> > Let me say that I'm a LONG time Linux user, but I'm completely new to > > PPC hardware, Mac OSX, and Linux on anything except x86. > > You've made a wise hardware choice. Laptop quality is usually > questionable, and getting a PowerBook or iBook is the surest way to avoid > problems in that area, even considering the problem models (Lombard, iBook > G3, etc.). You say that you're a long-time x86 Linux user, but you don't > say whether it's always been the same x86 hardware or you've had to deal > with the crapola that different laptop manufacturers tend to put people > who try to install Linux through.
I've been using Linux since 1994, exclusively on my desktop since about 1996 (Win95 was my last M$ desktop OS). I'm also employed as a sysadmin where we run a lot of Linux servers. Plus I'm active in my local LUG and open source development. So, yes, I've installed Linux on a LOT of different hardware, including laptops. :-) I always hate shopping for a new (x86) laptop since it's almost impossible to find a Linux review on a _new_ model, and there is usually something that's not supported on a new model. There has been a lot of interest in Apple laptops from other members of my LUG, which is what got me thinking about getting a powerbook this time. > PowerBooks are not completely immune to > this, but the pitfalls and workarounds are well-known. You won't find a > Linux community dedicated to any specific line of x86 laptops to be as > large as the PPC Linux community. There certainly is an advantage to a limited hardware selection! > > I downloaded PPC ISO's for YDL 4.0, Mandrake 10.1 and Ubuntu to try > > when my new powerbook arrives. I want to dual boot OSX & Linux. > > Is the best plan to immediately reinstall OSX, leaving free HDD space > > for Linux? Or is it possible to shrink the preinstalled OSX partition? > > You have almost answered your own question. Almost, because you left out > the Gentoo LiveCD, which is the one thing you can download that lets you > shrink the preinstalled OSX partition. Cool! I was wondering if there was a live (knoppix-like) CD for PPC. Hopefully the "minimal" live CD will do the job, since I don't want to wait for the full live CD to download. (my laptop just arrived) :-) And I got this email just in time, since I assume shrinking will be much easier before the initial OSX boot (which may write files toward the end of the drive). > Sure, you can reinstall OSX, but > you've never had to deal with that before, so stick with what's familiar. > When you boot the current Gentoo LiveCD (by holding the C key), use parted > from the command line (not qtparted, or anything else), and give the > "resize" command to shrink your OSX partition (probably /dev/hda2). When > you're done, reboot and hold down Cmd-S. That will boot OSX into > single-user mode. At the command line there, type "/sbin/fsck -y" with no > other arguments, and let it do its thing (you understand all this, > right?). Ctrl-D to log out of single-user mode, then boot the YDL > installer. Very nice, thanks a bunch!!! > > Modems, same question. USB? PCMCIA? > > Unless Apple has changed things in recent models, the built-in modem is a > Conexant USB HCF-type controllerless software modem. Getting that to work > under Linux is pretty much the same as getting similar hardware to work on > x86 Linux. Buying an external USB modem for PPC Linux is the same as > buying one for x86 Linux, which in turn is no different from buying a PCI > internal modem for x86 Linux. Since you're experienced with x86 Linux, > I'll assume you understand the implications of all of the above. Yes, and I have a couple older PCMCIA modems (non-winmodems) what work fine in x86 Linux. > > FWIW, the reason I'm buying a new PPC laptop instead of an x86 is > > because I figured I'm going to dual boot whatever laptop I buy with Linux, > > and what I've heard about OSX sounds much better than what I know > > about XP.... (and I never use XP on my current x86 laptop) > > All dual-boot computers have an OS that's practically never used. It only > remains to be seen which one that will be. Very true. I want to give OSX a serious look while I'm at it. - BS _______________________________________________ yellowdog-general mailing list [email protected] http://lists.terrasoftsolutions.com/mailman/listinfo/yellowdog-general HINT: to Google archives, try '<keywords> site:terrasoftsolutions.com'
