Apart from that albatross around your neck, the tests are negative, you really are quite fine.

[reddragdiva]

The laptop has been partitioned: one FAT32 for Windows 98, one FAT32 for Windows 2000, one ReiserFS for Slackware 10 (muftak uses Slackware 9 on the same model) and a small Linux swap.

Windows 98 installed easily enough from the CD boot floppy. Installing Windows 2000 from the floppy set didn't work (it fails to restart — I suspect the IBM Disk Manager code that lets the 1997 BIOS cope with a 20 gig disk), but we got it onto D: by starting the CD in Windows 98 and insisting yes, we want the D: drive, kthx. Slackware is being a bugger, but we'll probably try booting into the install stuff from loadlin.

Next stupidity: only Administrator can renew DHCP. e.g. when the wireless card pulls a 169.254.x.x address from its arse. The standard Power User can't. Which l33t p0w3r does a user need to be able to renew DHCP? RUNAS claims it can't find ipconfig, even when given the full path. Love it.

The Margi outboard DVD decoder now works like a charm in Windows 98. The secret is not to upgrade to DirectX 9. Run it through the Microsoft DVD player, not the Margi player — the sound goes out of sync with the Margi crapware. We can now watch DVDs in bed. LCDs are so nice to watch DVDs on.

Yes, a bit dirty.

Update: Giving Power Users the right to load and unload device drivers appears to do the trick.

Comments

[rbarclay.livejournal.com]

Well, obviously you'll need to put the user into the Deminsitrator group. Isn't that standard practice on any Windos anyway?

[reddragdiva]

No, that would make it say it had renewed the lease, and flash the lights on the wireless card in the proper manner.

[rbarclay.livejournal.com]

Hmm, that works in my vmware'd W2k, at least.

[reddragdiva]

Ah, I read that as "demonstrator" group ;-)

Giving Power Users the right to load and unload device drivers appears to do the trick.

[castironlocust.livejournal.com]

Next stupidity: only Administrator can renew DHCP. e.g. when the wireless card pulls a 169.254.x.x address from its arse. The standard Power User can't. Which l33t p0w3r does a user need to be able to renew DHCP? RUNAS claims it can't find ipconfig, even when given the full path. Love it.

Isn't it "ipcfg" on '98? God, it's been so long I can't remember...

SWH

[rbarclay.livejournal.com]

Gosh, MSDOS98 doesn't have any user concept to start with, eg even without "logging in" (just press ESC at the prompt) one can do anything. So RDD is obviously talking about the slightly newer Windos here.

[castironlocust.livejournal.com]

Rather, "winipcfg" or something like that...

SWH

[reddragdiva]

2000, not 98. All users have total power over Windows 98; it's the NT-based ones where they pretend not to, except then you run everything as Administrator because it's such a pain in the arse doing things otherwise. RUNAS is their answer to su and one day I'll get it to actually work with the syntax given by RUNAS /? .

[castironlocust.livejournal.com]

DOH! Wasted your time. Sorry about that...

SWH

[lproven.livejournal.com]

RUNAS is more "sudo". Try

RUNAS CMD

which is the SU equivalent. I *have* got it to work but it's not good.

[loosechanj.livejournal.com]

You might like this (http://67.8.245.242:8080/~ogw/stuff/WNTIPCFG_SETUP.EXE). Yes, it's on my lame-ass personal server because I'm really just too tired, lazy, whatever to actually try to find the official d/l, which is obviously in the bottom of a locked filing cabinet etc etc.