Tom Sorry about the forward but Sendmail on SuSE quit working for some, as of yet, unknown reason. Back on Slackware for now. Wayne -----Forwarded message from Wayne Topa <wtopa@ix.netcom.com>----- Message-ID: <19980202214840.14575@ix.netcom.com> Date: Mon, 2 Feb 1998 21:48:40 -0500 From: Wayne Topa <wtopa@ix.netcom.com> To: suse-linux-e@suse.com Subject: Re: [S.u.S.E. Linux] Installer Problems References: <34D63A2C.B767E6CE@fastrans.net> <34D64AF3.BCF12EFF@suse.de> <34D6652A.1E58EA88@fastrans.net> <34D67CB8.F1FEAE1@suse.de> Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii X-Mailer: Mutt 0.89 In-Reply-To: <34D67CB8.F1FEAE1@suse.de>; from Bodo Bauer on Mon, Feb 02, 1998 at 06:11:04PM -0800 Tom I agree the the install of SuSE isn't a bit like Slackware or the others but: Even tho the book is a bit confusing, it does work. You just have to expirment a bit. I loaded up a BIG installation 1st and ran out of HD space ( Over 1 Gig!) so backed off, started again & installed from scratch again. Some things fell into line after I had done it a couple of times. Do I understand why some things are done as they are, no. Do I care, YES. But, even if a newbie would have trouble, you seem to have done enough other installations that it will soon come to you. Bottom line, I prefer Slackware, as I don't like Installation managers that say they do it all, and don't. SuSE isn't perfect, yet, but im my mind I would do this again over RedHat 5 times to sunday. I have only been using this for a week and I like the challenge more on this distribution then on any of the others. It took me less time to make SuSE work (somewhat) than I spent on RedHat or Debian. I'll take the good with the bad and stay plugging away st SuSE. The support is better then I ever saw from redhat and this list has as much information as the Debian list. Stay cool and keep at it. German engineering has always been good and I think that SuSE Linux may just prove that the Software guys over there Know what they are doing. Let me know if I can be of any assistance. Wayne Subject: Re: [S.u.S.E. Linux] Installer Problems Date: Mon, Feb 02, 1998 at 06:11:04PM -0800 In reply to:Bodo Bauer Quoting Bodo Bauer (bb@suse.de):

Tom Schaefer wrote:

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Yes, but the messages are meaningless and are not informative as to finish time, etc.The installer should not allow the user to anything which would jeopardize the install.

Nothing happends if you reboot, only the scripts are starting again. It won't mess up your system.

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However, by probing around, I see the Yast installer is unpacking

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MAN pages and all sorts of other stuff, unbeknownst to the user.

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You need to alert the installer that something else is happening.

It's generating a locate DB, a apropos DB, doublechecks the permissions, etc.

It shouldn't do the locate db stuff unless the user wants to. It adds quite a bit of time to wait for it to finish.

But this doesn't hurt anybody. You can use the system during the scripts are running, that's why we put them in the background.

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I have noticed that if you reboot too soon, Yast appears to be activated at boot up to either finish or do MORE stuff, which is not properly explained. So I never really know if everything has been installed properly.

If you install the system the very first time, you can't switch the CDs because your root filestystem is on CD1.

THEN EXPLAIN THIS DURING THE INSTALL.

YaST brings up a message, what else do you want? 100 of pages that explain what is done exactly? Noone would read this (exept you...).

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That's why yast is started right after rebooting the system. It should now complete the installation and ask you for CD2 and or CD3 to get the missing packages installed.

NO IT DOES NOT ... Once you reboot the system, the installer may start, but there is nothing prompting me to insert Cd2, and since that is not explained - why would I be inserting CD2 or 3 after a reboot? SIMPLIFY!

You are the first person I heard of who had this trouble. It seems it is simple enough for anybody else. Am I wrong?

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You can reboot and just use the machine how you see fit after the first reboot. Nothing is being explained on the console directly to the installer (user) that you are going to need CD 2 or 3. NEVER.

What you fail to understand, that anyone that has previously used Solaris, Caldera, Slackware, or even Red Hat - you don't reboot the machine to finish the install. All packages are extracted, THEN the machine is configured and THEN you do a reboot.

It's the same with our distribution. Perhaps this is the mistake you made. When YaST is finished the first time the installation procedure is going back to initrc. Then the installed system will be bootet. You can say the installation is made 'during the boot'.

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If you've mounted CD 1 as a filesystem, then you can UNMOUNT IT for CD 2 and 3.

During the very first installation you can't unmount it, becouse it is used as root-filesystem. When the installed system runs, switching CDs is not a problem.

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You are overfamiliar with your installer. SIMPLIFY SIMPLIFY SIMPLIFY

Watch someone who has NEVER installed from your distribution. And don't coach them along the way.

You'll see what I mean.

I did, it worked...

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Then Yast starts some scripts like told above. If these scripts don't get enough time to finish (because of a reboot) the procedure starts again...

YES BUT THIS IS NOT EXPLAINED. The first time I installed your 5.0, I wrongly assumed the install was finished when in fact it was still completing as explained before.

It is explained in the message you get before the scripts are startet.

Ciao, BB

PS: Please dont SHOUT, I have no problem reading small caps....

-- Windows95 (noun): 32 bit extensions and a graphical shell for a 16 bit patch to an 8 bit operating system originally coded for a 4 bit microprocessor, written by a 2 bit company, that can't stand 1 bit of competition. -----End of forwarded message----- -- To get out of this list, please send email to majordomo@suse.com with this text in its body: unsubscribe suse-linux-e