Puppy Linux on a Macbook (Intel Core Duo) - 658M!

[nits555]

Hello,

I am currently using a Macbook (Intel core duo processor) with 1 GB of RAM and 120 GB hard drive, Debian being the operating system (I have uninstalled Mac OS X Tiger). Using an image of Puppy Linux version 2.17 (about 95 MB - puppy-2.17-nolzma-seamonkey-fulldrivers.iso), when I try to load it on the mac, I am facing the following issues:

1. For a single key press, the cursor (for boot setup menus before one actually gets into the system) moves by two positions (More specifically when one needs to "Select Country".

2. It takes a lot of time to load the OS and to get to the main display (Doesn't make any difference for choices Xorg or Xvega).

3. When it finally loads, the cursor barely moves and the screen is virtually non-responsive to mouse movements or clicks (Moves very very slow, unresponsive to clicks). The RAM-bar to the bottom right reads "658M"!

Everything works very fast when I try to use the same CD on a windows XP based desktop (RAM-bar reads 48M). Has anyone encountered a similar problem? Kindly advise, in either case.

Thanks,

[SirDuncan]

You will find that very few people here have attempted an install to a Mac. For this reason, help may be hard to find. The only other person that I know has done it used some type of emulation to run it on top of OSX.

I imagine that there are driver problems, and this could explain odd keyboard input (like jumping on the menu).

I can't really help you, but I thought I should let you know that you are more or less in uncharted waters. Good luck!

[John Doe]

1. For a single key press, the cursor (for boot setup menus before one actually gets into the system) moves by two positions (More specifically when one needs to "Select Country".

If you have strange keyboard problems (double keypresses) or other problems while booting from the install CD, use the following command line on the boot prompt:

install noapic irqpoll acpi=force

from here:
http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewto ... 8076#95781

[raffy]

With that powerful hardware and heaps of RAM, you might as well go virtual, that is, install one of the virtualization softwares and then run Puppy.

[kirk]

Booted 2.16 on an imac no problems. Wasn't my imac though.

[macadavy]

Too cool! I had hoped Apple's move to Intel processors would mean the wonderful world of Free & Open Source Software (FOSS) would finally be available to all my Mac-using friends - and this seems to be coming true. I have to echo Sir Duncan though: you are in uncharted waters.
But do go for it - you might be pleasantly surprised! Any savvy Mac addicts out there up for tweaking a Mac Puppy?
As Dr. Samuel Johnson put it (and not to be sexist, but):

"A woman's preaching is like a dog's walking on his hinder legs. It is not done well; but you are surprised to find it done at all!"
July 31, 1763
The Life of Samuel Johnson by James Boswell

[rodney]

I tried puppy on a macbook a while ago and had the same problems with the mouse being slow and generally unresponsive, also had a big panic over how to get the CD out afterwards.

[haabaato]

I'm trying to install the pup on my macbook pro as well. No mouse issues because I plugged in a USB one.

However, when I try to install to the HD, instead of being presented with sda1, sda2, sdaX... by the universal installer, all partitions are displayed as sdaGUID instead. No matter which hd I choose, the next screen does not pop up. How do I proceed from here?

I've installed to a USB flash drive, but macbook doesn't seem to want to boot off it. At the moment, I have NO OS'es on this macbook because I was trying to install leopard and failed. Anyway, what can I do given that I can delete everything on my hd and partition it however I want to?

Current partition setup:

• /dev/sda1 ext3 2gb flags: boot
  unallocated memory 35gb
  /dev/sda3 hfs+ 30gb
  unallocated
  /dev/sda4 ext3 2gb
  /dev/sda5 linux-swap 512mb
  /dev/sda6 fat32 5gb
  /dev/sda7 ntfs 30gb

[datagrubber]

I had no problems with 4.0 other than the wireless driver but 4.1 & 4.2 break the trackpad driver on my macbook pro.

[Lobster]

What are you doing to our poor Pups?
Isn't there a hack the Mac website for the next generation of Mac abusers?

I have a PowerPC based Mac - very good if you like snail paced OS

What you need is to contact the bleeding edge of Mac tweakers and ask them how to get Puppy working . . .

Most people here are using PC hardware