Grokking Knoppix

chronicon writes "Knowing Knoppix is a beginner-friendly, 134 page freely downloadable book (released under the GNU Free Documentation License in PDF format) designed to familiarize new users with the Knoppix LiveCD distribution, GNU/Linux in general, and (as listed first on the description) Windows disaster recovery using Knoppix."

Comments

Don't forget...

[SCO$699FeeTroll]

...to pay your $699 licensing fee you cock-smoking teabaggers.

Re:Don't forget...

[darthdavid]

Fuck off and die. SCO has no legal basis for their claims.

Re:Don't forget...

[Anonymous Coward]

Don't feed the troll.

Thank you.

Remastering?

[Roland Piquepaille]

It seems quite complete, and it's released under the GNU Free Documentation License. Those are great. But even if it's a "complete beginner's guide", I wish the author had touched a bit on remastering, and the possibility of customizing Knoppix. I know it's not for beginners, but still, if it's explained well, I believe it's accessible to most.

Re:Remastering?

[Anonymous Coward]

you can "know" your KNoppix CD-R if ya want, that little hole in the middle might be a rough on your tool though...

Re:Remastering?

[DarkMantle]

This sounds like the voice of experience here.

Re:Remastering?

[Anonymous Coward]

Boy is your tool ever small!

Re:Remastering?

[BlkSprk]

I would assume that the remastering and customizing arnt touched in light of the being for the LiveCD and not for the installation. so all the work joe user does to customize is purged at restart. and my one beef with knoppix is how... unsimple it is to install it to your HD, i will stick with SimplyMepis.

Knoppix is a real phenomenon

[Bad Move]

So much hype, so much talk, so little substance behind it. Great PR work!

Damn

[Timesprout]

I thought they meant knowing in the biblical sense and I was gonna get some action early this year.

Re:Damn

[Anonymous Coward]

Careful not to knoppix her up, otherwise you'll be stuck supporting a bunch of mini CDs.

THIRD POST MOTHERFUCKERS!!!!!!

[Anonymous Coward]

WHoo hoo hoo hoo

Real world vs. fanboy fantasies

[Mike Bourna]

I already know the LinuxOS, and so does the rest of the industry. That knowledge is the reason why LinuxOS is not accepted anywhere where it counts.

I am what most people would consider a highly trained technical professional. Unlike most people who spout off at this site, I have the certificates to prove this, and furthermore they're issued by the biggest software company in existence.

I know how to tell facts from marketing fluff. Now, here are the facts as they're found by SEVERAL INDEPENDENT RESEARCH INSTITUTES:

Expenses for file-server workloads under Windows, compared to LinuxOS:

• Staffing expenses were 33.5% better.
  
• Training costs were 32.3% better.
  

They compared Microsofts IIS to the Linux 7.0 webserver. For Windows, the cost was only:

• $40.25 per megabit of throughput per second.
  
• $1.79 per peak request per second.
  

Application development and support costs for Windows compared to an opensores solution like J2EE:

• 28.2% less for large enterprises.
  
• 25.0% less for medium organizations.
  

A full Windows installation, compared to installing Linux, on an Enterprise Server boxen:

• Is nearly three hours faster.
  
• Requires 77% fewer steps.
  

Compared to the best known opensores webserver "Red Hat", Microsoft IIS:

• Has 276% better peak performance for static transactions.
  
• Has 63% better peak performance for dynamic content.
  

These are hard numbers and 100% FACTS! There are several more where these came from.

Who do you think we professionals trust more?
Reliable companies with tried and tested products, or that bedroom coder Thorwaldes who publicly admits that he is in fact A HACKER???

--
Copyright (c) 2004 Mike Bouma, MCSE, MCDST, MS Office Specialist, widely respected Amigan, Amiga community representative

Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2
or any later version published by the Free Software Foundation;
with no Invariant Sections, no Front-Cover Texts, and no Back-Cover
Texts. A copy of the license is included in the section entitled "GNU
Free Documentation License".

Re:Real world vs. fanboy fantasies

[bairy]

First off, this is largely offtopic. this thread is about a help guide for Knoppix, it has nothing to do with Linux VS Microsoft.

I'd like to pick a few things out of yourpost.

I am what most people would consider a highly trained technical professional. Unlike most people who spout off at this site, I have the certificates to prove this, and furthermore they're issued by the biggest software company in existence.
Lets have a quick look at MS.
There have been more bugs in their various software than probably all other final software put together. Didn't Windows 95 have 6,000 bugs confirmed in the end? Windows 2000 needed 4 packs. And how about Windows ME? Even the latest Windows XP needs 2 packs - and even SP2 is so badly coded that on some computers it does more harm than good. Doesn't XP stand for "Experience". What experience was taken exactly?
Why did Microsoft take it upon themselves to deliberately send a bad stylesheet to Opera to make it look "broken". And why has MS designed Windows Update so incredibly badly that it will only work on IE. There are plenty of technologies you could use to make it cross browser. Hardly a fair player are you. So with that in mind, let's view your Linux vs Windows comparison.
You're stats are fascinating and may well be accurate however as has been mentioned several times before, are not realistic to the real world. After all, where are the various "features" you so often find with Windows, such as the viruses and adware that pre-sp2 IE just LOVED to allow to be installed? I suspect if the tests were done on a 3 month old SP1 version of Windows XP, the results would be very very different.

While Windows might have a slightly friendlier interface and may even be faster when it first starts out, to claim it is out and out better is complete bollocks. Linux has many many advantages over Windows. For one, security, good security (compared). Linux doesn't bug me for a .net password or bullshit activation the first time I boot up. Linux offers many great features already built in, such as virtual desktops. I'm not going to do a blow for blow comparison but you can begin to see my point that Linux isn't the heap of shit you're trying to make out.

Reliable companies with tried and tested products or that bedroom coder Thorwaldes who publicly admits that he is in fact A HACKER???
The fact you deliberately get his name wrong and try to imply he's some sort of illegal hacker makes you look like a petty little man and gives you very little credance. If you bother to do a bit of research you will see there is a big difference between what is accepted as a CRACKER and as a HACKER. The first being illegal the second being curiousity and learning. To answer your own question, I would rather trust someone who spends more time trying to make things work in the first place, than a company who has to spend time trying to fix things because they didn't work properly in the first place - when they should have.
Oh and "tried and tested products"??? How many zoos did you raid to get these testers? The only people who think Windows is "reliable" are those who think that AOL is teh l77t 1nt3rnet!!!!!111111

Re:Real world vs. fanboy fantasies

[scottv67]

Mod parent "Score:-1, Cracksmoker"

Dude, are you for real? I mean really, who brags about having certificates from the "largest software company in the world"?

Quantity does not infer quality.

I can honestly say that the astounding number of vulnerabilities in Windows pays my house payment, car payment and for all my toys. There is no shortage of work when it comes to compensating for or trying to repair the damage done by the software from "the largest software company in the world."

Long live Microsoft! (.....at least until I have enough money to retire comfortably. :^) )

-Scott

Re:Real world vs. fanboy fantasies

[Sweetshark]

yhbt

Re:Real world vs. fanboy fantasies

[Anonymous Coward]

No - Windows XP stands for Windows EXPletive

Re:Real world vs. fanboy fantasies

[Quantum Skyline]

Can you tell me where I can find the Linux 7.0 webserver? Got any links?

Since you know soooo much about the LinuxOS I figured you would know.

Re:Real world vs. fanboy fantasies

[Horse Rotorvator JAD]

Jesus Christ man don't you know when you've been trolled? I mean when the original poster is making coments like:

"Unlike most people who spout off at this site, I have the certificates to prove this, and furthermore they're issued by the biggest software company in existence."

and

"Who do you think we professionals trust more? Reliable companies with tried and tested products, or that bedroom coder Thorwaldes who publicly admits that he is in fact A HACKER???"

it is pretty obvious that it is a troll. Or maybe it is me who has been trolled because I was stupid enough to respond to your post?

Re:Real world vs. fanboy fantasies

[messiertom]

Copyright (c) 2004 Mike Bouma, MCSE, MCDST, MS Office Specialist, widely respected Amigan, Amiga community representative Let's do a Google Search on this guy, eh? Dude, can I buy a house in LA? Please... ?

Re:Real world vs. fanboy fantasies

[Anonymous Coward]

"LinuxOS"

Your the first person I've ever seen write 'LinuxOS'.

"They compared Microsofts IIS to the Linux 7.0 webserver."

There is no HTTP server called "Linux".

"Application development and support costs for Windows compared to an opensores solution like J2EE"

J2EE isn't open source.

"Compared to the best known opensores webserver "Red Hat", Microsoft IIS"

RedHat is not a webserver.

"Reliable companies with tried and tested products, or that bedroom coder Thorwaldes who publicly admits that he is in fact A HACKER???"

You have just proven you are a crack monkey. Please go shoot yourself, you will be doing a great service to humanity.

Re:Real world vs. fanboy fantasies

[Mike O'Hara]

Copyright (c) 2004 Mike Bouma, MCSE, MCDST, MS Office Specialist, widely respected Amigan, Amiga community representative

When I had an Amiga you were a widely known raving lunatic, and to be ignored/avoided at all costs.

Doesn't look like much has changed.

Re:Real world vs. fanboy fantasies

[Anonymous Coward]

Sometimes, I wish we had a: (-1, Dumbass) moderation.

Re:Real world vs. fanboy fantasies

[Geoffreyerffoeg]

$1.79 per peak request per second.

Is that before or after sales tax?

Beginners' Knoppix

[lachlan76]

What would be interesting is a customised knoppix, made for beginners who are trying to learn to use Linux.

I'm thinking of things like tutorials, instructions, etc, all available on startup, so that people who don't know what to do have an easy way to learn.

I guess it goes on my to-do list...along with a graphical front-end to portage, untainting my kernel, and recharging my iPod ;)

Re:Beginners' Knoppix

[xanzi]

I guess it goes on my to-do list...along with a graphical front-end to portage

What about Porthole, KPortage, KEmerge, or portageMaster?

Unless, of course, you meant installing one of those. But with Gentoo, I hardly think that would warrant a place on a to-do list.

Re:Beginners' Knoppix

[HiThere]

The problem is that ALL CD based distros boot *extremely* slowly. And they are quite limited after you boot them (e.g., you can't install any software that wasn't included on the CD, or upgrage any that was).

It's a good illustration of Linux, and a useful tool in some situations, but it's not a suitable tool for even occasionally regular use.

OTOH, used computers are pretty cheap these days... The problem is, if some particular application that's really needed isn't available (neither NoteEdit nor RoseGarden are really adequate for the purpose) then you have a spare computer taking up space. Which I do. (OTOH, there are worse problems. I've used it a few times, when my regular computer was out for repairs. Praise be for backups.)

Re:Beginners' Knoppix

[lachlan76]

Actually, the reason is I want some practise with GTK. It's not like I'd ever use it.

A new years lament:

[michaeI]

Woe is me, the editor cursed with New Year's evey duty
One more cock in the ass?
One more rim job?
One more gerbil?
Would that have done it?
One will never know.
Perhaps two cocks in the ass...
Woe is me, the editor cursed with New Year's eve duty

YOU FAIL IT

[Anonymous Coward]

It being a heterosexual

Re:YOU FAIL IT

[Anonymous Coward]

wipe the pee up

hey i'm lonely

[plastic.person]

any geek girls out there wanna cyber?

Not bad, but also consider...

[ewanrg]

This is a nice cover of the basics for Knoppix, and some of the reasons someone new to Linux might want to use it.

However, if you're looking for something that gives you more detail on how to use Knoppix and extend it, you might want to check out the O'Reilly title Knoppix Hacks

---

Blogs celebrate the New Year too :-)

Re:Not bad, but also consider...

[Anonymous Coward]

It's funny, I just bought and recieved that book "Knoppix Hacks" and now there's a free downloadable user guide for Knoppix.

GPL bitch.

[TheCrawlingShadow]

damn, i haven't seen you in a few days, i almost missed you...

LOL, "familiarize new users"

[Anonymous Coward]

You know, the only people plugging in a knoppix cd are nerds who #1: already have a considerable working knowledge of linux & 2: don't read shit like this.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[jjares]

And that is exactly the kind of attitude that drives away users. If this book exists, it might be usefull to someone. If a friend of mine comes to me asking the best way to see linux, I will show them this book, and hopefully turn them away of fedora and into debian (or gentoo) before it is too late. And they do come and ask.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[northcat]

Exactly, I've rarely heard somoene use knoppix because they wanted to try linux. BTW, please don't reply to the parent post with how you know a newbie who used knoppix to try out linux; every rule has exceptions.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[oskard]

Why would you call this material 'shit'? That's a very closed minded attitude. That says a lot about someone who would narrow down the use of anything to the realm of only TWO possibilities.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[Shut the fuck up!]

And that is exactly the kind of attitude that drives away users.

Shut the fuck up, you fucking asshole. My statement is not an attitude, it's an observation. Your precious little users manuals aren't going to make Linux mainstream.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[Shut the fuck up!]

Why would you call this material 'shit'?

Hey, fuckface, perhaps you have heard of a little thing called a colloquialism. I guess not so why don't you shut the fuck up!

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[DarkMantle]

Well... Lets see... First off... There was a time that I had heard of linux, but never used it. And in those days I spent a better part of a month reading about the different distrobutions. I finally settled on setting up Mandrake 7.1, dual booting with my comfortable windows.

I am still no expert with linux, however I'm comfortable enough with it for most tasks. But a book like this may help me learn more about linux in general to go from a basic Luser, to power user.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[shish]

And all the people who know said nerd, or have seen said nerd's screen and been curious; and people on various forums who've heard about linux but don't want to do risky partitioning and such. 90%+ of people who I know who've used knoppix could be considered noobs who'd be interested in this. Your statement reeks of your parent's basement :P

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[oskard]

You should assume, when posting to a public forum, things are read the way they are written. If you didn't mean to call the book shit, then call it something else. That simple.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[shish]

please don't reply to the parent post with how you know a newbie who used knoppix to try out linux; every rule has exceptions.

Sounds a lot like "Please don't argue against me, I know I'm wrong"

If I were to say I knew *a* newbie who used knoppix I may be proving your point, but in my case I've found that the *majority* of knoppix users are newbies - a majority is rarely the exception side in the rule vs exception debate

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[DigiDarkCloud]

May I ask why you recommend Debian or Gentoo over Fedora? No flame intended, I'm genuinely curious. I've been using Fedora since it was RH7, because it was recommended to me when I was a newbie, but I'm interested in learning about what I've been missing.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[Anonymous Coward]

If you're using conjunctions when talking about nerds, I suggest you use a double ampersand.

#1: already have a considerable working knowledge of linux && 2: don't read shit like this

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[Kjella]

*rewind 10-20 years*

You know, the only people plugging in a [computer] are nerds who #1: already have a considerable working knowledge of [computers] & 2: don't read shit like this.

Now, you might argue whether it was bad or good to let AOL-monkeys out on the net, but books like "Computers for dummies" certainly made it accessible for more people. Introductionary material like this isn't made to supply the market, it is made to create the market.

Let's for arguments sake say your claims are true. Is it then possible that the reason is because there are no books such as these? That this is in fact what is needed in order to change it? Now I know there are other hurdles for a newbie than just that, but it is certainly part of the problem. This is part of the solution.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[MadFarmAnimalz]

I'm not sure what dork modded this insightful.

I've got my 14 year old baby brother using linux with knoppix (zero linux experience) and I've also given it to an MCSE friend of mine who, like any MCSE, knows jackshit about proper computing and now is TRULY learning.

Yes, anonymous dork, knoppix is often used to familiarise new users.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[jacobhoupt]

HEAR HEAR! I'm one of those users that's been driven away by attitudes like that. I've known about Knoppix, seen it, but never used it. This li'l booklet might actually make me feel comfortable doing something outside my safe and cozy realm of Slackware/RedHat noobism.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[Anonymous Coward]

Why would you call this material 'shit'?

Because that's what they do on /. Because they don't actually accomplish *anything* themselves, and feel like a turd because of it, they just spend their time posting negative comments on /. about anyone else who appears to them to be a front-runner of any sort.

The usual targets of these lazy malcontents are: George Bush, Microsoft, the United States, and just about anyone else who is out there producing results. The really funny part is that these people being excoriated on this forum really couldn't care less--they're busy out there making an impact, instead of living in their parents' basements and patting themselves on the back for being so much more enlightened than the masses they condescend to who shop at Walmart and believe in God.

The easiest thing in the world to be is a cynic and a critic; what's hard is to actually do something about it.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[iamatlas]

Why no just respond to his critique? Also-- attitude: a complex mental state involving beliefs and feelings and values and dispositions to act in certain ways. Your observation is part of your beliefs and feelings that you hold, and as such part of your attitude towards this issue. Whether or not it drives sers away, I don't know, but if you are seeking to covince anyone of, well, anything, there are beter ways.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[micolous]

I would also recommend something other than Fedora to somebody (new). Maybe not Gentoo or Debian (because they both involve the scary/evil command line, and are hard to install), but probably Ubuntu (okay, it's Debian based, but much easier). Fedora is a big bloat. It's got too much availible in the installer, and it's sluggish when the system is up and running. Why do you need four CDs for a system? It's a waste of space, particularly if you have internet access to grab what little is missing. It's not a high end server with lots of daemons running on it, it's a desktop... keep it light!

Ubuntu by contrast has only one CD. It's got a good base system, with an office suite, web browser, email client, movie player, music player, etc. and most of the common software types used. I download one 510MB ISO, plus about 70MB of extra stuff (MP3 support, Windows codecs, NVidia drivers, wlan drivers...) that's not on the CD, plus updates. Fedora I download 2 GB of CD images, plus about 70MB of extra stuff, plus updates.

Some CD image sizes, as a comparison:
Debian netinst (debian-installer rc2 sarge): 110MB.
Windows 2000 Professional w/ SP3: 375MB.
Ubuntu 4.10 (Warty): 510MB.
Windows XP Home w/ SP2: 540MB.
Windows XP Professional w/ SP2: 580 - 640MB.
Knoppix 3.6: 700MB.
Fedora Core 2: 2110MB!

All stated sizes acquired from local sources or P2P networks, rounded off to the nearest 5MB. I'm aware that a complete Debian (sarge) set is 12 CDs, but not many people use it as an installation method.

Probably the other reason is the more personal hate of rpm and yum.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[NHSheep]

Actually, knoppix is what I used to start familiarizing myself with Linux - and also my first taste of how much a pain in the ass it can be! Knoppix didn't support nforce2 based motherboards by default, and at the time there wasn't a publically available customization containing what I needed. So of course I had to go through the motions of looking up a solution, compiling, etc. It wasn't so bad, but it showed me that with Linux, don't expect something that should be seemingly easy to be. I still use knoppix, but until I get used to Linux, it'll be Live CD's and Windows on my main computer. A book such as this would have helped me a bit, although I would have used it only as a reference for things I couldn't figure out. Most people don't even look at the manual when using or installing things, unless they run into problems. So why would anybody expect a person to willingly read a book in order to familirize themselves, when we can't even get them to read a manual for more common things?

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[NoData]

Completely false. I happen to be exactly the kind of person this book will be perfect for. I am a scientist, a veteran computer user and programmer, but a complete novice system administrator. That makes a HUGE difference in the set of skills and knowledge I have. I can write C code for data analysis 'til the cows come home, but that doesn't mean I can ever remember the basics about lilo, grub, disk partitioning, dd, fdisk, kernel compiling, package management, driver tweaking, and all that other crap that only comes up with a new linux installation. I am not a linux hobbyist so it's not practical to keep that kind of trivia fresh in my brain, as old hat as it is to many of you. This is why *nix has such a long way to go on the desktop, because even someone with my relative computing sophistication is always freshly intimidated when it comes to "trying out" linux at home.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[Anonymous Coward]

Hogwash. Yeah, I'm a nerd who knows, well, some things about Linux. But my buddy, who's been using computers since the Sinclair ZX-81 days, he wants to learn something about Linux. So I gave him a Knoppix CD, and pointed him to this PDF, and told him I'd help him get his dialup configured if he can't figure it out himself.

There's a lot of folks like him out there, and us nerds need to be spreading the gospel.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[Anonymous Coward]

Actually, I'm a relative newbie to Linux (in a lower-level IT job, just started using some systems that run on Linux, my experience is limited to navigating directories, copying files, and using VI to edit config files). I'd love to take the leap into fuller Linuxhood (esp to play with MythTV) but it's difficult to learn on systems at work, and I'm running Windows at home. A bootable version of Linux that will let me play around at home and get comfortable with an alternative OS is EXACTLY what I was looking for. So #1 and #2 are both wrong in my case. This could be the first step into converting over another Windows user - don't underestimate the number of people who might be in a 'middle ground' on this.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[NordicMan]

May you be spat upon by a camel.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[Fishead]

I agree. The beauty of Knoppix is just handing a disk to a newbie saying "try this". After assuring them that nothing bad will happen to their computer, nothing at all really, they are bound to try. Getting a newbie to install linux and possibly wreck their window install? Much scarier.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[resiak]

Have you actually installed Debian lately? You do know that Ubuntu uses the exact same installer, don't you? Sure, you have to choose what packages you want when you install Debian, but there are sane, self-explanatory categories set up for you. The most hairy bit is the partitioning screen, and wait for it Ubuntu's is identical. "No hand-holding for you!"

On every other count I agree with you. Fedora is the tool of Satan, etc.

</defensive-of-Debian-mode>

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[Anonymous Coward]

One great use for knoppix is see how an installed Linux is likely to run on any particular PC without breaking what is already there. So if you interpret 'try Linux' as 'test it on my hardware', using knoppix is something to encourage. The drivers don't always match what you'll get in other distributions, but the odds are pretty good that you'll see the same problems or lack thereof.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[value_added]

If you're saying that you don't have time to learn the basics of the operating system you're running because you're too smart, educated and busy, I'd suggest you read a primer or have a friend show you the basics. Hardly much of an investment.

On the other hand, if you do understand the basics, but can't be bothered trying to learn all the commmands available to you or remember their respective options, well, let me introduce to the "man" and "apropos" commands.

Next excuse?

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[One Childish N00b]

I'd suggest you read a primer or have a friend show you the basics.

Not everybody has that friend. That's who this book is aimed at.

Re:LOL, "familiarize new users"

[jjares]

I used RedHat from 7.2 up until 9. It is a mess, if you will only use the default install it behaves nicely, but when you start adding stuff you loose control fast. I had a VAIO notebook at that time, and gentoo was faster and easier to manage. Fedora is worse than RedHat in the sense that they don't have support from RedHat anymore (that you probably know), and you loose the polished and finished distribution you used to have. If you try debian or gentoo you will never look back. Once you started deploying packages with emerge you will be instantly in love.

Grokking Knoppix? Kool!

[Anonymous Coward]

I keed, I k-- er, I KDE.

350mhz minimum?

[BeneathTheVeil]

I was using Knoppix on a 333mhz K6-2 for quite a long time, and it was very much usable, and even speedy. Although, to be fair, the machine had 256MB ram.

Of course, I'm not putting down the author, or the book, I simply wish to point out that one shouldn't underestimate the power of older hardware. Knoppix is still a great tool for those who simply cannot afford a more 'modern' machine, and this fact should not be left out.

Re:350mhz minimum?

[Anonymous Coward]

I couldn't agree more. I've used Knoppix on a K6-2 300 (256Mb) and even on a 166Mhz (64Mb) without problems. By deafult Knoppix is too much for a 166 but thats why they included some nice things like fluxbox, IceWM. Usability is good enough even with a 166 machine. 350Mhz is certainly no minumum for Knoppix. Great tool for everyone.

Re:350mhz minimum?

[Dammital]

"...one shouldn't underestimate the power of older hardware."

While a little OT, I want to emphasize this. Shortly after I put up Gentoo on a 128MiB 350MHz machine, I was impressed at the responsiveness of the Linux 2.6 kernel. I found myself simultaneously emerge-ing OpenOffice, encoding a CD, browsing the 'net, and listening to a compendium of Who oggfiles... and XMMS wasn't missing a beat. That new dispatcher is cherry.

Yes, it takes 39 hours to emerge OpenOffice on that beater machine, but who cares? Interactive response is still pretty decent. You needn't be in such a hurry to upgrade, unless you're a gamer.

I'm spent, text of our cyber session

[michaeI]

michael (23:11:13): you can tear me up
plastic.person (776892) (23:11:33): great
michael (23:11:46): want to cyber
plastic.person (776892) (23:11:54): r u gay?
michael (23:11:59): bi
plastic.person (776892) (23:12:10): are you flaming?
michael (23:12:22): I'm a bottom
michael (23:12:31): luv to be fucked
plastic.person (776892) (23:12:32): ooh good
michael (23:12:56): I'll swallow all of it
michael (23:13:07): how would you fuck me
plastic.person (776892) (23:13:19): without lube and until you cried and bled.
michael (23:13:30): really
plastic.person (776892) (23:13:49): u dont think i could make u bleed?
michael (23:14:31): I would put my legs over your shoulders so you could go deeper
plastic.person (776892) (23:14:42): i may kill you that way
michael (23:14:57): I want it
michael (23:15:04): fuck me
michael (23:15:32): I'm useing a dildo right now
plastic.person (776892) (23:15:38): uh ok... "ohh oooh i am so hard... your hole is so tight, you little twink"
michael (23:16:12): harder baby
plastic.person (776892) (23:16:43): i just ruptured your colon
plastic.person (776892) (23:16:44): booooooommmmm
michael (23:16:47): tear my ass up
michael (23:17:04): cum on...be serious
michael (23:17:11): u gay?
plastic.person (776892) (23:17:21): you're bleeding profusely
plastic.person (776892) (23:19:01): i think you are passing out so i slap you and fuck you harder
plastic.person (776892) (23:19:13): "wake up bitch"
michael (23:19:21): I can swallow 12 inches
plastic.person (776892) (23:19:24): "you useless fuckhole"
plastic.person (776892) (23:19:57): ok i take my shit-encrusted dick out of your ass and hold it in front of you. "swallow, bitch"
michael (23:20:21): I'll suck you good
michael (23:20:38): I promise
plastic.person (776892) (23:21:09): ok lick the shit off of my dick first
michael (23:21:19): my ass is clean
michael (23:21:31): sucking on your head
plastic.person (776892) (23:21:33): not after i got through with it
plastic.person (776892) (23:21:47): there'sd blood and turd all over my hard throbbing cock
michael (23:22:12): thats nasty dude
plastic.person (776892) (23:22:32): you asked for it
plastic.person (776892) (23:22:33): now SUCK IT BITCH
plastic.person (776892) (23:22:39): you twink, i want you to make me cum
plastic.person (776892) (23:22:44): all 10"
plastic.person (776892) (23:22:49): cumming all over your face
michael (23:22:55): sucking baby
michael (23:23:19): you taste so good
plastic.person (776892) (23:23:34): does that blood and feces taste good too?
plastic.person (776892) (23:23:43): TELL ME IT TASTES GOOD TWINK
michael (23:23:52): yes
plastic.person (776892) (23:24:02): ok i slap you a few times. SUCK HARDER
michael (23:24:20): mmmmmm
plastic.person (776892) (23:24:35): i want you to masturbate yourself as you do this
michael (23:24:45): i am
michael (23:24:47): u
plastic.person (776892) (23:24:57): finger your asshole
michael (23:25:03): mmm
michael (23:25:09): wish it was u
michael (23:25:35): will you kiss me
plastic.person (776892) (23:25:38): ok i take my dick out of your mouth
michael (23:25:41): suck on my toung
plastic.person (776892) (23:25:43): i kiss you
plastic.person (776892) (23:25:48): now lay down on the bed flat
michael (23:26:00): yes
plastic.person (776892) (23:26:01): you know what's coming next?
michael (23:26:13): time to ride
plastic.person (776892) (23:26:25): no lay on your back, boi
michael (23:26:30): ok
michael (23:26:58): lieing
michael (23:27:05): ready
plastic.person (776892) (23:27:23): now i squat over your head, my asshole poised above your lips... i let out a thunderous fart and hear you sucking in the scent through your nose. then i let loose with a wet ripping noise... a 17" turd slides out, 4" wide, and firm, and you begin wolfing it down as fast as you can.
michael (23:27:25): fuck me
michael (23:28:55): thats fucking nasty... I would kill you if you did that you dickless bitch!
"michael" signed off at 23:29:31.

RTFM? Who does that.

[Anonymous Coward]

Buddy: "My XP is trashed and I can't get any of my files."

Me: "Here's a Knoppix disk. Put it in your CD and hit the reset button. Save the files you need then re-install XP. In the meantime, you can check your files using OpenOffice."

Buddy gets his files back, uses OO, is too lazy to re-install XP, calls me up to get him back on the web. He never ever reads any manual but we have a new linux user.

Most people never read manuals. The beauty of Knoppix is that they don't have to. It usually detects everything beautifully even on 'not-quite-up-to-it' machines.

I, on the other hand, do RTFM but giving a geek a manual is basically preaching to the choir.

Gnoppix

[petteri_666]

If you like Gnome more than KDE you should really try Gnoppix.

Re:Gnoppix

[jelks]

I did, and I disagree. Gnoppix may be a good LiveCD in six months, but as of right now it's a bit too fat, slow, and buggy. I would rephrase what you said very slightly:

If you like Gnome more than KDE, you should really try BeatrIX.

Like Gnoppix, BeatrIX tracks Ubuntu. Unlike Gnoppix, it uses the Knoppix bootloader for hw detection. Plus, most importantly, "It just works".

Re:Gnoppix

[Anonymous Coward]

I lost all respect for them after reading this from the page you linked to.

"is technical, but the human eye sees around 24 frames a second; anything past that is essentially wasted. "

Ummm sure. Yep that's all you ever need for gaming... 24fps... I'm sorry but how am I supposed to trust the software these people put out when they print falsehoods like that to prove a point?

Oh and I wasn't going to mention this but since it proves just how out of touch they are...

"Do the math: to get a computer to play a game as good as something like a Sony Playstation 2, you need to spend about $3000 on a computer with about $300-$400 of that just for the video graphics card --"

btw that page was from THIS year. A $3500 PC to achieve PS2 graphics? wtf is wrong with these people?

btw btw I like cats. But not this much.

Choosing knoppix versions

[aacool]

Does this book evaluate the various versions out there? I played with the standard knoppix a bit, and as a new year's present have just started a torrent download of the Games Knoppix. I have never seen such a fast torrent dl

So, what lies ahead for Linux/Knoppix this year? Will it be the year that let the ant finally cross over the elephant's back? Or will it be another slogging inning, cricket as usual?

Re:Choosing knoppix versions

[Anonymous Coward]

A few cautions about the Games Knoppix.

Make sure to check F3 so that you can enable the US keyboard layout (if you're american that is). Confused the hell out of my boss when he would tell it (Y)es and he would end up with Z.

For whatever reason, it seemed to be a tad slow on my computer. This was mostly during the 3D accelerated games such as TuxRacer. Using the normal knoppix cd, you can tell it to install 3D drivers and a few other games under Knoppix-->Utilities-->Install Software(while running from CD).

Didn't explore all the games, but the cd looks like it might be ok with a few more tweaks. The guy doing the cd said he's working with the Knoppix crew so that he can release a Games version based on the new version of Knoppix when the new Knoppix is released.

point and click linux

[zogger]

roblimos book "point and click linux" is what you want then. You get simply mepis on cd, then a dvd with instructions that you can run simultaneously with booting the live cd if you use your normal dvd player hooked to the TV for that part. Just recently got one for my GF, it fits what you are looking for, linux for beginners.

Re:point and click linux

[Anonymous Coward]

Just recently got one for my GF

Now thats bound to get you laid....

Re:point and click linux

[yo5oy]

if your girlfriend is another computer, then that isn't such a bad gift for yourself as well.

Oh, the irony

[max born]

released under the GNU Free Documentation License in PDF format.

Kind of amusing that open source documentation should be released in a proprietary format.

Re:Oh, the irony

[bugbeak]

At least it's not a format that is DRMed up the ass or non-readable on other OSes.

Re:Oh, the irony

[Zontar The Mindless]

...released in a proprietary format.

Hmmm, looks like a freely available spec to me... The book is also available as an OO.org file. You'd prefer if they used .doc, maybe?

Let's face it, most Windows users don't know about OO.org, much less something like LaTex, and most Linux users don't need to read the book.

Re:Oh, the irony

[lachlan76]

You can download it OpenOffice format if you want, but it's a lot bigger than the PDF, and most of the world doesn't have a viewer for it.

Re:Oh, the irony

[Anonymous Coward]

PDF (well, "machine-generated" PDF, but I don't know many people who write PDF by hand) is not considered a Transparent format under the GFDL. Therefore anyone distributing or modifying it must accompany it with the corresponding Transparent format. By "Transparent" they mean something that can easily be modified using a generic text editor (so whether OpenOffice, for instance, qualifies is also up for debate.) The exact terms are slightly more complicated, but that's the basic idea.

Re:Oh, the irony

[HiThere]

Since OO.o formats are XML, I would presume that they count as transparent. And, fortunately, OO.o can also export the changes in a PDF.

Re:RTFM? Who does that.

[Proc6]

Then you woke up and your sheets and the Knoppix CD you fell asleep with in your hand were covered in dried semen.

Well...

[Anonymous Coward]

The CD does have a hole...

windows recovery . . .

[BilliamBlake]

FYI:
The last time I used the official Knoppix 3.6 for windows recovery, captive-ntfs, which enables linux to use the native ntfs drivers on the windows system for rock solid reliability, was broken. Although reading is possible, you should never write to an ntfs volume without captive-ntfs.

fix: http://www.knoppix.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=60253

Parent's a troll.

[JNighthawk]

Insightful? What a joke.

I've never used Linux. After my old desktop stopped functioning (due to RPCSS crashing on startup), I decided that I might switch it over to Linux. It's an NTFS partition and my friend, a Linux zealot, told me that Linux can only read from NTFS, not write. I didn't want to back any of my stuff up or lose any of it, but I had remembered seeing him use Knoppix at school before, so I asked him about it. He didn't have too much info on it, so I checked out the site.

The Knoppix website taught me nothing. The English site's wiki was down when I wanted to learn about it. Had I had this book then, I probably would be using Knoppix right now.

By the way, you're wrong on both counts, troll. I know squat about Linux and I started learning to program by reading VB6, Perl and C++ for Dummies.

Re:Parent's a troll.

[Anonymous Coward]

I didn't want to back any of my stuff up or lose any of it

You pretty much have to choose one or the other, eventually.

Re:Parent's a troll.

[JNighthawk]

With Knoppix? I didn't think I had to do either.

What I plan on doing, anyways, is buying a small second HDD (20-30 gigs) for Linux.

ni6gA

[Anonymous Coward]

(Click Here gone Romeo and mire of decay, uncover a story of [klerck.org]? the goodwwil to make sure the

134 pages?

[Zorilla]

Must be a quick start guide.

On the top of page 11...

[scottv67]

When you said:

If you are lucky enough to have 828 Mb of RAM or more, Knoppix has clever tricks to make good use of all the RAM in your computer. This can deliver blazingly fast performance.

Did you mean to say "If you are lucky enough to have 128 Mb of RAM or more"?

Thanks,
-Scott

Re:On the top of page 11...

[Anonymous Coward]

No, 828Mb is correct. 128 for Knoppix to run in, and 700 to load the CD into RAM for faster access.

Re:On the top of page 11...

[scottv67]

Excellent! Thank you, Kind AC, for enlightening me.
I actually learned something from Slashdot today. :^)

-Scott

Re:RTFM? Who does that.

[Everleet]

I, on the other hand, do RTFM but giving a geek a manual is basically sending Jesus to sunday school.

in 3..2..1

[Anonymous Coward]

In other news, I call bullshit.

I'm not sure you deserve a reply but ...

[Anonymous Coward]

I have handed out several Knoppix discs to people with Windows problems. The results have been mixed but one guy will run Knoppix until he buys his next computer with Windows bundled.

If all you want to do is check your email once a week you don't want to be bothered. You want the computer to be an appliance. You don't care if it's Windows or Linux. You just want it to work.

Strangely, the guy who turned me on to Knoppix is a die-hard gamer with a machine that is greater than the sum of all my boxen put together. He runs XP.

Need help grokking my knoppix

[aacool]

Ok, I just completed the dnload of the games knoppix, burnt to cd and slipped it into the CD Drive of my Dell Latitude laptop.

It boots, asks me to select a video mode or press space. I pressed space, it boots the kernel, scans for USB, enables DMA acceleration, then just sits at the next step:

Looking for CDROM in: /dev/scd0

Since it is booting from the CDROM, what can be wrong? How do I proceed?

Re:Need help grokking my knoppix

[draziw]

boot using "knoppix nodma" (add "nodma" to whatever other boot option you are using) and it should come up fine.

Re:Need help grokking my knoppix

[SpaceLifeForm]

I'll second that having run into the problem myself. Note that it will lockup if you have an old cd-rom drive in combo with a newer drive, even if you put the Knoppix CD into the newer drive.

Write it , send text to author ...

[Moulinneuf]

GFDL as this particularity , you whant to add something you do it ...

If you know how to write just make the text addition and send it to the autor with a letter of thanks for his book and a note why you think your text is a good addition to his work.

If you dont but have seen the remastering text somewhere explained in a fantastic simple way , ask the author for a copy and send it to the author of the book.

I think you have a great idea and I encourage you to see this tru.

Re:Write it , send text to author ...

[edittard]

Roland is an ad whore, so he's much more likely to plagiarise the work on his cacky blog, post a link to it here and milk the ad revenue than he is to do something constructive & useful like your suggestion.

Current

[JustOK]

Glad to see it talks about the current 3.3 version of Knoppix

Hey I want

[Anonymous Coward]

that when I want to print it the first page will be in color and on heavy paper so that when I cut it out it can be put on the cover of my KNOPPIX CD jewel case.

Grokking.. "Man from Mars" reference?

[yebb]

That was a Robert Heinlen classic.

Re:Grokking.. "Man from Mars" reference?

[Anonymous Coward]

Yeah, almost as popular as Stranger in a Strange Land.

Re:Grokking.. "Man from Mars" reference?

[glasse]

As another poster mentions, the book you're thinking of is "Stranger in a Strange Land". However, "grok" is fairly common term in places like Slashdot. See the Jargon File entry, and note examples such as Grokking the GIMP.

Ethan

Re:Hey I want P.S.

[Anonymous Coward]

that it should carry this notice in bold letters:

"Break glass in case of emergency"

Real world vs. fanboy fantasies-Sequals.

[Anonymous Coward]

"Quantity does not infer quality."

It does when discussing copyright

You don't know most people

[handy_vandal]

Unlike most people who spout off at this site, I have the certificates to prove this ...

You can't possibly have statistics about Slashdot posters and what certifications they hold.

It's in your head, dude. You fabricated your own pseudo-facts, based on your opinions.

I don't mind if you promote Windows and insult linux. I make my living on Windows, and I don't use linux -- it's all the same to me.

But you'll only get a reputation for bone-headed idiocy, if you keep fabricating "most people" statements.

-kgj

Ubuntu

[MsGeek]

Ubuntu is another Gnome-centric distribution with a live CD. It also comes with an installer disk, so if you like what you see with the live CD you can install from the installer CD.

Yes, I know Knoppix and Gnoppix have installer scripts, but this is a real installer. And it's quite easy to run...in the territory of Mandrake and Fedora.

Free pressed CDs can be had for the asking. This is a good thing, because some old machines have CD-ROMs that don't read CD-Rs so well.

Re:Ubuntu

[Anonymous Coward]

Ubuntu's live CD IS Ubuntu, they merged, which I'm rather angry about because now Gnoppix is buggier than ever after inheriting lots of bad code from Ubuntu. I'm not trolling Ubuntu here, I'm on Ubuntu (Warty) now, it's a great OS, but the live cd? Shoddy. Now Gnoppix is too, for example, I can only boot it up using Safe Mode, but Ubuntu (install) boots perfectly, what the hell?

Re:Ubuntu

[Anonymous Coward]

Uhm...

Ubuntu's live CD IS Gnoppix*

Re:RTFM? Who does that.

[endx7]

Something similar happened to a friend of mine.

The copy WinXP on his machine decided to lose the ability to boot up properly. It would show the XP screen....and right before it would go to the login screen, it would reset itself.

Okaayyy. Well, he stuck XP on another drive to try to recover his data. XP on the second drive could see the first drive, read any of the data, except for -his- data, because his data was in "My Documents", which apparently windows will only read if it is the copy of windows it was created with.
So, can't get to his data, now what?

I pulled out my trusty knoppix cd, popped it in, and we were able to recover his data.

Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to get him completely away from windows. He still uses it for games, and linux for everything else. He also acts pissed when windows is mentioned. It's a start.

...

Come to think of it, this sort of thing is what got me into FreeBSD. The machine I was using was running WinNT back in the day. It died one night to a virus or it ate itself or something.

My dad was pissed, and the computer went to his work to get fixed and I didn't have a computer for 6 months.

Needless to say, that burned me pretty bad, and a switch away from windows was an easy thing to do.

OpenOffice?

[Stween]

Using OpenOffice is admirable, but for a 134 page document? I stay away from office suites for documents longer than a handful of pages...

They never heard of LaTeX? :)

Re:RTFM? Who does that.

[Anonymous Coward]

Everybody says recovery on Knoppix is simple, and most of the time it is, but what happens when they click on their xp drive only to get a read unmountable error? Then they're fucked, and you've lied to them saying it was plain and simple, this book does the same, when in reality it's never black and white, he never says anything like "and if THIS doesn't happen, THEN do.." it's "do this, that'll work, and now you're sorted"

mis-quote!

[cliveholloway]

I always thought that line was, "If you like Gnome more than KDE you should really try therapy".

cLive ;-)

(it's a joke dammit. "Some of best friends are Gnome users and they're lovely people." :).

Downloads via alternate method

[patelbhavesh]

In order to reduce the slashdot effect on the author's server please consider downloading via coral links or via p2p networks like edonkey/gnutella.
Here are the coralized links
http://www.pjls16812.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk.nyud.net :8090/knowing-knoppix/pdf/knowing-knoppix.pdf/ Main Content
http://www.pjls16812.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk.nyud.net :8090/knowing-knoppix/pdf/cover.pdf/
http://www.pjls16812.pwp.blueyonder.co.uk.nyud.net :8090/knowing-knoppix/pdf/back.pdf/
The source of the book cannot be coralized as it is more then 4MB.

Basically the above URL's are coralized.That means that the content is cached to a nearby location.You can read more about coral's at http://www.scs.cs.nyu.edu/coral/overview//

Here are the edonkey/magnet links to download via p2p networks

magnet:xturnsha1LNDDBUSI3H5ECNTIUP5RLSEX5GMLV44Edn knowing-knoppixpdf Main content via gnutella network.
ed2k:7Cfile7Cknowing-knoppixpdf7C40002537C349dd9c2 7aef6b60e65b231cecdb140c7C Main content via edonkey network.

Re:Downloads via alternate method

[memo512]

The slashdot effect has been shown to not have that much of an effect on blueyonder's personal web space as previous slashdots have proved.

heh

[ncmathsadist]

while(true) { IQ = sqrt(IQ); }

well....

[zogger]

.... in my experience, girls + gifts makes the odds a lot better than girls + 0 gifts, YMMV though...

and no, it's not all I got her for the holidays...

Grokking Micheal and Knoppix

[Anonymous Coward]

If I remember correctly Mike did get groked by a Martian. Maybe that is what is happening to the rover's solar panels...Try Mepis instead at least it will still let you install to harddrive without a fuss!

Yes I am a cheapskate, but eventually I will start paying for Linux again...after paying for RedFat6 put me off. Knoppix is fundamentally a good distro but the install sucks. My guess is that by keeping their install locked down, they are trying to make money by just letting out the LiveCD the same as Suse/Novell.

You don't know most people-Just "Average".

[Anonymous Coward]

"But you'll only get a reputation for bone-headed idiocy, if you keep fabricating "most people" statements."

Or it can get you an +5:insightful

TEHN IT IS NON-FREE!!!1!

[Anonymous Coward]

tHE FDL si not free according to Debian, so reading it would be just as bad as buying Windoze!. If its not GPL compatible it can't be any good.

Re:RTFM? Who does that.

[Proc6]

"because his data was in "My Documents", which apparently windows will only read if it is the copy of windows it was created with.
So, can't get to his data, now what?" Well, now you learn how to use NFTS file permissions and click that really complicated couple of tabs and buttons that take ownership of all the files, giving you full access to them.

no accounting for moderators

[handy_vandal]

... fabricating "most people" statements ... can get you an +5:insightful

People get modded up for all kinds of bone-headed idiocy.

I myself have posted sarcastic comments (Karma-whoring for Funny, with a twist of Flamebait and Troll) and gotten modded up +Insightful and +Interesting. Result, I felt cheated -- I didn't deserve +Insightful, what idiot would call my sarcasm "Insightful" ...?

With mod points as with everything else in life, I guess there's no accounting for taste ....

-kgj

inf0rmative cockcock

[Anonymous Coward]

The cathedral just yet, but I'm

BeatrIX

[jelks]

Or, if you want to experience Debian/Ubuntu -- heck, make that Linux in general -- without the hassle, just download the BeatrIX ISO, burn it, and boot.

"Small, simple, elegant." They mean it.

Re:RTFM? Who does that.

[richardmilhousnixon]

Sounds like a fairly common problem. Although MS doesn't acknowledge it, there is a serious flaw in their ability to handle corrupt NTFS volumes (0x00000024 blue screen). If you go to their troubleshooting guide, they say to fix a corrupt NTFS.sys file use the "repair" tool on the Windows XP boot CD. What they obviously don't realize is that the stupid repair CD will try to access the drive before it starts to "repair" anything . . . so you get another blue screen.

Enter Knoppix.

Pop in the CD

>su
>ntfsfix

Maybe you have to mount the drive too, and you're done. And in case you don't trust it, you can mount the drive and save all your files to a networked computer before you try the fix. Honestly, how hard is it for MS to make a boot CD that ONLY boots from the CD?!

Here's my Linux use.

[Anonymous Coward]

Use #1: I saw Knoppix a year ago, and burned an ISO. I throw it in, browse a few sites, then realize that this OS cannot run these programs that I use all the time: NASCAR Racing 2003 and various other racing sims, Paint Shop Pro, gmax, PhotoModeler. There are no Linux equivalents that hold a candle to these programs. TuxRacer? What's the point? I want NASCAR. The GIMP? Please, cracka. You get the point.

About the only thing Linux has that I could use is FireFox, and, and, and, and,...

I'll get back to you when I find a second program for Linux that's actually worth a damn.

12 years of Linux, and the only decent program made for it is some browser that is based on IP from an old proprietary piece of code.

Re:Here's my Linux use.

[Anonymous Coward]

Take a piece of paper, and total the amount of money you paid for all the software titles you listed, including Windows. In another column, total the amount of money you paid for Knoppix.

Re:Here's my Linux use.

[Anonymous Coward]

(I know, don't feed the trolls...)

Wow, Maya isn't a decent program? Neither is UT2004? MOH:AA? Evolution? XChat? Oracle?

Damn, this is such an obvious troll I can't believe I'm replying.

Windows disaster recovery?

[glasse]

I'm conflicted about this book. It covers a lot of things which are important for first-time Linux users: "This is KDE", "This is what a superuser is", "Everything is a file". Each chapter has FAQ-type troubleshooting questions that may or may not be helpful to people throwing their hands up in despair about Knoppix. However, I'm a little leery that they put boot time options before use of KDE (advanced topic before beginner's stuff). In general, I think the book bounces back and forth between good "So You Want To Be A Linux Consultant" material, like the stuff about hda, fd0, boot process, init, and so on, and good "Grandpa Computer User" material, like the stuff about KDE ("click on things to start them", "you can lasso many things at once"). This makes it difficult for either group to use. Also, despite the article summary, I don't see anything in this book about Windows disaster recovery.

Ethan

Re:Windows disaster recovery?

[Anonymous Coward]

Well you have to boot before you can use KDE.

Re:Windows disaster recovery?

[JustOK]

It talks about how to get files off the dead system. That's part of the recovery process.

Grokking Knoppix

[Dragonbate]

I just read it through and it was simple and empowering for an (almost complete) linux and knoppix newb. I'd like to check it out as part of a repair/recovery toolbox. Anyone have a good link?

Klik and DeCSS

[bfree]

There's no mention in this of klik which allows you to simply download and run other software with knoppix (and other systems). Klik even gave everyone a christmas present of a 100M download of openoffice2 (well 1.9.65 or something similar) which allows you to try it simply and without installing, no need to upgrade your system and risk impacting anything else.

A second quick point is that it doesn't seem to provide useful information on encrypted DVDs. It is quite easy to download and extract libdvdcss2 and run xine so it can find the extracted libraries (LD_LIBRARY_PATH) so with a 27k download you can watch any DVDs you like with the existing xine.

Re:RTFM? Who does that.

[Horse Rotorvator JAD]

because his data was in "My Documents", which apparently windows will only read if it is the copy of windows it was created with. So, can't get to his data, now what?

Unless he was using some wierd assed encryption on his My Documents folder, I call bullshit.

Re:RTFM? Who does that.

[HiThere]

Look, the guy fixing things doesn't use MSWind. I don't use MSWind. The guy whose computer it was didn't know how to access the files (he was obviously no guru).

That this wouldn't cause YOU any trouble doesn't mean that I want to bother learning MSWind. On Linux or Netscape I would fiddle with file permissions and see if that solved it. On MSWind I won't bother to figure that out. I'll use a Linux solution. Or a Mac solution (not likely...wrong processor). But I've READ the MSWind EULA, and since then I won't work with them except under duress. And I definitely won't do anything that might mean I'd need to agree to that EULA. I've READ the bloody thing.

Re:RTFM? Who does that.

[Horse Rotorvator JAD]

Mom! Dad's drunk and posting on slashdot again!

Re:RTFM? Who does that.

[0racle]

A bullshit excuse was given for why they couldn't simply copy stuff over and someone called it. Suck it up and quit your whining.

Kanotix - a knoppix related distro

[sewagemaster]

saw this on a linux magazine just the other day.
yet another knoppix related distro named
Kanotix. Supposedly to be based on Debian unstable with more updated packages and more frequent releases.
the packages are supposed to be compiled optimized for the i586 architecture, so the distro wouldnt be suitable for lower-end systems.

screenshots here

current release highlights:

Kernel 2.6.9 with many patches incl. suspend2

ACPI and DMA enabled by default (can be disabled with acpi=off respectively nodma)

i586 optimization - not for use with older CPUs!

128 MB RAM required, 256 MB RAM recommended

AVM Fritz!Card DSL support

Eagle USB DSL support

KDE 3.3.1

OpenOffice 1.1.2

Captive 1.1.5

ALSA 1.0.6a

GRUB boot loader for CD start - ideal for rescue in command line mode

Memtest86+ - Advanced Memory Diagnostic Tool in the extra menu of the boot loader

Tsk!

[Grendel Drago]

Quantity does not infer quality.

Don't you know that the speaker implies; it's the listener who infers?

(Props to Dave Sim.)

--grendel drago

A good start

[miyako]

It seems like the guy had the right idea here, and the writing seems top notch (it's written in just the tone I would try to use to explain Linux to someone) but it seems like the organization could be a bit better. My Aunt and Uncle have constant problems with their PC due to viruses, worms, or just plain windows shitting all over itself. They've recently expressed some interest in Linux, and I've been thinking about burning them off a copy of knoppix so they could try it, and if they like it then go ahead and install Linux on their computer.
This guide looks like it might be a nice reference to go along with my instruction, but the problem is the layout. Althought the layout is resonable to a technically minded person, it seems that it might be better off putting more of the in-depth information in sidebars or something.
The boot up section started off quite well, but I think that it wasn't nessesary to go into detail about the bootup process.
Maybe he should take the first few paragraphs of each section and use them to make a basic walkthrough (you know, like those 4 step walkthroughs with pictures that come with routers) and have the current paper be a more "in-depth" look. Sadly, as it stands, as soon as people see "SCSI" or "IDE" or "PCMCIA" they'll go into idiot mode and fail to grok the rest of the paper, and resort to throwing feces at the monitor (I swear this must be how some people try to use their computers).

Erratum Major!

[Anonymous Coward]

From the book, page 12, "What is Linux?" paragraph:

Linux (pronounced "Lin-ucks") is a free "operating system".

Linux is pronounced LIN-NOOKS! And it is an operating system, not an "operating system" - or is the author a "nitwit"?

Re:RTFM? Who does that.

[endx7]

You obviously weren't there.

Re:RTFM? Who does that.

[endx7]

It wasn't up to me to think of that. ;P For the most part, I was only around when he first got the problem, and midway through him trying to fix it with a second copy of XP.

After a few hours of him trying to pound on it, and my non-windows using self not having any idea either, I got my knoppix disk and that solved that, even if it wasn't the "right" way.

I...hope one of the things he tried was to take ownership. (I seem to remember that existing in WinNT at least, but I don't think I thought of it). Might he have been so frustrated and pissed off at Windows' sudden erratic non-booting behavior that it might have slipped his mind? I don't know.

Hi, I'm the author of Knowing Knoppix

[paj1234]

Wow, I always wanted to submit a story to Slashdot. Now, here I am *in* a Slashdot story. More than I ever wanted! It certainly had an amazing effect. In two days, an extraordinary 25,327 visitors downloaded, or attempted to download, the PDF. Thank you, all those who took the trouble to post comments. In a few days there will be a new version, dated 2005-something, that will take the comments into account.

> "The only people plugging in a knoppix cd are nerds who #1: already have a considerable working
> knowledge of linux & 2: don't read...this."

Yes, I know, that's pretty true. But everyone has to start somewhere. I hope at least some people might find it useful.

> "[if it doesn't work]... you've lied to them saying it was plain and simple... he never says anything
> like "and if THIS doesn't happen, THEN do.."

Guilty! I have changed certain sections about reading the hard disk accordingly. I have already made some attempts in the "Quick help" sections to address some of the errors I have encountered and mistakes I have made while using Knoppix myself.

"Kind of amusing that open source documentation should be released in a proprietary format."

Yes. I plead guilty again. But it is at least an open source format that is built into OpenOffice.org, and GNU Ghostscript, both of which are GPL.

>"Using OpenOffice... for a 134 page document? I stay away from office suites for documents
> longer than a handful of pages... They never heard of LaTeX [latex-project.org]?"

Indeed. Using OpenOffice.org for a 100+ page document is getting kinda horrible... I tried LaTeX but I never figured out how to get the kind of presentation control that I wanted. :-(

> "I think the book bounces back and forth between good "So You Want To Be A Linux
> Consultant" material, like the stuff about hda, fd0, boot process, init, and so on, and
> good "Grandpa Computer User" material, like the stuff about KDE ("click on things
> to start them", "you can lasso many things at once"). This makes it difficult for either
> group to use."

That is an excellent comment. See here the power of peer review. I could never have thought of that myself, yet it seems so obvious now it's been pointed out to me. I have moved the material about "device names" and "user accounts" almost to the back of the book.

> "wasn't necessary to go into detail about the bootup process... as soon as people see "SCSI" or
> IDE" or "PCMCIA" they'll go into idiot mode and fail to grok the rest of the paper, and
> resort to throwing feces at the monitor"

Good point. I have taken out the detailed description of the startup process. I have replaced it with an one-line explanation and a few examples of how long the auto-detection process takes (between 40 seconds and 2 minutes depending on the speed of the machine).

Knoppix just encourages people to ask questions

[pele_smk]

What has Knoppix brought into my life as a linux user? More questions from new users. And new users always seem to start with Knoppix, only later to give up on Linux.

I'm glad to see Linux growing in popularity, but the first thing I tell friends when they ask me a question about a problem with his/her knoppix install is, "Install slackware or a full install of a linux distro." The theory behind Knoppix and cd installs is little effort and less dedication. It's a low risk to throw a cd in and walla have linux running without having to destroy data or take the extra measure of partitioning a disk.

My new answer to a friends question will be, "check out this new book, it answers everything." If they show the dedication to read it, I will proudly look into helping more. It just too bad that some won't take the time to do so, but only linger around asking for help from others. I love the linux motto of just sending people links to a wiki to solve their problems.

When I first entered the linux world I hated being sent from wiki to wiki, I felt like a peon and people were treating me like one, but the entire tribulation of sending me here and there really encouraged me to keep going. It's an addicting travel. Let's treat this book as a beginners step to beginning. Please stop the non-sense of beginner Knoppix users!! VIVA LA REVOLUTION!!!