hard shift - linkage or tranny?

89 lxi is hard shifting. the little rubber boot is torn on the plunger that goes into the tranny. i thoght that might be the problem but several people said it's not big deal. i greased it anyhow, but i'm sure it washed off and i don't think it made any difference anyhow. should i grease the linkage under the shift boot or is it more likely a problem inside the tranny?

other than hard shifting, it goes into all five gears and doesn't pop out or anything like that.

If your transmission is low on oil that may be you only problem. Greasing the shift rod won't help anything. If you're having trouble getting into gears, especially some gears more than others, your syncros are worn out (if you weren't just low on oil). Double clutching to downshift should help if that's the problem. Also, some people have seen improvement by changing the type of oil used. Otherwise you're looking at a rebuild or tranny swap.