[plug] RE: Feedback: [newbie] Helping The Mandrake folks with feedback

[Beau Kuiper]

On Wed, 18 Jul 2001, Russell Hobman wrote:

> > Goodaye John, I have just bought a Mandrake 8.0 PowerPak and have been
> > reading the documentation on how to set it up on my PC. I have a few
> > suggestions for the documentation as I have written below as I am still
> > confused over how to set up some aspects of Linux.
> >
> > 1. the setup menu could do with an option for a single user/desktop PC
> > environment.

Agreed

> > 2. the instructions to make and use a boot floppy disk are unclear.

Ok again.

> > 3. it is not clear how to set up raid and reiserfs over two HDD's

I don't think that works anyway (raid + reiserfs). Anyway, raid is
definitely not something I would recommend to any beginner, so try
something smaller first.

> > 4. I am planning to run windows under M8 through win4lin, not a dual boot
> > system - do I still need fat32 partitions?
> > 5. if I install windows through win4lin/linux do they make use of fat32 or
> > reiserfs format?

Read the win4lin documentation.

> > 6. does the reiserfs and raid work with windows files in this case or just
> > native M8?
> > 7. can windows running under win4lin read windows programs/files installed
> > on Linux partitions or other fat 32 disk?

Read the win4lin documentation

> > 8. the naming convention for Linux partitions/directories is unclear.
> > i.e.. is Boot the same as Root?

For all intents and puposes yes

> > 9. it is unclear on the space to allocate to each partition for Linux to
> > operate satisfactory and what space left to install other software.

While more documentation on this might be useful, you might as well use
only 1 or 2 partitions on a home computer since you don't have external
users filling partitions up.

> > 10. can Mandrake 8 boot automatically for me after a power failure or do I
> > have to be right there to set everything up again?

Have lilo autoboot mandrake and make sure the bios is set to power the
computer up (after power failure). Some motherboards do not have this bios
options, while others require a bios flash to do so.

Beau Kuiper
kuiperba at cs.curtin.edu.au

> >
> > john, could you add these issues to your list and if anyone could help
> > clarify any of these points it would be much appreciated. regards,
> > Russell.
> >
> >  --- John Rigby <rigby at fablor.com> wrote: > From: John Rigby
> > <rigby at fablor.com>
> > > Organisation: Fablor
> > > To: "Newbie" <newbie at linux-mandrake.com>
> > > Date: Tue, 17 Jul 2001 15:47:58 +1000
> > > Subject: [newbie] Helping The Mandrake folks with feedback
> > >
> > > Hi folks,  I just posted YAPL and realised that it might just sound
> > unappreciative.  Certainly not the case.  It is the GNU world of  Linux
> > and Mandrake that restores my faith in humanity every day after reading
> > the News Of The World!
> > >
> > > With all of this in mind, I would like to ask the other REAL Newbies  (
> > *non-commandliners*) on the list to send me the "gotchas" that
> > caught/catch them when starting out and I will put them into a report
> > that I am writing for Mandrake to help others along the way.
> > >
> > > It can be done! We can escape that other one!  AND take others with  us!
> > :-)
> > > > --
> > > Cheers, John
> > >
> > > Fablor now Webhosting?? What on earth for??  Info here:
> > > fabhost at fablor.com  (it's only an Autoresponder)  :-)
> > >
>
>