> "H. Peter Anvin" <hpa@transmeta.com> writes:
> >
> > True. I was considering writing a boot loader that would read ext2.
> > The main problem is that it really begs for being a second-stage
> > loader, so it can be in protected mode. Unfortunately, thats a
> > mini-OS all in itself, i.e. not exactly a weekend project (the first
> > version of syslinux I wrote in a night.)
>
> Doesn't GRUB do this nowadays? (and it certainly is a mini OS)
Yup. I use GRUB to boot Linux (and Win95, back when I was playing
Riven) on both of my i386 Linux machines. With the "bzimage" patch,
GRUB also has the added advantage of being able to boot bzImage
kernels on my laptop. (No other bootloader can.)
If I ever want to boot a kernel not listed in the menu, I hit "c" for
a command line and can choose any file off of the drive (with tab
completion).
I also keep a grub floppy around, for emergencies (I can boot broken
lilo systems with it...)
(The bzimage patch also adds initrd support and a simplistic install
program.)
Steve
dunham@cps.msu.edu