please help
 

ok so i just installed Mandrake 10.0

so now I want to install my nvida driver and I am up to the step where I have to edit the XF86Config.....so when I try to edit it (in the black screen) using vi or vim it said that I cant save it beacuse Im not allowed or something.....can some one please help...


also for some reason if I start my computer without the floppy It saids L 99 99 99 99 .......and just freezes.....so I need the floopy..

thank you

When you edit the XF86Config-4 file you must be root.

What is this root. how do I get to it....because before I just whould startup in this failsafe (something like that) and lfind it using dos commands in the black dos-like screen

Root is the system administrators account.

If you installed in the "normal" way, you would have been asked to "supply" a root password. Though if you just kept hitting accept, you may have installed without the root password.

To see, well, on the task bar (bottom of screen) you should have an icon for a terminal/konsole/whatever you want to call it. Anyway, to access the root account, you open a terminal, and when you see the prompt of say somethin like me@mypc $ you type su (or su-) and enter, you'll then be prompted to put the password in.

If you didn't put one in during install, when it asks, just hit enter again.

the prompt changes, from me@mypc $ to me@mypc root #

that's when you can do the vi /etc/XF86config etc etc etc.

don't forget, you'll have to make sure that you know the instructions for changing stuff in VI heres a link for that.

regards

John

Open a terminal and type
su
press Enter
then put in the root password and press Enter again.
Root is the system administrator.

For some reason Lilo will only boot from the last thing you installed it on. So if you installed Lilo on a floppy then on the MBR Lilo will only boot from MBR. So if you want to boot from floppy, reinstall Lilo. I wish I understood why this happens.

edit. Oh when I said reinstall I meant rerun lilo to put the loader on the floppy.