first obstacle...

gor0 · 09-14-2014, 09:46 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ReaperX7

Perhaps GNU/Linux is not the right system for U

I'm positive it IS !!!
Je suis positif, il est !!!

BTW : what is this???

Code:

lftp -c 'open http://mirrors.slackware.com/slackware/; mirror -x "(^slackware64/e/|^slackware64/f/|^slackware64/k/|^slackware64/kde/|^slackware64/kdei/|^slackware64/t/|^slackware64/tcl/|^slackware64/xap/|^slackware64/xfce/|^slackware64/y/|^extra/|^patches/|^testing/|^source/|mirrorlist$)" slackware64-14.1'

maybe that can suit my needs...

Smokey_justme · 09-14-2014, 09:54 AM

Ok, since you clearly didn't write that.. Let's see.. What do you think it is?

gor0 · 09-14-2014, 09:59 AM

Dunno homie...that was Ruarios' script!!!

Smokey_justme · 09-14-2014, 10:08 AM

And that command (or the script where you find it) was just given to you without any kind of comment or explanation?

That will create a mirror of a few important Slackware directories, just enough to get things going..

Do the damn full install (you can skip KDEI-- or hell, even the full kde suite if you want) and stop trying to be smart about things you can't learn in an hour .. Ohh, and tell your mother to smack you around a couple of time so you stop calling people "homie"..

gor0 · 09-14-2014, 10:11 AM

This is what I'm looking for:

Quote:

Setting up a "small" Slackware install
Intro

Before you do this reconsider if it is really needed. More often than not, it isn't. This is why.

A common reason for attempting a minimal install is an expectation that Slackware will run faster. This is not true. Some of the actual, valid, reasons for stripping back the install include:

Installing on a device with limited disk space, where it is hard to add additional storage
A setup where you rent disk space (e.g. a Virtual Private Server)
As a learning exercise.

If you do have a good reason, below is a rough guide. It won't get you the smallest possible install but with relatively little effort you can take 32-bit Slackware 14.1 down to around the 2GB mark, which is good enough for many use cases. It is also relatively fast to setup, compared to a more precise minimal install (without any redundant dependencies).

Remember that only a full install is supported, so if you are asking for help on the Slackware forums you should first test your problem with a full install, to ensure that missing packages are not the source of your problems. At the very minimum mention that your installation is stripped back and what you have removed.
Install

Install only the a/, d/, l/, n/ and x/ package sets..
After install is complete remove large, unneeded packages (see Tips below for help identifying the biggest packages). If you are unsure if something is needed, just leave it! Some examples of things to consider include:
Large libs, like Qt
Large network servers, like Apache (httpd)
Kernel and kernel module packages you don't use
Any development tools you know you won't need
Excess font packages
Consider also removing /usr/doc. The contents of this directory take up quite some space and are not essential.
Install anything you find missing and regularly use (e.g. your preferred window manager, a web browser, your favourite utilities). You can find the packages on your local install media or use a tool like lftp or wget to fetch packages from a Slackware mirror.

Tips

You can generate a sorted list of the largest installed packages via the following command:

( cd /var/log/packages/ ; grep -x 'U.*M' * ) | awk -F: '{print $3 "\t" $1}' | sort -n

To simplify installing additional packages and keeping the system up to date, install and configure slackpkg (found in the ap/ package set).
If you want to be able to read man pages locally, install groff, man and man-pages (found in the ap/ package set). Otherwise there are plenty sites online that have the same information.
Have a look through PACKAGES.TXT (found on the install media or a mirror) to get an overview of available packages from the official repository. Pay particular attention to packages from the package sets you skipped over during install.
If a program complains about a missing program or library, you can find the package that owns it using slackpkg's file-search command or looking in MANIFEST.bz2.

Smokey_justme · 09-14-2014, 10:15 AM

Quote:

Before you do this reconsider if it is really needed. More often than not, it isn't. This is why.
[...]
Remember that only a full install is supported, so if you are asking for help on the Slackware forums you should first test your problem with a full install, to ensure that missing packages are not the source of your problems. At the very minimum mention that your installation is stripped back and what you have removed.
Install

Trust me, you really, really don't need a small install..

fleabus · 09-14-2014, 02:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rokytnji

I'm a 2 day old newbie.
Maybe you should rethink the road to use to get to your destination.
Semper Gumbi. Rok

I agree. I only just got into it myself. I found the Slackware docs especially easy to understand compared to that of other distributions, and the general "feel" of the system was extremely easy for me to assimilate, Possibly because I got a sort of a *nix start back in the 80s in front of a VT220 terminal. Back then it was VMS... Slackware feels somewhat like those older systems. It made sense when I read that Slackware was trying to stay true to a UNIX-like environment. It felt like old home week.

Since I have plenty of disk space, and what's sitting on the disk bears little resemblance to the actual running system, as a total newbie I could find no reason not to do the recommended full installation. Different strokes, to each his/her own, etc...

moisespedro · 09-14-2014, 05:03 PM

My rants apart Slackware is a crafted masterpiece

(Not perfect but the best Linux distro so far)

Richard Cranium · 09-15-2014, 01:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gor0

This is what I'm looking for:

IMO, any advice telling newbies to delete /usr/doc is BAD advice.

Randicus Draco Albus · 09-15-2014, 02:15 AM

Well, we would not want documentation to get in the way, would we? Although more time reading instructions means less time fumbling around, it is more fun to ask questions on fora and ignore the advice (and continue joyfully fumbling in the dark).

ruario · 09-15-2014, 04:47 AM

@gor0: If you are going to quote me, say that you are quoting me and link to the source of the quote. The text you have roughly copied and pasted is from some notes I wrote on Github. Additionally by doing a copy without formatting you have effectively stripped out important parts.

Let's quote that first sentence again, this time with the key link included as it is in the original:

Quote:

Originally Posted by ruario

Before you do this reconsider if it is really needed. More often than not, it isn't. This is why.

Do you know why I didn't post these instructions in this thread myself? Because it isn't for you or indeed any newbie. Anyone new to Slackware would be better off reading things like this.

My tips on stripping down an install are to help people who have a genuine, valid need. I listed a few examples of such reasons:

Quote:

Originally Posted by ruario

Installing on a device with limited disk space, where it is hard to add additional storage
A setup where you rent disk space (e.g. a Virtual Private Server)
As a learning exercise.

This was not a comprehensive list, but none of these are valid for someone who is new to Slackware IMHO. A new user should always make their first install, a full install. This is to help them understand the system before they tackle one of the above and to help them appreciate why a full install is often the most sensible.

ruario · 09-15-2014, 04:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Richard Cranium

IMO, any advice telling newbies to delete /usr/doc is BAD advice.

Indeed it is. The document that gor0 quoted was written by me but it was not for newbies. It was my own notes, written in such a way that I could share it with other (more experienced) users who found themselves in a situation where they needed more disk space. There are valid examples of this, e.g. renting a VPS to run Slackware with limited space, where additionally space would increase your monthly fee.

gor0 took my (admittedly public) notes and quoted them out of context (by stripping important formatting) and without so much of a mention of where they came from or who wrote them.

My advice to newbies, as I have stated many times on this forum, is to do a full install.

moisespedro · 09-15-2014, 04:57 AM

I might not have the best English in the world but Jesus this gor0 guy is annoying to read.

ruario · 09-15-2014, 05:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Smokey_justme

Trust me, you really, really don't need a small install..

No he does not. He is new to Slackware and additionally seems to have ample space. That document he quotes was not aimed at him. It was for a different type of user, in a different situation.

ruario · 09-15-2014, 05:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Smokey_justme

And that command (or the script where you find it) was just given to you without any kind of comment or explanation?

That will create a mirror of a few important Slackware directories, just enough to get things going..

In a previous thread (from three months back) gor0 asked how to do a minimal install. At the time I had never interacted with him before. I had no idea if he was a newbie or had already used used Slackware in the past.

Though in the very first reply Didier Spaier did state,

Quote:

Originally Posted by Didier Spaier

First, bear in mind that Slackware is designed as a whole and doesn't provide automatic dependencies resolution, so if you do a minimal install sooner or later some software won't work until you install its dependencies, and you'll have to figure out yourself what packages are needed.

This is why we recommend that newcomers make a full installation.

Later in the thread gor0 started to talk about converting a Salix install into Slackware proper, which sounded like nonsense to me. If you want Slackware use Slackware, you don't need to convert it, that is an extra complication.

gor0 then explained the reason for attempting this was that he intended to do a USB install and his pendrive was only 2Gb, so would not house the full iso.

I replied with the following:

Quote:

Originally Posted by ruario

use a command like the following to fetch just the a/, ap/, d/, l/, n/ and x/ series (892Mb). This is a good base from which you can build up the install to include what you require.

Code:

lftp -c 'open http://mirrors.slackware.com/slackware/; mirror -x "(^slackware/e/|^slackware/f/|^slackware/k/|^slackware/kde/|^slackware/kdei/|^slackware/t/|^slackware/tcl/|^slackware/xap/|^slackware/xfce/|^slackware/y/|^extra/|^patches/|^testing/|^source/|mirrorlist$)" slackware-14.1'

a/, ap/, d/, l/, n/ and x/ would have provided all the major libraries along with key binaries, so it would be fairly easy to build up without getting into dependency hell. In hindsight I guess I shouldn't have bothered as he was not capable of following these instructions anyway.

In the end, I got so fed up with him I signed off the thread with:

Quote:

Originally Posted by ruario

Since I am no longer sure that you are serious and aren't in fact simply trolling me, I am not planning to assist you further in this thread. If you are genuine, good luck.