is the only answer remastering?

**Reaper** · 05-09-2006, 05:38 PM

i have a laptop with a few problemns in windows so i turned to knoppix to still be able to use it.
i've been trying to configure my notebook adapter wireless card and so far i've managed to get the drivers installed and everything going exept that the only thing missing is changing the /ect/dhcpc/config file. but i'm not allowed to change it cause it's in the cd, as i understand. is there a way to edit the file without the need of remastering?
i am a total n00b to linux! plz help!
thks in advance!

**Harry Kuhman** · 05-09-2006, 05:53 PM

Knoppix is a live CD and a great way to get experience with Linux, but it's not an ideal system when you start installing drivers, upgrading the kernel or making other changes. Have you considered installing Debian etch (the current tersting version of Debian, intended for hard disk)? I clerarly don't have enough information here to tell you how well your notebooks hardware is supported under Linux, but you seem to have software that you can try to use, you just don't have a good platform for making the changes with.

Remastering is a skill that could certainly be handy and if your goal is to gain skill at remastering then good luck with it. But if your goal is to get Linux and your wireless connection working on your notebook, then I expect that you will have a much better experience with Debian than with Knoppix when it comes to making changes like this.

**Reaper** · 05-09-2006, 06:11 PM

thks for the answer. but you see the problem with my laptop is that the harddrive is starting to breakdown. windows has frozen a few times because the harddrive just simply stoped so knoppix is great cause being a live cd linux it doesn't need the harddrive to work so i'm fine with it...
so my guess is that if i install another os in the HD the problem will not go away. guess i'm not gonna be able to have wireless internet on my notebook!
but thks anyway!

**Harry Kuhman** · 05-09-2006, 06:39 PM

That extra info helps. Yes, I see the problem. But AFAIK remastering involves a hard drive "install", making the changes and then creation of a new ISO. May not be the best thing to do on a flaky drive.

If you can live without the wireless connection and have a wired nic then I would go that way. Also, you didn't make it clear what is wrong with the drive; maybe just getting Windows off and Linux ion might help, or maybe a simple software program like Steve Gibson's Spinrite might restore the drive (but Spinrite is not cheap, unless you can find someone with it I don't think I would spend the money to try to save one old Laptop drive, it might be better spent on a replacement hard drive).

One other thing that you might consider is shopping around for the right Live CD for your hardware. There are lots of good live CDs out there and many have different wireless support than Knoppix. Still don't know what hardware you have so can't start to direct you, but maybe Katonix, Mandiva, Knoppix STD, or one of the others already has support for your particular wireless device included.

**Reaper** · 05-09-2006, 08:19 PM

sorry.. didn't think that that info would help much.
i can't connect the laptop thru a cable cause the router is to damn far away and it involves floors (the rooter is in one floor, i'm one below) so i guess i'll just have to look for diferent live cd's then!
i'm not sure what is wrong with the hard drive. maybe its overheating or something like that the only thing i know is that suddenly one day the computer froze and when i restarted it didn't recognize the hard drive as a partition to boot from. and after cooling down (a few hours later) i can start the computer again but i never know how long will it last till the next time the HD freezes!
thks for your help!