Hi,

I am trying to get a hand on Linux environments. I currently have Compag laptop running Window2000. Is it possible if I can run switch back & forth between Linux & Window2000 OS on my laptop through a switch?

Could you please recommend me vendors that sell a plug & play Linux for laptops (Compag laptop). Since I don't have enough experience to do the installations.

Thankyou verymuch!!!

John.

I've never had a problem with SuSE and windows on the same laptop. And if your on FAT32 fs then you can access the windows files on your linux system. All distro's can do this but SuSE has a nice "auto" configure options' Be sure to backup your data first'

How do you mean? Switch back and forth?

Its quite possible, and very very very easy to make Mandrake Linux boot with any other Operating System Especially Windows anything. If this is what'd you like to do, send me an email to tristan@twomutts.ca , I'd be more than happy to write you a step by step instructions to your drive set up to have both windows and mandrake linux running. If you wish to do this, email me at the above address as I said, and download the Mandrake 9.1 CD's. There is 3. But only 1 is needed, but get all three anyways. And await my reply...

Cheers

Wh33t

Hi,

I would like to be able to use Window2000 and Linux on the laptop. For example, I can login as a Linux user after the machine being power up; or I can opt to login as a Window2000 user after the machine booting itself.

Thankyou for your helps....

Regards,

John

I've done this many times with SuSE and windows 2000. But like wh33t said can be done with any distro' Just be careful because the windows installers usually overwrite your boot record with the windows stuff. So I always install windows first and create a partition for your linux install from there.

Thanks Wh33t for the infos.

I wonder if it is possible to install Linux on an external harddisk instead of my only internal harddisk? This way, I can keep my current Window2000 and all the current files as is; And put all the linux stuff onto the external harddrive. So each time I want to use Linux, I can boot my laptop from the external harddrive.

Regards...John

Well you could boot from an external hdd... (im assuming firewire or at least usb 2.0!) but that would probably depend on whether or not your bios and motherboard firmware support booting from external devices.. Most likely does somehow, I've heard of a few friends doing it with PC's so. Must be possible. Good luck, please let me know if you manage to do it, would love to hear about it.

Wh33t

,Save yourself a few bucks on drives and cables, and also a lot of headaches:
Download and burn a Knoppix ISO
When you want Linux insert disk start computer that's it
When you are through, logout, remove cd and windowze (couldn't help myself)
is unaffected. The std version has some really interesting stuff.
Also Slackware and Suse have "live" cds that basically do the same thing.
These are the only ones I am familiar with, but I'm sure RH etc are also available in this
mode
Good luck

i am sorry to say thius but i would use windows any day on my laptop becuase i lovwe windows 2000 professional. iwould use linux however BUT my drive is formatteed as an NTFS system and does anyone know how to get linux on this kind of format

sorry about my spelling

very good question John and the answer is Yes!

i've been touting the benefits of System Commander, and it sounds to me that you need just such a product. it is possible to use other dual boot partition software or configur lilo to do it for you but judging from your post you need something to 'handle it' for you.

not only do i have win2k and mandrake 9.1 on my system, but i also have win98. thats 3 operating systems sharing a 11.5 gig hard disk on a dell inspiron pentium iii 500 mhz class machine. and did i mention 8mb ati rage mobility video. i'm not complaining.

would very much like to nuke the win2k and win98 as they require more than 1/2 of the hard disk and then at only bare bones. i do all my serious stuff with mandrake now and kinda of wish i could put slackware on here. i'm noticing on my other system, a tremendous diff performance wise with slack 9.1 vs mandrake 9.1.

but mayeb mandrake 9.1 is what you need judging by your familiarity with dual boot software.

b.t.w. your laptop will love you for putting linux on it. for the first time you'll see what your machine can really do when it's not suffering MSBS ('m$ bloatware syndrome' ).

it's like the matrix, it's something you have to see for yourself.

cheers

- perry

ps.
Partition Commander is an add on that you might want to pick up as well (from the same company).