Running Linux, 5th Edition - Matthias Kalle Dalheimer [346]
Parallel port support
Enable this option if you have a parallel port in your system and want to access it from Linux. Linux can use the parallel port not only for printers, but also for PLIP (a networking protocol for parallel lines), Zip drives, scanners, and other things. In most cases, you will need an additional driver to attach a device to the parallel port. If you have a modern printer that reports status back to the computer, you also want to enable the IEEE 1284 transfer modes option.
Normal floppy disk support
Answer yes to this option unless you don't want support for floppy drives (this can save some memory on systems where floppy support isn't required). If you are using one of those attachable floppy drives on IBM Thinkpad laptops, you also need to pass floppy=thinkpad to the kernel at boot time.
Parallel port IDE device support
This option enables support for IDE devices that are attached to the parallel port, such as portable CD-ROM drives.
Packet writing on CD/DVD media
If you have a modern CD or DVD burner, you can enable packet writing (as opposed to track writing) here by selecting this option.
Enhanced IDE/MFM/RLL disk/cdrom/tape/floppy support
Answer yes to this option unless you don't need IDE/MFM/RLL drive support. After answering yes, you will be prompted for types of devices (hard disks, CD-ROM drives, tape drives, and floppy drives) you want to access over the IDE driver. If you have no IDE hardware (only SCSI), it may be safe to disable this option.
SCSI support
If you have a SCSI controller of any kind, answer yes to this option. You will be asked a series of questions about the specific SCSI devices on your system; be sure you know what type of hardware you have installed. All these questions deal with specific SCSI controller chips and boards; if you aren't sure what sort of SCSI controller you have, check the hardware documentation or consult the Linux HOWTO documents.
You will also be asked if you want support for SCSI disks, tapes, CD-ROMs, and other devices; be sure to enable the options appropriate for your hardware.
If you don't have any SCSI hardware, you should answer no to this option; it greatly reduces the size of your kernel.
Old CD-ROM drivers
This is a series of questions dealing with the specific CD-ROM drivers supported by the kernel, such as the Sony CDU31A/33A, Mitsumi, or Sound Blaster Pro CD-ROM. If you have a SCSI or IDECD-ROM controller (and have selected support for it earlier), you need not enable any of these options. Some CD-ROM drives have their own interface boards, and these options enable drivers for them.
Networking support
Answer yes to this option if you want any sort of networking support in your kernel (including TCP/IP, SLIP, PPP, NFS, and so on).
Networking options
If you selected networking support, you will be asked a series of questions about which networking options you want enabled in your kernel. Unless you have special networking needs (in which case you'll know how to answer the questions appropriately), selecting the defaults for these questions should suffice. A number of the questions are esoteric in nature (such as PF_KEY sockets), and you should select the defaults for these in almost all cases.
Network device support
This is a series of questions about the specific networking controllers Linux supports. If you plan to use an Ethernet card (or some other networking controller), be sure to enable the options for your hardware. As with SCSI devices, you should consult your hardware documentation or the Linux HOWTO documents (such as the Ethernet HOWTO) to determine which driver is appropriate for your network controller.
Amateur Radio support
This option enables basic support for networking over public radio frequencies. If you have the equipment to use the feature, enable this option and read the AX25 and the HAM HOWTO.
ISDN subsystem
If you have ISDN