another $0.02 from a newbie - edits added 12/5/09
Posted: Wed 18 Nov 2009, 22:21
I agree with the last post: like Ubuntu and variants - which IMHO have lots of somewhat contradictory information, due to it not being updated in a timely fashion -the challenge here is how to get at the basic info I want in the shortest time. Don't mind combing forums for hints, but a release note for the new 4.3.1 distro advising whether it supports scsi disks or not (as boot or simply7 as sd"x") would have been helpful. As it is, I am now under the impression that although the universal installer offers scsi disks as a target for the file system, only the IDE drives on my system will be supported. I guess I need a "puppy" or have to learn how to compile one. I did read the instructions from way back on how to make a SCSI disk bootable but noted there was no AHA-2940 in the code being added to the init scripts.
>>>>>> edit 12/5/09 Turns out the distro I wanted was listed right under the 4.3.1 I downloaded. Guess I shudda looked better. After stepping back and "practicing" navigation between all the help resouces, I'm better able to find stuff now, such as the narrative recommending the _scsi_modems iso.<<<<<<<<<<
An example of being left out in the weeds came as I tried to download and install the 2.0 SeaMonkey. Followed the Linux install instructions, downloaded and extracted, but the ./seamonkey kickoff fails, barking about some shared library it can't find. I have no idea what it needs to be happy. It's in usr/bin, BTW, which has a readme file advertising executables should run from there as it's in the default search path.
>>>>>>>> edit 12/5/09 This is a SeaMonkey problem that others have had. With more perspective under my belt, I now see this is not Puppy "Management's" problem per se. OTOH, the intro docs tout the new package management system so this was a bit bewildering at the time.<<<<<<<<<
So you see, if your target market is guys like me who vaguely remember some solaris command line stuff and are tired of microsoft crapware, it's got to be a little more accessible. Just tell me how to know, and where to find info, not necessarily spoon feed me.
On the plus side, it only took less than an hour from my google search on "small linux" to a live CD running on my old K6 clone, which I had spent many hours trying to force Xubuntu to install on. Keep up the good work.
>>>>>>> edit 12/5/09 Initially I got confused and/or disoriented finding and using the help resources for noobs. That probably comes from expecting all the ramp-up help or links to be in one startoff place, pref. the puppylinux.org home page. It still seems a bit scattered even now, though much better organized than my first perception. *If* the information is available, and practical to present simply, it would be nice if each official distro had more upfront specs on ballpark min hw requirements. A chart of which kernels come with which distros would also be a help. That way I could narrow down the distro choices after determining which kernel(s) are likely to run on the target HW; this seems to be a gating consideration. Authors of "offsite" puplets should be encouraged to provide similar info. This need only be in the form of a simple table and a link to it from the main help resource site. The table should also have a link directly to the download site where the distro can be found. Code tree authors can maintain the links to their sites as changes occur. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Of course, all info would come with appropriate "your mileage may vary" caveats. I am interested in working with principals to produce the suggested tools. Best regards<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<
>>>>>> edit 12/5/09 Turns out the distro I wanted was listed right under the 4.3.1 I downloaded. Guess I shudda looked better. After stepping back and "practicing" navigation between all the help resouces, I'm better able to find stuff now, such as the narrative recommending the _scsi_modems iso.<<<<<<<<<<
An example of being left out in the weeds came as I tried to download and install the 2.0 SeaMonkey. Followed the Linux install instructions, downloaded and extracted, but the ./seamonkey kickoff fails, barking about some shared library it can't find. I have no idea what it needs to be happy. It's in usr/bin, BTW, which has a readme file advertising executables should run from there as it's in the default search path.
>>>>>>>> edit 12/5/09 This is a SeaMonkey problem that others have had. With more perspective under my belt, I now see this is not Puppy "Management's" problem per se. OTOH, the intro docs tout the new package management system so this was a bit bewildering at the time.<<<<<<<<<
So you see, if your target market is guys like me who vaguely remember some solaris command line stuff and are tired of microsoft crapware, it's got to be a little more accessible. Just tell me how to know, and where to find info, not necessarily spoon feed me.
On the plus side, it only took less than an hour from my google search on "small linux" to a live CD running on my old K6 clone, which I had spent many hours trying to force Xubuntu to install on. Keep up the good work.
>>>>>>> edit 12/5/09 Initially I got confused and/or disoriented finding and using the help resources for noobs. That probably comes from expecting all the ramp-up help or links to be in one startoff place, pref. the puppylinux.org home page. It still seems a bit scattered even now, though much better organized than my first perception. *If* the information is available, and practical to present simply, it would be nice if each official distro had more upfront specs on ballpark min hw requirements. A chart of which kernels come with which distros would also be a help. That way I could narrow down the distro choices after determining which kernel(s) are likely to run on the target HW; this seems to be a gating consideration. Authors of "offsite" puplets should be encouraged to provide similar info. This need only be in the form of a simple table and a link to it from the main help resource site. The table should also have a link directly to the download site where the distro can be found. Code tree authors can maintain the links to their sites as changes occur. <<<<<<<<<<<<<<
Of course, all info would come with appropriate "your mileage may vary" caveats. I am interested in working with principals to produce the suggested tools. Best regards<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<