Andrewski Posted June 18, 2003 Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 I'm trying to take stock of my hardware so I can make sure I have all the drivers before I install Mandrake. Is there a recommended software to do this? I remember reading something about it, but I don't remember where. Also, how can I get any drivers I don't find? (I have a GeForce2 and I hear there are common Linux problems with that.) Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyme Posted June 18, 2003 Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 your hardware should be listed when your right click on "My Computer" choose "Properties" look under..erm..one of the tags for "device manager". i don't know of issues with geforce 2's, i do know you can get nvidia created linux drivers over at nvidia's site... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Scrimpshire Posted June 18, 2003 Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 I think what he really wants is a definitive list of what drivers he's going to need. A program that he can run on his windows box that says "Hey, this hardware is going to use this driver in Linux: blah" Kinda like how XP warns you if you might need 3rd party drivers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrewski Posted June 18, 2003 Author Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 Well, I was able to use Device Manager to get some of the basic stuff, but I'm afraid I'm going to need more info than just hard drives and CD-ROMS... any thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Scrimpshire Posted June 18, 2003 Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 What else would you need that you can't find in there? HDs Disks Sound Card Video Card Modem Network Card It's all there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrewski Posted June 18, 2003 Author Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 Well, if that's all I need, then OK. I'm looking on the hardware database on Mandrake's site and I'm not finding a few devices: NEC DV-5800A (DVD-ROM) Creative SoundBlaster Live! Value SMC EZ Card 10/100 Ethernet Card (SMC1255TX) These are all fairly big name devices; are they really completely unsupported by Mandrake? Should I expect to have problems? If so, what can I do to avoid them or to solve them? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kmack Posted June 18, 2003 Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 Welcome to MandrakeUsers! Why not post a list of your hardware and people can comment on specific issues? Probably the Device Manager info is adequate. If you want more, you can get a detailed list from Windows via Programs--Accessories--System Tools--System Information but it is more than most people ever want to know! :roll: Some of the info can be helpful. Mostly just look at the Components section for your basic building blocks. In general, Mandrake 9.1 is pretty good on detecting most hw unless you have really the very latest "cutting edge" things. I think you will be surprised how easy it is to install, and lots of people here are willing to help if you have problems. EDIT: Sorry--- looks like we posted at almost same time and I did not see your latest post... Think most of that hw is going to be OK. Just because it isn't on the list doesn't mean it won't work. The list is badly out of date! Post your list and I'm sure you'll get some feedback. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrewski Posted June 18, 2003 Author Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 DVD: NEC-DV5800A CDRW: NEC-NR7800A Sound Card: Creative SBLive! Value Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce2 MX/MX400 Network Adapters: 3Com 3C920 SMC EZ Card 10/100 Fast Ethernet PCI Network Adapter Hard Drives: IC35L040AVER07-0 (it came with my Dell... this is one thing I was confused about) Any comments? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kmack Posted June 18, 2003 Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 In general CDRW and DVD drives are pretty generic so I think you are fine there. Hard drives are also generic except for the latest serial drives. Your video, sound and network devices are all very common and should be no problem at all from what I see. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liquidzoo Posted June 18, 2003 Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 I'm not finding a few devices: NEC DV-5800A (DVD-ROM) Creative SoundBlaster Live! Value SMC EZ Card 10/100 Ethernet Card (SMC1255TX) The DVD-ROM should work great. I have a Pioneer and a Toshiba that are also not in the database, but work flawlessly. The Soundblaster may not show as officially supported, but it is 100% supported and recognized on install. It will work, trust me. The SMC card also should be supported. I see one of their chipsets on the Mandrake page and according to this page I see a lot of their cards supported, so it should work out just fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Scrimpshire Posted June 18, 2003 Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 I have an NEC 5700A DVD ROM...no problems. The SBLive card should also be no problem. Do you have *two* network adapters or is the 3Com just the name of the chipset that the other uses? You may want to search the web for the two network adapters: http://google.com/linux Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gowator Posted June 18, 2003 Report Share Posted June 18, 2003 Is this a laptop of DESKTOP I have yet to find an unsupported NIC but theres always a chance. In the end theyre $10 a go so desktop wise you can swap it out. The thing to realise on Linux is its a lot less fussy than Windows in many ways. NIC's tend to be supported by chipset. There are many STANDARDS like ATAPI etc. that linux just uses. Specific models are sometimes not specifically tested because really they will just work if they adhere to the standards. Graphics cards are an exception of course... What you'll find in Linux is the devices are probed to find the chipset. Like a TV tuner card using a BT-848 or whatever will be identified as that. In Windows the manufactuerers provde the drivers so you never reliase that your XYX-NIC is really just an ABC-NIC with another badge. You might need to suck it and see a little but consencus seems to be you'll be OK :-) Just becuase a device isn't supported doesn't mean it won't work becuase the drivers are usually available anyway!! Some exceptions are Winmodems and WinPrinters although even these are becoming increasingly supported. Congratulations on your choice of NEW OS. You'll find so many people ready to help ... like me a few years down the road you'll wonder why you didn't switch earlier ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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