Kubuntu modular version (like slax)

[wanderer]

Hi everybody

Does anybody know if there are plans for a KUbuntu modular version, something similar to slax? I downloaded it recently (slax) and find it very interesting.

[askrieger]

Re: Kubuntu modular version (like slax)

Can you explain what you mean by a modular version for those of us who have never used Slax?

[wanderer]

Re: Kubuntu modular version (like slax)

Can you explain what you mean by a modular version for those of us who have never used Slax?

From what i've seen and understood, it's like a Live CD but you can add modules (pre-installed applications?) to it which will automatically be loaded at runtime when booting from the CD. That way you can create a Linux LiveCD version with only the modules (applications) you wish, preinstalled. The default installation is a little less than 200MB (without any modules). The author also says that it has the ability to save the changes you perform in an external file (that may exist in a HDD partition or a USB flash drive). Personally i haven't been successful in that (yet) but imagine the portability of the system. Just a CD and a USB flash disk and you have your O/S with the apps you wish, wherever you go. You just need a PC...

Check it out: http://www.slax.org/.

[askrieger]

Re: Kubuntu modular version (like slax)

The use of UFS to provide a degree of permanence to live-CD distros is not unique to Slax. I know that Knoppix, and distros derived from Knoppix like Quantian) also use UFS. The Kubuntu live CD offers the more permanent choice of installing the whole operating system to your hard drive.

I may be (probably, am) missing the point here, but I don't see the advantage of adding a UFS component to the Kubuntu "Desktop" CD.

[wanderer]

Re: Kubuntu modular version (like slax)

I may be (probably, am) missing the point here, but I don't see the advantage of adding a UFS component to the Kubuntu "Desktop" CD.

Well, this might be a point (for me at least) :

Just a CD and a USB flash disk and you have your O/S with the apps you wish, wherever you go. You just need a PC...

[askrieger]

Re: Kubuntu modular version (like slax)

Ah ha! Now I see why you'd like to have that capability. You'll have to ask the developers to add Union File System capability to the live CD. I'm not sure if you (K)Ubuntu supprts UFS at all.

[wanderer]

Re: Kubuntu modular version (like slax)

Ah ha! Now I see why you'd like to have that capability. You'll have to ask the developers to add Union File System capability to the live CD. I'm not sure if you (K)Ubuntu supprts UFS at all.

UFS will probably give me the ability to save the changes i make to the OS when i boot from the Live CD, right? There is another thing though. Can i decide what applications will be loaded in the live CD by default. Remember, i'm not (and i assume this is valid for other people interested in such thing) a Linux master so it might be difficult for me to create my own live CD. That's why i found Slax's module idea so appealing. You just download and copy an application module to a certain folder in the Slax Live CD and it is loaded automatically upon boot. Does this happen in (K)ubuntu's Live CD too?

[askrieger]

Re: Kubuntu modular version (like slax)

At present, you have no choice with regard to the applications on the Live CD, other than the choice of using the Kubuntu CD (KDE) or the Ubuntu CD (Gnome). You have access to all the apps on the CD, but not to any others unless you install the OS to your hard drive. What the Union File System does is, it combines the file system on the CD with another file system which might be on a removable USB stick, a portable HD or even a zip disk. If the Kubuntu Live CD used UFS, you could download applications and store them on the auxiliary drive. I suspect that the (K)Ubuntu live CDs are mainly visualized by the developers as a way for people to try the distro before installation. The point being that there's no point in going through the installation procedure until you're sure that your hardware is supported.

As I understand it, most people just use the UFS on Knoppix to maintain what used to be called a "Persistent Home" on their removable drive so that they could store their own preferences, etc. between sessions in Knoppix. The use of UFS to store additional applications may be an idea that is original with Slax.

[wanderer]

Re: Kubuntu modular version (like slax)

The use of UFS to store additional applications may be an idea that is original with Slax.

I'm not sure that's the case. If you wish to add a new application, you have to download the module and add it to the /modules dir that exists in the CD (which means re-burn the CD or use a rewritable). I don't know if the /modules (or perhaps another dir - /optional which can be used to optionally load modules) can exist in the UFS. I find the whole idea very interesting though. I don't know if it's very efficient (hardware-wise) but if all the necessary drivers exist in the CD, it's a totally mobile and hardware-independent solution.

[dregorth]

Re: Kubuntu modular version (like slax)

Before switching to Kubuntu, I had used Slax off and on for about a year and it's quite the handy OS to carry around on a usb stick (created using myslax creator and adding modules with that makes it even more simple). It's definitely worth checking out as it's not too big at all.