hey
i didnt know where to ask this question, so i am here.
i want to have a distro on my flash disk so i can take it every where. but i want a distro to run from my flash with tools for web development, things like:
LAMP, an editor(Geany, BlueFish, ...), Internet&Network connection possiblities(probably better with networkmanager), Lightweight X desktop(Openbox is nice ), ..
those are most thing i want...
what do you suggest?
i already know about puppy but i couldnt find LAMP for it...

Hi,

Xubuntu allows install on a stick, you should be able to pick up anything you need from there...

There seems to be a more "hardcore" way too...

Luck!

Thor

I personally use CrunchBang on my 8gb USB flash drive. It is an Openbox distro based on Debian (which as you probably know is an excellent server/LAMP distro).

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@ snowpine

Thanks! Did'nt know that about CrunchBang...

I suggest that you create not a pendrive install but a real install to a flash drive. The difference is you won't be able to do technical tasks with a common flash install. Most flash installs take a live cd/dvd and hack it to work on a usb. That presents some good and bad. Good is it is easy and puts a lot of compressed data in a small flash drive and may have persistence.

What you want is a real install. It will take a larger flash drive but it will correctly use updates to files where the pendrive install will not. You may need to install some lib or update your kernel and that can't be done in a flash install unless it is like any real hard drive install.

Almost all distro's can be installed that way but you have to be careful. You need to be sure your grub gets on the flash drive. You may have to or want to use uuid instead of sdx numbers. You may have to fix grub on fist boot. After than it is like any install.

Perhaps a noob question/remark...but, how about just putting a grub on the pendrive and tweak the BIOS to first try-boot the pendrive (if plugged in) and afterwards try the hard drive...

If I recall, that's how I did the install...and yes, an INSTALL is needed if one needs pesistence and a workable system...

But, I may be ranting, it's way beyond 22:30 here, so I may need to turn in for the work week...sorry if I "knocked something over"...

Thor

The easiest way to get around GRUB problems, in my experience, is to disconnect your internal hard drive(s) as well as any other external drives, so that the target USB drive to which you're installing is the only drive connected to the computer (in addition to the installer CD/USB, of course). This will guarantee that your USB, being the first and only drive, is treated as /dev/sda. It also prevents any GRUB-install mishaps, for example your computer won't boot without the USB drive. (Been there done that, embarrassing!)

1 members found this post helpful.

hey. Thx all but those were not what i was looking for. It does not matter whether distro should be installed or run as live disk but, but i just want those tools available. And it should allow me to use remaining space. It is important. But these are not this way. They dont have lamp and those development tools installed.
I know slax can do that but i cant use its build service, can anyone do that for me? I will appreciate that a lot!

I'm not sure where you're getting this information? LAMP is a very common and popular software suite that is available for all distros including Xubuntu, CrunchBang, and Puppy.

CrunchBang even asks "do you want to install LAMP?" on first boot.

ok, #! is good. but it is about 650mb! that's too high for a 4gb flash disk.
i want lamp INSTALLED not to BE READY FOR INSTALLATION. i think thats the point for xubuntu(like ubuntu)
i dont think having linux+x+desktop+lamp+editor and some other stuff needs more than 300mb(highest possibility).
as i said, slax has a nice build feature, but i dont know how to use it for these stuff. i anyone can help me, i would appreciate that a lot.
and thx, again! ;D

I'm scratching my head trying to understand your arbitrary restrictions that LAMP must be preinstalled and the distro must be under 300mb. Installing packages in Ubuntu/Debian/etc. is quick and easy, and storage space is a cheap commodity in 2011 (an 8gb flash drive costs about $10).

But I don't want to argue with you, so I'll provide a helpful link and then excuse myself from the thread. I googled "puppy linux lamp" and this came up on Page 1:

http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic.php?t=59509

please don't scratch it! listen!
installing apps in every linux distro is easy, if you have a good internet connection. my highest speed connection downloads at 50kb/s(which i dont have access at the moment), so what do you think know? thats why i want all those preinstalled.
and about site: it doesnt come,i already googled myself before but i found nothing helpful for lucid puppy(there are things for older ones).

I just installed LAMP stack on my CrunchBang system as an experiment. The download size is 36.5mb. At 50kb/s that is 12 minutes (you could have downloaded it 100 times over since you asked the question yesterday) and it's certainly not going to fill up your 4gb drive.

@ OP

How about expanding on your question with a simple answer to this question: what's your goal. I'm beginning to suspect that, once the purpose is known, the answer will soon follow.

50kb is highest, know i just have a 5kb internet.
Ane yes, lamp is 36mb bu #! is 700mb, you see? It will take a whole day....
I have searched before and found i may have just two ways:
1 use puppy with lamp, if anyone has a lucid puppy with lamp, please let me know.
2 use slax build service, but it seems i cant make it. I want a lightweight desktop and lamp and an editor. That is enough.