Baslinux mailing list

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On Thu, 24 Jan 2008, baslinux AT lists.ibiblio.org wrote:

> On Jan 24, 2008 11:02 AM,  sindi wrote:
>
> > BL 2.1 has a later X that lets you use precompiled versions of add-ons
> > which may not be available or compilable for 3.5.  If you are not going to
> > use X, it does not matter.  At least one version of xpdf would not work
> > with BL3.  It would be complicated to upgrade Steven's neat little X setup
> > to a later X.  But you can upgrade kernel and libc easily.
> >
> > I use BL2 on most computers, with Steven's Xvesa and rxvt.
>
> Yes, I will use X, but I want to do as much as I can sans X.

I do the same.  Some websites won't work without javascript.  Opera works 
with BL3.  I am not sure about the newest Xpdf, but you don't need it. 
Use the svgalib viewer svp with ghostscript (I compiled both for glibc 
2.2.5). Steven provided graphical links2 for X in BL3.

I put all sorts of things into 60MB of BL3, half of this being glibc, 
Opera and Abiword.  Abiword won't do tables.  People insist on them.  I 
need to learn tex.


> I want USB storage support. I also want USB aircard support, which
> doesn't happen until kernel 2.6+, and I still must apply a patch even
> then.

Can you get a kernel which does support aircard, with matching modules, 
from some distribution?

> I have a pcmcia wifi card that works great with xubuntu 7.04, but
> xubuntu is painfully slow on this notebook.
It wastes most of the memory.

> Half of the distros that I have tried that are using kernel 2.6.23
> resulted in a kernel panic message saying that the processor isn't
> supported, but I think it was due to the way those distros compiled
> their kernel, since I didn't get that message on all of them.

Ubuntu could not set up X on my dual-monitor TTL/VGA system which works 
fine with BL.

> > > Second item, the poll...
> > needed to compile (10MB?) and compiled kermit on it.  The Slackware 4.0
> > compiler (gcc) and libc5 won't compile a lot of newer software but you can
> > upgrade them (and then you need 100MB to compile with).
>
> As long as I'm using a "minimalist" distro, with a 4 GB HD, space is
> not an issue.

Make a 200MB partition and put on BL3.50, and a 2GB partition for BL2, and 
try them both.  You can make a swap file in both.  If you decide not to 
use BL3, you can make it into a swap partition or just store data there.
If you ever want to enlarge BL, you can copy it to a desktop partition 
(via ethernet, or parallel port transfer cable, or make a .tgz and copy 
to a USB flash drive), repartition and reformat and copy it back.

> > Your laptop has more memory than anything we are using to run BL3.5 or
> > BL2.1, and is as fast as our best laptop.  A 100MHz laptop with 24MB and
> > an 85MB HD works fine for BL3 (if you won't be compiling kernels on it,
> > for which it helps to have more speed, and probably more space and
> > memory).  BL does not fill up the memory with unneeded logging daemons,
> > and Xvesa/rxvt is low-RAM.
>
> I will be compiling kernels.

It compiles MUCH faster on a faster computer.  It was taking me 20 min to 
compile 2.2.16 kernel on a 233MHz with 128MB RAM.  5 min on a 'fast' 
computer (500MHz or so).

Can BL3 be used to compile kernel 2.6?

> > So what you have is overkill.
>
> Using xubuntu does not leave one with that impression! :-)

Overkill for a distribution designed to run with less resources.
Ubuntu live CD insisted on 128MB a few years ago.  It loaded all sorts of 
daemons and wanted to set the time via the internet each time it booted.
Knoppix boots a lot faster.

> > What were you planning to use the laptop for?
>
> Browsing and email mainly, either via wifi (mobile) or aircard (home).
> Perhaps listening to classical music while doing so. :-)

BL3 with the right kernel should do it.  Opera and mplayer.

> I suppose I can get around the aircard issue by installing wifi at
> home and using the computer with the aircard for the internet
> connection.

Use that one to compile kernels on too. I presume you have something MS on 
that computer, working with the aircard.  If your hard disk is full, put 
in another one.  600MB holds ALL my BL2 files including 2.4 kernel source 
code, lots of timidity patches.....  A slightly newer drive will be 
faster.

Or find a kernel that works with the aircard and use it for a while.  It 
will waste a bit of memory but you have plenty.

Sindi

> Thanks, Sindi!
>
> steve
>
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keesan AT sdf.lonestar.org
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