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On Mon, May 31, 2010 at 6:24 PM,  <baslinux AT lists.ibiblio.org> wrote:
> On Tue, 1 Jun 2010, baslinux AT lists.ibiblio.org wrote:
>
>> Message from Steven
>> ===================
>> Sindi wrote:
>>>
>>> Steven, do you plan on a BL with 2.6 kernel at some point?
>>
>> No.  As you may recall, I was reluctant to abandon
>> the 2.0 kernel.  It was small and very suitable for
>> 386s and 486s.  The 2.2 kernel was larger, but it
>> was a better fit for Pentiums, so eventually it
>> became the default kernel for BL2 and BL3.
>>
>> The 2.2 kernel is still very suitable for the target
>> BasicLinux computers (top 486s and early Pentiums).
>> It is true that the 2.4 and 2.6 kernels have more
>> capabilities than the 2.2. but their footprints are
>> significantly larger.  Moreover, most of the addded
>> capabilities are relevant only to later computers.
>
> SATA has been around since at least 2003.  People are now giving us
> working 7 year old desktops and 233-300MHz laptops.  No need to use a 486
> (which does not take enough memory to use with even an older Opera).
>
> The reason for a 2.6 kernel is to be able to use more recent Slackware
> packages, which are dependencies for a variety of browsers.  There are
> increasing numbers of websites that don't work with older versions of
> browsers, and I can't even get Opera 10 to work (except with invisible
> fonts).  The drivers for most wireless cards won't compile even with
> Slackware 11 glibc and gcc.
>
> What do we do with .ko modules, after compiling them using the Slackware
> 11 config?  Do we need anything other than the latest glibc to use 2.6.30
> kernel and modules from Puppy Linux, or kernel and modules from some other
> small linux?
>
> The HOWTOS assume you use modprobe and lots of automation (configuration
> files) to automatically detect hardware.
>
> Sindi
>
>> Cheers,
>> Steven
>
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Perhaps there is a need for new distro then?  Personally, I'd like to
still see BL aimed towards 486s.  I see the need for a distro aimed at
older (233-300 MHz) laptops, but if you moved BL away from 486s there
wouldn't be any distro filling that niche anymore.