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Path: euryale.cc.adfa.oz.au!newshost.carno.net.au!harbinger.cc.monash.edu.au!news.cs.su.oz.au!metro!metro!asstdc.scgt.oz.au!nsw.news.telstra.net!act.news.telstra.net!psgrain!usenet.eel.ufl.edu!news.ultranet.com!zombie.ncsc.mil!nntp.coast.net!howland.erols.net!newsfeed.internetmci.com!news.i2020.net!legba.synergy.net!usenet From: "Richard T. Robino" <rrobino@synergy.net> Newsgroups: comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc,comp.os.linux.hardware Subject: Re: FreeBSD & XFree86 on ThinkPad Date: Thu, 03 Oct 1996 00:16:56 -0600 Organization: Synergy Communications, Inc. Lines: 85 Message-ID: <32535A58.130C@synergy.net> References: <52q926$q78@scream.auckland.ac.nz> <52rm3a$a4l@helena.MT.net> Reply-To: rrobino@synergy.net NNTP-Posting-Host: rrobino.admin.synergy.net Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Mailer: Mozilla 2.01 (Macintosh; I; 68K) Xref: euryale.cc.adfa.oz.au comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc:28511 comp.os.linux.hardware:52183 Nate Williams wrote: > > In article <52q926$q78@scream.auckland.ac.nz>, > Peter Dobcsanyi <P.Dobcsanyi@auckland.ac.nz> wrote: > >Dear *, > > > >I am planning to buy an IBM ThinkPad 365X notebook computer (Pentium > >100, 16Mbyte RAM, SVGA dual-scan). What are my chances to install > >FreeBSD / Linux and XFree86 on it? *** lengthy post, sorry *** I am in the middle of finding/installing some decent implementation of unix on my older Thinkpad and have been working on getting linux up on mine for about a week. I am having a difficult time with RedHat Linux, and although I am going to do an install of FreeBSD from the hard disk this weekend, I suspect I will have the same problem with it. I am looking for a hand-hold specific to Thinkpads myself, but here are some relevant lessons I have learned that you might benefit from: in regards to Nate's post: > > FreeBSD should work find it. Older Thinkpad's have some problems, but your > 365 should work fine. 1. If the new Thinkpads are like the old ones in this respect: disk geometry, find out from IBM exactly what the heads, cylinders, and sectors per track are _before_ installing - it may save you making a root disk. For my thinkpad (701cs, 24/720, DX475), IBM didn't even know this fact. A support technician and I did some math and guessed that we could extrapolate linearly for these parameters from the information he did have for the 360MB drive. That alone has not solved my problem (I don't know what my problem is). If this is not an issue with the "new" thinkpads you are VERY fortunate. Apparently, it is not a BIOS thing with thinkpads, its a CMOS thing - just what I've read. The reason I even got turned on to FreeBSD in the first place is I noticed that they had a DOS executable to help figure your geometry out - I haven't tried it yet though. > >I also would like to have a PC card Ethernet+Modem, what model should I > >buy? 2. Hard drive installs are the easiest for those of us without a local CD drive (no mention of one on your future system), IMHO, and as far as PCMCIA cards go (again, IMO), you would do better to get a 3com ethernet card to FTP the files during a DOS session, or simply install using ftp as the medium. As Nate stated, and from other posts I have read in this group 3com seems to work well for FreeBSD - it worked no problem with RHL too. Unless you plan to dowload the individual FreeBSD files via modem and install from floppies (can you imagine?!) you should definitely invest in one. You may miss some crucial packages during an FTP install (cf. "Package problems... thread). I have not had success trying to use the pc card cd rom images (RHL) to install, but ethernet did work fine. Again, freebsd's installer may work much better with pc cards for installation. If you don't have an ethernet connection to the net, check with your ISP about a one-time, buy-the-sysadmin-lunch-on-a-Saturday, ethernet d/l. I would do it ;) 3. To save *some* space here, I will end with a recommendation of a few websites. They are for linux mostly, but you mayl find them helpful in some regards as there is a dearth of info on unix for thinkpads. Try: http://www.redhat.com/linux-info/laptop/ http://peipa.essex.ac.uk/tp-linux/tp-linux.html Sorry, I haven't had as much time with the freebsd site to find thinkpad specific info. Speaking of which, please do not flame me for chiming in here and not actually knowing anything about freebsd myself. I'm not a platform bigot and I do respect the fact that this group has alot of very knowledgable people and I am not very qualified to post here, but I know what it's like looking for *any* thinkpad info. Hope my two cents helps you out. So, if anyone would like to help me get going with freebsd on my thinkpad, I'm all ears. It sounds good, Ive always like bsd flavored unix and admired its innovations. The only point I even wonder about (I have been reading posts here for a few days) is freebsd's security - how is it? Compared to vanilla (oxymoron, I know) linux? Install help (specific) and just a word on security is all I need... If anyone responds, please email me at rrobino@synergy.net as I need to do some major work on our news server starting tomorrow and I know we will be missing some feeds. TIA. Rick ---- Rick Robino Synergy Communications, Inc. rrobino@synergy.net