[sf-lug] how to install linux on laptop with no cd drive?

[Asheesh Laroia]

Excerpts from Michael Shiloh's message of Sun Jul 08 22:44:31 -0400 2012:
> 
> >> * http://www.goodbye-windows.com/
> 
> > http://goodbye-microsoft.com/
> 
> 
> I tried installing the first and when it gave errors, tried installing 
> the second which also gave errors. On a whim I rebooted and was greeted 
> with success, but I can't tell you which one it was.
> 
> Anyway, I proceeded to install Debian almost flawlessly but I think grub 
> was installed on my thumb drive by accident. I had the thumb drive 
> installed due to a missing network driver I had to bring over manually. 
> I left the thumb drive in and when the install process reached grub I 
> noticed lots of activity on my thumb drive - probably the procedure that 
> figured out which disk to load on just went for the first disk, which 
> for some reason was the thumb drive. (I noticed this during disk 
> partitioning.)
> 
> So I have an almost perfect Debian installation which won't boot due to 
> missing grub.
> 
> So now I have to revert to plan B  and take the drive out. While I'm at 
> it I may as well install the PLOP boot manager, as Akkana recommended. I 
> can see how that would be very handy.
> 
> Thanks everyone for your help.

Thanks for your detailed report! I sent it along to one of the maintainers of
the second one.

Sorry it didn't work out for you, and sad that the thumb drive thing became a
big issue.

-- Asheesh.