I have been unsuccessful in finding a solution on this forum. However Barry's Blog http://bkhome.org/blog/?viewDetailed=02623 seemed to suggest a possible answer:
Would this solve my issue? If so, can anyone explain how to do this?The solution for the first (after trying not to save the devices) was to eliminate devices from the main sfs all together, and trust the kernel-udev to do the job in every boot.
Barry's suggestion was intended for advanced users - I am a beginner.
Other than this problem Slacko Puppy is great - thanks for all the work everyone has put into it.
Best,
Richard