you with that procedure. Counterspy

As a returning poster with ground to catch up, phunni I will give you the same answer I would have if this was a linuxiso question. Since you are using the stage 1 install, I would check out the Gentoo forum and if this has not come as an issue, it would be worth your while to join and ask. Counterspy

1) Occasionally when I leave Mandrake for Windows or shut the machine down, I lose the graphic kfm for my home directory. The files are intact and survive in terminal mode. Is there an expanation for this and is there a solution? I have upgraded to the latest KDE from cooker, but it was doing this before as well. It has now disappeared again. 2) snd-emu10k is the correct driver for my sound card, an SB Live 5.1. It has disappeared from the list of sound drivers. Is there a way to retreive this driver from witin the Mandrake distro or must I compile another? Counterspy

Is this not likely to be a pattern as Linux moves to the desktop? With the rise in Lycoris and Lindows, these could be considered as forks in a way. What they seem to have done is garner enough attention to be taken seriously as desktop contenders. With the big players looking at Linux and backing it with millions, more forking is likely as they won't stand for long and ponderous negotiations over minutae. Let's hope it doesn't happen with the kernel. Counterspy

That is a rather ingenious method of using Knoppix and Partimage. We anxiously await the results of your experiment. Counterspy

If you haven't yet run RPM Add Software from MCC, go to PcLinuxOnline and use the method there for easily adding urpmi software sources beforehand. The result is all of the additions you make are included in the Add Software Section by program name. The only difference is that you need to be online at the time you run Add Software. (Unless you have configured a public key in gnupg you will get unsigned package errors on some of what you may select from Texstar and others. Ignore them.) Counterspy

I have rarely seen such stupidity emanating from a company hanging by a thread when their own custom packages for configuring and running the distro are do full of errors that they have to post updates before the boxes hit the stores. This does not bode well for the future of Mandrakesoft. It would be interesting to see how many of the problems are of Mandrakesoft's sloppy quality control and how much is third party such as the security problems in KDE (which are not yet in Updates but are in cooker). Adding to that is having would-be PR man Gael Duval shooting his mouth off that the Club is the most important revenue stream over Mandrakestore sales and retail sales on the open market. ( http://www.osnews.com/story.php?news_id=3131 ) According to him they are going to more subscription based services. I know have Knoppix and should that happen with downloads I'm gone to Debian. Counterspy

As far as the ASDL and modem are concerned, I seriously doubt whether your ISP allows one account to access mutiple connections simultaneously. This is a matter for you to discuss with them. Counterspy

I would suggest that that is the reason for the problems. It looks like Mandrake is not getting the chance to load the initrd file into ram using that method. There is absolutely no risk to allow lilo or grub to boot both Mandrake and Windows and I believe that is the direction you should go. Counterspy

I read your post carefully and I beleive I have never seen such a complicated setup discussed here. Here are some observations for you to consider. 1) Go to the Promise website here: http://www.promise.com/search_display_eng....}&Keyword=Linux and see what if any support they have for Linux. Note that you need all of this url, not just the highlighted part. This has been an ongoing problem with both Promise and Highpoint on-board controllers and the results are not encouraging. 2) You may do better with the enterprise kernel. Read the kernel docs and if source code makes any sense to you, look at the enterprise kernel source. You will need to download it from a Mandrake mirror, usually the same ones that have the ISO's. The docs are on your Install CD's. 3) Get rid of Bootmagic. This is an uncessary complication with Linux since Grub (and Lilo) will do multi-booting quite well. Get the docs for Grub here: http://www.gnu.org/software/grub/ . 4) On your Linux system, assuming it is still installed, there are How-To's dealing with Multi-booting, and Software Raid. There may be others of use when you see the titles. If you do not have Mandrake still installed, go to http://tldp.org where you will also find this how-to: http://www.tldp.org/HOWTO/Linux-Promise-RAID1-HOWTO/ . 5) Also check the Mandrake Hardware Database here: http://www.linux-mandrake.com/en/fhard.php3 to see if anything here is rlevant. 6) If you damage your XP setup, see M$ KB article #Q307654. 7) Post this question in the newsgroup alt.os.mandrake.linux where some more experienced people can look at what you are trying to do. If you do manage to get this setup working or not under Linux, please post the results here so others can profit from your experience. Counterspy

I like your three "R's" and three "C's". Why don't you make them the basis for a tutorial? Counterspy

Mandrakesoft has provided us with a much greater selection of How-To's in version 9.1 than we have had previously in the Documentation section of the Main Menu. Also, we still have the Quick Start Guide, the Starter Guide and the Command Line Manual for v. 9.1. The latter three are available in html and pdf formats and supercede the corresponding documents in our ftp area. The book "Rute" is also available from the Documentation Section making access to it much easier. This is as good or better than any available commercial offering and if you want to print it out, you'll only pay for paper and ink. This effort from Mandrakesoft deserves a look from all and a reference to this rich source before questions are posted here. Counterspy

Yes they have been there but until v. 9.0, it was necessary to search the cd's themsevles. Now that no longer appears to be the case with the method we have for finding them in a much easier way. I also felt that newer users might not have ever looked through the CD's and that is why I drew attention to the method for doing it. Counterspy

Oh, and I forgot. I support Tomb's arguments to the hilt. And there will be a Tutorial for the next version of Mandrake. Counterspy

The Upgrade option is a mindless delusion that should have never been suggested much less implemented. I would favour the guillotine for those responsible for creating it. It has been the source of no end of trouble both in the install and down the road as other packages are really upgraded. Mandrakesoft has many fundamental weaknesses in its decision making process that have precipitated their current predicament, not the actions of a previously employed deluded CEO. Alienating users with no Install tutorial and offering none of the kind of advice provided here or in the newsgroup is one such avoidable decision. For most, the first install of a new version is a daunting task frought with unseen gotchas. They do not need unexplained surprises created by the company wanting us to "join the club as the best way to support Mandrake" or order packages from any channel but a retail supplier to establish themselves as a viable product worth the top level of shelf placement. This does not happen with Redhat and that, IMHO is why they are the front runner. We understand they are short of money. We accept that some hardware doesn't work because they could not test it sufficiently, if at all. We accept elimination of valuable packages. What we don't accept are arbitrary and unexplained changes made without announcement beforehand, an activity that takes little time and effort but indicates the value placed on the user base by the company . This omission only serves to alienate the user base and bring the scythe of bankruptcy death that much closer. It's another case of "it's really too bad." Counterspy

You should have no problems then. I would personally choose Grub. Redaht no longer supplies lilo with their distros. Counterspy

I like your web site and I have a few comments that I would like to make. Thanks also for making us aware of yet another partitioning program. BTW, the link on your page came up 404 for me and I had to use Google to find it. I would move your warning about scandisk and defrag into the Partitioning section since it makes the difference before partitioning, not after. Some people here also create a /usr partition and a /var partition, the former because that's where your downloaded programs usually end up and the latter to prevent runaway log files overwriting part of root. I'm not sure about the Nvidia instructions you have given. Look at the recent messages here and in the Tips and Tricks forum for a new way to install Nvidia drivers. In How to get help, you could add the newsgroup alt.os.linux.mandrake which is a rich source of help from highly qualified and experienced folks. I would check the programs in your software list to ensure they will run under Glibc 2.3.1. You have put a lot of work into your site and I would suggest you put a link to it in our links section at the top of the page. Thanks and welcome on behalf of our community here for an excellent site that will hopefully create some more Mandrake users. Counterspy

I have not heard of this before and suggest you ask this question in the newsgroup, alt.os.linux.mandrake if nothing further is posted here. My own box does not shut down with Mandrake 9.0 or 9.1, but then I leave it on 24/7 anyway and shutdown through Windows or hit my on/off switch on my power bar at the opening screen before a Mandrake reboot gets started. Crude but effective. Counterspy

The only hitch I see is that you are adding a third distro. When you do the Mandrake install, it may be that the Knoppix/Debian boot stanza in the respective conf files, lilo.conf or grub.1st gets overwritten whichever you use. I don't think your XP stanza will get overwritten. Usually the third (or more) distros are stopped from writing to the boot sector then are boot with a floppy disk, with lilo.conf or grub.1st edited by hand to accomodate it (them). If I am wrong about this, hopefully someone else will jump in before you begin your install. Counterspy

I am not sure about whether we will get docs that are donwnloadable as in the past. Mandrakesoft has invested in the book and I suspect that we will be required to fork over US$39.35 to get it. The Power Pack had different docs than the download site for 9.0 like the Installation Guide and Reference Manual in 8.2. More of this type of thing can be expected as Mandrakesoft moves toward subscription type services. The Mandrake Campus has been moved to the Mandrake Club. Even the tutorial normally part of the first CD is a URL to a Mandrake site. Such is the price of Mandrakesoft survival. Counterspy

I think you have it mixed up with the Mel Brooks produced and directed "Blazing Saddles", in which Alex Karras, former Detroit Lions football 14 yr. star lineman knocked out a horse. Mel also gave us some wonderful sendups including the original film version of The Producers in which Zero Mostel and Alan Arkin combine to produce the worst musical in history to fleece investors with "Springtime for Hitler", which to their consternation turns into a Broadway success. The Producers just finished a real highly successful run on Broadway. Alex went on to become a sitcom star in "Webster". (I did need to look that up.) Sorry it wasn't Arnold S. I don't need any more added to my post count. This is a freebe. Counterspy

That's it with the .img files in the download section. Counterspy

If you look at the source you may get an idea why KDE doesn't work. The URL I gave above will take you to the source. Counterspy

Run sndconfig from a console as root. You should get a screen in which you can test your card. It is the voice of Linux Torvalds pronouncing "Linux" . If your card supports midi you should be able to test it with a sound. If Linus or both work, you're done. Make sure the volume is turned up in the kmix program. Counterspy