I just got a new Dell Latitude D810 notebook from work & would love to try Slackware 10.2. I tried Slack 10.1 when it was released and struggled with the default 2.4 kernel and S-ATA support. Anyways - I am looking to try 10.2 but am not sure how good of a project this will be on my Dell laptop. Any suggestions...?

Does Slackware allow you to install Gnome 2.12+?
Does Slackware have any easy to manage package / update manager like APT?

Thanks for any info / tips / suggestions...

Nope, Slackware no longer has gnome. There is FreeRock Gnome.

There are packages like swaret and slapt-get.

Install using the 2.6 kernel. When you first boot to CD1 type test26.s. Then pick the test26 kernel during the last part of the install. I have it on my gateway laptop I bought last fall and it works great. I do not have SATA though.

The only advice that I have is that model is on a Battery Recall program from Dell. You better check if your battery model is listed there, before it explodes like this (no kidding).

Yes - I work for U.S. DoD and Dell made sure to notify us 1st about the recall. I made sure the battery was replaced and in proper working order!

What are my options for Window Manager via Slackware 10.2? I am so use to Gnome and I wonder why Slack does not support or use Gnome nativly...

It was officially supported until version 10.1.
Search this forum for more details, I don't know them as I'm not a Gnome guy.
Now by default you can get any of these

• KDE
• XFCE
• Blackbox
• Fluxbox
• Windowmaker
• Virtual window manager
• Tab window manager

Any tips for working with FDISK - I find this very frustrating! I have a 60GB drive in my laptop and am not sure how to allocate disk space and also how to do this via Fdisk. They make that sector stuff so damn confusing.

Pat says the hassle it takes to maintain gnome is not worth it, look here ( http://news.zdnet.co.uk/software/lin...9192973,00.htm )

Slackware comes with KDE, Fluxbox, Blackbox, Windowmaker and XFCE. The KDE included in Slackware is basically stock and runs the fastest I seem a default KDE install run.

Don't let the lack of gnome drive you off. You can install Freerock or Dropline. I have installed both and think they work well.

use cfdisk
I find it way easier to use and a nicer option

Pat dropped Gnome because it was too time consuming to maintain. You can read the 10.2 changelog for info.

Dropline, Freerock, and Gware all offer a Gnome specific for Slack.

Slack intentionally doesn't use an apt-like package management system. It keeps things simple and avoids some of the problems dependency checking can cause. Slackpkg is a great tool and is included in /extra.

I run Slack-current on a Latitude and it works perfectly.

Lets say you have a root partition(30gigs), a swap(1 gig) partition and some free space(29 gigs). Your HD is a SATA so I think that make it appear as a sda.
Do this:
1. type fdisk /dev/sda
2. them type m ---> this lists the options
3. Then type n ---> creates a new partition, you'll need to answer some questions
4. Pick primary
5. Then default for all except when it chooses the size. Here you can use M for the size in megs, +1000M for a gig.
6. After you do that you need to set the type. Choose, I believe 83 for a linux partition.
I am not sure if thatanswered your question?
I did that all from memory, I hope did it right.

Or you could use cfdisk like someone mentioned above. I like fdisk because I like punishing myself, lol. Really it is not that bad.

Thanks - I will try this on my laptop and see what becomes of it. I am just so comfortable with Debian but want to depend less on APT and more on core Linux commands...

As mentioned, cfdisk is easier.

How good a project? First thing I did when I got my Dell Inspiron was to remove M$, make new partitions and load Slack 10.2.

Works like a charm since then.

If you want to compile kernel 2.6 just make sure to change /dev/hda to /dev/sda in lilo before restarting.

I'm just finishing installing Slackware 10.2 on a Dell Inspiron 8100 and it works like a dream. I had make sure I used the bareacpi.i kernel to get the shutdown command to automatically shut the computer down though.

I used http://www.bitbenderforums.com/vb22/...ad.php?t=60154 as a walkthrough for the initial installation and the directions on how to use fdisk to partition the hard drive were easy to follow.

HTH

Guys - I am sceptical about using Linux on a laptop simply because I have not found out how I can make the system hybernate when you shut the lid. In XP, when I shut the lid of the notebook, the system goes in standby or hybernate and you can tell because the power light goes from solid to flashing and the notebook no longer stays hot. It's pretty much off and saves my battery...

When I tried Ubuntu 5.10 or 6.06, the battery would run non stop and pretty much last only 1 hour which really made me mad since I had the lid closed 1/2 the time. Is there a way to get the desired XP laptop power save settings on Linux/Slackware?