> N one is forcing you (unless you have a UEFI board), and more than anyone > is telling you not to use a 2.4 series kernel.
> Neil Bothwick This brings a question to mind: Does anybody know what Linux kernel was the first to support GPT? Slackware 13.0, released in 2009 with kernel 2.6.29.6, did not support GPT, could not read the SATA hard drive on the rare occasions when it booted from its new home, IDE hard drive inside USB 2.0 enclosure. NetBSD (3.0) and FreeBSD (7.0) got GPT support long before 2009. Regarding problems dealing with Dell as discussed in this thread, I prefer to buy parts and build my computer. That way I get more choice, more up-to-date hardware, and more intimate knowledge of what's inside. One possibility for installing MS-Windows in this case is getting a low-price refurbished small SATA hard drive, and installing Linux, and FreeBSD, NetBSD, Haiku, if desired, on a bigger hard drive. Today's UEFI permits selecting boot device, and no more slave and master issues such as plagued IDE hard drives. Still, there might be the risk that the Windows installer might see the other hard drives and do some nasty things. Tom
