Windows is driving me nuts...i have questions about Linux
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Eterion, the Blaster worm is an exploit of some sort, u need to remove it, and patch your system up before it infects again. I dont know the procedure, but here is a link to the way it is done in XP...
abvout the dual boot thing, I dont think u will encounter problems with installing Mandrake, it gives u an option of "use free space on windows partition" when u install
P.S I am also new to this so dont follow my advice
Distribution: Pondering on that at the moment... HELP =)
Posts: 22
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TMMO-
Thank you for your input, but my OS is Windows 2000 Pro-which I believe has is on a different platform than XP. Are you experiencing the same "svchost.exe" error as well? If you are, then maybe we might have identical problems. Ive checked out the website, but once again am faced with the 34+MB download of a file way too big for me, since im on a dialup. Thanks for your input tho. And what software of Linux do you recommend by the way?
Distribution: Pondering on that at the moment... HELP =)
Posts: 22
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Looking at all these responses Im assuming that Mandrake is the more popular user-friendly distribution. In that case, i think ill try to get a copy by the end of this week. Mandrake 9.1 is the version i should get right? I think thats the current one out there, but if someone thinks i should get an older version please say so now or forever hold your peace. And thanks again you guys for all these hints and tips!
Distribution: Pondering on that at the moment... HELP =)
Posts: 22
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Yes thank you fancypiper, ive alraedy downloaded the symantec tool and ran it on my computer three times--i know i dont have msblast cuz i ran the usual manual check. If i do, its probably infected my master boot files by now, cuz Windows isnt showing any traces of it on the C drive. In that case, seeing how i dont have System Restore, should I just dump my Win 2K OS?
Personally, I would go with a stable release as a newbie. Notice what distros I run. Gentoo is my bleedin' edge learning distro, Red Hat 7.3 and Mandrake 9.0 is what I do most of my "work" on.
Most newbies choose the newest and buggiest which can give a bad first impression.
If you do choose a newer release, get the updates cd if available here: Discount Linux CDs
Distribution: Pondering on that at the moment... HELP =)
Posts: 22
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Hmmm sorry bout im getting last minute questions...
Mandrake 9.1 apparently comes in three different versions for personal users. Which one should I take? Like i said, my primary uses is word processing/spreadsheet, internet/email. The versions are Standard, PowerPack, and ProSuite. Which should I take? Keep in mind, i have like 8GB of memory I think.
Originally posted by Eterion Yes thank you fancypiper, ive alraedy downloaded the symantec tool and ran it on my computer three times--i know i dont have msblast cuz i ran the usual manual check. If i do, its probably infected my master boot files by now, cuz Windows isnt showing any traces of it on the C drive. In that case, seeing how i dont have System Restore, should I just dump my Win 2K OS?
Distribution: Pondering on that at the moment... HELP =)
Posts: 22
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fancy-its asking for a Windows Setup Disk or the Windows CD (which i dont have)... *raises an eyebrow, im seriously starting to get aggrevated with this Windows thing.
The powerpack should be plenty. I won the Mandrake 9.0 powerpack on this site and it had the nVidia and conexant modem drivers included, so I had no problems installing onto a cheap box for a friend (conexant modem) and on this box (Duron 950, nVidia vid card, Turtle Beach Santa Cruz sound), no problems.
If you don't need any peculiar drivers or 3rd party software, the standard will do for you.
I had installed the download version of 'drake 9 and had gotten most of it working, but it was much easier with the power pack. Not needing to have internet access set up first to do it all was very nice.
Originally posted by Eterion fancy-its asking for a Windows Setup Disk or the Windows CD (which i dont have)... *raises an eyebrow, im seriously starting to get aggrevated with this Windows thing.
I am eyballing a few of my partitions that are getting very little use myself. That would hold a lot of my music files........ just for a couple of games and I get killed in them all the time anyhow. Hmmm.. but you seem to always need something the day after you throw it away.
Code:
root@uilleann # fdisk -l
Disk /dev/hdc: 255 heads, 63 sectors, 1027 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 bytes
Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/hdc1 * 1 1027 8249346 c Win95 FAT32 (LBA)
Disk /dev/hda: 255 heads, 63 sectors, 4865 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 bytes
Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/hda1 * 1 1215 9755991 c Win95 FAT32 (LBA)
/dev/hda2 1215 2429 9751455 7 HPFS/NTFS
/dev/hda3 2429 2441 99855 83 Linux
/dev/hda4 2442 4865 19470780 5 Extended
/dev/hda5 2442 2504 506016 82 Linux swap
/dev/hda6 2505 2931 3429846 83 Linux
/dev/hda7 2932 3358 3429846 83 Linux
/dev/hda8 3359 3785 3429846 83 Linux
/dev/hda9 3786 4212 3429846 83 Linux
/dev/hda10 4213 4865 5245191 83 Linux
Disk /dev/hdb: 255 heads, 63 sectors, 9729 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 bytes
Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/hdb1 * 1 1244 9986917+ 83 Linux
/dev/hdb2 1244 2518 10238886 83 Linux
/dev/hdb3 2519 3793 10241437+ 83 Linux
/dev/hdb4 3794 9729 47680920 83 Linux
I could burn you a cd with the sp4 if you want. Let me know and get me a sase and I will send you all the updates (I finally figured out how to get them saved before 'doze erased them) for Windows 2000 pro. Send an e-mail to fancypiper@linuxmail.com and post a note here letting me know.
Distribution: Pondering on that at the moment... HELP =)
Posts: 22
Original Poster
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fancypiper-
Thanks for your offer to help! I dont know how efficient a burnt copy of SP4 is-doesnt Windows have to scan my computer to see what to install? Or does every copy of SP4 is compatible for all Win 2K models? In anycase, I would be more than grateful if you could help me figure my Win 2K problem.
Unless otherwise or you feel reluctant to, please contact me via a realtime chat program (so we dont have to keep posting here).
My handles are:
AIM: BLK2002VWMKIV
ICQ: 30535009
email: eterion@att.net
Thanks
OEM Windows will sometimes include manufacturer-specific drivers but Windows includes truckloads of drivers so most or all of your stuff should work - you can also hunt down individual drivers if need be. So I guess service packs would be equally machine-non-specific.
And just to relate back on a question I think you asked earlier: anything *can* go wrong, but you should be fine. I have W2K Pro buried on this drive and installed Mandrake. Delete unneeded files, scandisk, defrag thoroughly and, if you want, partition a hair less than Mandrake offers - or just do what Mandrake says it can. It went fine for me. (And, back on another thing, W2K Pro is actually NT 5.0 and XP is NT 5.1 and both use NTFS. They're 'different' but mainly regarding cosmetic crap, product activation, and XP being a lot touchier. They're fundamentally the same systems.)
I ended up installing Debian over Mandrake but it did a fine of of partitioning and installing.
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