DistroWatch: Damn Small Linux: Damn Fine Distro

“I came to Linux just a couple of months ago (as of the time of
this review), and in that time, I have gone distro-crazy. I must
have installed/run (or tried to, at least) 10 distros on my box by
now; big and small. Damn Small Linux (or DSL for short) is a
knoppix-based live CD distro. I know, I know; line starts to the
left. But unlike most live CD distros, this one is made for those
tiny business card CDs. Weighing in at a sporty 50MBs, DSL manages
to squeeze in some handy – and fun – programs the other business
card CD distros miss.

“Like I said, I’m pretty new to the whole Linux scene, and I’m
no expert. At this stage in the game, I generally give up if things
get too tough when it comes to installation or configuration and
look for other, more ‘newbie-friendly’ distros. So when Morphix
wouldn’t boot properly, I set the CD aside for a future project.
But DSL Linux succeeded where Morphix failed, thanks in no small
part for DSL’s less-lofty goals. DSL is simplicity itself, but that
doesn’t mean it doesn’t have a lot to offer.

“I went ahead and ordered the CD from DSL creator John Andrews’s
site and (after establishing I’m too stupid to fill out an order
form properly on the first try) received version 0.4.3 in the mail
promptly. For those who care about these things, the CD itself came
in a plastic baggie. No manual, no artwork on the disc itself –
just the disc with ‘Damn Small Linux’ written on it with a Sharpie.
But then again, my copy of Red Hat 8 cost me $50 at CompUSA and the
pretty box and manual didn’t do a thing to help it get installed on
my box right the first time, so I think we can agree that looks
aren’t everything…”

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