I have been a Windows Administrator for many years so I'm new to Linux, how do get past the (root@darkstar:~#)screen and into a KDE or any GUI environment?

Firstly, it's unwise to log in to a graphical environment as root. Create a normal user first with the "adduser" command. Afterwards, log out and log back in as your new user and try "startx". If that doesn't work, you may have to run "xorgconfig" to set up your X server. Take a look at chapter 6 of this for more info on configuring X.

If all goes well and you can get into a GUI, you won't want to type startx every time you boot. So, you can edit the /etc/inittab file (you will need to be root to do this) and look for the line that says "id:3:initdefault:". Change the 3 to a 4, save the file and when you boot again, you should be greeted with a graphical login screen.

Hopefully this isn't too much all in one go .

Also, keep CD # 2 handy, in the event that you cannot start the X Window system. CD # 2 for Slackware 10 is a Live Rescue CD and it will allow you to temporarily mount your Slackware partition and edit /etc/inittab and change the 4 back to 3. I just went through this last week.

One nice thing about GNU/Linux is the GUI is not embedded completely into the system. That means when trouble arises you can boot into the command line to repair things. Sort of like a back door. Just like in the old Windows 3.x days.

Rather than continually fiddling with inittab or rescue disks, I have found that the easiest way to provide this dual option is to create two boot loader menu options: one for a GUI boot and one for a command line boot.

I modified the inittab to boot into runlevel 4, as instructed above. This becomes my preferred default boot mode.

Then I added a second boot loader menu option. In the menu option that directs the kernel how to boot, I add the init 3 kernel boot option. For example, here is a snippet from my GRUB menu.lst:

title Slackware 10.2 - 2.4.28 - KDE 3.3.2
kernel (hd0,12)/vmlinuz-ide-2.4.28 root=/dev/hda23 ro hdc=ide-scsi vga=3 ide2=noprobe quiet

title Slackware 10.1 - 2.4.28 - Init 3
kernel (hd0,12)/vmlinuz-ide-2.4.28 root=/dev/hda23 ro init 3 hdc=ide-scsi vga=3 ide2=noprobe quiet

Notice that other than the obvious title description, the only difference is the init 3 option.

The first option is my default boot option. When I want to boot into runlevel 3, however, I manually select the second option.

Regarding using CD-2 as a rescue disk, although I have seen many people recommend this, I never have seen this work, beginning with version 10.0. CD-1, however, can be used as such, at least from my experience. Instead of letting the CD boot into setup, manually modify the boot command to boot to your Slack partition.

Additionally, if you use GRUB, you can create a boot floppy in case your MBR gets hosed. The floppy does little more than point to the GRUB files on your hard disk, but this is another way to get into your box in a pinch.

Slackware also provides you the option to create a boot floppy. If you did not do this during the initial installation, run pkgtool and select the Setup option.

Don't worry about working as root. Working as root is far easier and more sane when you are first getting your feet wet. I work as root often and in X/KDE too. Once you get X/KDE running, you can use KUser, which provides a nice graphical point-and-click front-end to adding new user accounts. Just keep the box disconnected from the web while working as root.

I hope this helps.

I like your idea better than the Live CD. It's permanent and doesn't require mounting of the root partition and editing of the inittab file whenever a problem arises. Awesome tip! Thanks.

I have Slackware 10.0 and I had to use CD#2 the other day. The screen is very similar to CD#1's but when I read the message, it actually talks about it being a Rescue CD. However, I like your idea a lot better, though.

Interesting. I tried my 10.0 and 10.2 CD-2 disks and neither booted. Could see why with the 10.0 disk as that disk was downloaded from a non-slack mirror and is a 10.0-current disk. However, 10.2 I downloaded from a Slack mirror but that one fails too. Perhaps only the purchased version of CD-2 provides this option?

Woodsmen et al:

You seem to forget that Slackware, by default, installs LILO, not GRUB

The other thing is that xorgconfig is a BEAR for a newbie ("What is my monitor horizontal freq?").
An easier way, and much faster IF you have a system that is fairly low end, (i.e. no Nvidea or ATI card that you need special drivers for), is xoergsetup. No questions about your equipment, really. It probes, it writes xorg.conf, it's done.

A VERY good guide for newbies is Shilo' sticky on the main Slackware forum, entitled "How I did it all", and his website, www.shilo.is-a-geek.com/slack

Well, remember though, there are as many ways to use/configure Slackware as there are Slackware users. Play with it.Use it. Break it. Fix it. That's the real fun of linux anyways. Infinately configurable.

Have fun

I don't know why you selected me to provide that tidbit. In almost every thread where the issue arises I remind new users that GRUB is not offered in the standard setup.

I disagree with PV on this, but Slackware is not "mine." I don't know why GRUB is not offered as a second boot loader option, especially when GRUB is popular and the default boot loader in many other distros. Somebody on a different forum likes to often quip that Slackware is the best distro that 1995 has to offer. Sometimes I agree. Please don't anybody start any flame wars with me on this--I use only Slackware as my base GNU/Linux OS. I merely embrace a different perspective on the meaning of usability.

IMO, Slackware possesses the potential to be so much more and with only nominal changes. I address several of these infamous usability issues (and provide solutions) in my soon-to-be web site. I am not pissin' and moanin', just being wishful. For example, how many times do newbies have to come to LQ and ask how to configure a mouse with a scroll wheel? Just about every other vendor in this business configures that automatically. Likewise, how many times will newbies come here to LQ to ask how to configure Slack for a GUI boot as the default? These kinds of things should be addressed in the initial setup and a post-setup tool should be available (separate from the options offered in pkgtool) for people to modify these options. Just my opinion and that's as far as I'll go on this topic in this thread.

I agree. xorgconfig is a sick joke IMO. I prefer and use older hardware and xorgsetup works fine for that. However, I've read numerous posts where xorgsetup fails too. Yet, consider that in the Slackware Essentials Handbook, the first recommended option to configure X is xorgconfig. And many people wonder why Slackware retains a reputation for being difficult? As unpopular as this recommendation might be in this forum, if xorgsetup fails to help, then grab a copy of the Knoppix CD to configure X. Copy and paste the resulting xorg.conf.

Agreed!

if you just want to boot into the gui you need to edit /etc/inittab

look for this line:
id:3:initdefault:

change to this:
id:4:initdefault:

it is more insecure to log into the gui with root because the gui needs access to more of the system then the cli (more files more devices just plain more). you should try to avoid letting root get to as much of the system as possible in practice. best would be to log into the gui as a user and then open a console/terminal and then su to root.