(no subject)
1. I'm all nervous. I have the new machine built, but there's just the matter of putting it into the spot it's going to occupy, and then installing the software.
2. Okay, it's in place.
3. Why is the drive ignoring the Windows disc I put in and is installing Linux?
4. Oh, wait. I used that hard drive briefly as a Linux install. Linux really doesn't care what sort of machine it's on, it just boots up anyway. Linux really is a much hardier OS than I thought it was. It's certainly a much hardier OS than Windows.
So now I'm in the maybe not so amusing position of having to format Linux off the drive and install Windows when I don't really know this part of Linux so well. I think I have to mount the DVD drive, but it's been such a long time since I did this, I'm not sure how I go about it. Come to think of it, the hardware really should have read the DVD drive before everything else, so as to bypass the hard drive, which apparently has root and a few basics, but no /home and no set up files. I'm in /bin/sh, which is about as basic as you can get, approximately like Dos in the late 80s or early 90s.
Okay, this isn't going to be as easy as I thought. Time to reboot, check the bios and find out why the DVD drive didn't start before the hard drive.
5. In the bios, there's an option of a boot device called "USB-ZIP". I wonder what that is? Say, I wonder if there's a setting where I can get this machine to boot off a thumb drive? Could this be it? I'll just leave that in the second spot, right after the DVD drive.
6. Ah, much better! Windows is loading now. On retrospect I'm so very happy I installed that KVM switch so I can blog this as it's happening. It makes me less crazy to install things this way...
7. Why is Windows ignoring the keyboard? Press ENTER to install XP...how? Am I going to have to find a ps/2 keyboard to use with this install, or maybe just plug the keyboard directly into the machine to get Windows to notice it?
8. Oh dear. The Windows box is ignoring all USB related hardware. They get power from it, but it ignores them. I really am going to have to hunt down that ps/2 keyboard, which means I have to turn off the Windows machine, since ps/2 is not something you can hotplug like USB. Oh well. Baby steps...
9. Great. I don't have a ps/2 keyboard. Is it packed, or is it thrown out? Maybe the neighbors have one?
10. Is there something in the bios which can turn on USB during POST? Wait, the bios screens accept keyboard commands from the USB keyboard. Why does Windows ignore USB keyboard commands? This is starting to get very weird.
11. Oh, here it is. Something called "On-Chip USB". And both USB Keyboard and USB Mouse are listed as Enabled. So why does Windows ignore USB keyboard commands? And more importantly, how can I get around this obvious deficiency?
12. I really am going to have to find a ps/2 keyboard, aren't I? This totally sucks. Of course, there's probably a keyboard switch for XP setup, if only I knew it. Am I going to have to install Linux so I can install Windows, or is there another approach, here?
13. I ask _pollox but end up puzzling him. AND he's low on sleep, AND he's late for work. He does remember that Sweetie's keyboard is ps/2, though.
14. Sweetie's ps/2 keyboard gets me past the Start Windows Setup question, but stops cold at the F8 to agree to the EULA. How silly is that? Just what kind of OS is this Weendows, anyvay? So what do I do now? I mean, other than bag Windows and install Linux?
15. I really suppose I ought to have breakfast. Protein might help me think properly.
I guess I should see about getting another 200GB hard drive to put on the Linux box, because one can really never have enough hard drive space for a downloading machine. :)
2. Okay, it's in place.
3. Why is the drive ignoring the Windows disc I put in and is installing Linux?
4. Oh, wait. I used that hard drive briefly as a Linux install. Linux really doesn't care what sort of machine it's on, it just boots up anyway. Linux really is a much hardier OS than I thought it was. It's certainly a much hardier OS than Windows.
So now I'm in the maybe not so amusing position of having to format Linux off the drive and install Windows when I don't really know this part of Linux so well. I think I have to mount the DVD drive, but it's been such a long time since I did this, I'm not sure how I go about it. Come to think of it, the hardware really should have read the DVD drive before everything else, so as to bypass the hard drive, which apparently has root and a few basics, but no /home and no set up files. I'm in /bin/sh, which is about as basic as you can get, approximately like Dos in the late 80s or early 90s.
Okay, this isn't going to be as easy as I thought. Time to reboot, check the bios and find out why the DVD drive didn't start before the hard drive.
5. In the bios, there's an option of a boot device called "USB-ZIP". I wonder what that is? Say, I wonder if there's a setting where I can get this machine to boot off a thumb drive? Could this be it? I'll just leave that in the second spot, right after the DVD drive.
6. Ah, much better! Windows is loading now. On retrospect I'm so very happy I installed that KVM switch so I can blog this as it's happening. It makes me less crazy to install things this way...
7. Why is Windows ignoring the keyboard? Press ENTER to install XP...how? Am I going to have to find a ps/2 keyboard to use with this install, or maybe just plug the keyboard directly into the machine to get Windows to notice it?
8. Oh dear. The Windows box is ignoring all USB related hardware. They get power from it, but it ignores them. I really am going to have to hunt down that ps/2 keyboard, which means I have to turn off the Windows machine, since ps/2 is not something you can hotplug like USB. Oh well. Baby steps...
9. Great. I don't have a ps/2 keyboard. Is it packed, or is it thrown out? Maybe the neighbors have one?
10. Is there something in the bios which can turn on USB during POST? Wait, the bios screens accept keyboard commands from the USB keyboard. Why does Windows ignore USB keyboard commands? This is starting to get very weird.
11. Oh, here it is. Something called "On-Chip USB". And both USB Keyboard and USB Mouse are listed as Enabled. So why does Windows ignore USB keyboard commands? And more importantly, how can I get around this obvious deficiency?
12. I really am going to have to find a ps/2 keyboard, aren't I? This totally sucks. Of course, there's probably a keyboard switch for XP setup, if only I knew it. Am I going to have to install Linux so I can install Windows, or is there another approach, here?
13. I ask _pollox but end up puzzling him. AND he's low on sleep, AND he's late for work. He does remember that Sweetie's keyboard is ps/2, though.
14. Sweetie's ps/2 keyboard gets me past the Start Windows Setup question, but stops cold at the F8 to agree to the EULA. How silly is that? Just what kind of OS is this Weendows, anyvay? So what do I do now? I mean, other than bag Windows and install Linux?
15. I really suppose I ought to have breakfast. Protein might help me think properly.
I guess I should see about getting another 200GB hard drive to put on the Linux box, because one can really never have enough hard drive space for a downloading machine. :)