It is even possible to do a net install if the user has an old system that doesn't have a CD drive. There is a restoration process that can grab files from any drive and restore them at boot, which is similar to the persistent settings in. DSL can be easily installed on a hard drive so that it runs as an image, which is similar to the bootfrom cheat code. He's a creative genius, and we are implementing his amazing improvements, including a fully automated application-installation process that we are currently calling "MyDSL Click and Load."ĭSL has also picked up many of the Knoppix features that you've already been introduced to in this book. With so many improvements and suggestions, he should be recognized as a coauthor. For several releases, Peter Sieg () made contributions that greatly enhanced DSL's functionality.įrom about 0.5 and on, Robert Shingledecker () has been a major contributor to DSL development. In that sense, open source projects are interesting: some people provide a one-time hack, while others continue their involvement and help the project along. By the third public release, users started to contribute hacks, which cumulatively improved DSL. Some applications have been dropped and replaced with programs that are a better fit. For instance, the X from Knoppix is much too big, so I had to hack a system that uses Keith Packard's Kdrive X servers ().ĭSL has evolved a lot over time. Fortunately, all the lightweight applications had already been developed I just had to be very particular about what was included in DSL. Getting a fully functional desktop into 50 MB is not a simple process.
In later releases, DSL began as a reduction of Knoppix proper.
I actually cheated in the beginning and used an already reduced ISO called Model_K (now defunct ). I decided to try my hand at remastering Knoppix.
Some of them were quite nice, like Kurumin () from Brazil, but I wanted something very portable and under 50 MB, like LNX-BBC. I read about the reduction efforts to get Knoppix small enough to fit into 80-mm 210-MB CDs. I was on a quest for a Linux distribution that was small enough to fit on a business-card CD, yet had a fully functional desktop. LNX-BBC is similar to a rescue disk, and ByzantineOS is based on Mozilla (which it uses in very interesting ways). They were both very innovative but not really what I was looking for. net), the two leading sub-50-MB distributions at the time. I wanted a desktop-oriented live CD that was fast and small, so I checked out LNX-BBC () and ByzantineOS ( sourceforge. I usually grab the lightest applications to use on my home desktop: for email, I use Sylpheed for browsing, I use Dillo or Links-Hacked. from a live CD on my older computers is a real chore. I am also a big Knoppix fan, but running KDE,, Mozilla, etc. Simply put, I'm an efficiency freak, which is why I founded Damn Small Linux (DSL, ). Despite its size, it strives to have a functional and easy to use desktop. Damn Small Linux is a business-card- sized (50 MB) bootable live CD Linux distribution.