Paul--
When I have tried this with YellowDog 3.0 and 4.0 -- I will get one of two results on multiple tries. Either a pci@80000 error and the installer cannot find a linux kernel to boot from so I get just a boot: prompt -- or everything boots fine -- I can do the partitioning step and package selection -- However after package selection when it actually tries to write the partition table to the HD and format then write packages to the HD it locks down -- no error message -- in fact everything appears to work normal and I can switch to other consoles just fine -- again no obvious error messages...just no activity either. Now with the Fedora Core 4 or 5 installers for ppc -- the machine always boots and finds a kernel... no pci@80000 error ever -- and I can do partitioning and package selection just fine -- but at the end of that when it normally writes and formats the partitions everything locks down. Please understand that by mentioning YellowDog 3.0 and 4.0 and Fedora Core 4 and 5 -- I have all of those discs burned and have actually tried each one.
The Intech ATA patch I mentioned is part of a package they make called SpeedTools. The full SpeedTools package is expensive -- but they have a High- Capacity ATA patch that was only $25 -- I think it is a MacOSX kernel patch but really am not sure. As to what OF patch level this machine is actually at I could not tell you -- I am currently running MacOS 10.4 and for some reason the Apple System Profiler from 10.4 crashes every time I run it. I do have a Firewire port on this B&W G3 and have heard there is some issue with that and Apple System Profiler. I have not tried booting the Fedora installers with the nodmraid option you mentioned -- so I may try that ....If I format this machine entirely over to linux and had the option of doing MacOSX through Mac-on-Linux if that still works I would do that. Prior to the advent of MacOSX I have had some form of PPC Linux running on a PowerMac 6100 - a 7100- and a Umax J700 Mac clone with MacOS 7.5.3 - 9.2 -- I also have run every version of RedHat and Fedora Core on regular PC's going back to Redhat 5.0 -- I am not bragging -- just pointing out that the Linux part of things I pretty much understand but there may be some interaction between Linux and MacOSX or OF in the install process that I do not have a clue about. I also have an older G3 Imac that runs Fedora Core 4 with no problem whatsoever.
I would strongly prefer to have Linux on this box - but need some access to MacOSX for Dreamweaver and Photoshop which I use quite a bit for work. I know that the 137gb thing is something to do with OF -- so there may be enough problems there that I just really need to get an ATA controller card and skip the whole issue...but it will be a bit yet before I have the funds for that.
Anyway sorry to be longwinded and thanks for the help!! I may try the -nodmraid option and see if that changes anything.
James Rooker-
On Nov 2, 2006, at 6:10 AM, Paul Nasrat wrote:
What sort of patches are you talking about - Open Firmware/FCode patches or OS X kernel patches?
Also are you running the most recent firmware patches from Apple for the B&W?
I would like to set this machine up dual boot -- MacOSX and Fedora ppc linux. However with both Fedora Core 4 and Fedora Core 5 ppc installers -- I can boot the machine just fine and run the installer to the partitioning stage -- but it never actually writes any linux packages to the HD at all the installer locks up when I try to write partitions to either drive ...
Can you give more details on the lock - is it just a lock or is it a traceback/error message. Can you switch ttys to tty3 and tty4? If so are there any messages there?
Paul