Hi, I have been using Linux for nearly a year now... and have got over *most* problems... one I have at the moment is webcam capability of msn clients (more a problem of adolescence) that is not the problem I am posting... I have an iPod, and a Laptop. I want a dual boot system, but am very likely to fill my laptop with enough stuff on one OS, let alone two. So I remembered my iPod. I do use it to listen to music, but I have never even got close to the whole 20GB, so I thought I could make, say a 10GB partition and install windows to it (solving my webcam problem)

I have not tried yet because I dont really want to lose the music already on my iPod, I know I will have to reformat and everything, I just wanted to check I had everything sorted before I did anything.

Basically, how i want my setup is... Laptop dual boot with Linux installed on its local harddrive (I have either Fedora Core 3 that I have been using, ormy karate sensei, funnily enough, gave me a dvd of mandriva) and Windows XP on the iPod. I also would like the iPod to still work as an mp3 player. what is the easiest way to do this? backup th iPod, format into 2 partitions and then restore the backup to one? if so, which partition? then install Linux on my laptop and let the bootloader find the iPod?

I know a lot of this will seem very obvious, but I have been using Linux as an "everyday" system, like many people do with windows, just to get used to it. Only when I get problems do I start "fiddling"... so far I'm enjoying it

Thanks in advance for your time

Nistur

I don't know of any bootloader that will let you boot from usb. In addition, I don't think Windows can use a usb device as system root. (Where) have you found information about doing this?

I cant remember where I found information about it, but I thought I did find something about booting from USB, whether windows will let it or not I dont know. thats where... you can get Damn Small Linux on a bootable USB drive... I just assumed that it was possible...

Thanks again

Nistur

Damn Small Linux's usb boot does not depend on a bootloader being installed on the computer, but rather on the BIOS's ability to boot from usb. It also requires an unusual kernel/ramdisk setup, to mount / from usb. (correct me if I'm wrong, and you know better) I don't think you can install Windows on usb. The kernel would need to support it.

I have never actually tried any of this myself.
Your only hope is if your BIOS supports maping a sub drive to something like /dev/hdb or /dev/sda. I don't know if any BIOS does this.

I dont know much about this, which is why I was asking. I was hoping it would be possible, I seem to remember I installed Mandrake 9.2 with my iPod plugged in by accident at one point and it added it to Lilo as a boot device. Again, I dont know if this would help. I just want to get things sorted out before I make a mess of my setup. Another thing I thought of is that if it could boot from the iPod, I could use a single partition as it ignores any files you put on it as the firmware only reads the mp3s that are specified in a file (xml I think :S) so i could install XP to it, then copy the original iPod files and folders back over, as long i can boot from it and i leave it as FAT it should still work as an mp3 player too

Thanks for your quick replies

Nistur

Have a look at
http://www.simonf.com/usb/
This documents how to install Linux on a usb device and, as I suspected, it requires a custom ramdisk to mount usb root.
Note that to be able to mount a usb device as /dev/sda1, you will need hotplug and kernel support for it. Both come with most disrtibutions, and if you can use any sort uf usb storage, you have them.

http://dirk.eddelbuettel.com/quantia...o_usbboot.html Deals with partitionning (I don't know how the Ipod will react to the partition changes. It might not even start.)

http://www.neowin.net/forum/lofivers...p/t269145.html Kind of confirms that you need the bios to support usb boot to use it, and indicates how to put the kernel and the ramdisk on a boot cd instead.

All this only covered Linux

http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/device.../usb-boot.mspx Don't be fooled by the wording, this means that Windows can't be booted from usb. You may find a solution (or confirmation) on a Windows forum.

Thanks for your help, I will look at the links, I doubt I'll be able to manage anything too complex anyway at the moment...

Thanks again

Nistur