On Monday 08 March 2004 07:30 pm, Diane Duncan wrote:
> Hi Carroll,
>
> At 11:58 PM 3/6/04 -0500, you wrote:
> >1. Put your windows boot disk in the floppy drive. If you don't have a
> >boot
> >disk, you can download one from the FreePCTech web site:
> >http://freepctech.com/pc/002/files010.shtml
>
> I saved the appropriate file to a floppy disk in the A drive.
>
> >2. Verify that the boot disk includes fdisk.exe. If not, you'll need to
> >copy
> >fdisk.exe from your hard drive (mine is in c:\windows\command) to the
> >floppy.
>
> The file from the freepctech site is called WIN98SE.EXE.  I don't know if
> it includes
> fdisk.exe, so I copied that file from my system and saved it on the same
> floppy.  Additionally, I should note that I have the original Windows 98SE
> cd with all the OS files.  Can I use that as a boot disk?
>
> >3. Shutdown, and reboot with the boot floppy in the drive. (If it doesn't
> >boot
> >to the floppy, you will have to go into the BIOS and change it so that it
> >boots from the floppy.)
>
> My BIOS lists the boot order as removable devices first, with the floppy
> drive as the first removable device.  So I guess that means my system will
> boot to the floppy?
> I did #3, but got this message:
> non system disk or disk error
> Replace and strike any key when ready
>
> So I turned off the computer and went through the usual dual-boot-choice
> routine to get to windows.  (Reminder: my goal is to get Linux off this
> box; I get that kernel panic message and can't get to Linux to do anything
> in that OS)
>
> I don't understand why this is so difficult when everybody is writing that
> all I have to do is boom boom boom and you're gold.  I must be doing
> something wrong, but I honestly can't figure out how to make things
> work...except maybe heave this machine off the deck.
>
> Will Partition Magic show me the directory and files, etc, that have the
> Linux OS, so I can just highlight them and delete them?  Similar to Windows
> Explorer?  That would be ideal.
>
> Thanks so much for your help.  I may be frustrated, but I'm very grateful
> and quite persistent.  :)
>
> Diane

Diane:
Let me add the following to Bill Cohane's response:

Here's what you have to do:
1. Create a new directory. (Let's call it BootDisk)
2. Move or Copy WIN98SE.EXE to that directory.
3. Click on WIN98SE.EXE and have it expand the file to BootDisk.
4. Put a blank floppy in the drive.
5. Right click on the floppy icon on your desktop.
6. Select "Format" from the menu.
7. This will open a window. Make sure that "Full", "Display summary when
finished" and "Copy system files" are selected, then press Start.
8.  When the operation is completed, another window will appear. Select Close.
9. Go back to BootDisk. Copy all of the files there except WIN98SE.EXE to the
floppy.
10. Shutdown and restart, booting to the floppy. It will take a while, because
it has to set up a driver for you CD-ROM. (Kinda silly, because you don't
need that, but that's the way the it is.) Then run fdisk /mbr. That _should_
kill the dual boot.

As for your new question: No, Partition Magic won't recognize your directories
and files; it is only concerned with the partitions which contain your
directories and files. PM will identify your partitions by type, which is OK,
because that is all we care about now. Windows partitions will be identified
as FAT, FAT16 or FAT32; those are the ones that you want to keep. Linux
partitions will be identified as Linux Ext2 or Linux Swap; those are the ones
that you want to delete. Once that has been done, Partition Magic can be use
to either create a new Windows partition in that space, or to extend your
present Windows partition.

And don't throw your PC from the deck. Trying to get two different -- and
somewhat antagonistic -- operating systems to work together is not always the
simple matter that some folks (who me?) claim. But then, just getting one OS
to run isn't as simple as the advertisements claim. If it were, there would
be no need for lists like PCSOFT and PCBUILD, would there?

Regards,
Carroll Grigsby

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