BIOS VIRUS- WARNING
With over 400 million Microsoft Laptops going to junk yard, please do not ship them to CEYLON. There is hardly anybody in Government Service and in Political Power who can read a simple English Instruction, let alon BIOS or EFI Booting.
There is nobody who is competent in Linux.
My usual advice is never by a cheap computer to your old parents.
Buy a new one with warranty.Better still buy them a Valve's Steam Deck Going above 1000 US dollars to play some games till the Tomb.
I am living with a Laptop I bought for 35 US Dollars in Mustafa, Sarngoon Road, Singapore in 2018.
This was NOT after my my retirement from the University of CEYLON but when I got my Pension from UK.
It is a paltry sum and I was getting 1/4th of the entitlement, since I was not living in United Kingdom.
They tried to pay me a lump sum to which I objected and after a few letters of exchange, they had to give into my request.
Give me my pension at 55.
I am willing to send contributions from my Bank Account until 55.
I was just 35, then.
I left UK in 1988 never to return.
But, went to New Zealand in 1992.
Those guys delayed my appointment by 6 weeks. That delay made me to loose the pension Entitlement at 55. They passed a legislation just before I entered New Zealand with an appointment already in hand. Immigration women in Singapore a Chinese woman did all the delays. That id why I hate Chinese to this day.
I booked a return ticket to London and back to New Zealand, Christchurch and got the VISA ENTRY in London. That New Zealand woman put the VISA Stamp on my old passport. When I told that is wrong, she said she cannot open another Stamp.
I got a another VISA Stamp at Christchurch in my new passport. I was the only one in this world having VISA entry in both valid and invalid passports to New Zealand.
New Zealanders are racial minded unlike the British who work by the Rule of Law.
I wad just 45 and left New Zealand never to return again even on a holiday. That is why hate New Zealand, the land with mamy Earth Quake faults.
I worked until 66 in the University without Pension Entitlement. I was excluded from the University Pension scheme after serving them for 17 and half years.
In Ceylon vagrant politicians get pension after 8 years in service.
There was at least 6 months delay getting my first instalment with arrears from UK.
My mother had to wait 6 years to get her pension. She lived to 91 plus.
Their argument was there is a break in service. I said I am working in Ceylon and it is by default a British protectorate like Falklands.
The Head Lady in the Pension Department took my side.
Thank You.
I settled my debts but did not tell anybody till I left CEYLON I was getting a pension from UK. Even, the Bank Manager where my current account is held, does not know it. Since, I was working in the university, the Bank Manager thought that money is coming from an investment in UK, judging by the paltry sum.
Yes, Pension was an investment I fought hard..
To make believe the Bank Manager that I have an investment in UK was a plus point to keep the current account running after my retirement.
My salary in the University went to People's Bank. I closed (it is a long story regarding foreign currency) all my accounts there due some other issues but still have a Saving Account.
Coming to Linux:
I have some issues with REBORN OS.
I'll come to that after BIOS Virus.
I assumed this laptop computer has a BIOS Virus since the Vendor guy had blocked the USB Booting.
Thankfully, it has a DVD ROM from which I booted to Linux having ERASED Microsoft Windows.
I am on a extended Wesak Holiday Mood, I decided to unblocked the BIOS Block Yesterday, with the help of www.BiosBug.com.
I had no problem installing Debian Forky.
Then I went into Override Mode wanted install 10 or more LINUX Distributions.
No problem with all ARCH based distribution except REBORN OS.
I always have two instances of Debian since due to my poor eyesight and carelessness if one fails the other is there to identity and solve any current problem.
By the way, I do not use it for word documents due to this BIOS Virus I have named "Figure of 8 Virus" since it inserts itself a chain of figures of 8 at the beginning of any search, including the Internet browser.
I should call it "Search Engine Virus" .
Now, the Debian installed OK. I had to do it twice since I pressed the Shutdown button, early which corruoted the GRUB.
That mistake was healthy mistake.
The second installation had to look for the BIOS configuration to boot and detected all the missing or virally infected files and listed them before mounting the Operating System.
It said in plane English there is a BIOS Virus and it would not write a GRUB Boot Loader.
Telling me I have to sort it myself without telling me how.
Hinting me, I should ERASE the BIOS and go for a more modern Graphic BIOS. All my life I have not done (erasing the BIOS) that and if I RUIN the tiny allocation sites where the BIOS is recorded the Laptop which looks brand new now would end up in a dustbin.
I sorted out everything and I would not spoon feed the reader.
The details will be in my book.
This is where YouTube presenter cannot express clearly to a newbie how to boot. One has to describe every step in plane English step by step.
The REBORN Os cannot read the keys in this Laptop. It reads numbers property and not the letters underneath. I could not type the password for WiFi and also my long name in the dialog boxes.
CachyOS and BlueStar OS could.
I won't install Storm OS
Nobody can do any CODING in this laptop with figure of 8 virus.
I did not look at the Terminal.
I do not use Terminal now.
Poor eyesight is one.
I hate black terminal by default.
I am not a Server Guy but a PC and Laptop guy.
PC is also mini NUC.
I am glad I tried all the tricks with the NUC and it has 10 distributions.
Difference it is modern and has Graphic BIOS.
The Laptop is old and has Legacy BIOS with no Secure Boot.
This problem is circumvented by EFI of Linux by me in 2018.
Coming to Internet we did not have satellite communication in Kandy,
I got the CBN.Net satellite disk installed on our roof paying a lot.
I had enough and more money then.
It stared with a Modem where one has to give a Call And Wait for 2 hours to give an International call.
There were no WiFi then only Ethernet.
SLT Router was hopeless and I went to Singapore and bought a Router with at least 16 ports when I made a Network in home with at least 14 computers.
The University where I worked had 5 computers in one Department and no Network.
All IBM computers dished out from USA.
Two computers and two Cathode RAY caught fire due to heat with the our door temperature hitting 95 degrees Fahrenheit.
If I remember right my first and only Internet Boot using TrueOS (BSD derivative) of this BIOS blocked laptop in 2018 was the beginning of this SAGA.
Since then I stopped using Microsoft Window's utilities.
