G3 iMac Installation

[zopiac]

How would i go about getting the *.iso and installing YDL for my iMac (500MHz i think) PPC iMac, which currently has Mac OS 9.2.2 on it (if it matters; I don't want to keep it on there)? I have never used YDL before, but am proficient in openSuSE, K/X/Ice/Ubuntu, Puppy, and general Linux workings. Also, what are the differences in the versions of YDL that might be useful information, like compatability with various hardware or any dramatic speed differences?

[ppietro]

How would i go about getting the *.iso and installing YDL for my iMac (500MHz i think) PPC iMac, which currently has Mac OS 9.2.2 on it (if it matters; I don't want to keep it on there)? I have never used YDL before, but am proficient in openSuSE, K/X/Ice/Ubuntu, Puppy, and general Linux workings. Also, what are the differences in the versions of YDL that might be useful information, like compatability with various hardware or any dramatic speed differences?

Well - you can start by downloading an ISO here:

http://ydl.oregonstate.edu

You'll also want to follow the directions for running a SHA1SUM on your ISO, to make sure it downloaded correctly.

After that, there are installation instructions here:
http://www.terrasoftsolutions.com/support/installation/

Just a note: YDL is a Red Hat based Linux. I don't really see any Red Hat Linux variants in your list - like Fedora, CentOS, etc. OpenSUSE is probably the closest - though it's originally slackware based. The main difference is that YDL uses RPM for packaging programs and YUM (+ pirut for GUI) for automated installation from on-line repositories.

You'll want to take a look here:
http://www.terrasoftsolutions.com/support/hardware/

and here:
http://www.terrasoftsolutions.com/suppo ... hers.shtml

to see which version will work on your Mac. You'll want to run YDL 6.0 if possible. YDL 5.0x and previous versions are based on Fedora - the community version of Red Hat. YDL 6.0 made the switch to Red Hat Enterprise Linux (via the CentOS recompile). Due to the differences in core libraries, the two aren't very compatible with each other. (By design, RHEL runs about 3 versions behind Fedora.) YDL 6.0 is definitely the way forward with Yellow Dog.

Cheers,
Paul

[zopiac]

i downloaded the ramdisk.image.gz from http://ydl.oregonstate.edu/releases/yellowdog-6.0/os/ppc/ppc32/, im not sure how those mirrors work...correct me if i was wrong.

edit: well that didnt seem to work; which do i download? http://ydl.oregonstate.edu/releases/yellowdog-6.0/os/images/ and then one, im guessing i downloaded the boot.iso, but im not sure if i can burn it, ive been having problems with the openSuSE image burn...

[ppietro]

i downloaded the ramdisk.image.gz from http://ydl.oregonstate.edu/releases/yellowdog-6.0/os/ppc/ppc32/, im not sure how those mirrors work...correct me if i was wrong.

edit: well that didnt seem to work; which do i download? http://ydl.oregonstate.edu/releases/yellowdog-6.0/os/images/ and then one, im guessing i downloaded the boot.iso, but im not sure if i can burn it, ive been having problems with the openSuSE image burn...

Oh - there's a good question. Do you have a DVD drive?

You need this ISO:
http://ydl.oregonstate.edu/iso/yellowdo ... 080207.iso

but that's a DVD only. If you have a CD-ROM, you may have to use 5.0.2.

After you've downloaded and verified the image with SHA1SUM, you'll use the instructions here:
http://www.terrasoftsolutions.com/suppo ... _guide.pdf

Cheers,
Paul

[zopiac]

That might do it I only have a CD Writer Drive. Is the PPC Network Install Disk for openSuSE DVD?

Oh, and nice double-signature there

Edit: im downloading all of these, hopefully this will be right

[ppietro]

That might do it I only have a CD Writer Drive. Is the PPC Network Install Disk for openSuSE DVD?

Are you asking if the openSuSE ISO for Network Install is a DVD? I have no idea - never used openSuSE for PPC. (x86 only)

I think the YDL PPC Network install disk is for CD - but I don't know for sure, since I've never used that image either.

Oh, and nice double-signature there

Ooops - fixed.

Edit: im downloading all of these, hopefully this will be right

Maybe. Since you're using an Apple, you might be better with 5.0.2. There are some issues with 5.0.2 and PS3s, but I think it's better to use with Macs. Still - since you've downloaded 5.0.1, give that a try first.

Cheers,
Paul

[zopiac]

Is there a way to install the YDL PPC 5.x onto a hard drive from within a OS on another computer? for instance, i have no idea how i will get the image to the CD; i have 3 CD writers (all old, so perhaps broken) and plenty of CD-RWs (brand new), but it won't write any image to the disks! I only have access to Ubuntu at this time, on a 64bit computer running either a 32bit or 64bit version of ubuntu. can i emulate the installation onto the/a hard drive?

[ppietro]

Is there a way to install the YDL PPC 5.x onto a hard drive from within a OS on another computer? for instance, i have no idea how i will get the image to the CD; i have 3 CD writers (all old, so perhaps broken) and plenty of CD-RWs (brand new), but it won't write any image to the disks! I only have access to Ubuntu at this time, on a 64bit computer running either a 32bit or 64bit version of ubuntu. can i emulate the installation onto the/a hard drive?

Probably not. There aren't any decent PowerPC emulators that would do this kind of thing. If you were running some sort of Blade server, you might be able to set up a net boot / NFS install along the lines of this:

http://www.terrasoftsolutions.com/suppo ... tall.shtml

but I don't think an Apple Mac is capable of net booting. I think you'll need to burn some sort of media.

I'll be the first to admit - Linux installers are not my specialty.

Now - your CD-RWs might be an issue. A little while after they introduced CD burners, they updated the CD-RW spec and created a "hi speed" CD-RW. These "hi speed" discs are incompatible with older burners. I ran into this myself.

You should try some standard CD-R media before you write off those CD writers.

Cheers,
Paul

[zopiac]

D: but it took me weeks to get my parents to buy me some CDs
oh well, im having my friend burn them with his iMac G5, that should be able to burn them

also, is there any specific name i have to burn the disks to? like, i tried to burn it on my linux and it said "Cd Name: PBOOT." is the CD going to be looking for the next CD with a specific name on it? my friend who will be burning it will be using XP on his iMac, and when i tried to burn it with XP it just said "Cd Name: Nov 9 2008." This might be a trivial thing to ask, but hey, who knows?

[ppietro]

D: but it took me weeks to get my parents to buy me some CDs
oh well, im having my friend burn them with his iMac G5, that should be able to burn them

also, is there any specific name i have to burn the disks to? like, i tried to burn it on my linux and it said "Cd Name: PBOOT." is the CD going to be looking for the next CD with a specific name on it? my friend who will be burning it will be using XP on his iMac, and when i tried to burn it with XP it just said "Cd Name: Nov 9 2008." This might be a trivial thing to ask, but hey, who knows?

If they're ISOs, the name should already be in there. Remember - you don't burn the ISO to a disc - you create the discs from the ISOs.

If your friend is using XP, you might want to try the program IMGBURN. Many users on this forum have had success with that program.

http://www.imgburn.com/

Cheers,
Paul

[zopiac]

is there no GUI on the disk? and is there only a 6cd installation method that i can use (besides dvd) because thats a bit much, i would think, for an operating system to put on that computer idk, just is there a 'light' version?

[zopiac]

well anyways, i tried to install YDL 5.0.2, but when i loaded the CD, said install, and it said Starting Anaconda, the YDL Installer, it then said Fatal error: No Screen Found. switching to text-only mode...

it then shows a blue screen, and just sits there. what's the problem?