Does linux have device drivers for the hardware?
Perhaps, the easiest way of shopping for hardware is to borrow an existing system and just try booting Gibraltar and running uw-setup. If it works, try to buy a similar system. Since hardware manufacturers seldom develop linux device drivers for their hardware and it falls to dedicated volunteers to write them, it is usually good policy not to buy the “latest and greatest” device but instead buy a “tried and true” one which has been out for a while and is already supported by linux. Don’t use an LS-120 or any other non-standard floppy. Use a vanilla, 1.4MB 3.5″ floppy drive. Gibraltar has support for many network interface cards. To name a few: • 3COM: 3c905, 3c905b, 3c905c, 3c900, 3c59x • INTEL: ether express pro 100 • HP: J2585A, J2585B • StarTech: ST100S (works well and costs only $10 at UW bookstore) Many others are supported (and/or detected) to some degree. See “/system/etc-static/pcitable” for those which may be automatically detected and see “/lib/modules/*/kernel/drivers/net/”
