kernel command line options (was Re: [vox-tech] problematic computer (when installing linux) [fixed])

[Jeff Newmiller]

On Wed, 17 Nov 2004, Rick Moen wrote:

[discussion of variations on kernel options omitted]

> Which begs the question:  How does one do that on arbitrary Linux 
> distributions, if they all implement kernel command-line options 
> differently?  (Yes, I do know that more-conservative Linux
> distributions' kernels disable fancy addressing modes for IDE, by
> default.)

Well, you could take the top-down approach and try to make or add to a
standard (LSB?).

However, when I write a program that accepts commandline options, I have
to document them, or others won't know which ones are available... the
problem is really similar.  We usually have standard mechanisms for
finding these things out, decided by convention.  "--help" is pretty
common these days, as is "man commandname" or googling.  Due to the nature
of the kernel boot process, we may not have access to "man" or google,
though, so Knoppix's approach to self-documenting through boot menus is
the best option.

Some combination of the above seems to be the tried-and-true approach.

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