will i be able to install slackware 10.0 on an AMD k6 450 with 128mb ram and a 13gb hard drive? i am new to linux, and my major concerns are

1) partitioning the hd, i have read some things, but i am still very unclear as to what to do, how to do it. does anyone know if slackware 10.0 comes with a partitioning tool? i heard the older versions did not and you had to partition yourself
2)slow processor and not a lot of ram. will 10.0 be able to run alright? i realise i wont be able to use all of the nice user interfaces, but will there be at least 1 i will be able to use?

this will start out being just for browsing, instant messaging and folding. if i keep with it, i might switch my main computer.

Slack (any version) will run fine on that hardware.

Slack comes with fdisk (not recommended) and cfdisk (very good). What is your setup, and what are your partitioning needs? Do you have free space (if so cfdisk is excellent) or do you need to resize a Windoze partition?

You can use everything you'll get with Slack, and can even install other apps and run them. There are some such as OpenOffice that require 64MB of ram. You can run it but not very well (depending upon how you setup your comp).

When you install, make a seperate swap partition of 256MB. You may want to use a window manager such as FluxBox, which is lighter and faster than one of the big footprint gui desktop environments such as KDE or GNOME. When you install, choose FluxBox as your wm, and you can still try KDE or GNOME if you install them. To get an app in Flux, you just right-click on the desktop for a menu. In that menu you'll find a ton of stuff, including three other window managers - kde, gnome, and windowmaker - and you can add whatever you wish to the menu, also. Visit the FluxBox home page to check it out. Slack 10.0 still has Flux version 0.1.14 - I would upgrade to 0.9.8 but that's just my opinion.

i have the 12.6gb hard drive that im gonna completely format. i plan on using the computer for internet browsing and instant messaging. im not sure what is meant by 'partitioning needs' if i could get some step by step instructions to format the hard drive, as well as a partitioning scheme, that would be super helpful.

thanks for the recommendations, i already use open office on my other computers, and i cant believe i spent so much for MS office

Is this a new hard drive with no data on it? Does it have another operating system, such as Windoze?

So that you can get better help, please post how this computer is setup at the moment. You can mess up another OS when you install if you don't do it correctly.

If it's a new hard drive, when you start the Slack install just hit enter to boot with the bare.i kernel. Then login as root, and then type cfdisk. The instructions for using it are on the Slackware CD1 in a file called Slackware-HOWTO. I would suggest you print and read that entire file before going any further.

If it's a new drive with no other data, as far as separate partitions, I would suggest this:
Others may say differently. You can also get good suggestions in that Slackware-HOWTO file.

excellent, thanks. im gonna be working on this hopefully within the next week.

right now it has windows ME that is so bogged down with adware and spyware that it is essentially unusable. (it was my gf's family computer) i plan to completely reformat a couple of times using something (havent had to use any of these tools yet) from http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/ and then start in with the installation. ill start reading the howto asap. thanks.

if anyone else has any suggestions for doing the partitioning differently, id be open to something different

If by "reformat a couple of times" you mean to totally remove Windoze ME, let me suggest a much better method. NB: If you are going to backup any data she wants, and then format the hard drive, and reinstall - the only way to get all the data off the drive is to do a low-level format, or write the drive to zeroes.

This is what I always do when removing Windoze and/or reinstalling it. This will ensure that you have removed any and all virii, worms, trojans, and spyware.

First, what brand is the hard drive? If you don't know you can go to System Properties and it should tell you there under device manager. Post the brand and I'll give you some more information, but this is what you do:

Go to the website of the hard drive manufacturer and d/l their utility software, then do a low-level format on the drive, or either write it to zeroes. After that, you can install the new OS(s). If you're going to have a dual boot, install Windoze first.

Edit: I just noticed that your link has links to the manufacturers. I've found that Seagate's DiscWizard Starter Edition will write other manufacturers drives to zeroes, though it won't test them. We also use Disk Manager from IBM which will do this also. Sometimes MaxBlast from Maxtor will, sometimes it will not...

its maxtor, and the boot cd i linked to has a utility for it. arent there utilitites which are not manufacturer specific like the autoclave program on the cd i linked to

Yes, I suppose so, but I've not used them so can't advise. What is your current setup, and what are you wanting to install?

im not sure what you mean.
i listed the computer parts in the first post and said i wanted to install slackware 10.0.

Are you going to remove Windoze ME, or have a dual boot with ME and Slack?

i am completely removing it since it was a test of my patience just to start up. there was so much crap i couldnt do anything at all
i am using the autclave program and it seems to use linux to destroy the data. i have it running its top security wipe which is 25 passes of

shred -x -v /dev/hda

it should be ready for the fresh install by tonight

Good on yah! May I suggest something? On your Slackware 10.0 CD1 there is a file named Slackware-HOWTO. This is what Patrick Volkerding, the Slackware man, says
You should print that file and read it whilst you're waiting. Following that information will save you a lot of grief, and give you a lot of answers for your install.

which of the packages or disk sets can i leave out? i dont think i really need all of them. i would be happy with a browser, a instant messaging program, some games, a music and video player, and an office program.
or would you reccomend just doing the full install

alright, i keep getting errors at different points of the installation. i checked the md5 so either the cd-rom drive is creating errors, or one of the hard drive partitions is getting filled up. ill try changing out the cd rom first

edit: also, which filesystem type should i use. from the documentation, ext2 sounded like what i wanted. whate inode density should i use? the default is what i have tried to use

i cannot seem to boot after i install. i opted to not install lilo right away and am trying to use the boot disk.

it is set to boot from the correct root partition, but it gets to a certain point and then says:
WARNING: couldn't open /etc/fstab: no such file or directory
/sbin/e2fsck: Is a directory while trying to open /

then it says a bunch of other things and asks me if i would like to log in as root to fix the problem. i try to type in my password, but it isnt recognized and then it reboots

i have tried to reinstall 2 times, and it does the same thing. my original problem during instalation was fixed by burning the iso files again, this time slower. could the cds still be messed up, and that be what is causing the problems?


edit: alright, the first discs i used (which gave me errors during the install) were burned at 52x. the second set (which i couldnt boot from / with) was burned at 12x. right now im trying to burn a 3rd set at 4x. im getting tired of burning and reinstalling all these times. also, should i be doing a separate format of all the partitions inbetween installs? or is the format performed during the install enough