[Gllug] OT: erratic motherboard behavior / not so smoothwall install

[Branden Faulls]

A bit off topic for this list, but I was considering bringing this box 
to the InstallFest and I like the support/flames in here anyway.

I'm attempting an install of Smoothwall 1.0 onto a machine put together 
out of scrounged parts.  Spec is:

Microstar motherboard (pci-pentium si2 / MS-5109)
Pentium 75Mhz
32MB Ram
545 MB HDD
3 RealTek clone nics
Floppy

The board shows some minor exposure to leaked battery acid with 
discoloration around the races and a greenish tint to some pins on 
nearby chips. I would categorize the damage as minor/cosmetic.

I had installed a DVD-rom drive for the purpose of installation and even 
got as far as installing the boot image to the HDD when it hung.  Next 
boot, nothing.  The installed bios will not detect the DVD drive and I'm 
unsure of what to set manually. Sometimes the floppy will boot 
immediately, sometimes the machine hangs.  No bios error beeps occur.

I have tinkered with bios settings to no avail and the bios flasher 
complains that the board will not support flashing although an updated 
bios is available.

Is the erratic behavior a symptom of acid damage, a fried board, or 
luser error (me!)?  Any guidance would be appreciated.

Thanks for any help and see you all on Saturday.

Branden / omphe
-- 
+-----------------------------omphe.com-+
|                                       |
|Branden Faulls                         |
|                                       |
|                        www.omphe.com  |
|              brandenfaulls at omphe.com  |
|                   (+44) 773 440 8623  |
+---------------------------------------+


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