[ARMedslack] Slackware on Pandaboard

[Stuart Winter]

> First of all, you have to check if your processor is supported by Linux
> kernel. Then try to compile the kernel for your CPU and try to boot it. I see
> there is SD/MMC slot, so maybe it is possible to install OS there.

first thing: if you have such a device already in your posession:
 - download the miniroot fs for armedslack-current
 - chroot into it

Does it work?  If not then it's either:
 - because their kernel is older than linux 2.6.31
 - or the userland of armedslack just doesn't work on that board (which
would be sad, but possible).

Ubuntu is on it already, so there's Kernel support for it -- the easiest
thing I would do is to take the latest 2.6.37 or 2.6.38rc1 and check
if the OMAP Panda Support is in the kernel - take which ever one has it
(if it's there -- if not, find the patches and apply them to the
appropriate kernel -- ensuring that it's at least linux 2.6.31).

Compile the kernel: easiest thing first is to build a monolithic kernel
with all of the bits your device will need.  It's easier to bootstrap this
way than to faff around with an initrd.

Find out how to configure the boot loader to boot your own kernel.
Ideally if it can tftp load then setup a tftp server and boot the kernel
from there.
Some of the Slackware ARM installation docs explain how to do this.

Once you've got that far you can then boot into a miniroot and see how far
you get.
This board looks interesting.  If they sell it with a case, I'd be tempted
to get one.