From: Dag Asheim <dash@ifi.uio.no> Subject: Re: Advise me! Date: Fri, 7 May 1993 15:29:40 GMT
>I read in the FAQ that
>Linux will only run on an ISA machine. I'll be frankly honest. I have
>NO CLUE what ISA and EISA stand for (something about IRQs???). Is my
>machine ISA? If so, can I install Linux?
If you don't know, you have ISA, because thats the cheapest.
ISA, EISA and MCA is bus standards. ISA is the original, EISA
is Extended ISA, and MCA is IBM's non-compatible version.
You shouldn't have any problem with installing Linux itself,
but you might have a problem with running X at max resolution
(I don't know if your SVGA card is supported).
>Also, here's something else also. Assuming that I can even install
>the system, will it be able to do the following for me:
> - run my old DOS software
> if not, or partially, then can I have both systems on
> my machine and just boot under the one I want to use like
> OS/2's boot manager setup?
There is an DOS emulator, but it is not finnished, so it crashes
on most apps. (At least for me.) Is there a list of apps which
don't act as "quit emulator" commands?
So your best bet is to have both systems on your machine, as you
suggests. (This will be a problem, diskspace-wise, until you buy
more disk.)
> - be able to use TCP/IP and FTP with the (Cabletron?) Ethernet
> card that I have? (LAN network support???)
Don't know.
>Given my current processor at its turtle-like speed, would it even
>run Linux "well"? And how well?
It won't run especially "well" until you buy more RAM. After
that I don't know. (It flies on my 486DX33, 16 MB RAM. Grin :-)
Dag