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Knoppix To Split Into 'Light,' 'Maximum' Versions
prostoalex writes "Everyone's favorite Knoppix project will be split into light and maximum editions, which should end the argument on whether the Live CD operating system should focus on small footprint, or greater support for external applications." From the linked ZDNet article:
"'We will split the mainstream edition of Knoppix into two versions: a 'maximum' DVD edition with a complete Debian installation, and a 'light' edition on CD that contains the most popular desktop and server software only, for older computers or smaller systems that don't have a bootable DVD drive yet,' said Knopper."
You might want to download and actually give it a try. It doesn't touch the HD at all, making it perfect for data recovery or situations where you don't have permission to use the drive for personal use. It gives you a complete set of applications and leaves no residue on the system.
Knoppix is amazingly useful as a resuce resource. I can't always carry everything that I'd like with me when I might encounter a computer in need of repair. With a Knoppix CD on hand I have a great set of tools that can help to diagnose and repair many problems.
Knoppix really needs fluxbox. I personally use it on my every day system(an AMD64 gaming machine) but when I am fixing computer at work I find KDE takes forever to load on knoppix, fluxbox would be really nice, and its small.
which should end the argument on whether the Live CD operating system should focus on small footprint, or greater support for external applications.
Not likely. It'll just mean that each camp will have a disc that suits them.
Use icewm instead of KDE with the the boot codes:
knoppix desktop=icewm
Dude, I'm sure Klaus is shaking in his boots at the veiled threat of "someone" forking Knoppix... there are only several dozen Knoppix-based projects at the moment. In any case, installing Knoppix to HD is insanely simple already:
o pp ix+to+hard+drive&btnG=Google+Search
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=install+kn
Actually, Knoppix does touch the drive if you have any swap partitions around. For any kind of forensics usage of Knoppix, pass it the "noswap" option.
It does actually touch the HDD. It mounts a swap partition if it exists.
I can only see this as bad if you have a suspended session saved on the swap partition. Think laptops.
Er... Use the CD (lite) version? Perhaps?
"Ignorance more frequently begets confidence than does knowledge"
- Charles Darwin
Morphix, which is what I've been basically using as "Knoppix-Lite," and it does the trick for me. I use the Light-GUI iso, which is about 200MB. It's basically a modular Knoppix (it is, in fact, based on Knoppix). You can also roll your own. Say, if you don't need the GUI module, you can opt for other modules. Pretty neat.
Remastering Knoppix CDs is doable. If any of the standard Knoppix live cds don't meet your needs you can customize one of your own. Ce cil Watson will giving a talk at the Southern California Linux Expo (SCALE 3x) in February about how to go about doing this. Cecil is maintainer of KnoppMyth, a Knoppix distribution customized for use as a Linux based PVR with MythTV.
There are several - I usually go to http://www.linux.org/dist/index.html and select the "LiveCD" Category. This suggests a range of options, each with different advantages. I try out a new one every few months, just to get some variety.
One I tried recently, which is close to your needs is FeatherLinux (http://featherlinux.berlios.de/). I'm not sure about XL/Powerpoint in the default install, but it can install OpenOffice if you wish.
"Go to CNN [for a] spell-checked, fact-checked summary" -- CmdrTaco
Damn Small Linux would run well on a system with those specs, but doesn't include the software you want. Check it out and see if you can modify it to suit your needs... It's worth a spin, and not that large a download. At any rate it has VNC so you could use it as a thin client.
KDE runs quite happily on my 400MHz machine. Maybe you're a bit short on RAM?
Fact: FireFox is slow and bloated. It takes about 35 MB of main memory, so don't even think about loading it on systems with less than 64 MB of RAM. Even konqueror doesn't take more memory and renders pages at least twice as fast.
So I would suggest something like this:
Conclusion: I think there aren't any Office-compatible apps that run at least halfway decent on a Pentium 90. You'd better try Windows 95 and Office 97, that is even usable on a 486.*) Sorry for the table, but I incapable of convincing Slashdot to display anything table-like.
Something like Knoppix Cheat Codes, perhaps?