I have two reasons for wanting to try openSUSE: 1) try to get a laptop with clobbered OEM Vista OS (it passes all WinDoze’s dignostics,but won’t do anything but read a CD) back into useful operation, and 2)try to get into more open-source operations. I have worked with Linux-like systems in ancient times (1980s), but haven’t programmed in basic since the 1970’s. I have spent several hours browsing through your forums, and found them very provocative, but haven’t found definitive answers to some basic questions.
Before I even download (openSUSE 11 KDE4?) I need some reassurances: 1) are the downloads passive packages to be executed later?, 2) Do they include facility to construct a boot-load that I could use to re-activate my laptop from CD?, 3) Is it safe for me to try to install openSUSE & KDE onto my new Vista 32-bit machine(after insuring backup and restore are functional?
Most of the answers I need are probably available at your website, so reference would be great!
The downloads are a bunch of RPMs on a DVD (11.1 is probably what you
want, not just 11) and includes options for both Gnome and KDE.
The DVD is bootable and can help you recover if something goes wrong
with the install.
Yes; the install will resize your NTFS partition, though if you had
the option at some point to install Vista using less-than the full drive
you could also remove that slight risk (I’ve done this on others’ systems
a dozen times without issues).
Good luck.
hwbrough wrote:
> I have two reasons for wanting to try openSUSE: 1) try to get a laptop
> with clobbered OEM Vista OS (it passes all WinDoze’s dignostics,but
> won’t do anything but read a CD) back into useful operation, and 2)try
> to get into more open-source operations. I have worked with Linux-like
> systems in ancient times (1980s), but haven’t programmed in basic since
> the 1970’s. I have spent several hours browsing through your forums,
> and found them very provocative, but haven’t found definitive answers to
> some basic questions.
>
> Before I even download (openSUSE 11 KDE4?) I need some reassurances: 1)
> are the downloads passive packages to be executed later?, 2) Do they
> include facility to construct a boot-load that I could use to
> re-activate my laptop from CD?, 3) Is it safe for me to try to install
> openSUSE & KDE onto my new Vista 32-bit machine(after insuring backup
> and restore are functional?
>
> Most of the answers I need are probably available at your website, so
> reference would be great!
>
>
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The downloads consist of ISO images normally. You can install them three ways (as far as I know);
Burn to optical media. The Live CDs can be used to run the operating system from the CD, with no alterations to your hard drive, to test it (or indeed to fix things). They can also install. The DVD contains more software, is more compatible, and can repair some broken systems automatically through scripts - but it isn’t a live system, only an installer. The net install image is just a minimal bootable system that downloads everything at install time.
Burn to USB stick - easiest way is to use the Live CD ISO and the program unetbootin.
With a functioning GRUB on a hard drive (or floppy), you can boot the ISO itself. This is more complicated, and probably not worth attempting until you’ve got yourself familiar with the way things work now - I suspect quite a lot has changed.
You can install parallel to Windows, but should be aware that you may have to take extra steps to fix the bootloader with Vista - have a read of the sticky at the top of the install/boot/login forum.
Also, if you have a restore / diagnostic partition on your laptop, it is probably accessed by a non-standard bootloader. There can be no guarantees of preserving access to this.
I should really say there can be no guarantees of preserving access to this if you replace the Vista bootloader. You can install GRUB on SUSE’s partition, and then as far as I know you can persuade the Vista bootloader to chainload grub, and that shouldn’t adversely affect anything about your present setup.
Burn to optical media. The Live CDs can be used to run the operating system from the CD, with no alterations to your hard drive, to test it (or indeed to fix things). They can also install. The DVD contains more software, is more compatible, and can repair some broken systems automatically through scripts - but it isn’t a live system, only an installer. The net install image is just a minimal bootable system that downloads everything at install time.
I don’t understand CD vs DVD. Do I have a problem here? I can read/write both on my new desktop, but only CDs on the laptop I’m trying to resuscitate. I don’t expect to recover any of my user files on it, though that would be nice. My primary hope is to get an operable laptop back, with openSUSE installed.
If the laptop can only read CDs, you will find it much easier to use the Live CD image. It is possible to install the DVD image through other means, but it really isn’t worth the hassle of trying unless the Live CD doesn’t work.
This isn’t a problem - you can install any other software you want afterwards, and to all intents and purposes, you’ll end up with the same system.
Download the CD iso, and check the md5sum (refer to the preinstallation sticky at the top of the forum for elaboration on this). Burn the CD iso onto a disc using your image burning software of choice, and then boot it. Run the media check just to see if everything’s OK, then load the operating system itself (this will all be self evident once you’ve got it burned).
Then you can use the Live CD to rescue any files you want from the system (obviously as long as you have somewhere to copy them to…)
So right! My last hands-on with Linux was on an X100-bus machine, and Visual Basic hadn’t yet been invented, as I remember (imperfectly).
Thanks to all! I have downloaded openSUSE 11.1 KDE on my desktop. It ran smoothly, and I have studied carefully through the screen shots at opensuse.org/Screenshots/openSUSE_11.1.
Now, before installing I need some clarifications about chksum’s and about partioning.
Since I’m still hesitant about protocols here, I’ll ask: better to start a new thread, or to continue this one?
Again, this forum is a pleasure, and all of you have my heartiest thanks!
