Puppy Linux

[MattGSX]

So, with the last kernel update, I've been having a beast of a time finding an OS that actually has decent support for the rt2750 usb chipset. Ubuntu 7.10 and above come packaged with either rt2500usb or rt73, which should in theory manage the card, but usually don't. There are also some module problems with getting rt2750 to run correctly using the network manager (or using serialmonkey's) after install, assuming you can get get the module to work in the first place.

Anyway, I went OS shopping again. I tried some installs like sidux (mini Debian sid), gnusense (all-free software os - looks and acts almost exactly like ubuntu 6.10 lts), and some others before I decided to try Puppy. I hadn't tried it up to this point, and I have to say I'm not too disappointed. I like that you can use slackware's package system, but since I'm so used to Debian, it may be hard to switch. My rt2750 card (which is a Nintendo Wi-Fi adapter) works out of the box, which is pretty sweet. JWM is pretty ugly, but at least it supports GTK themes, and you can always use an alternate WM like Openbox or IceWM (you can also install Gnome and xfce inside Puppy using alien packages, but I thought that sorta defeated the purpose). The whole thing runs pretty fast, too - I was running it fully in RAM before doing the hdd install, and it's still blazing fast. I just hate that it makes you configure xorg and the keyboard with every boot. If someone knows a workaround to this, I'd totally appreciate it.

Has anyone else tried Puppy? Thoughts?

[PHISH-PHREAK]

Dogs cant read.

Puppy linux = Fail

[linear]

I just hate that it makes you configure xorg and the keyboard with every boot.

I had to stop using Puppy after just a few boots because of how annoying this was. I didn't use it long enough to figure out a workaround or really get a feel for it though.

so i'm useless here.

[MattGSX]

Well, I actually spoke too soon. In the frugal install, you have to configure xorg every time. With a full hdd install, you only have to on the first boot. After that, it uses a startup script to automatically set your display and x settings, which you can then change after boot. I'm really disliking the lack of security, however. It boots my desktop automatically, I can't get support for a login manager, there's no root password, and multi-user support sucks.

I'm going to see if DSL fixed the rt2750 problem yet, but I'm doubting they did. Otherwise, does anyone else know a distro with good hardware support and a small footprint? It's going on a 500MHz PIII laptop with 320 (256 + 64) mb RAM and a 10 GB hdd, no ethernet, and an unsupported modem, so I'd kind of like the wi-fi card to work out of the box.

[linear]

i did a full install and i still had to configure it, i believe.

hrmmm

[MattGSX]

UPDATE:

I now have Puppy 4 running pretty flawlessly on a Thinkpad 600X, PIII (500 mHz) with about 300 mb of RAM. Installed icewm, set it as my default by killing x and running xwin icewm, and edited /boot/initx (I think that's the file name... I'm on a different system right now) to disable rox, as it's a memory whore. I'm still looking for a .pet for a better file manager, but without rox starting as default and loading its ugly icons, I have a clean desktop that's running faster than my HP (2.7 GHz Celeron-D, 768 MB). I also have Sidux installed, so I just added Puppy to my grub bootmenu for Sidux, as Puppy's version of GRUB sucks and half the time it just loads the grub shell, forcing me to boot manually (boot /dev/hda1/vmlinuz-x.x.x.x). rt2750 and rt73 both load at startup, and the legacy drivers don't have the connection speed problem inherited with the new drivers packaged with Debian derivatives (In Ubuntu, I have to manually set the MAC address and force a connection speed above 1mb/sec EVERY TIME I connect, and the scanning and dhcp settings always get fucked up). I even replaced my CMOS battery (anyone with an old thinkpad probably noticed that the factory battery sucks, dies quickly, and forces 2-3 reboots to actually load the system) with a 3v watch battery and just taped it all together. I was thinking of setting a boot password, but from what I've heard, if my CMOS battery dies again, I'll pretty much be fucked, as the bios won't recognize any of my set passwords (boot, hdd, or bios) after a new battery. I tried fluxbox 0.9.9, but the right-click settings are messed up, and the menu doesn't stay open (I think it was a conflict with rox, as I didn't try running fluxbox without rox opening), and it wasn't properly supporting the /.fluxbox/xsession bootup script. Openbox is okay, but running an [include] on the obmenu file wasn't supporting the Puppy menu.

Dogs may not be able to read, but they can definitely breathe life into old systems. Where DSL failed for a full hdd install, and Ubuntu minimal install failed (see: lack of driver support to install xorg, wm, and basic applications), I think I've done alright.

[MattGSX]

Well, fuck if I didn't get sick of Puppy. There was this horrible problem with dependencies. Since the system was built from the ground-up, and there are very few "developer" tools, it was a bitch to try to install anything from source, and development is totally forked.

Tried MusiX, which was okay (but slow and overly dependent on KDE for most of its desktop features) and the new Ubuntu Beta (which I liked, but it's still not ready), and I'm trying TinyMe (fork from PCLinuxOS) right now.

I wish I could just settle on an OS. Maybe I'll switch to UNIX like Trev.

[ApprenticePhreak]

Ubuntu 8.4 has been breaking my balls as of late.

That is all.

[MattGSX]

Yeah. I don't think I could go back to Ubuntu.

I'm loving TinyMe, except that it doesn't recognize my USB port, which makes things like networking impossible, and since I can't throw a driver on a flash drive and port it over, I'm sorta fucked.

Meh.

[ApprenticePhreak]

Yeah. I don't think I could go back to Ubuntu.

I'm loving TinyMe, except that it doesn't recognize my USB port, which makes things like networking impossible, and since I can't throw a driver on a flash drive and port it over, I'm sorta fucked.

Meh.

I really would suggest Ark, I really would. It performed well for me but I felt very insecure with the system itself as it logged on you as root and root didn't require a password until you set it up to have one. It was like an XP version of Linux that wasn't Linux XP.

However there may be good chance of my reverting back to Ubuntu 7.10.

[MattGSX]

the lack of security won't work for me. I have this laptop in public areas, and I use it for personal as well as business uses. I don't care about user security, as I'm the only user, but file security is a big issue. I'd set a boot or hdd password, but if my CMOS battery dies while there is an active password, then I'll brick my laptop.

It seems like a lot of new "single user" or live-based distros do this, where applications run as user, but you have root control. I also don't like the idea of being able to accidentally fuck stuff up from the desktop, such as tinkering with the file system. If it's done from the terminal, I know it's intentional, but the last thing I want is some jackass accidentally deleting part of my file system because my file manager has root access. Fuck that.