[GRLUG] Debian / HDD Install Linux?

[John-Thomas Richards]

On Fri, Sep 19, 2008 at 06:34:16PM -0400, Ben DeMott wrote:
> (yes sorry I missed the 'install' argument in my command line statement, a
> thousand apologies)

Actually my reply was focused more on the name of the app (tuxracer vs.
extremetuxracer).

> I will have to try out Debian in vmware or something... Only reason I shy
> away is I have had Nvidia driver grief with Ubuntu, although that may have
> been Nvidia's problem.

I had no problem installing nVidia's binary driver when I ran Debian on
a desktop (alas, my laptop has Intel).

> I believe the default desktop environment is still Gnome - Anyone using
> compiz fusion and emerald for their desktop manager in Debian? - that would
> convince me to switch.

Compiz works on my laptop, but I run e17 and care little for eyecandy.
:-)  I am not sure about the "fusion" part (how is it different?) and
have never heard of emerald.

> As for the HDD install -->
> 
> " I removed the HD, put it into my
> Thinkpad, installed Ubuntu, and put the HD back into the tablet."
> 
> I tried installing the operating system itself as Ben Rousch suggested
> (thanks Ben - good name)
> And I so intelligently wasn't thinking about the fact that the installer
> would create a mount point for the physical drive as /dev/sda (because I had
> it connected through usb) -- So when I swapped the hard disk back into the
> laptop grub complained it couldn't find /dev/sda - because /dev/sda was now
> /dev/hda
> I'm don't know enough about grub or the underlying system to know what would
> need to be changed to point grub back to /dev/hda ?
> Would the grub conf just need to be edited or anything to do with initrd
> need to be changed? or is it not worth it, and I should figure out another
> way?
> I'm sure it can be done after all, everything is just > files
> :)
> 
> Thanks in advance!

Again, the beauty of GRUB is you can edit it on the fly.  When the GRUB
menu pops up, press `e' for edit and change the line from sda to hda.
-- 
john-thomas
------
Political freedom cannot exist in any land where religion controls the
state, and religious freedom cannot exist in any land where the state
controls religion.
Samuel James Ervin Jr., lawyer, judge, and senator (1896-1985)