Distro Advice: no frills at all. Which version?
 

Hi all. First off thank you in advance for your help and advice.

I am running XP-Pro and I plan to run a Linux distro using VMWare.

What I want to find is a distro that is basically totally stripped down. I want to have to build and compile everything myself. If I want a GUI then I want to be forced to go get it and install it myself, I don't want it handed to me. No auto-rpm easy packaging system, etc.

I want a distro the is a working "framework" and nothing else. I guess I'm picturing in my head the idea of a disto that is the "perfect" distro to learn anything and everything about Linux on. A "sink or swim" distro.

The kind of distro that a new user should have absolutely no business knowing it even exists because it would be an optimal setup for frustration and failure. That's exactly the disrto I want.

again, thanks in advance.

I guess LFS (Linux From Scratch) is probably what you are looking for, if not there are articles "use a search" that will guide you through building from the kernal up. Good Luck.

LFS may be too stripped down since it is entirely built from scratch. You may also want to look at Gentoo or Slackware (in that order) as stripped down but prebuilt distros.

LFS is the best, But it is from scratch too. I mean to say, it's from zero to all.
But if you are looking for some base things to install and then work your way through, you probably need Slackware. Install minimal system, then using source packages, build your system. Gentoo will be fine in this purpose too.

Oops. It seems I've just submitted duplicate advice. No way to delete post? (need to be faster in keyboard) :)

No need to delete it - the OP asked for opinions and advice and it so happens that we have the same advice, which gives more weight to it as an opinion.

slackware is great way to learn the intermediate linux environment.

slack boots you to a black console. you'll be at the commandline working with the bash shell, editing configuration files with vi or such editor. i think thats enough to be getting on with for the determined new linux user.

xeddex, you are limiting yourself with your idea to do everything from scratch in VMWare.

You would be much better served to install one full working distribution (perhaps Slackware) and work on configuring it to suit you while deciding if you prefer the Linux from Scratch or Gentoo approach (or both) for self built Linux. You should do this with real installs by either resizing your current disk to create room for Linux or adding a second hard drive.

This way you get to learn partitioning and using/configuring a boot manager on top of learning how to use development tools, system configuration options and software choices.

Good Luck.