I read both post by Daone on compiling a new kernel but i still have some questions/ confusions about the hole process.

1. when i go to download a new kernel in kernel.org there is 3 choices:

The latest stable version of linux kernel is 2.6.5
The latest prepatch for the stable linux kernel tree is 2.6.6-rc3
The latest snapshot for the stable linux kernel tree is 2.6.6-rc3-bk5

Then the same is listed but for 2.4
which one of these i use to install my new kernel? i am using 2.4.22 atm do i even need to upgrade ? Reason I'm trying to upgrade my kernel is cause i want to learn after using mandrake for 2 years i realized I'm missing out on a log of learning cause of the menu driven os that MDK is

2.I ended up downloading 2.6.5 (first link in kernel .org) then extracted the content into linux-2.6.5 folder i had created under usr/src/ and only had 1 file. cant remember the name atm my question is is that it ? kernel source is just 1 file ?

3. so i decided to try install the new kernel and did the following

root@box:/usr/src# rm -f linux
root@box:/usr/src# ln -s linux-2.6.5 linux
root@box:/usr/src# cd linux
root@box:/usr/src/linux# ls
patch-2.6.5
root@box:/usr/src/linux# make mrproper
make: *** No rule to make target `mrproper'. Stop.

This is were is stopped and and told my self "you doing something very wrong research more"

so i did but the only guides i found to compiling a kernel in Slackware were the ones here.

what am i doing wrong ? should i extract the kernel source in the same directory as my old source? (2.4.22)?

Thanks very much for you time and help and please excuse my spelling/grammar English is not my primary language

It's this file:
http://www.kernel.org/pub/linux/kern...-2.6.5.tar.bz2
The link on the main page is for a patch (in case you already have a previous 2.6)

great thanks very much aaa that clears up a lot. will start the compile now and post results.

Also, regarding your first question, the Linux kernel is in a constant state of development. Using 2.6.5 as an example, let's talk about the kernel numbering scheme. As you probably know, the first number (2) is the kernel version number, the middle number (6) is the major version number, and the third number (5) is the minor version number. The new kernel number will be determined by the kernel maintainers depending on how significant the differences are between the new kernel and the previous kernel. Most new releases are only minor incremental changes; if there are sufficiently important differences between the new kernel and the old one the major number will be incremented by one; and if there is such a huge advancement in the kernel, then the kernel number itself will be incremented by one (note that the kernel has only been incremented twice - it started as version 0, then went to version 1, and now is at version 2)

A kernel is considered to be ready for release once it all the development work has been completed and it has proven itself as relatively bug free after a significant amount of testing. To return to the example, 2.6.5 is the latest and greatest stable version of the kernel. Version 2.6.6 is the current experimental version of the kernel, and as a general rule, could contain some bugs and/or be less stable. Thus, unless you're a kernel hacker and/or are willing to accept a little less stability, you probably are best off using the latest stable release. (Along these lines, the "rc" indicates that the version is an official release candidate - rc3 simply indicates that it is the third version of the proposed 2.6.6 release. If no serious bugs are found, it may become the official 2.6.6 release; otherwise there will probably be a 2.6.6-rc4 version coming out.) -- J.W.

Don't forget to do:
make modules_install
after make modules, 'cause it's not specified in the slackware book.

And what the difference between snapshot and prepatch? and what about -mm patch, what's the difference between them, does anyone know this?