I got a newlaptop for my 18th today, and I was just ging to install slack on it (I've done this twice before on my pc on a seperate hd)
Well I have a slight problem...
The partitioning is fairly screwed up...

The following is my fdisk partition table... From windows you can already see two of the partitions which have been made... I attempted to delete the second one which was for data so that I could recreate two usable partitions and a swap... about 10G for Linux overall (inc swap) and the rest just a usable FAT32 for both alongside my already partitioned windows partition. The thing was that I couldn't really get it to happen... first problem was that I'd discovered there was another partition that started and ended in more or less the same place as the data partition and that I couldn't read it using fdisk... as a result I'm dubious about deleting it... I tried deleting the data partition, and then creating a new one in its place, but It would not let me create my own partition again, saying something like the disk was full!!! Then I discovered that the partition Ihad just deleted had come back again... WTF?

Anyway, here's my partition table... see what you can make of it:

Device boot Start End Block ID System
/dev/hda1 1 281 2257101 12 Compaq Diagnostic
/dev/hda2 * 282 3777 28081620 c W95 FAT32 (LEA)
/dev/hda3 3778 7296 28266367+ f W95 Ext'd (LEA)
/dev/hda5 3778 7296 28266336 d W95 FAT32

I'm not sure that its (LEA)... I wrote it on a napkin and the ink bled! Basically, hda1 is some sort of configuration which I'll prob need to keep there. hda2 ismy windows partition... theone with the boot records. I'm fairly sure that hda5 is the partition which is mpty for data, so I'm left to assume that 3 is just some evil plot by the nazis to stop me installing commy software on my lovely new lappy!

Help! The ideal is that I could just have
hda1 (i guess as it is... I dunno what EXACTLY it does tho.)
hda2 (windows partition to remainas it is)
hda3 (a FAT32 for files etc.)
hda4 (Linux part)
hda swap

That's it. Any advice???

Personally, I'd contact Compaq to determine what their partion does. If you have a Windows install CD, and all the neccesary drivers for your laptop, especially those that allow you to connect to the internet, then blow out the partiotn table and make it work the way you want it. ]

Maybe you should clarify your question

hmm... I'd actually rather keep hda2 and hda1 as they are for now... hda1 really isn't thta mch of a problem fr now.. At a later date this laptop may go completely Linux, so I'm not too fussy about how it is now. I jut wanna remove hda5 and 3 if its possible, and then put in threother artitions... a FAT32 foraccess on all OS for mp3s etc, a linux partition and a swap.

Take a look at the start and end sectors of each partition. You'll notice that some of them overlap and are contained within the same sectors. This is a partitioning scheme Compaq has used for a long time to embed Windoze.

Basically, you have one large extended type partition containing extended partitions containing logical partitions.

One thing that troubles me is that the lowest start point is 281. Where's the other 281 sectors on the drive?

The only way to repartion this kind of setup to install Linux is to totally wipe out all the partitions and start from a blank HDD.

That's a pain... can't I just delete hda3 and 5?

Mainproblem is that I'm told the hidden partition hda1 has some important drivers and stuff on... Could I not just reformat everything but that and then make my partitions? I have a recovery disk, but not a copy of XP, and I kinda need it til I'm brave enoughto migrate completely!

I've sorted it... my riend came round and explained that hda3 was an extended partition that I could crete logical partitions inside. We used cfdisk and it all worked.

Will do for now. The Compaq (or whatever) partition is for recovery as I understand it. As said 'it works' now.

First chance you get buy a copy of XP and blow the disk down to ones and start with a fresh system that'll do what you want ....with no surprises.