xdirectory

i would first let you know what all do i have:-
cpu-dell gx150,p3,996mhz,256 ram,20gb hdd
floppy drive-working

internalcdromcdrom-samsung cd master 24e
external usb cdrom asus quietrack

the problem is as soon as i try to install linux it gets stuck
at starting point saying check the cdrom integrity
my questions

* isit possible to install linux by using smartbootmanager to boot from floppy then using external usb cdrom instead of internal cdrom

* is it possible for me to use my current internal cdrom for installation it works fine in windows xp (ubuntucd and cdrom is working good in winxp)

* is it possible that i save the cd on hdd an access it to install linux as we can do with windows using startup disks commandprompt

Telkwa

I've got a couple of questions. Which version of Ubuntu are you trying to install? 6.06 or 6.10? And are you using a LiveCD or the "Alternate Install" version? How did you acquire the CD? When you say it gets stuck at "Check the CD-ROM integrity" do you mean you clicked on "Check CD for Errors"?

256 MB RAM is borderline for using the LiveCD. You'd probly be better off with the "Alternate Install" CD. It's easy to use, just text-based instead of using graphics.
I'm also wondering if the CD you're trying to use is viable. Did you download the .iso yourself? If so, did you check the md5, and did you set your CD burner way down (like 2X) to burn the data, or just let 'er fly at the default speed? I can get away with 8X on my P4 3GHz with 2GB of RAM, but with a P3 966MHz & 256MB RAM 2X is as fast as I'd go. You're asking your burner to lay down a LOT of data, and it's all gotta be perfect. Use some good quality media and do it SLOWLY.

Your CPU is fast enuf, so no worries there. I don't know the details, but pretty sure you have to install from a CD rather than off a HDD. Don't know why that would be, but don't remember ever hearing of someone doing what you propose.

Yeah, your internal optical drive would be the best choice for installing.

xdirectory

hi thr ,
here i will give the error more ellobrately
livecd 6.06
boot cd 6.06
both were iso downloaded using torrent burned using nero at 12x the media and cdrom works perfectly on xp

1*livecd --step1:main display comes with ubuntu logo on bootup asking
start or install
check cdrom
check memory

when selected start or install

step2:-
shows on screen
essential drivers ok
mounting root file system ok
then a list of checking ok---------------------------
until checking i.386.deb ./casper/filesystem.squashfs
here system hangs for a whils says mismatch and continues reboots again to the start (tried removing the cd but boots windows )

2*bootupcd
step1:-booted using instlux asks keyboard,language
then detecting hardware to find cdrom drives
3 min halt
then it says:-load installer components from cd
there was a problem reading data from cdrom .please make sure it is in drive .if retrying doesnt work check integrity of cdrom
failed to copy file from cdrom

then:-when check for cdrom integrity is done says
the ./pool/main/b/binutils/binutils-2.16.1cvs20060117-1ubuntu2.1-powerpc.deb failed the md5 checksum verification your cdrom or the file have been corroupted at exactly 37% in the process both for livecd and bootup cd.

i am going to take a laptop soon but wanted to use linux until then anythng doesnt work then i will load redhat which i had loaded using first disk on the hard drive ,starting up with startup disk running vmlinuz the the rest 2 cds easily gets detected from cdrom then i was not having a cdrom(internal).

i felt ubuntu was good for a starter rather than using redhat

Telkwa

Well, don't give up on Ubuntu yet!
Are you at all familiar with checking md5's? It's a fairly simple process but completely unfamiliar to lots of Windows users.
There are many md5 utilities available that run in Windows. What an md5 utility does is run a file (such as the Ubuntu download) trhu some sort of algorithm that produces a long alpha-numeric md5 checksum when it's done. You compare the resulting checksum (also called a "hash") against a checksum supplied by the originator of the file to see if your download was received correctly.
Go back to the website where you downloaded your .iso. On that page somewhere there should be a list of MD5's. Help me out here...where did you go, and what did you download? On the Ubuntu download pages, the MD5 sums are just below the download links.
Checking the download md5 is easy, because it's just one big file so there's only one md5. After you've converted the .iso to a bootable CD there are hundreds of files to check. And I don't know of any place on the website that supplies the proper md5's for all those files. That's why on the "Start or Install" splash page there's an option to "Check CD for Errors". If you run that, and the CD comes back with any errors whatsoever, there's no point in proceeding any further with the install. The CD is flawed. It has to be perfect.
So, here's what I'd suggest. Do you still have the download saved on your HDD? Download an easy Windows md5 utility, like md5Summer, and run it across your download. Write down the resulting checksum or save it to your desktop. Find the website you used, find the MD5's, and check it against the md5 you got from md5Summer. If they don't match, your download was bad and you must try again. If they do match, then your burn went bad. Try it again, use good quality media, burn it at 2X, and don't do anything with the PC while it's burning. Walk away and get a cup of coffee. Oh, before you do that, check your Power Mgmt and make sure to set it to "Always On". You don't want the PC to hibernate in the middle of the burn.

Herman did some good work explaining all this. Take a look at his website.

http://www.users.bigpond.net.au/hermanzone/p17.htm

Now, we have another problem. Well, a challenge anyway. With only 256 MB RAM your PC may not be able to digest a LiveCD. The "alternate install" CD is probly a better choice. However, the "alternate install" CD doesn't have the option of checking the CD for errors. Let's see if we can get a good CD first, then go ahead and try to run it. I just want to warn you ahead of time that it might not work.

xdirectory

dear telkwa
i will deffinately first check the md5s from the site i had downloaded it from www.isohunt.com i had heard you get a gr8 help at the forums but never tried it i am really very happy to get quick guidence and advice ,ppl like you make net a better place to be .telkwa i am going to try my best to get ubuntu on my system or else my laptop will be with me in jan so i would wait if it is making me bit of struggle ,as u said i am going to check md5 and burn the cd at low speed (which till now i never even thought of thanks for reminding me ).and i will leave the result (but i am really sorry i am very busy tonite,tomm,day after tomm so the process is postponed for a bit of time again .)
really appreciating your time and concern and thanking you for telling me new things
linus

xdirectory

thanks for the pre install page man its really gr8
thanks again cheers
linus

Telkwa

Hi, x -
I've found a lot of this Linux stuff is like building a house. Most of home construction is not rocket science, but until you've done it a few times everything is pretty darn confusing. Take a deep breath, shake your shoulders around a little bit to loosen up, and be prepared to feel like you're taking one step forward and two back every once in a while. It'll be worth it.

We're fortunate to be here, at a time and place where Linux is becoming accessible to the average PC user/enthusiast instead of just the uber geeks.