Haiku A3 Install, plus
I've held back for some time now on Haiku as I've been winding down my business and now am retired. I did have a post on my blog about the software being Alpha (which I didn't realise before) and stopped using it altogether. Thing is, I like it.
Before I install the latest Alpha 3, I have some questions. First off I'm aiming for a minmalist system with no extra software except the basics (Entire OS, web browser and maybe email and one or two others) - the machine will be for travelling with. I hope it does wireless?
- I assume I will have to wipe the disk that I have Alpha 2 on at present. Yes? Or will the A3 install overwrite all the old A2 stuff?
- I see Python and Perl. Are they needed at all?
- When I wipe programs (games etc), are there any that I should keep, otherwise they all go.
- I know some programs are simply drop in the trash and they are gone, others may have an uninstall. Is there a list that tells me which is which, so I don't screw up anything?
Thanks for any help, Ted
Comments
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
Hi Ted, and welcome to Haiku.
One option you might find useful is to install Haiku on to a USB flash drive. When you want to run Haiku, plug it in and boot from it. The Haiku install image is pretty small already, less than 600 MB (smaller I think but I haven't checked lately).
Haiku A3 comes with the webpositive browser and email.
You should be able to remove the games, python, and perl but there is nothing that says what is optional and what is needed by something else. Try it out and report back!
- AndrewZ
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
Hi Andrew, I'll give that a try. Are there any special instructions or is everything on the ISO CD I've just burned?
Humph and I'd just ordered a new hard drive ultrabay for the IBM it's going to go on.
Are there any problems reading and writing to a flash stick during operation once it's up and running? Obviously Flash stick are a lot lighter than a hard drive. I have Kingston 2gbs that should handle it okay.
- Ted
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
I hope it does wireless?
It does, but it lacks support for WPA and WPA2 encryption (WEP do work).
I assume I will have to wipe the disk that I have Alpha 2 on at present. Yes? Or will the A3 install overwrite all the old A2 stuff?
You can upgrade Haiku by installing over the old installation.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
Hi deejam,
"It does, but it lacks support for WPA and WPA2 encryption (WEP do work)."
Not sure exactly what that means, I'd have to check what my wireless is and turn it on to test (I won't use it at home I'm hard wired, it's for when I'm out and about).
I'll see how it goes with the flash stick trick too. My new hard drive caddy hasn't arrived yet and I want to keep the A2 installation as a "just in case".
- Ted
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
Not sure exactly what that means, I'd have to check what my wireless is and turn it on to test (I won't use it at home I'm hard wired, it's for when I'm out and about).
WPA and WPA2 are the most common methods of securing wireless networks. WEP is an older, less secure, method. If you need to enter a password to be able to connect to a wireless network, it is secured with WPA/WPA2 or WEP.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
Thanks. Looks like I'll have to find the right WiFi areas :-)
I'm installing on the flash stick as i type. Had to guess about the partitoning, so did both the bits in the dropdown and it seems to installing - about 1/3rd way thru now.
Update
Install just blew out. No idea. Have a command come up saying debug, but found nothing on what to do. Tried: y, yes, debug, it rejected them all. Help had no answers. Will forget flash stick and put it on hard drive.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
I'm installing on the flash stick as i type. Had to guess about the partitoning, so did both the bits in the dropdown and it seems to installing - about 1/3rd way thru now.
Update
Install just blew out. No idea. Have a command come up saying debug, but found nothing on what to do. Tried: y, yes, debug, it rejected them all. Help had no answers. Will forget flash stick and put it on hard drive.
Have you tried to create a bootable Haiku installation using the anyboot image?
http://www.haiku-os.org/guides/installing/making_haiku_usb_stick
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
Stopped at that page as soon as I saw the word Linux (won't touch it with a 10 foot barge pole).
Tried to install on hard disk. Same problem.
Also that there are GMail problems and that's done it for me.
Thanks for your time, I do realize this is in Alpha Stage, but I will leave Haiku until it is in full release (not Alpha or beta).
Pointers for development.
Think like this. Point, click, Install, if partition needed click here (automatic partitioning default with options), work or trash.
It's not easy sometimes as programmers to think like someone who hasn't got a clue (which is where Linux falls down, big time), but we have to do that and I usually take a bit of a break and come back to a projects development in that frame of mind - and you'll be surprised at how many features you will find that do not fit into that mindset. Then a bigger break to get into coding thought to fix 'em :-)
I really do like Haiku, but for my purposes it's too buggy at this present time and I'm not an assembler programmer that could be of any help - unless you want me to be the mindless idiot who hasn't got a clue to test things on :-)
Thanks again - Ted
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
Hi Ted,
Please try the USB install process again and see if you can make it through. This might be an intermittant bug. You might also try changing some of the partition parameters.
Here is another way to install Haiku onto a USB drive. The problem with this method is the resulting partition is really small, something like 512MB. which doesn't give you a lot of space for downloading cool apps and games :-)
Think like this. Point, click, Install,This is good advice and we are working towards that. This being an Alpha release we are putting resources on very core features. So thanks for your patience.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
Hi Ted,
Please try the USB install process again and see if you can make it through. This might be an intermittant bug. You might also try changing some of the partition parameters.
Here is another way to install Haiku onto a USB drive. The problem with this method is the resulting partition is really small, something like 512MB. which doesn't give you a lot of space for downloading cool apps and games :-)
Think like this. Point, click, Install,This is good advice and we are working towards that. This being an Alpha release we are putting resources on very core features. So thanks for your patience.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
@AndrewZ: There are up-to-date and maintained instructions for Linux/Haiku/BeOS/OSX/Windows in the official guide since september 2009 why are you posting links to haikuware everywhere?
http://www.haiku-os.org/guides/installing/making_haiku_usb_stick
(if it needs corrections, please report so we can update the guide and that everyone benefit from it)
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
@aldeck,
The instructions on haikuware are up to date and work fine. The only issue is final size of the partition. Does either Windows method allow for an arbitrary sized partition? That is not addressed on the guide.
Thanks.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
@aldeck
Also, what is the proper channel to report recommendations for web site changes. I might have a few :-)
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
Hi Andrew, I have the CD in and the flash stick.
Clicked Intall
Clicked Set up Partitions
I see the CD.
Underneath is a tree.
- Top has /raw at end & no info
- Bottom one has /0 at end and FAT32 File System no name 1.86gb
I assume the bottom one is the one to select
If I click Partiton the flyout says Be File System, that's all
- under is Delete, Mount (unmount) and Mount all
Now what?
Update - running commentary....
the raw one gives me a different flyout.
It says Intel extended partition, Be File System (others are greyed out)
I'll click the Intel one instead of Be as I have and IBM T41 with an Intel processer
--- That didn't work so did the Be one .... this failed previously.
Now I have something different than before a window with no name and blocksize on. Did it with default (2048).
Runnning not sure if it will work or not.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
FAT32 File System no name 1.86gb
If this is close to the size of your flash drive AND your laptop doesn't have a recovery partition on the hard drive of the same size then this is a good guess.
If it doesn't work, try changing the blocksize to 1024.
If that doesn't work, try the link Aldeck posted and report back.
BTW, you should have good results running Haiku on the T41. Thinkpads are generally VERY compatible with Haiku.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
I just tried an edit with all the info on and this blinkin' forum software blew out (seems to happen a lot)
I ended up with a PANIC ASSERT FAILED screen and debug, then a blinking black thing that expects me to enter something.
I'll try to do 1024 block as you say, if it gets that far.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
I have and IBM T41 with an Intel processer
I also have an IBM T41. Everything works on it, ethernet, wireless, sound and even the volume buttons. So it will be worth while installing Haiku on it.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
When it says no name, am I supposed to give it the name Haiku?
I had it running on A2 on this machine before and it installed straight off.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
Okay, I'm in on the A3 install and postiing this from Web Positive. Using 1024 worked. Takes about 5 times longer to boot from the Flash stick on A3 than it did from the hard disk on A2, but that's to be expected.
This means my T41 now weighs in at around 2k (4 and a bit pounds). That's down nearly a pound.
First impression is as I type, I have to do it a low slower that normally. WP is a bit funny on that anyway.
So guys, looks like it works fine. Thanks a lot for all your help and instuction.
I may well just put it on a hard disk, I have an 80G or 40G to choose from. It feels funny (like odd, not ha-ha -- wel maybe ha-ha too) haviing an OS on a little Kingston Data Traveller (but they do keep cool).
Interesting.....
Andrew, if I had to use 1024 during the partioning process, is that because I had FAT32 formatting? Or what? Will need to consider that for when a flash stick is used to handle the system. Especially USB1. I'm not that techie, but I'd say it may have been a speed thing as opposed to the size of the stick (2GB). Like maybe the writing process during the install was too fast to handle 2048 sizes, but because 1024 is half the size, it wrote each bit fully before trying the next. Of course I may be spouting rubbish, dunno. Just a wild guess.
Cheers - Ted
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
When it says no name, am I supposed to give it the name Haiku?
If you want to. You can also change the name after the installation.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
Actually, it gave it the name Haiku during the process, so that's okay.
Aaargh, it feels like molasses typing so slow (I touch type and really have to slow down). 'Course I have been at this all day and here in London it 11pm. I'm calling it a day.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
Ted,
Glad you are up. Using the 1024 is just a way of working around a bug in the code. It doesn't have anything to do with FAT32. FAT32 gets immediately reformatted as BFS.
You should only notice the slowness of the USB drive when doing disk accesses. You should see the USB drive light up when it is accessed. Otherwise Haiku is running from RAM and should be pretty quick. You will have 2X - 3X faster disk reads from a hard drive but you can also shop around for a faster USB drive.
Stay tuned for an upcoming article on LOTS of cool programs to run on A3.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
@AndrewZ, no they are not, it's a (reformated) copy of a june 2008 forum post (https://www.haiku-os.org/community/forum/how_to_install_haiku_to_usb_fla...) although it was useful at that time, it still recommends the raw image which isn't usb-bootable with many systems and isn't publicly available for the alpha3 (as discussed on the mailing list). Also it only covers Windows and only flashnul which hasn't even an english website/documentation (not really recommendable for a potentially destructive program).
As for the size of the partition, only the installer method can do that for now, although the advantage of the anyboot method is that it will create a partition table and thus allows to create another partition with any partition tool and filesystem in the remaining space (i just added a line about it).
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
You will have 2X - 3X faster disk reads from a hard drive but you can also shop around for a faster USB drive.
It's not a big thing, I have a bunch of the Kingstons that I got a deal on a few years ago, hardly use them really.
Whole object is I have a machine to use when I'm away from home. I rewrote my blog scripts so they handle code a ton easier and I can paste in content with the editor messing it up. A bit of slowness means I'll just have to be more patient :-)
Thanks for all your patience with me on this everyone.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
Update Hard Disk Install
I installed A3 onto an 80GB Hitachi okay. The difference on this was I had to use 2048 setting. First attempt using 1024 failed.
One thing I notice is that when I close the IBM T41 lid, the system keeps running
deejam, does this happen on yours?
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
One thing I notice is that when I close the IBM T41 lid, the system keeps running
Haiku do not support sleep or hybernate, so yes.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
boots fast enuf. I notice A3's boot time is longer than the previous one. Takes about 50 seconds on my hard disk install.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
boots fast enuf. I notice A3's boot time is longer than the previous one. Takes about 50 seconds on my hard disk install.
Is that including BIOS boot time? I run Haiku both on my T41 and in VirtualBox on my old Mac Mini. The boot time on the T41 is ~15-17 seconds, where 10 seconds is Haiku and the ~5-7 is the BIOS. VirtualBox is slightly faster, ~3 seconds for the BIOS and 9-10 for Haiku (the Mini has a SSD disk). 50 seconds is a long boot time.
Re: Haiku A3 Install, plus
As for the size of the partition, only the installer method can do that for now, although the advantage of the anyboot method is that it will create a partition table and thus allows to create another partition with any partition tool and filesystem in the remaining space (i just added a line about it).
Cool! I didn't know that. That's definitely a huge bonus and a great fact to know!