Newer, Bigger Problems

w5uc · 04-13-2005, 01:12 PM

A day or so I installed mandrake 10.1 believing I was installing it as part of a dual boot system with Win ME. UH-OH!! Appareently that did not happen, and the FAT32 file system is GONE! I can only start Mandrake from the HDD. I can launch the Win ME start-up disk from the Floppy drive, but when I attempt to run FDISK the machine just locks up.

I HAVE A 20 GIG HDD THAT ISN'T MUCH MORE THAN A PAPER WEIGHT.

How do I get rid of Mandrake and get back to basics?

WHAT DO I DO NOW?

Crashed_Again · 04-13-2005, 01:28 PM

Consider yourself lucky you blew away Windows ME. No seriously, do have any other Windows installer like a cd? You can't install ME at all?

w5uc · 04-13-2005, 01:42 PM

Thanks Crashed_Again. Actually at this poing, I'm wishing I had written Bill Gates a letter of thanks for all the great years I have enjoyed with Windows. The letter before ux in Linux shouldn't be 'n', but a letter a little farther down the alphabet.

I haven't tried to set it up from the win ME CD. I usually format the HDD first, then install ME. I can try from the CD, but at this point I'm not encouraged. Don't think the HDD has bit the dust because it will still rom Mandrake.

w5uc · 04-13-2005, 01:53 PM

Can't install from the CD because there is no DOS boot partition on the HDD, and I can't creat one with FDISK.

w5uc · 04-13-2005, 02:33 PM

Here may be a small clue. Looking at the HDD with Mandrake, Hada 1 is still on the HDD. What happens if i do a complete reinstall of mandrake? ( I thought we only had to do that with Windows)

enemorales · 04-13-2005, 02:34 PM

You can use the Mandrake Linux CD for creating a FAT32 partition...

Quote:

Can't install from the CD because there is no DOS boot partition on the HDD, and I can't creat one with FDISK.

Don't forget to thank Bill Gates for that also

w5uc · 04-13-2005, 02:37 PM

fantastic enemorales, I don't know how to do that, but I will try to find out. THANKS!!!!!!!

w5uc · 04-13-2005, 02:58 PM

I created a FAT32 partition, but I still can't get FDISK to run. I'll keep trying. Please send more clues

w5uc · 04-13-2005, 03:45 PM

Thanks to the brilliance of enemorales, Mandrale is gone, the entire HDD is once again a big fat beautiful FAT32 HDD, and is formatting as we speak. I will work at learning how to boot Knoppix from the HDD when I get Win ME reinstalled.

enemorales THANKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!