When creating the boot and root partitions w/gparted, do I set one as primary and one as extended or how do I properly configure it? The linux I am working with (fortress linux) only requires a boot and a root partition, but I think I set them as the wrong type in gparted because it doesn't boot up.

Thanks

Both primary, usually. Extended is only needed for more than 4 partitions when you use the normal msdos-style partition tables. If you have a new system, you can use gpt. The typpical setup is:

partition 1: small (say 500 MB) partition for /boot

partition 2: rest of disk (or at least 6 GB or so) for the root file system mounted at /.

Should they both be formatted to ext3 for a linux install?

There are any number of reasons why a system won't boot and you haven't posted enough information to get real help. Is this an empty hard drive or do you have other operating systems installed? Are you trying to install it to an interanl drive? external? the only system? multiboot? If it's the only one, you should obviously be able to set both as primary partitions. The partitions should be formatted with a Linux filesystem and ext3 should be OK. More information on what you have installed or what you are working with would help someone to help you.