Hello everyone. I've known about linux for a long time and knew the basics of linux, you know, different distros etc.

I've finally gotten a time to try out a distro that I like, Damn Small Linux. So, I downloaded the .iso file, burned it to a disk and voila!
There was my linux distro.


Anyway, I created two partitions
I did a Frugal Install on the first one
and the second one I used for MyDSL.


So, here's my question, is there a way to make DSL boot faster, without starting all that stuff in the beginning when I boot, for instance, autoconfiguring hardware etc.

And what is the difference between a frugal install and a harddrive install?

I do hope you can help, it would be truly appreciated.

Terminal(ly) -ill

If you really tweak the kernel, you might make a little difference. But all those boot processes are standard operating procedure.

Generally, Linux distros take longer to boot than Windows, but when you get down to the nuts 'n bolts of it, that's a good thing.

Hey Alpha, thanks for the reply!

That's all I wanted to hear, I was afraid DSL was loading up all that stuff unnecessarily.
So, can you tell me the difference between a Frugal Install and a harddrive install?

And...(Man, this is going to sound noobish), how do you access a flashdrive in Linux?

Well, I don't know what you mean by "hard drive" install, I'm assuming you mean "standard" which is actually installing the OS as normal. That is, installing all the files, programs, libraries, etc in a standard Linux file system with the regular directories and such.

A frugal install, from what I understand anyway, simply is to "install" (Or copy, I guess.) the files directly from the CD to a specified directory and then use a boot loader (LILO, GRUB, etc.) to access and load the files as you would a live CD.

As far as the flash drive, I'm not totally sure how you mean. If you're talking about loading an OS from it, your Motherboard BIOS has to support booting from USB. Most MOBOs of the last four or five years support this, so unless it's older, it shouldn't be a problem. Then you have to go into the BIOS and change in the boot order such that USB is first. (Consult the motherboard's manual for this, it's different for every one.)

If you simply mean reading files off it, most distros have some sort of auto-mounting program for them (such as HAL or whatever) If not, read up on how to manual mount drives via command line, fstab, or the other files used for mounting.

Hmmm, thanks once again, with harddrive install, I refer to the option when installing DSL. Would a harddrive install be faster when booting than a Frugal install? I guess so, then. Problem is I can't get the harddrive install to work, don't you need LILO or GRUB when doing a harddrive install as well as a Frugal install? It is a boot loader after all?

By flash drive I meant just putting it in and accessing the files on it. I don't know how to do this in DSL.

hi to everyone
this is my first post here and also i am a linux newbie(total greenhorn)but i am always willing to learn. i have in the last couple of years found out how to work with the dreambox and how to connect to a server and make it work but i paid for the serverto be programmed by a linux experienced person who has since passed away. i would now like to learn how to load debian to a server and make it my own. i have purchased a dedicated acer server which was not very expensive and would like some help to get it going. i have found it difficult to find which debian software to use or which downloads are required. now maybe i am asking too much i don't know but any help will be returned to the forum in the future.
thanx in advance
goldie

That was unexpected, welcome to the LQ family to you as well!