Baslinux mailing list

[sindi keesan <keesan AT sdf.lonestar.org>]

> Your best option for a system with 2mb or 3mb RAM is
> a very early Slackware (pre-3).  One of our Slackware
> mirrors has it (at least it did last time I looked).


planetmirror has SW2.1.  The bare kernel is 282K.  I looked at the 
configuration file for it:

It has some SCSI support (tape and disk) and support for minix, xiafs, 
umsdos.  It does not support ELF binaries (do we need that to run the BL3 
programs?) or dummy net driver (is this what lets us use browsers 
offline?) or SLIP or PLIP.  Not very useful on a laptop if you want to 
transfer information via serial or parallel ports.  The 'loaded' kernel is 
430K.  Maybe a SW2.1 kernel compiled with the same configuration as BL3 
kernel (minus the PCMCIA and CD-ROM and PCI parts) would be smaller than 
the BL3 kernel, but I think you said some BL3 programs would not even work 
with a kernel older than 2.2.16 (Xvesa?) so I am giving up on this.

Would BL1 on HD be a better bet for our 386 with 3MB RAM, or BL3 loop? 
We don't have PCMCIA and do not need X, just something to practice writing 
shell scripts on that can be carried on a bike without worrying about loss 
or damage.

I would like to have something working by this Sunday for my partner's 
birthday to go along with tuition for a shell scripting course.  Last year 
he got BL2 on a desktop.  So far all he has is four fewer dead pre-486 
laptops.

> > Module support:
> > PCI support:
> >
> > if the above were left out, how much RAM would it save,
>
> Not much.

Out of curiosity, how much space does it take up in the kernel when you 
answer m instead of n  (set up the kernel to accept that module)?


> > would you be interested in compiling a 386-lowram kernel?
>
> You've already got it.  The only thing that would
> significantly reduce the size of the current 2.2.16
> kernel is removing networking capability.  IMHO it
> is networking that makes an old PC really useful.

You are right.  I think this includes the TCP/IP stuff you need to go 
online to the internet.

SW21 came with a lowram text explaining how to install to a system with 
only 4MB RAM.  This does not augur well for running it in 2MB RAM.  (We 
have a 486 laptop with 2MB whose best use, other than DOS, is file 
transfer between computers without ethernet or at different addresses).

Maybe MINIX would be interesting to put onto a 1MB computer for writing 
shell scripts with, but it probably does not support many shells.

BL3 as is with 4.7MB RAM works acceptably.  I won't try it again on 3MB 
unless we give up on the 386 with the currently-dead keyboard and monitor. 
(We need to get the Fn keys working in order to try to get the external 
monitor to work.)