Baslinux mailing list

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

> > optional-image-downloading browser
>
> Opera, links2, Netscape 3.04 (BL1)


I compiled a lynx 2.8.51 that should work with BL3 with no libc upgrade 
(you need to add a libdns to use it online) and David Moberg compiled a 
uclibc version 2.8.6 but it seems to crash a lot more (buggy source code).
Use with a viewer.

> > vi, compiler, screen
>
> Slackware 4.0.  There have been previous posts
> about what packages are needed for compiling.

I compiled a busybox 1.1.10 (I forget if it needs to be used with kernel 
2.4.31 which I also compiled) which includes a small vi.


> > pdf viewer/creator
>
> Slackware 4.0 has a pdf package, but it is not
> up-to-date and is unable to display some pdfs.
> I use xpdf 3.01 on BL2.

xpdf 3 does not work with the BL3 X11, but I posted at my site a minimal 
package of the ghostscript fonts and a config file based on them which you 
need to add in order to use the other parts of this package with BL3. And 
also discussed this on the list a while back.  pdftotext (for info only) 
and pdfimages (useful to view files that got scanned and made into pdf) 
probably work without this package, but pdftopbm requires the fonts to 
produce the pbm image.  Convert the pdf file to a pbm file and view with 
zgv (does xli also view pbm files?).

In about 50MB I have BL3 with three browsers, svgalib, zgv, xpdf without 
X, kermit, and a few other things.  Abiword can be added but then you need 
to set up non-text printing (with ghostscript).  I also added a swapfile 
twice the size of my 12MB RAM.

> > imagemagick
>
> There is a package in Slackware 4.0.

netpbm for BL3 is smaller and faster - it converts between various image 
formats, crops, rotates, resizes, and even prints directly to an Epson 
(black only) or HP Deskjet (including color) without ghostscript.  I 
posted a package with sample scripts for printing.

> > Sure wish that I could integrate the xserver and screen.
> > I love screen
>
> I think Sindi has done a lot with screen.

I have used the basics.  It is not easy to learn.  Use it in CLI.  You
should not need it in X.  You can cut and paste without a mouse.  splitvt 
(comes with Slackware) is smaller and simpler.

> > which is a better window manager and networker than
> > anything X
>
> Sindi has done some minimalistic stuff with X too.

I extracted the minimum libraries and posted about this.  You can get by 
with about 1MB of libraries instead of 10MB of packages.  startx is not 
needed, use xinit directly.

> > Presently, I run screen in a tiny x-terminal-emulator in
> > a tiny window manager.
>
> I don't think you'll get anything tinier than the
> swm in BL3.  It's even smaller if you leave out
> the optional menu.

You can run X-based programs without a window manager to reduce RAM usage, 
but some, like Opera, lose functionality (you cannot change focus via 
keyboard).  This has been discussed on the list but perhaps Steven could 
illustrate again for Xvesa and links2 -g at various resolutions and color 
depths.  I forget how to do it without rxvt.




> Cheers,
> Steven