Linux on a Sun Blade 2500?

[Ben Scott]

On Sun, Feb 1, 2009 at 9:59 AM, Thomas Coughlin
<tcoughlin1234 at comcast.net> wrote:
>  I am trying to find a source to help me get Linux on a Sun Blade 2500 I
> have.

  I haven't touched Linux on Sun/SPARC in several years, but I will
give it a shot.

> I am new to the Linux world, but as far as I can tell it is the only
> software that I can load on a Sun system to use as for things like web
> browsing and so ....
> ... This system currently has Solaris ...

  Well, Sun's Solaris operating system is a Unix-like environment,
just as Linux is.  Most of the software written for Linux will also
work on Solaris.  So if you already have a working Solaris
installation, and would rather just stick with that, it should be
possible to do things like web browsing, instant messaging, and so on.
 If you'd like to explore this option, say so.  :)

> ... if I type boot CDROM it says "bad magic number in disk label ...

  In computer speak, a "magic number" is like a signature or
finger-print which identifies a type of file or disc.  The computer
looks for a "magic number" to figure out what to do with a file or
disc.  So the message "bad magic number" implies that the boot
firmware saw the disc, but didn't recognize it as a bootable disc.

  The .ISO image file you downloaded.  How did you write it to the disc?

> I even tried using Partition magic and it wont recognize that.

  Partition Magic is from the world of IBM-PC compatible computers and
Intel x86 compatible processors.  The world of Sun/SPARC is very
different.  I wouldn't expect Partition Magic to recognize Sun/SPARC
stuff at all.  So I suspect this is inconclusive.

-- Ben