hello,

I am a linux newbie and now i have used linux consistently for about 3 months and really like it.I am using opensuse 10.2.

And now i was wondering if an existing linux could be modified to suit ones needs ie like modifying an exsiting one like knoppix to create a custom version with custom boot screen and programs without all the default ones. basically i want to make a custom version for my friend and put in the programs she needs for her birthday.

wow nice present for a girlfriend ;-)

But you mean from the beginning ?
Should she also use OpenSuse 10.2?
Ghost4Linux and clone it won't be a solution for you I guess.
If I understand that correct you want to modify the Install DVD so that it fits to your recommendations, like Programs, etc...

http://en.opensuse.org/CD_creation

I am trying to imagine the reaction if I were to give my wife an operating system for her birthday---it is not a pretty picture...
Unless you know this person REALLY WELL, I'd say you are playing with fire.

no pixellany i do know this person extremely well.

odcheck

thanks i want to use an existing linux like knoppix to create a linux with custom programs.i mean like backtrack 2 for instance is a modified version of knoppix or something with only security tools.She likes cartoon characters so i thought maybe make a modification to a live cd with backgrounds and bootscreens preset to her favorite ones....

...and I think we have all taken the interpretation that you intend to carry on knowing this person for a while to come...

The easiest thing is to change GUI backgrounds for a particular user in an installed version. (You probably should say which GUI your are using; I think its easy in KDE and Gnome anyway).

The 'splash screens' at boot should be easy too, but I have to admit I don't know how to do it.

If you really want to modify an install disk so that it installs your customised version and maybe even shows your own stuff by default as it is installing, that's more difficult but still 'do-able' and would take a bit more time. This birthday or next?

hi salasi

i have 3 years experience in c/c++ and the os i am not in a big hurry as i didnt tell her about it so i can take my time on it.So anyone knows how i get started?

Here is a Tutorial on how to build a custom Knoppix CD

http://librenix.com/?inode=7680

The generic procedure is:

-find out what format your GUI uses for the bit of graphics that you want to replace (e.g., is it a jpeg? a bitmap?) You'll need to know this for the next stage and you may want to have a look round at what's already on the system.

- prepare the graphics that you want to use in the appropriate file format. I'd guess you'd be using inkscape/the gimp/krita for that, but any program that produces the right file format is fine. Maybe you are using digital camera photos, in which case you probably want to go via the gimp or krita to clean up and get the right size.

- for gui backgrounds, in kde, there is a simple dialogue box. In kubuntu, its (K Menu > system settings > backgrounds > get new wallpaper) but other distros may put this in a slightly different place. In SuSE, for example, I think its somewhere in yast. And kde itself has changed a bit in menu organisation over the years so you might have to look around a bit for it, but it should take you less than a minute.

- again, in kubuntu, the kde splash screen is changeable in a very similar way. as the last element of the selection path earlier, look in 'splash screens' instead of 'get new wallpaper'.

In these stages, you are changing the appropriate graphics for the currently active user so you have to be able to log in as the target user.

The 'chooser' is more difficult (for me, anyway - I don't know how to do it!). This is the screen with which you are confronted when you log in. I think I have seen that you can change that too, but I just don't know the mechanism. If you change this, it applies to all users.

A quick search found;

1. Making a SUSE based distribution
http://en.opensuse.org/Making_a_SUSE_based_distribution

2. Linux Live scripts. How to build a Live distro
http://www.linux-live.org/#

3. http://www.linuxfromscratch.org/
Linux From Scratch. Linux From Scratch (LFS) is a project that provides you with step-by-step instructions for building your own custom Linux system, entirely from source code.

4. Automated network install of suse. Configuring a custom Installation CD.
http://ostoolbox.blogspot.com/2006_01_29_archive.html

hi everybody

thanks for the help

my special thanks to odcheck because it ultimately led me to this wonderful site

http://www.linux-live.org/#

And i found a very light weight slackware based linux (only 192mb) which i am going to experiment with.here it is

http://www.slax.org/download.php


thanks again everybody.i will soon roll out a new distro :-)