Linux That Runs Off A Cd?


gary.mckeown

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I've decided i want to give linux a go. a friend at work said that there's a linux that you can run off a cd so i dont have to mess around formatting my HD. whats it called and where can i download it from (i'm not talking illigally i'm sure that linux is free to my understanding anyway)

cheers

Gaz
 
You need google and the words 'knoppix' or 'ubuntu', the sites for either of those will tell you the rest.
 
Ive found the best live cds to be PCLinuxOS for a full desktop with all kinds of functions and extra programs and an install option, or Slax for a light weight "I just wanna try Linux out with a few extra applications(kde, firefox)".
 
Ubuntu and Knoppix are not the same thing, keep that in mind.

Ubuntu is backed by a company; I'm not sure of Knoppix.
Knoppix runs KDE by default, Ubuntu runs GNOME (or KDE in Kubuntu).

You should really try both and see which one you prefer.
 
Hmm... I have several "Live" distros lying around... one absolute minimalist on a single floppy for simpler things like disk formatting diagnostics etc, Feather Linux on my USB pen and on CD, and Knoppix (CD). Basically I ended up with a whole bunch while looking at different distros. I also have install discs for Ubuntu and Slackware (disk 1 only) and am currently trying to install Slackware. Basically I've ended up with so many because I was looking for a good distro for my old box, and I have only CD-Rs, no RWs.

For live distros I'd say:

Knoppix if you want a bigger CD/DVD distro (several gigs of software compressed on each, and obviously there's more on the DVD version) if you want to try a pretty full featured distro with lots of different apps (office, art/design, games etc etc) and several different options for different desktop environment (Default is the very nice looking KDE, but there are also "lighter" ones like Fluxbox, IceWM and TWM)

Feather Linux if you want a nice light distro that also packs a lot of apps in. It's actually a remastered version of Knoppix, and uses a lighter desktop environment and small apps. Total size is <128Mb, and you can run off a USB pen drive or CD. Pen drive is useful because you can save settings and your work on the same portable medium as the OS itself, instead of carrying around a CD and rewritable media. DSL (Damn Small Linux) is also apparently very good for this sort of thing, and is much smaller, but consequently also has less software.

Hope that helps :) Good luck, and hope you enjoy it.

EDIT: For a fairly comprehensive (or at least BIG) list of Live distros, try www.linux.org, a pretty good Linux-centric site. In the sidebar click "distributions", then on that page, select "Live CD" from the drop down list titled "category" and click GO. In fact that's fairly useful for finding whatever type of distro you want ;)
 
Live CDs are great, though obviously bear in mind that they're not going to run as fast or boot as fast as a full HD install...

They are great for trying out Linux though. I myself have tried Ubuntu and Knoppix. Both are great, and worth checking out as already said above.
 
But if you get Ubuntu (or any distro where there are both live AND install images) make sure you get the Live CD, NOT the install CD... :p especially if you don't have a decent connection because then you'll have to redownload (unless you know how to turn it into a live distro- which should actually be possible I believe...). Oh, and wherever possible, use Bittorrents! I have found the torrents for the distros I have to be very active. I maintained a speed >200Mb/s for Ubuntu download, and definitely >100 for Slackware and Knoppix... I think I also got the USB version of Feather (the first distro I got set up and working) by BT but I'm not entirely sure.
 
I like Slax a lot because it actually worked on my computer, unlike every other version of Linux I've ever tried :)
 
taras posted on Dec 15 2005 at 09:23 PM said:
I like Slax a lot because it actually worked on my computer, unlike every other version of Linux I've ever tried :)
wait a second...you are the taras, right (the one that did a lot of gplinux developing)? lol
 
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Knoppix liveCD is really nice. I tried the liveCD of ubuntu, but I don't think it liked my graphics card.... the graphics were completely screwed up and I couldn't do anything.... text was floating all over... but it worked fine when I installed it on an older pc I have. Problem with that old PC is that the only way it can connect to the internet is through a wireless adapter that I have and linux doesn't like it....
 
Ferentix posted on Dec 15 2005 at 07:24 PM said:
I maintained a speed >200Mb/s for Ubuntu download, and definitely >100 for Slackware and Knoppix...

Don't tell me you have Gigabit internet connection... :blink:
 
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if i decide to completely install linux will the other computers (xp pro) on my network be able to see the computer?

will bf2 & steam games work on linux also?
 
f i decide to completely install linux will the other computers (xp pro) on my network be able to see the computer?
Can't help you there but...

will bf2 & steam games work on linux also?

Using a Windows compatibility layer type thing like WINE it *may* be possible (I'm assuming the games you refer to are Windows...) but it is not guaranteed... I think there is a compatibility list for games somewhere.

Also, what distro are you looking at?
 
Oh so probably something like, what, Red Hat? SuSE? I've never tried either though so no comment. Also, the superficial similarity is changeable because there are a number of different desktop environments about. Something like (K)Ubuntu might also be a good option... Really it depends on what you mean by "like" Windows. GNOME desktop environment initially looks quite similar to the Windows desktop and Window Manager, but it is somewhat diferent- there are concepts in Windows that may not be found in many (if any) Linux distros, and vice versa (I'm pretty sure Windows doesn't have workspaces in the way that Linux does)

There are also distros like Lindows (I think that's the name) which attempt to create a Windows-like environment within a Linux OS

ReactOS aims to achieve full Windows XP compatibility, but I'm not sure it's Linux based (but I'm pretty sure it's based on some Unix flavour) and in any case it's in very early stages ATM.

If you have a fairly modern and reasonably powerful PC to install to, and a fast internet connection and a CD burner, you can try several and find the one that best suits you. Also, you'd be well advised to check the Linux hardware compatibility list to check your hardware is actually compatible with Linux (www.tldp.org/HOWTO/Hardware-HOWTO, and it may be best to dual boot Linux and WinXP partitions, so you can keep WinXP installed on the PC in question alongside Linux- just in case you change your mind, or just change the distro you're using.
 
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