Right now I have XP on C:/.

I want to install Linux on a different drive. When I boot up, I want windows to load normally. I only want to even know I have linux if I put a boot floppy in.

Is this possible?

yes, just install LILO to a floppy. much faster than using a boot floppy, too.

>edit, of course you can just not install Grub or LILO at all, too, and then boot from a boot floppy. but installing LILO to a floppy is a good way to do it, much faster than waiting for vmlinuz to run from a floppy.

So, if I do that, Linux will not start booting automaticaly instead of XP? And it won't do that chooser coutdown thing?

no, because the chooser countdown thing will be on the floppy.

Right, but XP has its own chooser. I am worried that XP will recognize linux and do the countdown, or that linux will change the boot file and totaly skip the chooser and load instead of XP.

i use win2k, but afaik, XP won't even see your linux partitions. the winxp boot process should only be affected if you load a bootloader to the XP master boot record (MBR). as long as you don't do that, everything should boot normally from where you have set your BIOS to boot.

Is altering the MBR something I would simply not do, or is it something I have to keep from hapening?

you keep it from happening by not installing the linux bootloader to your windows boot partition. that means that in most cases, you should avoid an "automatic" install of Grub or LILO (2 common linux bootloaders), because if your computer is set up to boot from windows, linux will install the bootloader there, altering the win MBR.

if you choose to install Grub/LILO manually, you can put it where you want. in that case, install to a floppy as i mentioned -- and then of course it's not going to go to the windows MBR.

to be totally safe, you can even choose not to install Grub or LILO at all, but then you'll have to use a boot floppy each time to boot into linux. but even if you do that, you can set up LILO (or Grub i think) later, whenever you want to, from within linux.

don't worry too much, b/c if something does get messed up in your XP MBR, you usually can repair it with the repair function by booting to the CD, going to the console repair, and then issuing the fixmbr or fixboot command.

hth, gl.

oops, n/t