[ltp] Thinkpad 760XL - Linux Install Information

[Jim Harvey]

Adam Southerland wrote:
> Here we go... I have found a better way to install Slackware on my 
> Laptop...
> 
> The 760XL has the delima of not being able to boot directly off of the 
> CD. Switching from Floppy Drive to CDRom during install normally fails 
> (or Linux doesn't even detect the CDRom because it doesn't exist 
> yet..... [Floppy and CDRom are swapable only])
> 
> Here is what I have done:
> Install DOS 6.22 (or PCDos or FreeDOS or any DOS =) - On a 15 Mb partition.
> Copy Loadlin.exe, bare.i\bzimage, and the initrd.img files from the 
> Slackware CD (9.1)
> then run:
>       loadlin c:bzimage root=/dev/ram rw initrd=c:initrd.img
> 
> NOTE: it seems you have to fresh boot and NOT load the cdrom drivers in 
> order for linux to detect it.
> 
> This way I get the max potential from my 2 Gb hd... My other methods 
> requried me to have a 300 Mb DOS Partition for the Slackware files.
> 
> Micah
> 

There is a trick shown in the Loadlin documentation for getting DOS to load the linux kernel at boot. It involves setting loadlin to be the DOS shell in config.sys.  I've done this a few times, and used the trick to get a dual boot machine MSDOS/Linux.  I don't have that computer any more but there is a good example at http://www.sr.unh.edu/~rea/linux/loadlin/ or google for "loadlin config.sys" for lots of examples.  Note you copy the kernel to the C drive so you don't need cdrom drivers at DOS startup.  

Also there is a Loadlin howto at http://www.linuxdocs.org/HOWTOs/mini/Loadlin+Win95-98-ME.html which describes a different method.  The advantage of doing it in config.sys is it gets done early in the boot sequence before DOS loads a bunch of low memory hogging stuff.
-- 
    Jim Harvey, Naperville, Ill.   Linux person - WB8NBS/9
           He who dies with the most software wins.