Linux on floppies for old pc

[BC_Programmer]

A 540 Mb mid 1990s hard drive, if it spins up at all (if the lube hasn't all dried up) is not going to have much life expectancy. I would have thought.

I still have two 50MB drives, and they work fine. I had an older giant looking Western Digital from around '87, but I decided to rip it open to see it's insides. Then I ran it through a USB enclosure with the cover open. Good times.

[Dias de verano]

But! Microsoft has released DOS 6.22 for free:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=96cc3197-b7e5-4b31-badb-ddaac771295f&displaylang=en

It hasn't, as I already pointed out.

The link you gave leads to MS-DOS 6.2 Step-Up. It is for 6.0 Users Only. (MS-DOS Step-Up differs from Upgrade in that it is limited to earlier 6x versions only and contains file updates not complete copies of application files other than IO.SYS & MSDOS.SYS)

I wrote this in my previous post but you ignored it:

I know about the 6.22 upgrade available for free download, but that requires an existing 6.22 installation.

I got the version numbers wrong, and I didn't then appreciate the difference beteen step-up and upgrade, but the essence is true. The only thing Microsoft has "released" is a 6.2 (not 6.22) step-up for legal 6.0 owners.

[squall_01]

yeah, its experimental stuff, that also gives me an idea but I think I ruled the drive to be dead.

[patio]

Great...so now what do we do ? ?

[squall_01]

we wait till I put the other one together an what else was recommened.

[Dias de verano]

When I said it was a "thought experiment" I meant I didn't think anything would actually happen.

[squall_01]

It works an everything just needed an os

[Dias de verano]

It works an everything just needed an os

For want of an 'os(s) the kingdom was lost

[squall_01]

   Any how I'm going to put dos 6 on the one ect....

[Dias de verano]

 

For want of a nail the horsehoe was lost,
For want of a shoe the horse ('oss") was lost,
For want of a horse the battle was lost,
For want of a battle the war was lost,
For want of a war the kingdom was lost.

[squall_01]

well its not working I have to get a new copy of the linux os zip an I dont think that dos will fit on the floppy.

[BC_Programmer]

DOS normally comes on several floppies. They are labelled sequentially, from 1 to the number of floppies in the set. In addition, the installation procedure requires that these floppies be used in order, using the first one to start a "SETUP" program, and waiting until the program requests the next disk. At this time, the disk present in the drive will be removed, and replaced with the next disk in the set. A key will be pressed to indicate to the setup program that the disk has been inserted, at which point it will continue copying files until the next disk.


In short: you can make a basic DOS boot disk with one floppy, but it's necessary to use several to install the whole OS on a computer. Ideally, of course, using the installation program. (for DOS versions 4 and higher)

[squall_01]

Oh yeah, well I dont no how to do that... 

[Zylstra]

But! Microsoft has released DOS 6.22 for free:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=96cc3197-b7e5-4b31-badb-ddaac771295f&displaylang=en

It hasn't, as I already pointed out.

The link you gave leads to MS-DOS 6.2 Step-Up. It is for 6.0 Users Only. (MS-DOS Step-Up differs from Upgrade in that it is limited to earlier 6x versions only and contains file updates not complete copies of application files other than IO.SYS & MSDOS.SYS)

Ah, okay. I see now

I wrote this in my previous post but you ignored it:

I know about the 6.22 upgrade available for free download, but that requires an existing 6.22 installation.

Didnt ignore it, I just didnt understand fully what you meant. I get what you said now

[squall_01]

That dont tell me how....