> On Mar 20, 2017, at 10:02 PM, Lisi Reisz <lisi.re...@gmail.com> wrote: > > On Tuesday 21 March 2017 00:19:52 Catherine Gramze wrote: >>> On Mar 20, 2017, at 7:51 PM, Lisi Reisz <lisi.re...@gmail.com> wrote >> > What I was asking is where you yourself have encountered it recently, not in > what circumstances you believe it to be true. > > Particularly where you have encountered it where it takes you past the point > of no retreat before you discover that you need a network driver, so that you > have wiped your old install and cannot continue to install your new one. > How about the last time I installed Debian using a netinst dvd?
The installer allows you to continue the installation without a configured network card, and it shouldn't. If you choose to continue past that point, Debian will cheerfully let you complete the base installation. I did it just to be sure the installation would work/that the dvd was good before I dragged the full setup into the living room within reach of my only available ethernet cable. (The wireless NIC I had hoped to use was not recognized) So then the computer reboots to the mirror selection, and you can't select a mirror with no Internet, so you don't get the default Gnome graphical desktop. If you don't understand from the outset that you will need a working Internet connection for a full installation, and your network card is not supported without firmware, you end up in an infinite loop of trying to choose a mirror and failing until you back out of the installer and reboot to the blank screen of base install only. I realize that the very name "net install" should provide all the info necessary, but beginners are often not terribly aware of things like drivers being needed, and the result of not having one.
