Zipslack with HostAP - old 486 laptop
 

As a new convert to Linux, i have download and installed the latest slackware ZIPSLACK onto my toshiba 486 laptop (2Gb hdd, 24Mb ram).

I tried installing RH and mandrake, but it would not fit.

Anyway, the aim of my project it to get Hostap going.

I am having heaps of problems compiling the hostap app, mainly from the barebone system having the lack of packages that i needed. (i think i have installed all that i needed now - eg gcc, as, butils,

I have read everything i can find on hostAP and wlan - and was hoping someone could answer a few questions.

1) is it normal that 'make' will not work on a low spec machine. (out of memory errors) or does it just mean that i am still missing some packages?

2) i have tried installing the RH packages of hostAP using RPM on slackware - i get a segmentation error. missing componate again? or just cannot shoehorn this rpm into slack?

3) has somebody made a kernel already for slack, and has it for download? Like the RH one's, or is it not that easy with slack?

Hope someone might be able to point me in the right direction or offer advice - it will be welcomed!

Zipslack installs with a swapfile of only 1/2 meg. Creating a larger swapfile helps dramatically.

I was doing a final search on the net about this before givin up and doing a re-install.

I was going to install version 2.95 of GCC, heaps of people were having problems with it. but before i did, though i would find out how much memory my system was reporting.

From what i can tell on my config, i had a 500mb swap file - but it wasnt on.

I recreated it and then used swapon - Majic, make worked the first time!

all i have to do now is uninstall the cisco driver and get the hostap one to install......

I am close, Thanks for your help - it was the problem indeed.

Stuart

Still no luck with the HostAP driver. I insert the card (VAC2511) and the system hangs!
No entry in syslog, no entry in dmesg.

I tried compiling the driver with v 3.3.2 and 2.95 of GCC, makes no difference. I use the slot with my cisco 350 fine.

Any ideas?