Lightweight Distributions

A lightweight distribution is one that requires minimal memory and fewer system resources. Some popular examples are Damn Small Linux, Knoppix, and Puppy. There are several reasons that you might want to have one or more of these handy. A previous article discussed using Knoppix as a rescue disk. Let’s consider a few more.

You have an older computer with limited memory and a slower processor. GNOME or KDE will just slow you down. XUbuntu with the XFCE window manager might be a good choice.

You have a new netbook. The same reason above applies. Your netbook may have come with Windows XP. In that case you may want to replace it with something more efficient and not subject to malware. Rumor has it that Microsoft is nearly giving away XP licenses to OEM vendors so don’t fret about the M$ tax. You will not save much by hunting for a Linux model. Buy the XP Machine and search the web to see what other folks have done with it.

You like the idea of carrying a computer in your pocket or purse. Just borrow a friends CPU and boot up your own system. This is really great when your friend is having Windows problems. You get to show off Linux and maybe solve a problem or two.

The Amazing Puppy

All of the aforementioned distros share these characteristics but I think Puppy comes closest to having a computer in your pocket. The core distribution of Puppy is less than 100 Mb. It will fit on a USB flash drive. Even an old one. Despite it’s size the base distribution comes with a nice variety of applications for productivity, internet browsing, multimedia and a few games. There’s plenty more in the Puppy repository if you want them. Of course you are asking “But wont adding applications make Puppy bigger?” and “What happens to my data when I shut down?”

First of all, when Puppy shuts down it offers you the option to save your data. Where to save it is entirely up to you. Use some space on a local drive, another USB disk or even the boot drive if there’s space. Another nice feature is Puppy’s built in ability to remaster itself. After you have added software and perhaps have  done some additional customization you may want to create a new boot disk with your personal version of Puppy or “Puplets” as devotees call them. Puppy will create an ISO image to your liking. Simply amazing. The Puppy home page has  a number of Puplets created by others for you to try.

Another interesting property of Puppy is the way in which it loads into your computer. When you boot it, it loads into RAM in its entirety. This makes it as fast as your machine will allow. Once loaded you can remove the boot media be it either CD-ROM or flash drive. The annoying “CD stuck in drive” phenomena is avoided.

CD-ROM or USB Flash?

Puppy is distributed as an ISO. Your first inclination will be to burn the ISO to a CD. Linux users need only to right-click on the ISO file to be offered a burn. Less fortunate Windows users will need a third party utility such as ImgBurn. This is okay provided (1) you have an optical drive (some netbooks do not) and (2) you get a good burn (as opposed to a coaster). After you actually use your CD your “SAVE” options will be limited since you cannot save to the CD.

It makes good sense, therefore, to install Puppy to a flash drive. The flash drive usually boots faster than a CD anyway. By the way, Puppy has a built-in feature to install to flash drives. I know, some of you geeks are thinking “Why not use the unetbootin utility to create the drive?” The answer is that you can but satisfactory results are not guaranteed. A bootable image is not quite the same as an installed distribution. In practice I do a combination of both. I keep a GRUB boot CD handy whose sole purpose is to boot a flash drive if one is present. This also avoids needing to update my BIOS when I change the device or slot that I am booting from. Instructions can be found here and here. I can boot the flash drive directly or indirectly(via the CD-ROM) depending on the situation.

Special Offer

Depending on how “geeky” you are, making a GRUB boot disk and bootable flash drive will either be easy, difficult or beyond your ability. Let me do the hard work for you! For the princely sum of $20(US) I will send you a bootable flash drive (at least 1 Gb) with the latest version of Puppy plus a GRUB boot disk with instruction on how to boot from a CD in case your computer is not already setup to do this. If your outside the US, add a couple of dollars for overseas postage. Just click on the DONATE button near the bottom of the page and be sure to include your mailing address!