Starting from a ThinkPad X41 with no HDD, no OS, but do have a brand new SSD 128GB drive

khunphet · 12-10-2015, 10:09 PM

Attention Moderator:

Your assistance is requested to move this post to the most appropriate forum for seeking further help from the Linux Community. Thank you very much.
Khunphet in Thailand

My situation:
I have a ThinkPad X41 whose Hitachi 60GB HDD died some months ago. The ThinkPad Forum suggested a larger SSD would be an appropriate replacement. I therefore bought a brand new KingSpec SSD 1.8" PATA 128GB. So now I have a ThinkPad X41 with no HDD, no OS but I have just received the new SSD Drive (still in its anti-static envelope) which is compatible with the ThinkPad's proprietary connector.

The ThinkPad Forum also admitted a lack of experience with Linux distros to make useful suggestions as to which Linux distro would be appropriate to install on the X41 so that it could initialize, format and partition the new SSD. They have mentioned that Linux seem to work well with SSDs which, if true, would be great and one member did suggest Linux Mint 17.2!

This is my immediate need -- which distro to provide an OS for completing the setup. Once this is solved, I am hoping to seek further help in making the x41 into a dual-boot machine all running from the new SSD and without any bloated Microsoft software.

I have experimented with earlier Linux distros, but that was many years ago. I am hoping that some forum members can guide me in making the right choices and provide the instructions to revive my old ThinkPad.

Looking forward to working with you all.
Khun Phet
in Thailand

qlue · 12-11-2015, 08:26 AM

When you say, "dual boot," do you mean to boot two (or more) Linux distros, or do you mean to be able to boot both Linux and Windows?

If you want to have Windows as well as Linux, Windows should be installed first regardless of which Gnu/Linux distro you want to dual boot with.

The choice of Linux distribution depends mostly on what you intend to use it for, but also partly on how much experience you have with Linux.

Mint is a *buntu derivative but with many of the Canonical specific components removed. As such, it is often recommended for new users as a generic starting point as it includes almost everything that an 'average' computer user would need.

Personally, I would recommend Debian as a more stable distro that is still quite user friendly. Most hardware that will work with Mint works equally well in Debian. The only possible exception is 'state-of-the-art' hardware that's only just released or any of the list of known problem hardware. (some Broadcom cards, various printer brands etc.)

For server use or for something more similar to what may be use in a corporate setting, I'd suggest CentOS as a good RPM based distro.

I find that the CentOS installer is very good at setting up a custom partition scheme. (most mainstream distros are good at that though.)

khunphet · 12-11-2015, 09:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by qlue

When you say, "dual boot," do you mean to boot two (or more) Linux distros, or do you mean to be able to boot both Linux and Windows?

If you want to have Windows as well as Linux, Windows should be installed first regardless of which Gnu/Linux distro you want to dual boot with.

The choice of Linux distribution depends mostly on what you intend to use it for, but also partly on how much experience you have with Linux.

Thanks for starting the ball rolling. "dual boot" is meant as 2 Linux distros; one very much Linuxy and the second one an alternative OS to the bloated Windows XP Pro with all its patches and service packs, which is something I am trying to wean myself away from. The new SSD seemed to be the right time to make the BIG jump.

With quite a bit of available open-source software that matches or even does better than the MS OSes & softwares, I hoping that the alternative boot would allow me to become more familiar with the Linux infrastructure and commands for my simple needs (mostly a huge quantity of legacy Excel spreadsheets and workbooks) as well as quite a bit of Internet work and a little bit of FoxPro programming. I recall my very first attempt at using Linux and all the problems I had with getting it to make a proper connection to the Internet with a soft modem. That's probably well taken care of with today's stable of working Linux distros.

The question remains "which one would help me most as I start weaning myself away from MS?"

Peter in Thailand

jefro · 12-11-2015, 10:54 PM

Think we may need to know how much ram.

Kind of worried too with this new ssd. Both in terms of size as well as speed. Oddly enough some ssd's don't do well in older hardware.

khunphet · 12-11-2015, 11:24 PM

For Jefro:

Regarding your concern about ram; how do I go about checking that for you. If it's ram on the ThinkPad itself, then I'll have to check the machine's BIOS which I do not have with me at my temporary office at the local library. The SSD's specs may be available at the KingSpec website. I've yet to remove the SSD from its anti-static envelope! Please provide some hints as to how I can get the info you desire.

Peter in Thailand

qlue · 12-12-2015, 11:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by khunphet

one very much Linuxy and the second one an alternative OS to the bloated Windows XP Pro with all its patches and service packs,
The question remains "which one would help me most as I start weaning myself away from MS?"

Peter in Thailand

The LXDE desktop environment is visually similar to XP. Canonical has Lubuntu that uses the LXDE desktop as standard. You can also install LXDE on Debian, which I feel is more stable.

Software you may want to add from the repositories, if it's not installed by default, is LibreOffice. This replaces the MS Office Suite you're likely to be used to using.

For a minimalist distro, you could try BunsenLabs which is a communty brewed version of Crunchbang. (Crunchbang has been discontinued.)
This is based on Debian and provides a good base for building up your own system. Just add the software you need. (note: menus etc. have to be hand edited in BunsenLabs.)

As for "weaning" yourself away from MS, you may want to keep Windows on a dual boot for a while. I've found that people who have never used a computer before find Linux very easy to work with. The more experience one has with Windows, the more difficulty one seems to have with Linux.

rokytnji · 12-12-2015, 03:22 PM

Quote:

Processor: Intel Pentium M LV 758 (1.50GHz, 90nm technology, 2MB L2 Cache, 400MHz FSB)
Wireless: Intel PRO 2200BG or 2915ABG, Bluetooth optional
OS: Windows XP Home/Pro
Screen: 12.1 TFT XGA (1024 x 768)
RAM: 256MB or 512MB PC-4200 DDR-2 SDRAM (Upgradeable to 1536MB Max)
Hard Drive: 1.8 20GB, 30GB, 40GB or 60GB @ 4200RPM
Battery: 2.5 hr (4-cell) 5.7 hr (8-cell) (extended-life battery option adds 3 4 hours of life on top of quoted numbers for each respective battery)
Ports: 2 USB 2.0 (1 IBM Powered USB 2.0), Infrared, expansion bus (for optional ThinkPad X4 Ultra Base Doc); external display; AC adapter; RJ-11 modem port;RJ-45 ethernet port; audio: headphone/line-out, external microphone.
Slots: 1 PCMCIA card slot, 1 Secure Digital card slot
Dimensions: 10.5 x 8.3 x 1.06 (w x d x h) (with 8-cell battery its 10.5 x 9.3 x 1.06)
Weight: 2.7lb with 4-cell battery, 3.2lb with 8-cell battery
Expansion: ThinkPad X4 UltraBase dock optional

http://www.notebookreview.com/notebo...ew-pics-specs/

Sounds like a smaller version of my IBM Z60M. My screenshot

http://i.imgur.com/DawqtkO.jpg

Specs:

Code:

$ inxi -zv7
System:    Host: biker Kernel: 4.0.5-antix.1-486-smp i686 (32 bit gcc: 4.9.2)
           Desktop: IceWM 1.3.8 dm: slim
           Distro: antiX-15-V_386-full Killah P 30 June 2015
Machine:   System: IBM product: 2529E1U v: ThinkPad Z60m Chassis: type: 10
           Mobo: IBM model: 2529E1U
           Bios: IBM v: 77ET64WW (1.24 ) date: 02/27/2007
CPU:       Single core Intel Celeron M (-UP-) cache: 1024 KB
           flags: (nx pae sse sse2) bmips: 2793 speed: 1396 MHz (max)
Memory:    Using dmidecode: you must be root to run dmidecode
Graphics:  Card: Intel Mobile 915GM/GMS/910GML Express Graphics Controller
           bus-ID: 00:02.0 chip-ID: 8086:2592
           Display Server: X.Org 1.16.4 drivers: intel (unloaded: fbdev,vesa)
           Resolution: 1280x800@60.00hz
           GLX Renderer: Mesa DRI Intel 915GM x86/MMX/SSE2
           GLX Version: 2.1 Mesa 10.3.2 Direct Rendering: Yes
Audio:     Card Intel 82801FB/FBM/FR/FW/FRW (ICH6 Family) High Definition Audio Controller
           driver: snd_hda_intel bus-ID: 00:1b.0 chip-ID: 8086:2668
           Sound: Advanced Linux Sound Architecture v: k4.0.5-antix.1-486-smp
Network:   Card-1: Broadcom NetXtreme BCM5751M Gigabit Ethernet PCI Express
           driver: tg3 v: 3.137 bus-ID: 02:00.0 chip-ID: 14e4:167d
           IF: eth0 state: down mac: <filter>
           Card-2: Intel PRO/Wireless 2915ABG [Calexico2] Network Connection
           driver: ipw2200 v: 1.2.2kmprq bus-ID: 14:02.0 chip-ID: 8086:4224
           IF: eth1 state: up mac: <filter>
           WAN IP: <filter> IF: irda0 ip: N/A ip-v6: N/A
           IF: eth0 ip: N/A ip-v6: N/A IF: eth1 ip: <filter> ip-v6: <filter>
Drives:    HDD Total Size: 335.6GB (5.1 used)
           ID-1: /dev/sda model: HGST_HTS545032A7 size: 320.1GB serial: TM8412ZJ15LVER
           ID-2: USB /dev/sdb model: DataTraveler_2.0 size: 15.5GB serial: 08606E6D402EFF707702A348-0:0
           Optical: /dev/sr0 model: MATSHITA DVD/CDRW UJDA770
           rev: 1.02 dev-links: cdrom,cdrw,dvd
           Features: speed: 24x multisession: yes
           audio: yes dvd: yes rw: cd-r,cd-rw state: running
Partition: ID-1: / size: 7.6G used: 2.7G (38) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda1
           label: antiX15root uuid: 685d85b2-6651-49ed-928c-d5e17f70f500
           ID-2: /home size: 68G used: 4.3G (7) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda2
           label: antiX15home uuid: 8d150b09-c903-4b7d-9326-7b88e7ac84f2
           ID-3: /media/_data1 size: 119G used: 60M (1%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda5
           label: /data1 uuid: 8c692b69-46f7-48ef-abc9-e6963655e259
           ID-4: /media/_data2 size: 96G used: 60M (1%) fs: ext4 dev: /dev/sda6
           label: /data2 uuid: b76696e8-11ba-4177-970b-0d237aa5a8ae
           ID-5: /media/KINGSTON size: 15G used: 5.2G (36%) fs: vfat dev: /dev/sdb1
           label: KINGSTON uuid: 6364-3791
           ID-6: swap-1 size: 4.19GB used: 0.00GB (0%) fs: swap dev: /dev/sda3
           label: N/A uuid: 45720f5c-3d28-4e6d-a06d-9ce4a9fe5370
<snip>
Sensors:   System Temperatures: cpu: 55.0C mobo: 53.0C
           Fan Speeds (in rpm): cpu: N/A fan-1: 2789
Info:      Processes: 117 Uptime: 36 min Memory: 381.4/2011.3MB
           Init: SysVinit v: 2.88 runlevel: 5 default: 5 Gcc sys: 4.9.2
           Client: Shell (bash 4.3.301 running in roxterm) inxi: 2.2.25

I run this version

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F9kRoXliH9s

Name of version:

Quote:

antiX-15-V_386-full.iso 2015-06-29 699.4 MB

<Fits on 700MB cd>

from here:

http://sourceforge.net/projects/anti...inal/MX-krete/

Always md5sum iso downloads for corrupt iso download with a md5sum check

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aw3nzdkeJao

so to avoid headaches later. You can do the same I suggest with https://www.bunsenlabs.org/

if you so wish.

Happy Trailz, rok.

Edit: I only run one laptop with Windows as a dual booter. It is for tuning up motorcycles. The tuning software requires Windows.
Always install Windows 1st. Dividing up SSD drive as 2 different partitions,
One empty. The other is for XP.

Install Linux grub bootloader to MBR afterwards. This is when you do the linux install to the empty partition next the C partition in Windows.