[kwlug-disc] FreeDOS

unsolicited unsolicited at swiz.ca
Wed Jun 10 17:14:00 EDT 2009


Any system I've done in this fashion, and there's been quite a few, 
I've always done a complete install on the other machine, then moved 
it back into the original machine. But I've never done a tablet 
edition. Yes, it gains some hardware, and loses some, but that's the 
price paid.

As long as you get a screen and a network connection, the rest can be 
resolved afterwards over the net. I've never seen it not get the 
keyboard, but I have seen it not get a mouse, initially. (VNC is 
really useful in this instance - once VNC is running you can connect 
to it, and the mouse works.)

I've run into cases where the video is confused at install, between 
internal only, external only, or both. There is probably a magic 
keystroke that is OS independent for switching among them.

I've only had good success when I stay on the internal video only 
option, for the duration of the install. Once that's complete, then I 
can go to the external one (only), and install drivers appropriate for 
it. Then I'm free to use any video mode afterwards.

I've also run into the internal and external having different 
resolutions. e.g. 800x600 internal (max.) and 1024x768 external (max.) 
Go with the lowest common denominator until installation is complete.

Oksana Goertzen wrote, On 06/10/2009 3:52 PM:
> Hi Colin et al, 
> 
> An update...
> 
> I did try this - setup the drive in another PIII laptop and after it 
> stopped copying the files and
> started the first reboot - I tried to move it back to the Toshiba.  No 
> luck... it doesn't boot.
> No display either.. I had it connected to an external LCD to see what 
> was going on.  Maybe
> I should have finished the install completely and then moved it over 
> plus installed as many
> of the drivers I could find. 
> 
> This is still a work in progress.  I haven't tackled it recently (due to 
> a work issues like a
> SAN problem that ate up all my free [and not so free] time lately) but I 
> have been able
> to obtain the recovery cd's from Toshiba thanks to my rep at 
> Softchoice.  :D  They require
> you boot from cd (yes, the cd attached via PCMCIA - which I don't 
> have)... but it's a
> start and it would give me everything that should be on the system... 
> all the Toshiba
> utilities and such.  There are three disks and it looks like the first 
> one is prep and the
> rest use ghost or something.
> 
> It doesn't boot from a USB attached CD-DVD but it will boot from a usb 
> FDD.  I may
> be able to get it to boot from the floppy and run the install from the 
> CD.  [Next effort].
> 
> Yes, Linux might be a nice option for this machine, I agree, but I 
> couldn't find much
> in the way of a tablet distro that might work on an old PIII and work 
> with the really
> old hardware (read proprietary).. so I figured I should, from a 
> pragmatic point of
> view - go with what the machine came configured and set up for.  Is 
> anybody using
> Linux on a tablet?
> 
> Thanks, Oksana
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On Fri, May 29, 2009 at 11:34 AM, Colin Mackay <zixiekat at gmail.com 
> <mailto:zixiekat at gmail.com>> wrote:
> 
>     Sorry for replying to myself (Hi me!), but another thought occurs... 
> 
>     If this is just for personal use, and you have some time to play
>     about, move the HDD to another computer and install Windows Tablet
>     edition.  Then transfer it back over and let it boot.  Worse case
>     scenario; you end up where you are now.  More than likely you might
>     just have a semi-working XP tablet.  At that point, assuming you
>     have USB and a key, you can install the correct drivers.
> 
>     Windows doesn't always like all the hardware changing, but I've had
>     it survive such transitions in the past.
> 
> 
>     On Fri, May 29, 2009 at 11:30 AM, Colin Mackay <zixiekat at gmail.com
>     <mailto:zixiekat at gmail.com>> wrote:
> 
>         They still have it for XP.  It's called sysprep.  It will
>         basically allow someone to install Windows in full, test it,
>         then return it to a non-activated state for the end user.  I
>         can't recall if it 'strips' out the drivers and lets XP rescan
>         the hardware...  I used to used it when deploying images to
>         machines.
> 
> 
>         On Fri, May 29, 2009 at 10:33 AM, <john at netdirect.ca
>         <mailto:john at netdirect.ca>> wrote:
> 
>             kwlug-disc-bounces at kwlug.org
>             <mailto:kwlug-disc-bounces at kwlug.org> wrote on 05/29/2009
>             10:23:06 AM:
>              > I was fighting with a similar problem last night on
>             different hardware.
>              >
>              > I came across this on installing ubuntu from different
>             media - including
>              > hard drive:
>              >
>              >
>             http://news.softpedia.com/news/Alternative-Installation-Methods-for-
>              > Hardy-86977.shtml
>              >
>              > Short version:  Install ubuntu(server?) on the hard drive
>             leaving an
>              > extra partition big enough to copy your iso into then
>             adjust grub to
>              > point at the disk-based iso installer.  Put the drive
>             back in your
>              > tablet and boot to the Winstaller.
>              >
>              > Advantage:  grub is going to work without fiddling with sys.
>              >
>              > Similar to what you suggested, but without the FreeDOS step.
> 
>             Microsoft used to have an OEM install method for system
>             builders that
>             involved creating a FAT file system and placing OEM drivers
>             on the disk.
>             We never did this because our volume was so low.
> 
>             How about removing the disk, installing elsewhere and doing
>             the first boot
>             on the tablet? If removing the disk isn't an option, you
>             could install on
>             a disk on another PC and image the result to the tablet
>             using a PXE boot.
> 
>             John Van Ostrand
>             Net Direct Inc.
> 
>             CTO, co-CEO
>             564 Weber St. N. Unit 12
>             map
> 
>             Waterloo, ON N2L 5C6
> 
>             john at netdirect.ca <mailto:john at netdirect.ca>
>             Ph: 866-883-1172
>             ext.5102
>             Linux Solutions / IBM Hardware
>             Fx: 519-883-8533
> 
> 
> 
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> 
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