2 INSTALLING MINIX 3 APP. A
If you are using Easy CD Creator 5, select ‘‘Record CD from CD image’’
from the File menu and change the file type from .cif to .iso in the dialog box that
appears. Select the image file and click ‘‘Open.’’ Then click ‘‘Start Recording.’’
If you are using Nero Express 5, choose ‘‘Disc Image or Saved Project’’ and
change the type to ‘‘Image Files,’’ select the image file and click ‘‘Open.’’ Select
your CD recorder and click on ‘‘Next.’’
If you are running Windows XP and do not have a CD-ROM burning pro-
gram, take a look at alexfeinman.brinkster.net/isorecorder.htm for a free one and
use it to create a CD image.
3. Determine which Ethernet Chip you have
MINIX 3 supports several Ethernet chips for networking over LAN, ADSL,
and cable. These include Intel Pro/100, RealTek 8029 and 8139, AMD LANCE,
and several 3Com chips. During setup you will be asked which Ethernet chip you
have, if any. Determine that now by looking at your documentation. Alternatively,
if you are using Windows, go to the device manager as follows:
Windows 2000:Start > Settings > Control Panel > System > Hardware > Device Manager
Windows XP: Start > Control Panel > System > Hardware > Device Manager
System requires double clicking; the rest are single. Expand the + next to ‘‘Net-
work adapters’’ to see what you have. Write it down. If you do not have a sup-
ported chip, you can still run MINIX 3, but without Ethernet.
4. Partition your hard disk
You can boot the computer from your CD-ROM if you like and
MINIX 3 will
start, but to do anything useful, you have to create a partition for it on your hard
disk. But before partitioning, be sure to back up your data to an external med-
ium like CD-ROM or DVD as a safety precaution, just in case something goes
wrong. Your files are valuable; protect them.
Unless you are sure you are an expert on disk partitioning with much experi-
ence, it is strongly suggested that you read the online tutorial on disk partitioning
at www.minix3.org/doc/partitions.html. If you already know how to manage par-
titions, create a contiguous chunk of free disk space of at least 300 MB, or, if you
want all the commands sources, 1 GB. If you do not know how to manage parti-
tions but have a partitioning program like Partition Magic, use it to create a
region of free disk space. Also make sure there is at least one primary partition
(i.e., Master Boot Record slot) free. The
MINIX 3 setup script will guide you
through creating a MINIX partition in the free space, which can be on either the
first or second IDE disk.
If you are running Windows 95, 98, ME, or 2000 and your disk consists of a
single FAT partition, you can use the presz134.exe program on the CD-ROM
(also available at zeleps.com) to reduce its size to leave room for MINIX. In all
other cases, please read the online tutorial cited above.
