Two install annoyances/PO's

[paulrogers]

I've got two strong annoyances about Mint installs.

1) When I identify my locale, you change my clock. Do you really imagine I've got a running system that I haven't set the clock the way I want it in the BIOS already? That's a very strange presumption!

2) You also presume I want Mint to take over critical ownership of my system, i.e. booting. As it happens, my system multiboots into what is already there just the way I want it, thank you very much! You should ask me if I want the install to mess with my MBR. Make Mint a less intrusive neighbor!

[oysterboy]

2) You also presume I want Mint to take over critical ownership of my system, i.e. booting. As it happens, my system multiboots into what is already there just the way I want it, thank you very much! You should ask me if I want the install to mess with my MBR. Make Mint a less intrusive neighbor!

The installer lets you choose where to install the bootloader: either in the MBR, or on a partition. Just choose the second option. I think you need to click on the Advanced button at the end of the install in order to specify that.

[Aging Technogeek]

In Mint 11 and, I think, in 10, the Grub location choice is made at the bottom of the manual partitioning page.

If you already have a bootloader installed, just choose to install Grub to the Mint root (/) partition and add Mint to your bootloader using its recommended procedure.

[lmintnewb]

lol ... that's a killer user avatar Techno. Love da dog checking out the specs of a bone on the PC.

Edited my post a bit here. Cause figured was a tad too harsh anyway. The guys above more or less said what I intended to regardless. Though +3 on what's been said.

Review though:

1. Have installed mucho, mas distro's. Can't remember one that doesn't ask for time/date to be set in one way or another. Choose the best option for you and change it if necessary later ?

2. Believe LM's installer allows you to designate where ( if any ) its bootloader gets installed. As do pretty much every other gnu/nix OS installer known to man. Also they all in my experience default to the mbr otherwise. Unless it's explicitedly changed by the user.

[recluce]

I've got two strong annoyances about Mint installs.

1) When I identify my locale, you change my clock. Do you really imagine I've got a running system that I haven't set the clock the way I want it in the BIOS already? That's a very strange presumption!

Not that strange. The installer cannot know if your BIOS clock was set to local time (Windows/DOS style) or to UTC (Unix style) (I don't remember if it asks or not). However, the installer could ask if the clock should be set. Not a biggie, in my opinion.

2) You also presume I want Mint to take over critical ownership of my system, i.e. booting. As it happens, my system multiboots into what is already there just the way I want it, thank you very much! You should ask me if I want the install to mess with my MBR. Make Mint a less intrusive neighbor!

It seems that the Mint installer inherited the following bug from Ubuntu:

https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/690926

It has been there since Maverick (Mint 10) and nobody cares to fixes it. Before that, there was a simple checkbox "don't install bootloader". I find this a very annoying regression, that would be super simple to fix.

Suggestion to Mint developers: in the current drop-down menu, add a choice: "Advanced users only: do not install boot-loader". Should take less than 10 minutes, but I don't see the Ubuntu guys fixing it.

[paulrogers]

I've got two strong annoyances about Mint installs.

1) When I identify my locale, you change my clock. Do you really imagine I've got a running system that I haven't set the clock the way I want it in the BIOS already? That's a very strange presumption!

Not that strange. The installer cannot know if your BIOS clock was set to local time (Windows/DOS style) or to UTC (Unix style) (I don't remember if it asks or not). However, the installer could ask if the clock should be set. Not a biggie, in my opinion.

I might agree except that installing Julia and selecting a GMT timezone also sets a UK locale. The existing decision made by the installer only makes sense, to me, if it's an absolutely virgin box that has never had its clock set by the owner to local time. That's just not credible. Mind you, we're talking about end-user PC's here, not some traditional Unix data center. I have never seen a PC out in the wild that was ever set to anything but local time. I'm pretty nerdy, degree in Chemistry, playing with computers since 1966, and not even I ever set a box to GMT!

2) You also presume I want Mint to take over critical ownership of my system, i.e. booting. As it happens, my system multiboots into what is already there just the way I want it, thank you very much! You should ask me if I want the install to mess with my MBR. Make Mint a less intrusive neighbor!

It seems that the Mint installer inherited the following bug from Ubuntu:

https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/690926

It has been there since Maverick (Mint 10) and nobody cares to fixes it. Before that, there was a simple checkbox "don't install bootloader". I find this a very annoying regression, that would be super simple to fix.

Suggestion to Mint developers: in the current drop-down menu, add a choice: "Advanced users only: do not install boot-loader". Should take less than 10 minutes, but I don't see the Ubuntu guys fixing it.

Thank you for agreeing. Let's hope someone listens.