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Slackware Linux Essentials
Second Edition

Slackware Linux Essentials, Second Edition
Copyright © 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 Slackware Linux, Inc.
All rights reserved. Printed in Canada.
Published by Slackware Linux, Inc., 1164 Claremont Drive, Brentwood, CA 94513
Lead Author, Second Edition: Alan Hicks.
Editors, Second Edition: Murray Stokely and FuKang Chen.
Authors, First Edition: Chris Lumens, David Cantrell, and Logan Johnson.
Print History:
June, 2000 First Edition
May, 2005 Second Edition
Slackware Linux is a registered trademark of Patrick Volkerding and Slackware Linux, Inc.
Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds.
America Online and AOL are registered trademarks of America Online, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries.
Apple, FireWire, Mac, Macintosh, Mac OS, Quicktime, and TrueType are trademarks of Apple Computer, Inc., registered in the United
States and other countries.
IBM, AIX, EtherJet, Netfinity, OS/2, PowerPC, PS/2, S/390, and ThinkPad are trademarks of International Business Machines Corporation
in the United States, other countries, or both.
IEEE, POSIX, and 802 are registered trademarks of Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. in the United States.
Intel, Celeron, EtherExpress, i386, i486, Itanium, Pentium, and Xeon are trademarks or registered trademarks of Intel Corporation or its
subsidiaries in the United States and other countries.
Microsoft, IntelliMouse, MS-DOS, Outlook, Windows, Windows Media and Windows NT are either registered trademarks or trademarks
of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and/or other countries.
Netscape and the Netscape Navigator are registered trademarks of Netscape Communications Corporation in the U.S. and other countries.
Red Hat, RPM, are trademarks or registered trademarks of Red Hat, Inc. in the United States and other countries.
XFree86 is a trademark of The XFree86 Project, Inc.
Many of the designations used by manufacturers and sellers to distinguish their products are claimed as trademarks. Where those
designations appear in this document, and Slackware Linux, Inc. was aware of the trademark claim, the designations have been followed by
the “™” or the “®” symbol.
ISBN: 1-57176-338-4

Table of Contents
Preface.................................................................................................................... xv
1 An Introduction to Slackware Linux ................................................................. 1
1.1 What is Linux?............................................................................................. 1
1.1.1 A Word on GNU ................................................................................ 1
1.2 What is Slackware?...................................................................................... 2
1.3 Open Source and Free Software................................................................... 3
2 Help ....................................................................................................................... 7
2.1 System Help ................................................................................................. 7
2.1.1 man..................................................................................................... 7
2.1.2 The

Directory ....................................................................... 9
2.1.3 HOWTOs and mini-HOWTOs........................................................... 9
2.2 Online Help................................................................................................ 10
2.2.1 The Official Website and Help Forums............................................ 10
2.2.2 E-mail Support ................................................................................. 11
2.2.3 Non-Official Websites and Help Forums ......................................... 12
3 Installation.......................................................................................................... 15
3.1 Getting Slackware...................................................................................... 15
3.1.1 The Official Disc and Box Sets........................................................ 15
3.1.2 Via the Internet................................................................................. 16
3.2 System Requirements................................................................................. 17
3.2.1 The Software Series ......................................................................... 17
3.2.2 Installation Methods......................................................................... 18
3.2.3 Boot Disk ......................................................................................... 20
3.2.4 Root Disk ......................................................................................... 20
3.2.5 Supplemental Disk ........................................................................... 21
3.2.6 Making the Disks ............................................................................. 21
3.3 Partitioning................................................................................................. 22
3.4 The setup Program ..................................................................................... 24
3.4.1 HELP................................................................................................ 25
v

3.4.2 KEYMAP......................................................................................... 26
3.4.3 ADDSWAP ...................................................................................... 27
3.4.4 TARGET .......................................................................................... 28
3.4.5 SOURCE.......................................................................................... 28
3.4.6 SELECT ........................................................................................... 29
3.4.7 INSTALL ......................................................................................... 30
3.4.8 CONFIGURE................................................................................... 32
4 System Configuration ........................................................................................ 41
4.1 System Overview ....................................................................................... 41
4.1.1 File System Layout .......................................................................... 41
4.1.2 Finding Files..................................................................................... 44
4.1.3 The

Directory.................................................................... 46
4.2 Selecting a Kernel ...................................................................................... 50
4.2.1 The

Directory on the Slackware CD-ROM........................ 51
4.2.2 Compiling a Kernel from Source ..................................................... 51
4.2.3 Using Kernel Modules ..................................................................... 55
5 Network Configuration...................................................................................... 57
5.1 Introduction: netconfig is your friend. ....................................................... 57
5.2 Network Hardware Configuration.............................................................. 58
5.2.1 Loading Network Modules .............................................................. 58
5.2.2 LAN (10/100/1000Base-T and Base-2) cards.................................. 59
5.2.3 Modems............................................................................................ 59
5.2.4 PCMCIA .......................................................................................... 60
5.3 TCP/IP Configuration ................................................................................ 61
5.3.1 DHCP ............................................................................................... 61
5.3.2 Static IP ............................................................................................ 63
5.3.3
!
..................................................................... 63
5.3.4
#$!
................................................................................ 64
5.3.5
% '
.......................................................................................... 65
5.4 PPP............................................................................................................. 65
5.4.1 pppsetup ........................................................................................... 66
5.4.2
()((
............................................................................................. 66
vi

5.5 Wireless...................................................................................................... 67
5.5.1 Hardware Support ............................................................................ 67
5.5.2 Configure the Wireless Settings ....................................................... 68
5.5.3 Configure the Network..................................................................... 69
5.6 Network File Systems ................................................................................ 70
5.6.1 SMB/Samba/CIFS............................................................................ 70
5.6.2 Network File System (NFS)............................................................. 72
6 X Configuration.................................................................................................. 75
6.1 xorgconfig................................................................................................... 75
6.2 xorgsetup.................................................................................................... 81
6.3 xinitrc ......................................................................................................... 81
6.4 xwmconfig................................................................................................... 83
6.5 xdm............................................................................................................. 85
7 Booting ................................................................................................................ 89
7.1 LILO........................................................................................................... 89
7.2 LOADLIN.................................................................................................. 93
7.3 Dual Booting.............................................................................................. 94
7.3.1 Windows........................................................................................... 94
7.3.2 Linux ................................................................................................ 99
8 The Shell ........................................................................................................... 101
8.1 Users......................................................................................................... 101
8.1.1 Logging In...................................................................................... 101
8.1.2 Root: The Superuser....................................................................... 102
8.2 The Command Line ................................................................................. 103
8.2.1 Running Programs.......................................................................... 103
8.2.2 Wildcard Matching......................................................................... 103
8.2.3 Input/Output Redirection and Piping ............................................. 105
8.3 The Bourne Again Shell (bash)................................................................ 106
8.3.1 Environment Variables ................................................................... 106
8.3.2 Tab Completion.............................................................................. 108
8.4 Virtual Terminals...................................................................................... 109
8.4.1 Screen............................................................................................. 110
vii

9 Filesystem Structure ........................................................................................ 111
9.1 Ownership ................................................................................................ 111
9.2 Permissions .............................................................................................. 112
9.3 Links......................................................................................................... 115
9.4 Mounting Devices.................................................................................... 116
9.4.1
*+
................................................................................................ 117
9.4.2 mount and umount.......................................................................... 118
9.5 NFS Mounts............................................................................................. 119
10 Handling Files and Directories ..................................................................... 121
10.1 Navigation : ls, cd, and pwd................................................................... 121
10.1.1 ls ................................................................................................... 121
10.1.2 cd.................................................................................................. 123
10.1.3 pwd ............................................................................................... 123
10.2 Pagers: more, less, and most .................................................................. 124
10.2.1 more.............................................................................................. 124
10.2.2 less................................................................................................ 125
10.2.3 most .............................................................................................. 125
10.3 Simple Output: cat and echo.................................................................. 125
10.3.1 cat................................................................................................. 125
10.3.2 echo .............................................................................................. 126
10.4 Creation: touch and mkdir...................................................................... 126
10.4.1 touch............................................................................................. 127
10.4.2 mkdir ............................................................................................ 127
10.5 Copy and Move...................................................................................... 128
10.5.1 cp.................................................................................................. 128
10.5.2 mv ................................................................................................. 129
10.6 Deletion: rm and rmdir .......................................................................... 129
10.6.1 rm ................................................................................................. 129
10.6.2 rmdir............................................................................................. 130
10.7 Aliasing files with ln .............................................................................. 130
viii

11 Process Control .............................................................................................. 133
11.1 Backgrounding....................................................................................... 133
11.2 Foregrounding........................................................................................ 134
11.3 ps............................................................................................................ 135
11.4 kill........................................................................................................... 139
11.5 top........................................................................................................... 141
12 Essential System Administration.................................................................. 143
12.1 Users and Groups................................................................................... 143
12.1.1 Supplied Scripts ........................................................................... 143
12.1.2 Changing Passwords .................................................................... 148
12.1.3 Changing User Information.......................................................... 149
12.2 Users and Groups, the Hard Way........................................................... 150
12.3 Shutting Down Properly......................................................................... 152
13 Basic Network Commands............................................................................ 157
13.1 ping......................................................................................................... 157
13.2 traceroute ............................................................................................... 158
13.3 DNS Tools.............................................................................................. 158
13.3.1 host ............................................................................................... 159
13.3.2 nslookup ....................................................................................... 159
13.3.3 dig................................................................................................. 160
13.4 finger ...................................................................................................... 161
13.5 telnet....................................................................................................... 162
13.5.1 The other use of telnet.................................................................. 163
13.6 The Secure shell..................................................................................... 164
13.7 email....................................................................................................... 164
13.7.1 pine............................................................................................... 165
13.7.2 elm................................................................................................ 167
13.7.3 mutt............................................................................................... 168
13.7.4 nail................................................................................................ 169
13.8 Browsers................................................................................................. 170
13.8.1 lynx ............................................................................................... 170
13.8.2 links .............................................................................................. 171
ix

13.8.3 wget .............................................................................................. 172
13.9 FTP Clients ............................................................................................ 173
13.9.1 ftp.................................................................................................. 174
13.9.2 ncftp.............................................................................................. 175
13.10 Talking to Other People ....................................................................... 176
13.10.1 wall............................................................................................. 177
13.10.2 talk.............................................................................................. 177
13.10.3 ytalk............................................................................................ 178
14 Security ........................................................................................................... 181
14.1 Disabling Services.................................................................................. 181
14.1.1 Services started from inetd........................................................... 181
14.1.2 Services started from init scripts.................................................. 182
14.2 Host Access Control............................................................................... 183
14.2.1 iptables ......................................................................................... 183
14.2.2 tcpwrappers.................................................................................. 185
14.3 Keeping Current..................................................................................... 186
14.3.1 slackware-security mailing list ................................................ 186
14.3.2 The
(*%
directory .................................................................. 187
15 Archive Files ................................................................................................... 189
15.1 gzip......................................................................................................... 189
15.2 bzip2....................................................................................................... 190
15.3 tar........................................................................................................... 190
15.4 zip........................................................................................................... 193
16 Vi...................................................................................................................... 195
16.1 Starting vi............................................................................................... 195
16.2 Modes..................................................................................................... 197
16.2.1 Command Mode........................................................................... 197
16.2.2 Insert Mode .................................................................................. 199
16.3 Opening Files ......................................................................................... 200
16.4 Saving Files............................................................................................ 201
16.5 Quitting vi .............................................................................................. 201
16.6 vi Configuration ..................................................................................... 202
x

16.7 Vi Keys................................................................................................... 203
17 Emacs .............................................................................................................. 205
17.1 Starting emacs........................................................................................ 206
17.1.1 Command Keys............................................................................ 207
17.2 Buffers.................................................................................................... 207
17.3 Modes..................................................................................................... 208
17.3.1 Opening files ................................................................................ 209
17.4 Basic Editing.......................................................................................... 210
17.5 Saving Files............................................................................................ 212
17.5.1 Quitting Emacs............................................................................. 212
18 Slackware Package Management ................................................................. 215
18.1 Overview of Package Format................................................................. 215
18.2 Package Utilities .................................................................................... 216
18.2.1 pkgtool.......................................................................................... 216
18.2.2 installpkg...................................................................................... 218
18.2.3 removepkg.................................................................................... 219
18.2.4 upgradepkg................................................................................... 220
18.2.5 rpm2tgz/rpm2targz....................................................................... 221
18.3 Making Packages ................................................................................... 221
18.3.1 explodepkg.................................................................................... 222
18.3.2 makepkg........................................................................................ 222
18.3.3 SlackBuild Scripts........................................................................ 222
18.4 Making Tags and Tagfiles (for setup)..................................................... 223
19 ZipSlack .......................................................................................................... 225
19.1 What is ZipSlack? .................................................................................. 225
19.1.1 Advantages................................................................................... 225
19.1.2 Disadvantages............................................................................... 226
19.2 Getting ZipSlack .................................................................................... 226
19.2.1 Installation.................................................................................... 226
19.3 Booting ZipSlack ................................................................................... 227
xi

Glossary ............................................................................................................... 229
A. The GNU General Public License................................................................. 245
A.1. Preamble................................................................................................. 245
A.2. TERMS AND CONDITIONS ............................................................... 246
A.3. How to Apply These Terms to Your New Programs.............................. 253
Index..................................................................................................................... 255
xii

List of Tables
2-1. Man Page Sections............................................................................................. 8
3-1. Slackware Linux, Inc. Contact Information .................................................... 16
3-2. System Requirements ...................................................................................... 17
3-3. Software Series................................................................................................ 18
9-1. Octal Permission Values................................................................................ 112
13-1. ftp commands............................................................................................... 174
16-1. Movement.................................................................................................... 203
16-2. Editing ......................................................................................................... 203
16-3. Searching ..................................................................................................... 204
16-4. Saving and Quitting..................................................................................... 204
17-1. Basic Emacs Editing Commands................................................................. 210
18-1. installpkg Options.......................................................................................... ??
18-2. removepkg Options ...................................................................................... 219
18-3. Tagfile Status Options.................................................................................. 223
List of Figures
4-1. Kernel Configuration Menu............................................................................. 53
6-1. xorgconfig Mouse Configuration ..................................................................... 76
6-2. xorgconfig Horizontal Sync ............................................................................. 78
6-3. xorgconfig Vertical Sync.................................................................................. 78
6-4. xorgconfig Video Card..................................................................................... 79
6-5. Desktop Configuration with xorgconfig........................................................... 84
7-1. liloconfig.......................................................................................................... 90
7-2. liloconfig Expert Menu.................................................................................... 92
11-1. Basic ps output............................................................................................. 135
13-1. Telnetting to a webserver............................................................................. 163
13-2. The Pine main menu.................................................................................... 165
13-3. Elm main screen .......................................................................................... 167
xiii

13-4. Mutt main screen ......................................................................................... 168
13-5. Lynx default start page ................................................................................ 171
13-6. Links, with the file menu open .................................................................... 172
13-7. Two users in a talk session .......................................................................... 177
13-8. Two users in a ytalk session......................................................................... 179
16-1. A vi session.................................................................................................. 196
18-1. Pkgtool’s main menu. .................................................................................. 217
18-2. Pkgtool view mode ...................................................................................... 217
List of Examples
8-1. Listing Environment Variables with set......................................................... 107
xiv

Preface
Intended Audience
The Slackware Linux operating system is a powerful platform for Intel-based com-
puters. It is designed to be stable, secure, and functional as both a high-end server
and powerful workstation.
This book is designed to get you started with the Slackware Linux operating system.
It’s not meant to cover every single aspect of the distribution, but rather to show what
it is capable of and give you a basic working knowledge of the system.
As you gain experience with Slackware Linux, we hope you find this book to be a
handy reference. We also hope you’ll lend it to all of your friends when they come
asking about that cool Slackware Linux operating system you’re running.
While this book may not an edge-of-your-seat novel, we certainly tried to make it as
entertaining as possible. With any luck, we’ll get a movie deal. Of course, we also
hope you are able to learn from it and find it useful.
And now, on with the show.
Changes from the First Edition
This second edition is the culmination of years of hard work by the dedicated mem-
bers of the Slackware Documentation Project. The following are the major changes
in this new edition:
• Chapter 3, Installation, has been modified with new screenshots of the installer,
and reflects changes in disk-sets, and CD installation.
xv

Preface
• Chapter 4, System Configuration, has been updated with new information about
Linux 2.6.x kernels.
• Chapter 5, Network Configuration, has been expanded with further explanation of
Samba, NFS, and DHCP. A section on wireless networking has also been added.
This chapter now reflects major changes in how Slackware handles network setup.
• Chapter 6, X Window System, has been substantially rewritten for Xorg based
systems. This chapter now also covers the xdm graphical login manager.
• Chapter 13, Basic Network Commands, has been enhanced with information
about additional network utilities.
• Chapter 14, Security, is a new chapter with this edition. It explains how to keep a
Slackware Linux system secure.
• Chapter 17, Emacs, is a new chapter with this edition. It describes how to use
Emacs, a powerful editor for Unix.
• Chapter 18, Package Management, has been updated with information about
SlackBuild scripts.
• There are many other changes, both minor and major, to reflect changes in Slack-
ware as it has matured.
Organization of this Book
Chapter 1, Introduction
Provides introductory material on Linux, Slackware, and the Open Source and
Free Software Movements.
Chapter 2, Help
Describes the help resources available on a Slackware Linux system and online.
xvi

Preface
Chapter 3, Installation
Describes the installation process step-by-step with screenshots to provide an
illustrative walk-through.
Chapter 4, System Configuration
Describes the important configuration files and covers kernel recompilation.
Chapter 5, Network Configuration
Describes how to connect a Slackware Linux machine to a network. Covers
TCP/IP, PPP/dial-up, wireless networking, and more.
Chapter 6, The X Window System
Describes how to setup and use the graphical X Window System in Slackware.
Chapter 7, Booting
Describes the process by which a computer boots into Slackware Linux. Also
covers dual-booting with Microsoft Windows operating systems.
Chapter 8, The Shell
Describes the powerful command line interface for Linux.
Chapter 9, Filesystem Structure
Describes the filesystem structure, including file ownership, permission, and
linking.
Chapter 10, Handling Files and Directories
Describes the commands used to manipulate files and directories from the com-
mand line interface.
Chapter 11, Process Control
Describes the powerful Linux process management commands used to manage
xvii

Preface
multiple running applications.
Chapter 12, Essential System Administration
Describes basic system administration tasks such as adding and removing users,
shutting down the system properly, and more.
Chapter 13, Basic Network Commands
Describes the collection of network clients included with Slackware.
Chapter 14, Security
Describes many different tools available to help keep your Slackware system
secure, including iptables and tcpwrappers.
Chapter 15, Archive Files
Describes the different compression and archive utilities available for Linux.
Chapter 16, vi
Describes the powerful vi text editor.
Chapter 17, Emacs
Describes the powerful Emacs text editor.
Chapter 18, Slackware Package Management
Describes the Slackware package utilities and the process used to create custom
packages and tagfiles.
Chapter 19, ZipSlack
Describes the ZipSlack version of Linux that can be used from Windows with-
out requiring an installation.
xviii

Preface
Appendix A, The GNU General Public License
Describes the license terms under which Slackware Linux and this book can be
copied and distributed.
Conventions used in this book
To provide a consistent and easy to read text, several conventions are followed
throughout the book.
Typographic Conventions
Italic
An italic font is used for commands, emphasized text, and the first usage of
technical terms.
, ( *
A -
(*
font is used for error messages, commands, environment variables,
names of ports, hostnames, user names, group names, device names, variables,
and code fragments.
Bold
A bold font is used for user input in examples.
User Input
Keys are shown in bold to stand out from other text. Key combinations that are
meant to be typed simultaneously are shown with ‘+’ between the keys, such as:
Ctrl+Alt+Del
Meaning the user should type the Ctrl, Alt, and Del keys at the same time.
xix

Preface
Keys that are meant to be typed in sequence will be separated with commas, for
example:
Ctrl+X, Ctrl+S
Would mean that the user is expected to type the Ctrl and X keys simultaneously
and then to type the Ctrl and S keys simultaneously.
Examples
Examples starting with E: indicate a MS-DOS® command. Unless otherwise
noted, these commands may be executed from a “Command Prompt” window in
a modern Microsoft® Windows® environment.
D: rawrite a: bare.i
Examples starting with # indicate a command that must be invoked as the superuser
in Slackware. You can login as root to type the command, or login as your normal
account and use su(1) to gain superuser privileges.
# dd if=bare.i of=/dev/fd0
Examples starting with % indicate a command that should be invoked from a normal
user account. Unless otherwise noted, C-shell syntax is used for setting environment
variables and other shell commands.
% top
Acknowledgments
This project is the accumulation of months of work by many dedicated individuals.
It would not have been possible for me to produce this work in a vacuum. Many peo-
ple deserve our thanks for their selfless acts: Keith Keller for his work on wireless
networking, Joost Kremers for his great work in single-handedly writing the emacs
section, Simon Williams for the security chapter, Jurgen Phillippaerts for basic net-
xx

Preface
working commands, Cibao Cu Ali G Colibri for the inspiration and a good kick in
the pants. Countless others have sent in suggestions and fixes. An incomplete list
includes: Jacob Anhoej, John Yast, Sally Welch, Morgan Landry, and Charlie Law.
I’d also like to thank Keith Keller for hosting the mailing list for this project, as well
as Carl Inglis for the initial web hosting. Last but not least, I’d like to thank Patrick
J. Volkerding for Slackware Linux, and David Cantrell, Logan Johnson, and Chris
Lumens for Slackware Linux Essentials 1st Edition. Without their initial framework,
none of this would have ever happened. Many others have contributed in small and
large ways to this project and have not been listed. I hope they will forgive me for a
poor memory.
Alan Hicks, May 2005
xxi

Chapter 1
An Introduction to
Slackware Linux
1.1 What is Linux?
Linus Torvalds started Linux, an operating system kernel, as a personal project in
1991. He started the project because he wanted to run a Unix-based operating sys-
tem without spending a lot of money. In addition, he wanted to learn the ins and
outs of the 386 processor. Linux was released free of charge to the public so that
anyone could study it and make improvements under the General Public License.
(See Section 1.3 and Appendix A for an explanation of the license.) Today, Linux
has grown into a major player in the operating system market. It has been ported
to run on a variety of system architectures, including HP/Compaq’s Alpha, Sun’s
SPARC and UltraSPARC, and Motorola’s PowerPC chips (through Apple Macin-
tosh and IBM RS/6000 computers.) Hundreds, if not thousands, of programmers all
over the world now develop Linux. It runs programs like Sendmail, Apache, and
BIND, which are very popular software used to run Internet servers. It’s important
to remember that the term “Linux” really refers to the kernel - the core of the op-
erating system. This core is responsible for controlling your computer’s processor,
memory, hard drives, and peripherals. That’s all Linux really does: It controls the
operations of your computer and makes sure that all of its programs behave. Various
companies and individuals bundle the kernel and various programs together to make
an operating system. We call each bundle a Linux distribution.
1

Chapter 1 An Introduction to Slackware Linux
A Word on GNU
The Linux kernel project began as a solo endeavor by Linus Torvalds in 1991, but as
Isaac Newton once said, “If I have seen further, it is by standing on the shoulders of
giants.” When Linus Torvalds began the kernel the Free Software Foundation had al-
ready established the idea of collaborative software. They entitled their effort GNU,
a recursive acronym that means simply “GNU’s Not Unix”. GNU software ran atop
the Linux kernel from day 1. Their compiler gcc was used to compile the kernel.
Today many GNU tools from gcc to gnutar are still at the basis of every major
Linux distribution. For this reason many of the Free Software Foundation’s propo-
nents fervently state that their work should be given the same credit as the Linux
kernel. They strongly suggest that all Linux distributions should refer to themselves
as GNU/Linux distributions.
This is the topic of many flamewars, surpassed only by the ancient vi versus emacs
holy war. The purpose of this book is not to fan the fires of this heated discussion,
but rather to clarify the terminology for neophytes. When one sees GNU/Linux it
means a Linux distribution. When one sees Linux they can either be referring to the
kernel, or to a distribution. It can be rather confusing. Typically the term GNU/Linux
isn’t used because it’s a mouth full.
1.2 What is Slackware?
Slackware, started by Patrick Volkerding in late 1992, and initially released to the
world on July 17, 1993, was the first Linux distribution to achieve widespread use.
Volkerding first learned of Linux when he needed an inexpensive LISP interpreter
for a project. One of the few distributions available at the time was SLS Linux from
Soft Landing Systems. Volkerding used SLS Linux, fixing bugs as he found them.
Eventually, he decided to merge all of these bugfixes into his own private distribution
that he and his friends could use. This private distribution quickly gained popularity,
so Volkerding decided to name it Slackware and make it publicly available. Along
the way, Patrick added new things to Slackware; a user friendly installation program
2

based on a menuing system, as well as the concept of package management, which
allows users to easily add, remove, or upgrade software packages on their systems.
There are many reasons why Slackware is Linux’s oldest living distribution. It does
not try to emulate Windows, it tries to be as Unix-like as possible. It does not try
to cover up processes with fancy, point-and-click GUIs (Graphical User Interfaces).
Instead, it puts users in control by letting them see exactly what’s going on. Its
development is not rushed to meet deadlines-each version comes out when it is ready.
Slackware is for people who enjoy learning and tweaking their system to do exactly
what they want. Slackware’s stability and simplicity are why people will continue
to use it for years to come. Slackware currently enjoys a reputation as a solid server
and a no-nonsense workstation. You can find Slackware desktops running nearly any
window manager or desktop environment, or none at all. Slackware servers power
businesses, acting in every capacity that a server can be used in. Slackware users are
among the most satisfied Linux users. Of course, we’d say that. :^)
1.3 Open Source and Free Software
Within the Linux community, there are two major ideological movements at work.
The Free Software movement (which we’ll get into in a moment) is working toward
the goal of making all software free of intellectual property restrictions. Followers
of this movement believe these restrictions hamper technical improvement and work
against the good of the community. The Open Source movement is working toward
most of the same goals, but takes a more pragmatic approach to them. Followers of
this movement prefer to base their arguments on the economic and technical merits
of making source code freely available, rather than the moral and ethical principles
that drive the Free Software Movement.
At the other end of the spectrum are groups that wish to maintain tighter controls
over their software.
The Free Software movement is headed by the Free Software Foundation, a fund-
raising organization for the GNU project. Free software is more of an ideology.
3

The oft-used expression is “free as in speech, not free as in beer”. In essence, free
software is an attempt to guarantee certain rights for both users and developers.
These freedoms include the freedom to run the program for any reason, to study and
modify the source code, to redistribute the source, and to share any modifications
you make. In order to guarantee these freedoms, the GNU General Public License
(GPL) was created. The GPL, in brief, provides that anyone distributing a compiled
program which is licensed under the GPL must also provide source code, and is free
to make modifications to the program as long as those modifications are also made
available in source code form. This guarantees that once a program is “opened” to
the community, it cannot be “closed” except by consent of every author of every
piece of code (even the modifications) within it. Most Linux programs are licensed
under the GPL.
It is important to note that the GPL does not say anything about price. As odd as it
may sound, you can charge for free software. The “free” part is in the liberties you
have with the source code, not in the price you pay for the software. (However, once
someone has sold you, or even given you, a compiled program licensed under the
GPL they are obligated to provide its source code as well.)
Another popular license is the BSD license. In contrast to the GPL, the BSD license
gives no requirement for the release of a program’s source code. Software released
under the BSD license allows redistribution in source or binary form provided only
a few conditions are met. The author’s credentials cannot be used as a sort of adver-
tisement for the program. It also indemnifies the author from liability for damages
that may arise from the use of the software. Much of the software included in Slack-
ware Linux is BSD licensed.
At the forefront of the younger Open Source movement, the Open Source Initiative
is an organization that solely exists to gain support for open source software, that
is, software that has the source code available as well as the ready-to-run program.
They do not offer a specific license, but instead they support the various types of
open source licenses available.
The idea behind the OSI is to get more companies behind open source by allowing
them to write their own open source licenses and have those licenses certified by
4

the Open Source Initiative. Many companies want to release source code, but do not
want to use the GPL. Since they cannot radically change the GPL, they are offered
the opportunity to provide their own license and have it certified by this organization.
While the Free Software Foundation and the Open Source Initiative work to help
each other, they are not the same thing. The Free Software Foundation uses a spe-
cific license and provides software under that license. The Open Source Initiative
seeks support for all open source licenses, including the one from the Free Soft-
ware Foundation. The grounds on which each argues for making source code freely
available sometimes divides the two movements, but the fact that two ideologically
diverse groups are working toward the same goal lends credence to the efforts of
each.
5

6

Chapter 2
Help
Often there are times when you might need help with a specific command, setting
up a program, or getting a piece of hardware to work. Maybe you simply want to
understand a given command better, or see what other options are available to use
with it. Luckily, there are a variety of ways that you can get the help you’re looking
for. When you install Slackware you have the option of installing packages from the
“F” series which includes FAQs and HOWTOs. Programs also come with help about
their options, configuration files, and usage.
2.1 System Help
man
The man command (short for “manual”) is the traditional form of online documen-
tation in Unix and Linux operating systems. Comprised of specially formatted files,
the “man pages”, are written for the vast majority of commands and are distributed
with the software itself. Executing man somecommand will display the man page for
(naturally) the command specified, in our example this would be the imaginary pro-
gram somecommand.
As you might imagine, the amount of man pages can quickly add up, becoming
overly confusing and seriously complicated, even for an advanced user. So, for
this reason, man pages are grouped into enumerated sections. This system has been
around for a very long time; enough so that you will often see commands, programs,
and even programming library functions referred to with their man section number.
7

Chapter 2 Help
For example:
You might see a reference to man(1). The numbering tells you that “ man” is docu-
mented in section 1 (user commands); you can specify that you want the section 1
man page for “man” with the command man 1 man. Specifying the section that man
should look in is useful in the case of multiple items with the same name.
Table 2-1. Man Page Sections
Section Contents
Section 1 user commands (intro only)
Section 2 system calls
Section 3 C library calls
Section 4 devices (e.g.,
%)
,

)
Section 5 file formats and protocols (e.g., wtmp,
)( * ).
, nfs)
Section 6 games (intro only)
Section 7 conventions, macro packages, etc. (e.g., nroff, ascii)
Section 8 system administration (intro only)
In addition to man(1), there are the commands whatis(1) and apropos(1) available
to you, whose shared purpose is to make it easier to find information in the man
system.
The command whatis gives a very brief description of system commands, somewhat
in the style of a pocket command reference.
Example:
% whatis whatis
whatis (1) - search the whatis database for complete words
8

Chapter 2 Help
The command apropos is used to search for a man page containing a given keyword.
Example:
% apropos wav
cdda2wav (1) - a sampling utility that dumps CD audio data into wav sound files
netwave_cs (4) - Xircom Creditcard Netwave device driver
oggdec (1) - simple decoder, Ogg Vorbis file to PCM audio file (WAV or RAW)
wavelan (4) - ATT GIS WaveLAN ISA device driver
wavelan_cs (4) - ATT GIS WaveLAN PCMCIA device driver
wvlan_cs (4) - Lucent WaveLAN/IEEE 802.11 device driver
If you’d like further information on any of these commands, read their man pages
for the details. ;)
The / 0213$/4$576 Directory
The source for most packages that we build comes with some sort of documentation:
README files, usage instructions, license files, etc. Any sort of documentation
that comes with the source is included and installed on your system in the

directory. Each program will (usually) install its own documentation in the order of:
'8( 9 *
-;:
8# )
Where $program is the name of the program you are wanting to read about, and
$version is (obviously) the appropriate version of software package installed on
your system.
For example, to read the documentation for the command man(1) you would want to
cd to:
% cd /usr/doc/man-$version
If reading the appropriate man page(s) doesn’t provide you with enough information,
or address what you’re looking for in particular, the

directory should be your
next stop.
9

Chapter 2 Help
HOWTOs and mini-HOWTOs
It is in the truest spirit of the Open Source community that brings us to the
HOWTO/mini-HOWTO collection. These files are exactly what they sound like -
documents and guides describing how to do stuff. If you installed the HOWTO
collection, the HOWTOs will be installed to
' ')=
: ?@ A?

and the
mini-HOWTOs to
' ')=
:-

: ?@)A ?

.
Also included in the same package series is a collection of FAQs, which is an
acronym which stands for
Frequently
Asked
Questions
These documents are written in a “Question and answer” style for (surprise) Fre-
quently Asked Questions. The FAQs can often be a very useful place to look if
you’re just looking for a “Quick Fix” to something. If you decide to install the FAQs
during setup, you will find them installed to the
' )=
: B C D

directory.
These files are well worth reading whenever you’re not quite sure how to proceed
with something. They cover an amazing range of topics, more often than not in a
surprisingly detailed manner. Good stuff!
2.2 Online Help
In addition to the documentation provided and installable with the Slackware Linux
Operating System, there are a vast multitude of online resources available for you to
learn from as well.
10

Chapter 2 Help
The Official Website and Help Forums
The Official Slackware Website1
The Official Slackware Linux website is sometimes out of date, but still contains
information relevant to the latest Slackware versions. At one time an active help
forum existed there before a horde of trolls, troublemakers, and whiners descended
on the forum. Maintaining the forum was beginning to be too much work, and so
Pat shut it down. One can find that old forum back up and running complete with
searchable archives of the old data at EGFGFIHKJ/G/MLGLGLONP0Q1SR3UTV576VWITXN6V5ZY[/ HGEU53V0Y[/ .
After the forums were taken down on EGFGFGHKJ/G/I1GTVW76;SLQW3$R]N 6V5Y , several other sites
sprang up that offered forum support for Slackware. After much thought, Pat chose
to endorse LGLILONT7^Z_G0G`7aV0bRG1MF[^5 _b1XN53Vc as the official forum for Slackware Linux.
E-mail Support
Everyone who purchases an official CD set is entitled to free installation support via
e-mail from the developer. That having been said, please keep in mind that we, the
developers, (and a vast majority of users) of Slackware are of “The Old School”.
That means that we prefer to help those who have a sincere interest and are willing
to help themselves in the process. We will always do our best to help everyone
who emails us with support questions. However, Please check your documentation
and the website (especially the FAQs and maybe some of the forums listed below)
before e-mailing. You may get a faster answer that way, and the less e-mail we have
to answer, obviously the sooner we will be of assistance to those that need it.
The e-mail address for technical support is: support@slackware.com. Other e-mail
addresses and contact information are listed on the website.
Slackware Linux Project Mailing Lists
We have several mailing lists, available in digest and normal forms. Check the in-
structions for how to subscribe.
1 http://www.slackware.com
11

Chapter 2 Help
To subscribe to a mailing list, email:
majordomo@slackware.com
with the phrase “ subscribe [name of list]” in the body of the email. The list
choices are described below (use one the names below for the name of the list).
Archives of the mailing list can be found on Slackware’s website at:
http://slackware.com/lists/archive/
slackware-announce
The slackware-announce mailing list is for announcements of new versions,
major updates and other general information.
slackware-security
The slackware-security mailing list is for announcements relating to security
issues. Any exploits or other vulnerabilities directly pertaining to Slackware
will get posted to this list immediately.
These lists are also available in digest format. This means that you get one large
message per day instead of several messages throughout the day. Since the slackware
mailing lists do not allow users to post, and the lists are such low traffic, most users
find little advantage in the digest lists. Still, they are available if you want them by
subscribing to slackware-announce-digest or slackware-security-digest.
Non-Official Websites and Help Forums
Websites
Google (EGFIFGHKJ/G/MLGLGLONPcb5G5 cQTSRXN 6V5ZY )
The Kung-Fu Master of Search Engines. When you absolutely, positively gotta
12

Chapter 2 Help
find every last kernel of information on a subject: Accept no substitutes.
Google:Linux (EGFIFGHKJ/G/MLGLGLONPcb5G5 cQTSRXN 6V5ZY[/GT7^Z_G0G` )
Linux-Specific searches
Google:BSD (EGFIFGHKJ/G/MLGLGLONdcU5G5 cQTSRXN 6V5ZY[/MeQ14 )
BSD-Specific searches. Slackware is so generic as a Unix work-a-like operating
system that one can as often as not find very detailed information that is almost
100% relevant to Slackware here. Many times a BSD search reveals far more
technical information than the often PR-related Linux searches.
Google:Groups (EGFGFGHKJ/I/ cI3$5 0GHQ1fNdcb5G5 cQTVR]N 6V5ZY )
Search through decades of Usenet posts for your pearls of wisdom.
EGFIFGHKJ/G/ 0Q1SR3UTV576VWITXN6V5ZY
A virtual treasure-trove of knowledge, good advice, first-hand experience and
interesting articles. Often the first place you’ll hear about new developments in
the world of Slackware.
Web-based Resources
linuxquestions.org6
The officially sanctioned web-forum for Slackware users.
LinuxISO.org Slackware Forum7
“A place to download and get help with Linux.”
6 http://www.linuxquestions.org/questions/forumdisplay.php?forumid=14
7 http://forums.linuxiso.org/viewforum.php?f=25
13

Chapter 2 Help
alt.os.linux.slackware FAQ8
Another FAQ
Usenet Groups (NNTP)
Usenet has long been a place for geeks to gather and help one another. There are
few newsgroups dedicated to Slackware Linux, but they tend to be filled with very
knowledgeable people.
alt.os.linux.slackware
alt.os.linux.slackware, better known as aols (not to be confused with AOL®!)
is one of the most active places to find technical help with Slackware problems.
Like every Usenet newsgroup, a few unhelpful participants (“trolls”) can mar the
experience with constant arguing. Learning to ignore the trolls and identifying the
truly helpful people is key to making the most of this resource.
8 http://wombat.san-francisco.ca.us/perl/fom
14

Chapter 3
Installation
Before you can use Slackware Linux, you’ll have to obtain and install it. Getting
Slackware is as easy as purchasing it or downloading it for free over the Internet.
Installing it is also easy as long as you have some basic knowledge about your com-
puter and are willing to learn a few other things. The installation program itself is
very much a step-by-step process. Because of this, you can be up and running very
quickly. In fact, Slackware boasts one of the lowest installation times of any full-
featured Linux distribution.
3.1 Getting Slackware
The Official Disc and Box Sets
The official Slackware Linux CD set is available from Slackware Linux, Inc. The
CD set consists of 4 discs. The first disk contains all the software needed for a ba-
sic server install, and the X window system. The second cd is a “live” cd; that is,
a bootable cd that installs into RAM and gives you a temporary installation to play
around with or do a data or machine rescue. This cd also contains a few packages
such as the KDE and GNOME desktop environments. A few other goodies are in-
cluded on the second cd including many non-vital packages in the “extra” folder.
The third and fourth CDs contain the source code to all of Slackware, along with the
original edition of this book.
One may also purchase a boxed set that includes the 4 discs and a copy of this book,
as well as lots of neat Slackware gear to show off your geek pride. CD subscriptions
15

Chapter 3 Installation
are available at a reduced rate also.
The preferred method for shopping for Slackware merchandise is online at the Slack-
ware store.
EGFIFGHKJ/G/I1MFb53$RXN1GTSW76ZSLQW3$RXN 6V5ZY
You can also call or e-mail your order in.
Table 3-1. Slackware Linux, Inc. Contact Information
Method Contact Details
Telephone 1-(925) 674-0783
Website http://store.slackware.com
Email orders@slackware.com
Postal 1164 Claremont Drive, Brentwood, CA 94513
Via the Internet
Slackware Linux is also freely available over the Internet. You may email in your
support questions, but higher priority will be given to those who have purchased the
official CD set. With that said, we get a lot of e-mails and our time is rather limited.
Before e-mailing for support consider reading Chapter 2 first.
The official Slackware Linux Project website is located at:
EGFIFGHKJ/G/MLGLGLON1STSW76;SLbW3$R]N 65ZY[/
The primary FTP location for Slackware Linux is:
g
FIHKJ/G/
g
FGHKN1GTVW76;SLQW3$R]N 6V5Y[/ HG0Geb/G1GTSW76;VLQW3$RG/
Bear in mind that our ftp site, while open for general use, does not have
unlimited bandwidth. Please consider using a mirror near you to download
Slackware. An incomplete list of mirrors can be found on our site at
EGFIFGHKJ/G/MLGLGLON1STSW76;SLbW3$R]N 65ZY[/ cbR Fb1GTSW76; .
16

3.2 System Requirements
An easy Slackware installation requires, at minimum, the following:
Table 3-2. System Requirements
Hardware Requirement
Processor 586
RAM 32 MB
Disk Space 1GB
Media Drive 4x CD-ROM
If you have the bootable CD, you will probably not need a floppy drive. Of course,
it stands to reason that if you don’t possess a CD-ROM drive, you will need a floppy
drive to do a network install. A network card is required for an NFS install. See the
section called NFS for more information.
The disk space requirement is somewhat tricky. The 1GB recommendation is usually
safe for a minimal install, but if you do a full install, you will need around two
gigabytes of available hard disk space plus additional space for personal files.. Most
users don’t do a full install. In fact, many run Slackware on as little as 100MB of
hard disk space.
Slackware can be installed to systems with less RAM, smaller hard drives, and
weaker CPUs, but doing so will require a little elbow grease. If you’re up for a
little work, take a look at the

?@
, h ,
A)iA file in the distribution tree for a few helpful
hints.
The Software Series
For reasons of simplicity, Slackware has historically been divided into software se-
ries. Once called “disk sets” because they were designed for floppy-based installa-
tion, the software series are now used primarily to categorize the packages included
in Slackware. Today, floppy installation is no longer possible.
17

The following is a brief description of each software series.
Table 3-3. Software Series
Series Contents
A The base system. Contains enough software to get up and running
and have a text editor and basic communication program.
AP Various applications that do not require the X Window System.
D Program development tools. Compilers, debuggers, interpreters,
and man pages are all here.
E GNU Emacs.
F FAQs, HOWTOs, and other miscellaneous documentation.
GNOME The GNOME desktop environment.
K The source code for the Linux kernel.
KDE The K Desktop Environment. An X environment which shares a
lot of look-and-feel features with MacOS and Windows. The Qt
library, which KDE requires, is also in this series.
KDEI Internationalization packages for the KDE desktop.
L Libraries. Dynamically linked libraries required by many other
programs.
N Networking programs. Daemons, mail programs, telnet, news
readers, and so on.
T teTeX document formatting system.
TCL The Tool Command Language. Tk, TclX, and TkDesk.
X The base X Window System.
XAP X Applications that are not part of a major desktop environment
(for example, Ghostscript and Netscape).
Y BSD Console games
18

Installation Methods
Floppy
While it was once possible to install all of Slackware Linux from floppy disks, the in-
creasing size of software packages (indeed, of some individual programs) has forced
the abandonment of the floppy install. As late as Slackware version 7.1 a partial in-
stall was possible using floppy disks. The A and N series could be nearly entirely
installed, providing a base system from which to install the rest of the distribution.
If you are considering a floppy install (typically on older hardware), it is typically
recommended to find another way, or use an older release. Slackware 4.0 is still very
popular for this reason, as is 7.0.
Please note that floppy disks are still required for a CD-ROM install if you do not
have a bootable CD, as well as for an NFS install.
CD-ROM
If you have the bootable CD, available in the official disc set published by Slackware
Linux, Inc. (see the section called Getting Slackware), a CD-based installation will
be a bit simpler for you. If not, you will need to boot from floppies. Also, if you have
special hardware that makes usage of the kernel on the bootable CD problematic, you
may need to use specialized floppies.
As of Slackware version 8.1, a new method is used for creating the bootable CDs,
which does not work as well with certain flaky BIOS chips (it is worth noting that
most all Linux CDs suffer from this these days). If that is the case, we recommend
booting from a floppy disk.
Section 3.2.3 and Section 3.2.5 provide information on choosing and creating flop-
pies from which to boot, should this be necessary.
19

NFS
NFS (the Network File System) is a way of making filesystems available to remote
machines. An NFS install allows you to install Slackware from another computer on
your network. The machine from which you are installing needs to be configured
to export the Slackware distribution tree to the machine to which you’re installing.
This, of course, involves some knowledge of NFS, which is covered in Section 5.6.
It is possible to perform an NFS install via such methods as PLIP (over a parallel
port), SLIP, and PPP (though not over a modem connection). However, we recom-
mend the use of a network card if available. After all, installing an operating system
through your printer port is going to be a very, very slow process.
Boot Disk
The boot disk is the floppy you actually boot from to begin the installation. It con-
tains a compressed kernel image which is used to control the hardware during instal-
lation. Therefore, it is very much required (unless you’re booting from CD, as is dis-
cussed in the section called CD-ROM). The boot disks are located in the
+ '
directory in the distribution tree.
There are more Slackware boot disks than you can shake a stick at (which is to say
about 16). A complete list of boot disks, with a description of each, is available in
the Slackware distribution tree in the file
+ )'j h
C)k
,h
AiA . However, most people
are able to use the
+*G!
(for IDE devices) or
)l
(for SCSI devices) boot disk
image.
See Section 3.2.6 for instructions on making a disk from an image.
After booting, you will be prompted to insert the root disk. We recommend that you
just humor the boot disk and play along.
20

Root Disk
The root disks contain the setup program and a filesystem which is used during
installation. They are also required. The root disk images are located in the direc-
tory rootdisks in the distribution tree. You’ll have to make two root disks from the
'*)Sm
and
*Gon
images. Here you can also find the
.')7'
,
(
-
*G'
,
G'
, and
+
-
9 7
disks.
Supplemental Disk
A supplemental disk is needed if you are performing an NFS install or installing to
a system with PCMCIA devices. Supplemental disks are in the rootdsks directory in
the distribution tree, with the filenames
. 7
and
(
-
*G'
. Recently other
supplemental disks such as
)G'
and
+
-
97
have been added. The rescue
disk is a small floppy root image that runs in a 4MB RAM drive. It includes some
basic networking utilities and the vi editor for quick fixes on busted machines. The
+)
-
9 $'
disk is used to boot other devices. Boot off this disk if your bootable
CD-ROM drive doesn’t want to boot the Slackware CDs. It will prompt you for
different things to boot and may offer a convenient way to work around a buggy
BIOS.
The root disk will instruct you on the use of supplemental disks when it is loaded.
Making the Disks
Once you’ve selected a boot disk image, you need to put it on a floppy. The process
is slightly different depending on which operating system you’re using to make the
disks. If you’re running Linux (or pretty much any Unix-like OS) you’ll need to use
the dd(1) command. Assuming
+*G!
is your disk image file and your floppy drive
is
# ))p
, the command to make a
+*G!
floppy is:
% dd if=bare.i of=/dev/fd0
21

If you’re running a Microsoft OS, you’ll need to use the
j
C@
jq
A
h h
i
h
program, which
is included in the distribution tree in the same directories as the floppy images. Again
assuming that
+ *G!
is your disk image file and your floppy drive is C7r , open a DOS
prompt and type the following:
C: rawrite a: bare.i
3.3 Partitioning
After booting from your preferred media, you will need to partition your hard disk.
The disk partition is where the Linux filesystem will be created and is where Slack-
ware will be installed. At the very minimum we recommend creating two partitions;
one for your root filesystem ( ) and one for swap space.
After the root disk finishes loading, it will present you with a login prompt. Log in
as root (there is no password). At the shell prompt, run either cfdisk(8) or fdisk(8).
The cfdisk program provides a more user-friendly interface than the regular fdisk
program, but does lack some features. We will briefly explain the fdisk program
below.
Begin by running fdisk for your hard disk. In Linux, the hard disks do not have
drive letters, but are represented by a file. The first IDE hard disk (primary master)
is
#%)*
, the primary slave is
#%)+
, and so on. SCSI disks follow the same type
system, but are in the form of
#
i . You will need to start fdisk and pass it your
hard disk:
# fdisk /dev/hda
Like all good Unix programs, fdisk gives you a prompt (thought you were getting a
menu, right?). The first thing you should do is examine your current partitions. We
do that by typing p at the fdisk prompt:
Command (m for help): p
22

This will display all sorts of information about your current partitions. Most people
pick a free drive to install to and then remove any existing partitions on it to create
room for the Linux partitions.
Warning: IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT YOU BACK UP ANY INFORMA-
TION YOU WANT TO SAVE BEFORE DESTROYING THE PARTITION IT
LIVES ON.
There is no easy way to recover from deleting a partition, so always back up before
playing with them.
Looking at the table of partition information you should see a partition number, the
size of the partition, and its type. There’s more information, but don’t worry about
that for now. We are going to delete all of the partitions on this drive to create the
Linux ones. We run the d command to delete those:
Command (m for help): d
Partition number (1-4): 1
This process should be continued for each of the partitions. After deleting the parti-
tions we are ready to create the Linux ones. We have decided to create one partition
for our root filesystem and one for swap. It is worth noting that Unix partitioning
schemes are the subject of many flame wars, and that most users will tell you the
best way to do it. At a minimum, you should create one partition for and one for
swap. Over time, you’ll develop a method that works well for you.
I use two basic partition schemes. The first is for a desktop. I make 4 partitions, ,
%
-

,
' )*
, and swap. This lets me re-install or upgrade the entire installation
under without wiping out my data files under /home or my custom compiled ap-
plications under
)*)
. For servers, I often replace the
*)
partition with
a
# *
partition. Many different servers store information on that partition and hav-
ing it kept separate from has certain performance benefits. For now, we’re sticking
with just two partitions: and swap.
23

Now we create the partitions with the n command:
Command (m for help): n
Command action
e extended
p primary partition (1-4)
p
Partition number (1-4):1
First cylinder (0-1060, default 0):0
Last cylinder or +size or +sizeM or +sizeK (0-1060, default 1060):+64M
You need to make sure you create primary partitions. The first partition is going to
be our swap partition. We tell fdisk to make partition number 1 a primary partition.
We start it at cylinder 0 and for the ending cylinder we type +64M. This will give us
a 64 megabyte partition for swap. (The size of the swap partition you need actually
depends on the amount of RAM you have. It is conventional wisdom that a swap
space double the size of your RAM should be created.) Then we define primary
partition number 2 starting at the first available cylinder and going all the way to the
end of the drive.
Command (m for help):n
Command action
e extended
p primary partition (1-4)
p
Partition number (1-4):2
First cylinder (124-1060, default 124):124
Last cylinder or +size or +sizeM or +sizeK (124-1060, default 1060):1060
We are almost done. We need to change the type of the first partition to type 82
(Linux swap). Type t to change the type, select the first partition, and type 82. Before
writing your changes to the disk, you should look at the new partition table one last
time. Use the p in fdisk to display the partition table. If everything looks good, type
w to write your changes to the disk and quit fdisk.
24

3.4 The setup Program
Once you have created your partitions, you are ready to install Slackware. The next
step in the installation process is running the setup(8) program. To do so, simply
type setup at the shell prompt. setup is a menu-driven system for actually installing
the Slackware packages and configuring your system.
Slackware Linux Setup (version 9.1.0)
Welcome to Slackware Linux Setup.
Select an option below using the UP/DOWN keys and SPACE or ENTER.
Alternate keys may also be used: ’+’, ’-’, and TAB.
HELP
KEYMAP
ADDSWAP
TARGET
SOURCE
SELECT
INSTALL
CONFIGURE
EXIT
Read the Slackware Setup HELP file
Remap your keyboard if your’re not using a US one
Set up your swap partition(s)
Set up your target partitions
Select source media
Select categories of software to install
Install selected software
Reconfigure your Linux system
Exit Slackware Linux Setup
OK Cancel
The setup process goes something like this: You step through each option in the
setup program, in the order they are listed. (Of course, you are free to do things in
almost any order you choose, but chances are it isn’t going to work out very well.)
Menu items are selected using the up and down arrow keys, and the “Okay” and
“Cancel” buttons can be chosen by using the left and right arrow keys. Alternatively,
each option has a corresponding key, which is highlighted in the option name. Op-
tions which are flaggable (those indicated with a [X]) are toggled using the spacebar.
Of course, all of that is described in the “help” section of setup, but we believe in
giving our readers their money’s worth.
25

HELP
If this is your first time installing Slackware, you might want to take a look at the
help screen. It will give a description of each part of setup (much like the one we’re
writing now, but less involved) and instructions for navigating the rest of the install.
( 6%)
Slackware Setup Help
Slackware Linux Help
____________________
First, a little help on help. Whenever you encounter a text
viewer like this during the installation, you can move around
with these commands:
PGDN/SPACE
PGUP/’b’
ENTER/DOWN/’j’
UP/’k’
LEFT/’h’
RIGHT/’l’
’0’
HOME/’g’
END/’G’
’/’
- Move down one page
- Move up one page
- Move down one line
- Move up one line
- Scroll left
- Scroll right
- Move to beginning of line
- Move to beginning of file
- Move to end of file
- Forward search
OK
KEYMAP
If you require a keymap other than the United States “qwerty” layout, you may
want to take a look at this section. It offers a number of alternate layouts for your
keyboarding enjoyment.
26

KEYBOARD MAP SELECTION
You may select one of the following keyboard maps.
If you do not select a keyboard map, ’us.map’ (the
US keyboard map) is the default. Use the UP/DOWN
arrow keys and PageUp/PageDown to scroll through
the whole list of choices.
qwerty/us.map
azerty/azerty.map
azerty/be-latin1.map
azerty/fr-latin1.map
azerty/fr-latin9.map
azerty/fr-pc.map
azerty/fr.map
azerty/wangbe.map
azerty/wangbe2.map
dvorak/ANSI-dvorak.map
dvorak/dvorak-l.map
OK Cancel
ADDSWAP
SWAP SPACE DETECTED
Slackware Setup has detected a swap partition:
Device Boot Start End Blocks Id System
/dev/hda4 4801 4865 522112+ 82 Linux swap
Do you wish to install this as your swap partition?
Yes No
If you created a swap partition (back in Section 3.3), this section will allow you
to enable it. It will autodetect and display the swap partitions on your hard drive,
allowing you to select one to format and enable.
27

TARGET
Select Linux installation partition:
Please select a partition from the following list to use for your
root (/) Linux partition.
/dev/hda2
/dev/hda3
/dev/hda4
- - -
- - -
Linux 5863725
Linux 5863725
Linux 104984775
(done adding partitions, continue with setup)
(done adding partitions, continue with setup)
Select Continue
The target section is where your other (non-swap) partitions are formatted and
mapped to filesystem mount points. A list of the partitions on your hard disk will be
displayed. For each partition, you will be given the option of whether to format that
partition or not. Depending on the kernel used, you can choose between reiserfs
(the default), ext3, ext2, jfs, and xfs. Most people use either reiserfs or ext3. In the
near future we may see support for reiserfs4 slip in.
The first option in the target section is the selection of a partition on which to install
your root ( ) filesystem. After that, you will be able to map other partitions to filesys-
tems as you choose. (For instance, you may want your third partition, say
#%)* s
,
to be your home filesystem. This is just an example; map the partitions as you see
fit.)
SOURCE
The source section is where you select the source media from which you are in-
stalling Slackware. Currently there are four sources to choose from. These are CD-
ROM, NFS, or a premounted directory.
28

Exploring the Variety of Random
Documents with Different Content

evenly and gently, was worthy of all commendation. To take away
the rest of his adversary’s lance merited more honour than to carry
away any other part of his harness. To break his lance against the
bow or pommel of the saddle was accounted greater shame than to
bear a lance without breaking. It was equally dishonourable to break
a lance traverse, or across the breast of an opponent, without
striking him with the point; for as it could only occur from the horse
swerving on one side, it showed unskilful riding.[308] The courtesies
of chivalry were maintained by the laws that he who struck a horse,
or a man, when his back was turned, or when he was unarmed,
deserved no honor. Any combatant might unhelm himself, and until
his helmet was replaced, none could assail him.[309]
Conclusion
of the
sports.
The
festival.
Delivery of
the prize.
Knights
thanked by
ladies.
When all the knights had proved their valiancy, the lord of the
tournament dropped his warder[310], or otherwise signed to the
heralds, who cried “Ployer vos bannieres.” The banners were
accordingly folded, and the amusements ended. The fair and noble
spectators then descended from their galleries, and repaired to the
place of festival. The knights who had tourneyed clad themselves in
gay weeds of peace, and entering the hall amidst long and high
flourishes of trumpets, sat under the silken banners whose
emblazonings recorded the antique glory of their families. Favourite
falcons were seated on perches above their heads, and the old and
faithful dogs of the chace were allowed to be present at this joyous
celebration of their master’s honor. Sometimes the knights encircled,
in generous equality, a round table. On other occasions the feudal

long table with its dais, or raised upper end, was used; and to the
bravest knights were allotted the seats which were wont to belong to
proud and powerful barons.[311] Every preux cavalier had by his side
a lady bright. The minstrels tuned their harps to the praise of
courtesy and prowess; and when the merriment was most joyous,
the heralds[312] presented to the ladies the knights who had worthily
demeaned themselves.[313] She, who by the consent of her fair
companions was called La Royne de la Beaulté et des Amours,
delivered the prizes to the kneeling knights.[314] This queen of
beauty and love addressed each of them with a speech of courtesy,
thanking him for the disport and labour which he had taken that day,
presenting to him the prize as the ladies’ award for his skill, and
concluding with the wish that such a valorous cavalier would have
much joy and worship with his lady.[315] “The victory was entirely
owing to the favor of my mistress, which I wore in my helmet,” was
the gallant reply of the knight; for he was always solicitous to exalt
the honor of his lady-love. As tournaments were scenes of pleasure,
the knight who appeared in the most handsome guise was praised;
and, to complete the courtesies of chivalry, thanks were rendered to
those who had travelled to the lists from far countries.[316]
The ball.
Liberality.
Dancing then succeeded, the knights taking precedence agreeably to
their feats of arms in the morning. And now, when every one’s heart
was exalted by the rich glow of chivalry, the heralds called for their
rewards. Liberality was a virtue of every true knight, and the
officers-at-arms were more particular in tracing the lines of his
pedigree, than in checking him from overleaping the bounds of a
prudent and rational generosity.
One day’s amusement did not always close the tournament: but on
the second morning the knights resigned the lists to their esquires,
who mounted upon the horses, and wore the armour and
cognisances of their lords. They also were conducted by young

maidens, who possessed authority to adjudge and give the prize to
the worthiest esquire. At the close of the day the festival was
renewed, and the honours were awarded. On the third morning
there was a mêlée of knights and esquires in the lists, and the
judgment of the ladies was again referred to, and considered
decisive.[317]
Tournamen
ts opposed
by the
popes.
The
opposition
was
unjust.
Such were the general circumstances and laws of tournaments
during the days of chivalry. These warlike exercises even survived
their chief purpose, for they formed the delight of nations[318] after
the use of artillery had driven the graceful and personal prowess of
chivalry from the battle-field.[319] In all the time of their existence
they were powerfully opposed by the papal see, avowedly on the
ground of humanity. There was some little excuse for this
interference; for though the lances were headless, and the swords
rebated, yet the shock of the career sometimes overthrew men and
horses, and bruises were as deadly as the lances’ wounds. The
historians of the middle ages, who generally echoed the wishes of
the Vatican, carefully record every instance where a life was lost in a
tournament; and, perhaps, a dozen such unfortunate events are
mentioned by the chroniclers of all European nations during the
fourteenth century: a number exceedingly small when we reflect
upon the nature of the conflict; that the time now spoken of was the
very noonday of chivalry; and that not a circumstance of public joy,
not a marriage among the nobles and high gentry of the land, but
was celebrated by a tournament. The Vatican might thunder its
denial of Christian sepulture to those who fell in a tilting ground; but
still the knights would don their gorgeous harness to win the meed
of noble chevisance. While learned casuists were declaring from the

pulpits that they who were killed at tournaments were most
assuredly damned[320], heralds’ trumpets in every baronial court
were summoning knights and squires to gentle exercise and proof of
arms; and though fanatical monks might imagine visions where
knights were perishing in hell flames[321], yet gallant cavaliers, warm
and joyous with aspirations for fame and woman’s love, could not be
scared by such idle phantasms.
It was not, however, from any sincere considerations for humanity
that the popes opposed themselves to the graceful exercises of the
age; for, at the celebrated council held at Lyons in 1245, it was
openly and for the first time declared, that tournaments were
iniquitous, because they prevented the chivalry of Europe from
joining the holy wars in Palestine. The shores of Syria might drink
torrents of Christian blood, and the popes would bless the soil; but if
in the course of several centuries a few unfortunate accidents
happened in the lists of peace and courtesy, all the graceful
amusements of Europe were to be interdicted, and the world was to
be plunged into the state of barbarism from which chivalry had
redeemed it. Tournaments were also interdicted on account of their
expensiveness. Wealth poured forth its treasures, and art exercised
its ingenuity in apparelling the barons, knights, and ladies; and even
the housings of the horses were so rich as to rival the caparisons of
Asiatic steeds: but the popes could see no advantage to the social
state in all this gay and prodigal magnificence, and they wished that
all the treasures of the West should be poured into the Holy Land.
[322]
The joust.
The joust was the other chief description of military exercises. It was
so far inferior to the tournament, that he who had tourneyed, and
had given largess to the heralds, might joust without further cost;
but the joust did not give freedom to the tournament, nor was it the
most favourite amusement, for baronial pomp was not necessary to
its display, and many a joust was held without a store of ladies
bright distributing the prize. There were two sorts of jousts, the

joute à l’outrance, or the joust to the utterance, and the joute à
plaisance, or joust of peace.
Description
of the
joust to
the
utterance.
Joust
between a
Scotch and
English
knight.
And, first, of the serious joust. The joust to the utterance expressed
a single combat between two knights, who were generally of
different nations. In strictness of speech, the judicial combat was a
joust à l’outrance, and so was every duel, whether lawful or
unlawful; but with such jousts chivalry has no concern.[323]
In a time of peace, during the year 1398, there were sundry jousts
and combats between Scots and Englishmen, for proof of their
valiant activity in feats of arms, and to win fame and honour. The
most remarkable encounter was that which took place between Sir
David de Lindsay, first Earl of Crawford, and the Lord Wells, in the
presence of Richard II. and his court. They agreed[324] to run certain
courses on horseback, with spears sharply ground, for life or death.
The place appointed for these jousts was London bridge; the day
was the feast of St. George. The doughty knights appeared sheathed
in armour of proof, and mounted on mighty war-horses. They ran
together with all the fierceness of mortal hate; and though they
attainted, yet both kept their saddles. Lord Crawford retained his
seat with such remarkable firmness that the people cried out that
assuredly he was locked in his saddle. Incontinently that right noble
knight leaped from his steed, and again, armed as he was, vaulted
on his back, and amazed the beholders by his perfect horsemanship.
The battle was renewed on foot; the skill of the Scotsman prevailed,
and the life of the Lord Wells was in his power. De Lindsay now

displayed the grace and courtesy of his chivalry, for he raised his foe
from the ground, and presented him as a gift to the queen, wishing,
like a true knight, that mercy should proceed from woman. The
queen thanked the valiant and courteous Scot, and then gave liberty
to the Lord Wells.[325]
Jousting
for love of
the ladies.
Woman’s love was as frequent a cause for a joust to the utterance
as national rivalry. Many a knight would sally from a besieged town
during a suspension of general hostilities, and demand whether
there was any cavalier of the opposite host who, for love of his lady
bright, would do any deed of arms. “Now let us see if there be any
amorous among you[326],” was the usual conclusion of such a
challenger, as he reined in his fiery steed, and laid his spear in its
rest. Such an invitation was generally accepted; but if it passed
unheeded, he was permitted to return to the gates of his town; for it
would not have been thought chivalric to surround and capture a
cavalier who offered to peril himself in so noble a manner.
A singular
instance of
it.
Two parties of French and English met by adventure near
Cherbourg, and, like valiant knights, each desired to fight with the
other. They all alighted, except Sir Launcelot of Lorrys, who sat firm
and erect upon his horse, his spear in his hand, and his shield
hanging from his neck. He demanded a course of jousting for his
lady’s sake. There were many present who right well understood
him; for there were knights and squires of the English part in love as
well as he was. All was bustle, and every man ran to his horse,
anxious to prove his gallantry against the noble Frenchman. Sir John
Copeland was the first who advanced from the press, and in a
moment his well-pointed ashen lance pierced through the side of
Lorrys, and wounded him to death. Every one lamented his fate, for
he was a hardy knight, young, jolly, and right amorous[327]; and the

death of a gallant cavalier was always lamented by his brethren in
arms; for the good companionship of chivalry was superior to
national distinctions.
Joust
between a
French and
an English
squire.
This noble feeling of knighthood was very pleasingly displayed in a
circumstance that happened in France, during the year 1380. The
Duke of Brittany profited by the weakness and confusion consequent
on the death of King John, and easily made his peace with the court
of the new monarch. The Duke of Buckingham, uncle of Richard II.
of England, had been acting as the ally of the Duke of Brittany; but
now, as the war was over, he prepared to conduct most of his army
home. He had been joined by some knights from Cherbourg, then an
English town, and in the new martial arrangements it was agreed
that they should return to their garrison; but they were not allowed
to wear their harness during their march. The Constable of France,
who was then at the castle of Josselyn, gave them safe-conduct.
After embracing their good companions at Vannes, they mounted
their palfreys, and commenced their course. An hour’s riding brought
them to Josselyn, and they rested awhile in the town, without the
castle, intending merely to dine there, and then depart. While they
were at their lodging, certain companions of the castle, knights and
squires, came to see them, as was the wont of men of war, and
particularly Englishmen and Frenchmen.
A French squire, named John Boucmell, discovered among the
stranger band a squire called Nicholas Clifford, with whom, on
former occasions, he had often exchanged looks and words of
defiance. Thinking that a very fair opportunity for chevisance had
presented itself, he exclaimed, “Nicholas, divers times we have
wished and devised to do deeds of arms together, and now we have
found each other in place and time where we may accomplish it. Let
us now, in presence of the Constable of France, and other lords,

have three courses on foot with sharp spears, each of us against the
other.”
Nicholas replied, “John, you know right well that we are now going
on our way by the safe-conduct of my lord your constable. What you
require of me, therefore, cannot now be done, for I am not the chief
of this safe-conduct, for I am but under those other knights who are
here. I would willingly abide, but they will not.”
The French squire replied, “You shall not excuse yourself by this
means: let your company depart, if they list, for I promise you, by
covenant, that when the arms are performed between you and me, I
will bring you to Cherbourg without peril. Make you no doubt of
that.”
Nicholas answered, that he did not mean to gainsay his courtesy, but
that he could not fight, as he and the rest of the English were
journeying without their armour.
This objection was readily answered by the Frenchman, who
proffered his own stores of harness; and Nicholas, though
exceedingly indisposed to a joust, was obliged to say, that if the
lords whom he accompanied would not permit the encounter there,
he promised him, as soon as he arrived at Cherbourg, and was
apprised of John’s arrival at Boulogne, he would come to him, and
deliver him of his challenge.
“Nay, nay,” quoth John, “seek no respite: I have offered, and
continue to offer, so many things so honourable, that you cannot
depart and preserve your good name, without doing deeds of arms
with me.”
The Frenchmen then retired to the castle, leaving the Englishmen to
dine in their lodging.
After dinner the travelling knights repaired to the castle, to require
from the Constable a troop of cavaliers to conduct them through
Brittany and Normandy to Cherbourg. The subject of the challenge

had been much discussed by the Frenchmen, and as the execution
of it appeared to be within their own power, they earnestly
requested their leader to forbid the further journey of the
Englishmen, while the deed of arms remained unaccomplished. The
Constable received the strangers sweetly, and then, softening the
harshness of his words by the chivalric courtesy of his manner, he
said to them, “Sirs, I arrest you all, so that ye shall not depart this
day; and to-morrow, after mass, you shall see deeds of arms done
between our squire and yours; and you shall dine with me, and after
dinner you shall depart with your guides to Cherbourg.”
The English were right glad to be summoned to a chivalric sport,
and, after drinking of the Constable’s wine, they took their leave,
and returned to their lodging.
On the next morning each squire heard mass, and was confessed.
They then leapt on their horses, and, with the lords of France on one
part, and the Englishmen on the other, they rode all together to a
fair plain, near the castle of Josselyn.
John Boucmell had prepared, according to his promise, two suits of
harness, fair and good, and offered the choice to Nicholas; but the
Englishman not only waved his choice, but, with still further
courtesy, assisted John to arm. The Frenchman, in return, helped
him to don the other suit of harness.
When they were armed they took their spears, and advanced against
each other on foot, from the opposite ends of the lists. On
approaching they couched their spears, and the weapon of Nicholas
struck John on the breast, and, sliding under the gorget of mail, it
entered his throat. The spear broke, and the iron truncheon
remained in the neck. The English squire passed onwards, and sat
down in his chair. The Frenchman appeared transfixed to the spot,
and his companions advanced to him in alarm. They took off his
helmet, and, drawing out the truncheon, the poor squire fell down
dead. Grief at this event was general, but the saddest and sincerest
mourners were Nicholas and the Earl of March, the former for having

slain a valiant man of arms, and the other because John Boucmell
had been his squire. The Constable spoke all the words of comfort to
his noble friend which his kindness could prompt, and then made the
knightly spectators repair to the castle, in whose hospitable hall
every disposition to jealousy and revenge was discarded. After
dinner the English troop bade farewell to the noble Constable, and,
under the conduct of the gentle knight, the Barrois of Barres, they
resumed their course to Cherbourg.[328]
Jousts of
peace.
I come now to describe the joust à plaisance. Jousts of this friendly
description often took place at the conclusion of a tournament; for a
knight who had shown himself worthy of the tourneying prize
caracoled his prancing steed about the lists; and, animated by the
applauding smiles of dames and damsels, he called on the
surrounding cavaliers by their valiancy, and for love of the ladies, to
encounter him in three strokes with the lance.
Skill of
jousters.
More frequently jousts were held at places appointed expressly for
the occasion. When they were jousts of peace, the mode of combat
was always specifically described. A knight would often challenge
another for love of his lady to joust three courses with a spear, three
strokes with a sword, three with a dagger, and three with an axe.
[329] It was the rule for knights to strike at each other only on the
body, or within the four quarters, as the times phrased their
meaning. The loss of his good name and the forfeiture of his horse
and arms were the penalties of violating this usage. Sometimes the
weapons were similar to those used in tournaments; but more
frequently they were weapons of war[330]; and though the lances
were sharp, and the bright swords were not rebated, seldom was
blood shed in these jousts, so truly admirable was the military skill of

the soldiers in chivalry. The tournaments are interesting in the
general circumstances of their splendour and knightly gallantry; but
the jousts give us a far more curious knowledge of ancient manners.
Singular
questions
regarding
jousts.
But before I describe these martial amusements, let me call my
reader’s attention for a few moments to the subtlety of intellect with
which questions respecting the circumstances that happened at
jousts were discussed.
Two gentlemen agreed to fight on horseback, and he who first fell
was to be deemed the vanquished man. By the chance of battle it
happened that they both fell together, and the sage spirits of
chivalry were agitated by the question, who should be accounted
victorious. Some thought that the defender ought to have the
honour, for in all doubtful cases the challenged person should be
favoured; others contended, that as the fall of the challenger might
proceed from his own force, and not the virtue of the enemy, the
judgment ought to lie dead: but the best and general decision was
this:—if the combat were for trial of skill or love of the ladies, the
challenger ought to lose the honour; but if it were for the decision of
any mortal quarrel, the battle ought to be resumed some other day,
because in combats of that kind no victory was gained until one of
the parties were either slain or yielded himself prisoner, or had with
his own mouth denied the words whereon the combat was
occasioned.
On another occasion, seven knights agreed with seven of their
companions to run certain courses for honour and love of the ladies.
When the joust took place, five of one side acquitted themselves
right chivalrously, but their two brother-tilters were overthrown. On
the other side, two only performed their courses well, the rest of
that company lost many lances and ran very foul. It was then
debated whether unto five well-doers and two evil, or unto two well-

doers and five evil, the honour ought to be allotted. As the question
did not regard the merit of any particular man, but which party in
general best performed the enterprise, it was alleged that the party
wherein were most well-doers ought to have the honour,
notwithstanding the fall of two of their companions. This opinion was
met by the acknowledged rule of arms, that the fall from horseback
by the enemies’ force or skill was the most reproachful chance that
could happen to a knight. Therefore it was contended that the
misadventure of two men only might reasonably be the loss of
honour to the rest.[331] But further details of chivalric subtleties
would afford little pleasure, and contenting myself with having
shown that our ancestors’ intellects were as sharp as their swords,
we will progress to the tilting ground.

An earl of
Warwick.
One of the earls of Warwick went to France dressed in weeds of
peace, but carrying secretly his jousting harness. In honour of his
lady he set up three shields on three pavilions, and his heralds
proclaimed his challenges, apparently from three different knights,
among the lords, knights, and squires of honour in France. The
devices on his shields and the names he assumed were
emblematical of love and war. Three skilful jousters of France on
three successive days touched the shields, and the earl, dressed in
different guises, overthrew them all. They now became his friends:
he entertained them with chivalrique magnificence, and gave jewels
of price to them all. For himself he had acquired renown, and that
was all he wished; for he now could return to his lady, and showing
how he had sped in his chivalric courses, could proudly claim the
reward of valour.[332]
Celebrated
joust at St.
Ingelbertes
.
“Ye have heard oftentimes, it said, how the sport of ladies and
damsels encourageth the hearts of young lusty gentlemen, and
causeth them to desire and seek to get honour.”[333]
Such is Froissart’s beautiful and romantic prelude to his account of a
very interesting joust.
In the year 1389, the King Charles V. tarried several days at
Montpellier, delighting himself with the pastime of the ladies; and
the gentlemen of his court were no bad imitators of his fancy. Three
cavaliers, in particular, were chiefly marked. They were the young Sir
Boucicaut, Sir Raynold of Roy, and the Lord of St. Pye. Their valour
was inspired by gallantry, and they resolved to achieve high feats of
arms in the ensuing summer; and if it had been possible for a knight
to entertain any other object in his imagination, than the favour of
his sovereign lady, the gallant knights of France had a very noble

motive to enterprise, for some reflections had lately been cast upon
their honour by an English cavalier. The noble knighthood that was
in them felt a stain like a wound; and this imputation on their honor
gave the form and color to the joust they meditated; for they
resolved to perform their deeds of arms in the frontier near Calais,
hoping that Englishmen might be incited to meet them.
The holding of the joust at such a place was not deemed courteous
by some members of the king’s council, for it was thought that the
English would consider it presumptuous; and the more sage and
prudent knights murmured their opinion, that it was not always right
to consent to the purposes of young men, for incidents rather evil
than good often sprang from them. The king, however, who was
young and courageous, overruled all scruples, and ordered that the
joust should proceed, because the knights had promised and sworn
it before the ladies of Montpellier.
Then the king sent for the three knights into his chamber, and said
to them, “Sirs, in all your doing regard wisely the honor of us and of
our realm; and to maintain your estate, spare nothing, for we will
not fail you for the expence of ten thousand franks.”
The three knights knelt before the king, and thanked his grace. So
important to the national honor was this joust considered, that the
challenge was not published till it had been revised by Charles and
his council.
This was its form:—“For the great desire that we have to come to
the knowledge of noble gentlemen, knights, esquires, strangers, as
well of the nation of France, as elsewhere of far countries, we shall
be at St. Ingelbertes, in the marshes of Calais, the 20th day of the
month of May next coming, and there continue thirty days complete,
the Fridays only excepted, and to deliver all manner of knights and
squires, gentlemen, strangers of any nation, whosoever they be,
that will come thither for the breaking of five spears, either sharp or
rockets, at their pleasure; and without our lodgings shall be the
shields of our arms, both shields of peace and of war, and

whosoever will joust, let him come or send the day before, and with
a rod touch which shield he pleases. If he touch the shield of war,
the next day he shall joust with which of the three he will; and if he
touch the shield of peace, he shall have the jousts of peace and of
war; so that whosoever shall touch any of the shields shall shew
their names to such as shall be then limited by us to receive them.
And all such stranger-knights as will joust shall bring each some
nobleman on his part who shall be instructed by us what ought to be
done in this case. And we require all knights and squires, strangers
that will come and joust, that they think not we do this for any
pride, hatred, or evil will, but that we only do it to have their
honorable company and acquaintance, which with our entire hearts
we desire. None of our shields shall be covered with iron or steel,
nor any of theirs that will come to joust with us, without any manner
of fraud or unfair advantage, but every thing shall be ordered by
them to whom shall be committed the charge of governing the
jousts. And because that all gentlemen, noble knights, and squires,
to whom this shall come to knowledge, should be assured of its
being firm and stable, we have sealed the present writing with the
seals of our arms. Written at Montpellier the twentieth day of
November, in the year of our Lord God one thousand, three hundred,
four-score and nine, and signed thus. Raynolde du Roy—Boucicaut—
St. Pye.”
When this challenge was published, the knights and squires of
England entertained great imaginations to know what to do; and
most of them thought it would be deeply to their blame and
reproach that such an enterprise should take place near Calais,
without their passing the sea. They therefore thanked the French
chivalry for deporting themselves so courteously, and holding the
joust so near the English marshes.
Accordingly, in the fresh and jolly month of May, when the spring
was at its finest point, the three young knights of France mounted
their gay steeds, and sportively held their course from Paris to
Boulogne. They then progressed to the abbey of St. Ingilbertes, and

were right joyful to learn that a number of knights and squires of
merry England had, like good companions, crossed the sea, and
were arraying themselves for the joust. The Frenchmen raised three
green pavilions, in a fair and champaign spot, between St.
Ingilbertes and Calais. To the entrance of each pavilion they affixed
two shields, with the arms of the knights, one shield of peace, and
the other of war; and again proclaimed that such knights as would
do deeds of arms should touch one of the shields, or cause it to be
touched, whichever mode pleased him, and he should be delivered
according to his desire.
On the day appointed for the jousts, all the respective chivalries of
France and England poured from the gates of St. Ingilberte and
Calais, eager for the gallant fray. Such as proposed to be mere
spectators met in friendly union, without regard to national
differences. The King of France was present in a disguise.[334] The
three French knights retired within their pavilions, and squires
donned their harness. The English jousters apparelled themselves,
and took their station at the end of the plain, opposite the pavilions.
A flourish of clarions proclaimed the commencement of the joust,
and the herald’s trumpet sounded to horse.
When all was hushed in breathless expectation, Sir John Holland,
Earl of Huntingdon, pricked forth with the slow and stately pace of
high-born chivalry, from the end of the lists which had been assigned
to the English strangers. He was a right gallant cavalier, and he
commanded his squire to touch the war-shield of Sir Boucicaut.
Incontinently, that noble son of chivalry, ready mounted, left his
pavilion with shield and spear. The knights marked each other well,
and then spurred their horses to the encounter. The spear of Sir
Boucicaut pierced through the shield of the English knight; but it
passed hurtless over his arm, and their good steeds bounded to
either end of the plain. This course was greatly commended. The
second course was altogether harmless; and in the third course the
horses started aside, and would not cope. The Earl of Huntingdon,
who was somewhat chafed, came to his place, waiting for Sir

Boucicaut taking his spear; but he did not, for he showed that he
would run no more that day against the Earl, who then sent his
squire to touch the war-shield of the Lord of St. Pye. He issued out
of his pavilion, and took his horse, shield, and spear. When the Earl
saw that he was ready, he spurred his horse, and St. Pye did not
with less force urge his own good steed. They couched their spears:
at the meeting their horses crossed, but with the crossing of their
spears the Earl was unhelmed. He returned to his squires, and
incontinently was rehelmed. He took his spear, and St. Pye his, and
they ran again, and met each other with their spears in the middle
of their shields. The shock nearly hurled both to the ground, but
they saved themselves by griping their horses with their legs, and
returned to their places, and took breath. Sir John Holland, who had
great desire to do honourably, took again his spear, and urged his
horse to speed. When the Lord of St. Pye saw him coming, he
dashed forth his horse to encounter him. Each of them struck the
other on the helms with such force that the fire flew out. With that
attaint the Lord of St. Pye was unhelmed; and so they passed forth,
and came again to their own places. This course was greatly praised,
and both French and English said that those three knights, the Earl
of Huntingdon, Sir Boucicaut, and the Lord St. Pye, had right well
done their devoirs. Again the earl desired, for love of his lady, to
have another course; but he was refused, and he then mixed with
the knights, and spectators, and gave place to others, for he had ran
all his six courses well and valiantly, so that he had laud and honour
of all parties.
These noble jousts continued for four days.[335] The gallant
champions assembled after matins, and did not quit the course till
the vesper-bell of the abbey summoned them to prayer. Of the noble
company of knights and squires there were few who did not add
something to their fame; for if a knight happened to be unhelmed,
yet perhaps he did not lose his stirrups, and he was admired for
sustaining a severe shock.

Such was the noble chevisance of the jousters that no mortal wound
was inflicted.[336] The lance was the only weapon used. To unhelm
the adverse knight by striking his frontlet was the chiefest feat of
arms, and in the fierce career of opposing steeds, the firmest
strength and the nicest skill could alone achieve it. Helms struck fire,
lances were splintered, and the lance-head was lodged in the shield:
but sometimes the shield resisted the lance, and men and steeds
reeled back to their several pavilions.
Each gallant knight, however,
“grew unto his seat,
And to such wond’rous doing brought his horse
As he had been incorps’d and demi-natur’d
With the brave beast.”
The knighthood and squirery of England sent forth nearly forty of
their host to vindicate their chivalry, and right nobly did they deport
themselves against the doughtiest lances of France. There was only
one knight who disgraced the order of chivalry. By birth he was a
Bohemian, in station an attendant of the King of England. It was
demanded of him with whom he would joust. He answered, with
Boucicaut. They then prepared themselves and ran together, but the
Bohemian struck a prohibited part of the armour, and he was greatly
blamed that he demeaned his course so badly. By the laws of the
joust he should have forfeited his arms and horse, but the
Frenchman, out of courtesy to the Englishmen, forgave him. The
Bohemian to redeem his shame required again to joust one course.
He was demanded against whom he would run; and he sent to
touch the shield of Sir Raynolde du Roy. That gallant knight was not
long before he answered him. They met in the middle of their
shields, and the French cavalier struck his antagonist from his horse;
and the Englishmen were not displeased that he was overthrown,
because he had ran the first course so ungoodly.
This Sir Raynolde du Roy was one of the best jousters in all the
realm of France, and no wonder; for our faithful and gallant

chronicler reports that he lived in love with a young maiden, which
availed him much in all his affairs.[337] One of his most valiant
antagonists was a gentle knight of England, young and fresh, a jolly
dancer and singer, called Sir John Arundell. At the first course they
met rudely, and struck each other on the shields, but they held
themselves without falling, and passed forth their course. The
second course they struck each other on the helms; the third course
they crossed and lost their staves; the fourth course resembled the
second; the fifth course they splintered their spears against their
shields, and then Sir John Arundell ran no more that day.
At the conclusion of the jousts the Earl of Huntingdon, and the Earl
Marshal, and the Lord Clifford, the Lord Beaumont, Sir John Clinton,
Sir John Dambreticourt, Sir Peter Sherborne, and all other knights
that had jousted those four days with the French knights, thanked
them greatly for their pastime, and said, “Sirs, all such as would
joust of our party have accomplished their desires; therefore now we
will take leave of you: we will return to Calais, and so cross to
England; and we know that whoever will joust with you will find you
here these thirty days, according to the tenor of your challenge.”
The French knights were grateful for this courtesy, saying, that all
new comers should be right heartily welcome; “and we will deliver
them according to the rights of arms, as we have done you; and,
moreover, we thank you for the grace and gallantry that you have
shewn to us.”
Thus in knightly manner the Englishmen departed from Saint
Ingilbertes, and rode to Calais, where they tarried not long, for the
Saturday afterwards they took shipping and sailed to Dover, and
reached that place by noon. On the Sunday they progressed to
Rochester, and the next day to London, whence every man returned
to his home.
The three French knights remained the thirty days at Saint
Ingilbertes, but no more Englishmen crossed the sea to do any deed
of arms with them.[338]

Joust
between
Lord
Scales and
the
Bastard of
Burgundy.
Perhaps the most interesting joust in the middle ages was that which
was held between Lord Scales, brother of the Queen of Edward the
Fourth, and the Bastard of Burgundy. Many of the circumstances
which attended it are truly chivalric.[339]
On the 17th of April, 1465, the Queen and some ladies of her court,
in a mood of harmless merriment, attached a collar of gold,
enamelled with the rich floure of souvenance[340], to the thigh of
that right worshipful and amorous knight, Anthony Woodville, Lord
Scales, for an emprise of arms on horseback and on foot.[341] The
most renowned cavalier at that time was the Bastard of Burgundy,
and accordingly Lord Scales addressed him in courteous wise,
praising his prowess, and vowing before God and the ladies that his
own great desire was to rival his fame. In order, then, that there
might exist that love and fraternity between them which became
knights of worship, he related the goodly adventure at the court of
England, and requiring the Bastard, in all affection for the honour of
chivalry, to do him so much favour as to discharge him of his bond.
The Earl of Worcester, Lord High Constable of England, certified the
fact of the delivery of the floure of souvenance to the Lord Scales,
and the King’s permission for his herald to cross the seas to
Burgundy.
The Bastard received the letter on the last day of April, and with
permission of his father, the Duke of Burgundy, he consented to
assist the Lord Scales in accomplishing his emprise. Lord Scales and
the court of England were right joyous and grateful at the news, and
Edward granted a safe-conduct to the adventurous Burgundian, the
Earl of Roche, and a thousand persons in his company, to come into

England, to perform certain feats of arms with his dearly beloved
brother Anthony Woodville, Lord Scales, and Nucelles.[342]
The Bastard accordingly set sail for England, nobly accompanied by
four hundred of his father’s prowest chivalry. By Edward’s command,
Garter king-at-arms met him at Gravesend. The gallant squadron
sailed towards London, and at Blackwall it was joined by the Earl of
Worcester, attended by a noble troop of lords, knights, and squires,
and also by many of the aldermen and rich citizens of London. The
Lord of Burgundy landed at Billingsgate, and was welcomed by
another party of the nobility and trades of England, (so general was
the interest of the expected joust,) who conducted him on horseback
through Cornhill and Cheap to the palace of the Bishop of Salisbury
in Fleet Street, which royal courtesy had appointed for his abode.
Lord Scales soon afterwards came to London, attended by the
nobility and chivalry of his house, and the King assigned him the
palace of the Bishop of Ely in Holborn for his residence. The noble
stranger was introduced to Edward on his coming to London from
Kingston, in order to open the parliament.
The ceremonies of the joust were then arranged by well experienced
knights, and strong lists were erected in Smithfield, one hundred and
twenty yards and ten feet long, eighty yards and ten feet broad, with
fair and costly galleries around. On the morning appointed for the
gallant show, the King and Queen with all the chivalry and beauty of
the land, repaired to Smithfield. The King sat under a richly canopied
throne, at one end of the lists; on each side were lords and ladies,
and underneath him were ranged the knights, the squires, and the
archers of his train. The city magistrates then appeared; the lord
mayor bowing, and the mace-bearer lowering his sign of authority,
as they passed the King in their procession to the other end of the
lists, where scaffolds of similar form, but inferior magnificence to the
royal chambers, were erected for them. The eight guards of the lists
entered on horseback, and received their charge from the Earl
Marshal and Lord High Constable of England, who gently paced their
horses to and fro beneath the throne.

When every thing was fairly arranged, Lord Scales appeared at the
gate of the lists. At the sound of his trumpet the Constable advanced
and demanded his purpose. The young lord, with the grace and
modesty of chivalry, replied, that he solicited the honor of presenting
himself before his sovereign liege the King, in order to accomplish
his arms against the Bastard of Burgundy. The gate was then thrown
open by command of the Constable, and the Lord Scales entered the
lists, followed by nine noblemen on horseback, bearing parts of his
harness and arms, and nine pages riding on gaily caparisoned
steeds. They advanced to the King, and after having made their
obeisances, they retired to a pavilion at one end of the lists.
With similar forms the Lord of Burgundy, attended by the chosen
chivalry of his country, approached the King, and then repaired to
his tent.
The heralds commanded silence, and forbad any one, by the
severest penalties, from intermeddling with the jousters. Two lances
and two swords were taken to the King, who, being satisfied of their
fitness, commanded the lords who bore them to take them to the
combatants. The stranger-knight made his election, and dressed his
lance to its rest. Lord Scales prepared himself with equal gallantry,
and they dashed to the encounter. Their spears were sharp; but so
perfect was their knowledge of chivalry, that no wounds were
inflicted. The nicest judges could mark no difference of skill, and the
noble knights jousted their courses, when the King dropped his
warder, and the amusements ended.
The next day the court and city repaired to Smithfield, with their
accustomed pomp, and the spectacle was varied by the jousters
contending with swords. The sports were, however, untimely closed
by the steed of Lord Scales with the spike of his chaffron
overthrowing the Bastard of Burgundy and his horse; and the King
would not allow the tourney to proceed, though the bruised knight
gallantly asserted his wish not to fail his encounter companion.

Not wearied by two days’ amusement, the chivalry and beauty of
England assembled in the lists of Smithfield on the third morning.
The noblemen now fought on foot with pole-axes. At last the point
of Lord Scales’s weapon entered the sight of the Burgundian’s
helmet, and there was a feeling of fear through the galleries that a
joust of peace would have a fatal termination. But before it could be
seen whether Lord Scales meant to press his advantage, the King
dropped his warder, and the Marshals separated them. The Bastard
of Burgundy prayed for leave to continue his enterprise; and the
Lord Scales consented. But the matter was debated by the
assembled chivalry; and it was declared by the Earl of Worcester,
then Constable of England, and the Duke of Norfolk the Marshal,
that if the affair were to proceed, the knight of Burgundy must, by
the law of arms, be delivered to his adversary in the same state and
condition as he was in when they were separated. This sentence was
a virtual prohibition of the continuance of the joust, and the Bastard
therefore relinquished his challenge. The herald’s trumpet then
sounded the well known point of chivalry that the sports were over;
but as the times were joyous as well as martial, the knights and
ladies before they parted held a noble festival at Mercer’s Hall.[343]
The feats of arms at St. Ingilbertes displayed the martial character of
the joust; and the emprise of Lord Scales shows how beautifully love
could blend itself with images of war, and the interest which a whole
nation could take in the circumstance of certain fair ladies of a court
binding round the thigh of a gallant knight a collar of gold,
enamelled with a floure of souvenance.
The
romance of
jousts.
But the high romantic feeling of chivalric times is, perhaps, still more
strikingly displayed in the following tale. In the beginning of the year
1400, an esquire of Spain, named Michel d’Orris, being full of valour
and love, attached a piece of iron to his leg, and vowed that he
would endure the pain till he had won renown by deeds of chivalry.

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