Linux Dummies 9th

34
Part I: Getting Your Feet Wet
Figure 2-8 shows the Disk Defragmenter in Windows 98.
Often it takes more than one pass to get all the files into a common area. After
defragmentation is complete, your files are in a contiguous area at the beginning
of the disk space — and you’re ready to partition the hard drive as part
of the Linux installation.
Figure 2-8:
The
Windows 98
Disk Defragmenter
utility.
Double-Checking Hardware
Compatibility
If you’re installing Linux on hardware you already own, just give it a try and
then see what does and doesn’t work. Parts of this section can help you out;
they address fixing general hardware problems. Other chapters address
more specific hardware issues such as sound cards (Chapter 13), wireless
cards (Chapter 9), and so on. If you run into trouble, start in the specific sections
dedicated to particular tasks, and then come here for more general help
if you still haven’t solved the problem.
The biggest problem areas are wireless cards and the very latest whiz-bang
multimedia hardware — such as fancy new versions of video cards, sound
cards, and image scanners. You can check hardware compatibility lists
before purchasing new hardware, but they’re of limited use because the hardware
world changes so quickly. If you’re interested in looking at a general list,