Sunday 19 May 2024 - 02:17:02 UTC 
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SARPi Project - Slacking on a Raspberry Pi
Log-in and prepare the system for Slackware installation
After successfully booting your Raspberry Pi with the pre-configured microSD card inserted, the first thing you will be presented with when initially logging in is a choice of keyboard map which looks something similar to the following screenshot:
You can select a keyboard map by typing '1' and pressing the key, following the directions given.
If you've logged in remotely via SSH then you will not be given the chance to set a keyboard map (just yet) and will be put at the command prompt. You can specify a keyboard map later, during Slackware 'Setup'.
Then you will see this next screen:
You should type 'root' as the login and press the key.
Now you'll see the next screen and this is where you'll start to configure your system and install Slackware Linux.
Setting the system date & time
IMPORTANT! : Before you do anything else, you MUST set the correct time and date on the Linux system. It's good policy to always check the time is accurate after (re)booting the system, even when you have a real time clock (RTC) installed.
If you do not set the correct time and date your Linux system will default to 00:00 (midnight) on 01 January 1970, the date of the UNIX epoch. This will undoubtably cause many problems while using a Slackware Linux system.
Setting the system clock is done very easily with the 'date' command using the following format:
date -s "DAY MONTH DATE hh:mm:ss YEAR"
The day (DAY) and month (MONTH) can be specified as full names (e.g. Monday, Thursday, August, December) or short names (e.g. Mon, Thu, Aug, Dec). The date (DATE), hour (hh), minute (mm), and second (ss) values are always specified in 2 digits and have a leading zero '0' where applicable. The time is always specified in the 24 hour clock format. The year (YEAR) is always specified with 4 digits. Don't forget the double quotes around the specified date and time parameters or this command will fail.
Example: if the time is 14:32pm on Thursday 29th February 2024 then the command would be as follows:
You can also use the 'date MMDDhhmmYYYY.ss' date format (where 'MM' is month, 'DD' is date, 'hh' is hours, 'mm' is minutes, 'YYYY' is the year, and 'ss' is [optional] seconds and preceded by a period). Again, use leading zeros where applicable and the 24-hour clock format. For example, like this:
If you want trouble-free timekeeping, or rely on accurate time for any purpose on your Slackware Linux system, you may wish to consider purchasing a real time clock (RTC). These RTC devices are generally very easy to get hold of and install. The ChronoDot and DS3231 MINI RTC Module are among our own personal favourites. There are also other means and methods of keeping accurate time on your Slackware Linux system, which are covered in the SARPi Mini-projects sections.
Incidentally, the Raspberry Pi 5 comes equipped with a RTC built-in which works out of the box. So there's no need to install your own.
If you've already enabled and configured the NIC (networking) and established an Internet connection, you could use one of the following commands (depending on the Slackware Linux operating system version) to accurately set the time and date on the system:
or
Example:
So, you now have the option to Setup the NIC for Slackware Linux installation (if you haven't already booted with networking enabled). You will want to do this if you plan on using a FTP/HTTP server as your Slackware Linux source.
Otherwise, continue to the next section of this installer guide... Setting up partitions on available drives
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