By the third public release, users started to contribute hacks, which cumulatively improved DSL. Some applications have been dropped and replaced with programs that are a better fit. For instance, the X from Knoppix is much too big, so I had to hack a system that uses Keith Packard's Kdrive X servers ().ĭSL has evolved a lot over time. Fortunately, all the lightweight applications had already been developed I just had to be very particular about what was included in DSL.
Getting a fully functional desktop into 50 MB is not a simple process. In later releases, DSL began as a reduction of Knoppix proper. I actually cheated in the beginning and used an already reduced ISO called Model_K (now defunct ). I decided to try my hand at remastering Knoppix.
Damn small linux iso portable#
Some of them were quite nice, like Kurumin () from Brazil, but I wanted something very portable and under 50 MB, like LNX-BBC. I read about the reduction efforts to get Knoppix small enough to fit into 80-mm 210-MB CDs. I was on a quest for a Linux distribution that was small enough to fit on a business-card CD, yet had a fully functional desktop. LNX-BBC is similar to a rescue disk, and ByzantineOS is based on Mozilla (which it uses in very interesting ways). They were both very innovative but not really what I was looking for. net), the two leading sub-50-MB distributions at the time. I wanted a desktop-oriented live CD that was fast and small, so I checked out LNX-BBC () and ByzantineOS ( sourceforge. I usually grab the lightest applications to use on my home desktop: for email, I use Sylpheed for browsing, I use Dillo or Links-Hacked.
from a live CD on my older computers is a real chore.
I am also a big Knoppix fan, but running KDE,, Mozilla, etc. Simply put, I'm an efficiency freak, which is why I founded Damn Small Linux (DSL, ). Despite its size, it strives to have a functional and easy to use desktop. Damn Small Linux is a business-card- sized (50 MB) bootable live CD Linux distribution.