Can't get BootMagic dual boot choice-box to kick up my recently installed Red Hat 9. All else works fine. Can quickly boot up with the emergency boot disk, which informs me it is hitting on /dev/hda5, which is exactly correct.

That [/dev/hda5] is the first logical partition on my 40 GB Dell-boxed hd, following the C: partition which houses Windows [Home] XP. Partitioning was done with PartitionMagic, and the RH OS resides in a Linux Ext2 partition with a Swap partition immediately following.

Windows XP will boot just fine from the BootMagic screen, but when I make the Linux choice, I'm met with a DOS (ugly black) screen that says, 'Preparing machine to load "RedHat"...' . Then, it sits and waits until I give in and Ctr-Alt-Del either back to BootMagic or [with the RH boot floppy] to Linux.

I therefor presume that the fault lies somewhere in the embedded instructions on the RedHat side of the BootMagic choice box, but I can't seem to tweak the right dark corner to make it happen.

Oh, well...

Jump in folks-gimme a hand with this last dinky little step.

(Oh, BTW. on another note. The RedHat package I installed came from the back of a "for Dummies" book, this one written by Jon "maddog" Hall and Paul G. Sery. If any one else has that-very pleasant-volume and can't seem to get past step one to install, I found there was a high-level glitch with the two included CD's. The labels are switched! CD #2 should be CD #1 and vice-versa).

Why on earth would you use anythign other than grub. Just curious

'cause this is 'day 1' of my grand Linux Launch, and I haven't a clue what is or isn't, and I have been a (shudder!!!) Windows addictee for two years and therefor naturally gravitate toward windows solutions, and there was BootMagic sitting there invitingly at the tail end of the entire install process, beckoning to be included in the new millenia, and I am entirely clueless as to alternatives-because I am (oh, the shame...) a NEWBIE, and perhaps the response may have been presented a bit more pedagogially in its' tone, something such as:

"Hey looks like you're brand new at this, and basically clueless, but...that's OK, there's a wonderful world here that you've boldly and innocently ventured into, and I have long ago been there myself. Perhaps as an alternative you may want to try 'grub', a linux solution (since that's why you've tipped your toes into the spa waters of linux) that will do what you wish. Here's what you have to do...(explanation follows).

Perhaps doralsoral, or another Gandalf-like figure of the linux underworld could be so kind as to respond to my obvious newbieness in such a constructive manner.

Definitaly read up on either GRUB or LILO (I prefer LILO), and boot off that RH floppy and get either of the two installed.

...and I too now have a light. Thankyou.

one way you could do it is do a fresh install of linux and when you get to the partitioning section choose to delete all linux partitions and use exisiting free spac or soemthing thing that. then later on it will allow you to set up the boot loader. its really a simple process. I hope you get it working