Remastering Help
Forum: Other Help Topics
Topic: Remastering Help
started by: Tomo
Posted by Tomo on July 07 2004,09:53
Basically i want to remaster a copy of DSL with a couple of extra apps built in so i can Give them away free to people.What i want to do it install synaptic, then install wine ?size? and then Distributed Particle Accelerator Design software.
Then maybe some other apps such as Open Office and Gimp ..... anything that will be nice to have to fill a 80min disc.
So the user gets a free copy of DSL with extra's and when there not busy we get free CPU cycles from the user.
I would need to design start up script for wine and the DPAD.
My problem mainly lays in the fact that im useless at all this remastering thing. I've read the how to's and still dont get it.
Although i have a bit of experiance with DSL this leave me stuck.
Any help would be great thanks
-Tom
Posted by Tomo on July 13 2004,11:08
Dont all jump to help me at once .............
Posted by ke4nt1 on July 13 2004,13:19
| Quote |
| Dont all jump to help me at once ............. |
Combining the reputaton of DSL, and it's integrity as a solid distro,
with your "Distributed Computing Payload" , and then offering them
to people for "free" smells of bad karma...
The addition of a package such as DPAD adds no value to Damn Small Linux,
or offers any gain to any members of its userbase,
other than to gain cpu cycles towards "someone's score or totals"
I won't get into the moral/ethical issues about providing folks with
a D/C package imbedded within a "freebie" .
IMHO, it sounds as bad as kazaa's - spyware/malware installing to my
OS without my knowledge or permission.
I assume we're just going to "take you at your word" that you will
be SURE to inform all the recipients of your "freebie" DSL disk
of your included D/C payload...
I love remastering.... It's one of the features that makes DSL such
a customizable wonder to work with.
Distributed Computing? - count me out..
Perhaps that's why we're not all "jumping"
Since DPAD is such an easy program to install to a distro,
why do you need to hide it in the .iso?
Offering it as an extension, along with a wine extension,
as well as a synaptic extension, would be a nice contribution
to the DSL community.
Extensions require no remastering of the .iso, and they are easy
to use for all DSL users. Just add them to the disk.
This gives the user the option of using it or not.
A wealth of info about extension building is in the forums..
There are many of us here that offer assistance and help
with extension building as well.
Time to crack open the books, and read the forums...
Or, perhaps find another LiveCD distro that includes these packages.
Good Luck,
73
ke4nt
Posted by Tomo on July 13 2004,15:29
Thanks for the reply ke4nt,I see your point about the spyware issue, although dpad is far from spyware, and yes i would inform people what is on the disc and why its free.
I wouldnt in anyways expect this to be added to the main distro oh no its has no worth for the everyday user.
I would also like to make this distro to save my self some money, and i will be moving from dpad to Folding @ Home.
Save my self money in the hard drive issue i can have a whole bunch of PC's without H/D's in them but will run a DC.
I will have to re read the forum to learn about the packages.
im a total n00bie to version 0.7.x
Can i make a package that will start on boot ?
thanks
-Tomo
Posted by cbagger01 on July 13 2004,16:14
Yes, you can make a package that will start on boot.There are a couple of ways to get what you need:
(1) The "filetool.lst" backup/restore process combined with the "bootlocal.sh" script can be used to boot up and start an application running. Check the forums and FAQ for more details.
(2) You can create a *.dsl extension that includes a copy of modified startup scripts like a new .xinitrc script for example that will launch your program on booting into Xwindows, for example.
A *.dsl extension file that is placed in your top level CD directory (use ISO editing programs in Microsoft Windows or in Linux before you burn the disk) will automatically be loaded at boot time.
Check the forums for more details.
Posted by ke4nt1 on July 13 2004,16:23
While I'm typing this, I see cbagger01 has also replied, so much of this is repeat.| Quote |
| Save my self money in the hard drive issue i can have a whole bunch of PC's without H/D's in them.. |
Correct!.. now expand this idea to schools, organizations, etc...
The concept of a "virus-free, spam-free, secure, bootable" liveCD ,
containing an entire OS capable of running PC's from read-only media,
is a powerful tool.
The goal behind DSL is to make a usable and functional desktop in as little ram
and cpu as practical, making most any 486 or better PC usable again.
| Quote |
| Can i make a package that will start on boot ? |
Sure.. placing the extension in the root of the cdr, or using the
"mydsl=hd?" option on boot will load the extension to your system from any location. ( floppy, usb key, second cdrom, etc... )
Then, placing a command in your .xinitrc will start the app automagically.
( see the "dillo" line in your .xinitrc for an example. )
( backup your new .xinitrc file to floppy, and use it next reboot )
For adding an extension to your boot cdrom, search the forums for "multisession".
Sounds like you have have a "rack" in the works..
I wonder if you can boot from floppy, and load the cd image from the network?
Then you'd only need a floppy, cpu, ram, and nic.
SSH into the rest of the boxes from your main box.
73
ke4nt
Posted by Tomo on July 14 2004,14:41
Thanks for the great feedback guys.ke4nt i love the idea of booting from a network drive but i think this is a little beond me.
the multisession thing ..... im guessing its just burning an iso as a multi session disc .. this ive done many times before.
im off to investigate the mydsl stuff
again thanks a lot guys
Posted by ke4nt1 on July 14 2004,18:44
| Quote |
| ..... im guessing its just burning an iso as a multi session disc .. this ive done many times before. |
Yep...
Burn the .iso as a "session-at-once", leaving the disk open
for further burns..
Then add the extensions you want to have already loaded
in the / of the burn .
And the extensions you want to have available to load in a
directory called "/optional"
Also follow cbagger01's tips for using other softwares to modify
the .iso , like ultraiso in XP, etc....
While you are not altering the cloop image of DSL in any way,
you CAN add more items to the image, create an .iso file with
the additions in it, and burn only the 1 image to the cdr.
Posted by mikshaw on July 14 2004,22:20
Here's what I've been doing, which saves having to do a multisession...mount -o loop -t iso9660 /path/to/dsl.iso /media/iso
cd /media/iso and copy it somewhere (e.g. /home/user/DSL-files). Add a directory within DSL-files called "optional".
From this point you can move files on and off indefinitely. When you have a build you're satified with, from the root of /home/user/DSL-files do
mkisofs -r -l -b KNOPPIX/boot.img -c KNOPPIX/boot.cat -o ../new.iso ./
and burn.
cbagger01: I can't believe I never thought of putting my $HOME files in a .dsl....that makes it a lot easier than runing a backup script manually every time I boot up. Thanks.
Posted by ke4nt1 on July 14 2004,23:27
Thanks for the mkisofs and mount tips mikshaw...I think you can put a "filetool.sh restore" command in your
bootlocal.sh , and do the same thing, automagically,
every time you bootup.. Just place what you want to save
in the /home/filetool.lst, and backup...
I DON'T like to save everything under /home.
(From a LiveCD users perspective),- If I save, for example....
...Everything in /home/dsl/.fluxbox, If I used any .dsl extensions,
and I backup and reboot.. the .dsl icons will be on my desktop,
even though the program isn't loaded to the ramdisk yet,
because it's saved/restored the /home/dsl/.fluxbox/menu file and .xtdesktop file.
I want that, and many other files, to load as pristine as possible
when rebooting, unless I choose to save the entire program as well.
An opposite example, I may leave scite installed ( I like scite )
So I add a line for my "/usr/bin/scite" file to my filetool.lst.
AS well as adding a line for my "/usr/share/scite" directory.
Again, add the filetool.sh to my bootlocal.sh, backup, reboot,
and I got it back...( scite would make a good .dsl ! )
73
ke4nt
Posted by mikshaw on July 15 2004,04:23
| Quote |
| I DON'T like to save everything under /home. (From a LiveCD users perspective),- If I save, for example.... ...Everything in /home/dsl/.fluxbox, If I used any .dsl extensions, and I backup and reboot.. the .dsl icons will be on my desktop, even though the program isn't loaded to the ramdisk yet, because it's saved/restored the /home/dsl/.fluxbox/menu file and .xtdesktop file. |
That's a good point. As far as menu entries go (I don't use icons), I've been putting all .dsl files in /cdrom/optional except ones that I know I'll want to have immediately (currently only aterm and a couple of commandline apps), and have only those apps in my backed up menu.
I still haven't tested out login scripts (e.g. .bash_profile) as .dsl yet. Do these .dsl files get copied before user dsl is logged in, or will I still need to source bash_profile after login?
Posted by cbagger01 on July 15 2004,16:31
Good question. The *.dsl autoload happens fairly early in the boot process, so I would not be surprised if it happened before the bootlocal.sh was run.One way to find out is to give it a try
Posted by mikshaw on July 15 2004,19:19
| Quote |
| I think you can put a "filetool.sh restore" command in your bootlocal.sh , and do the same thing, automagically, every time you bootup.. Just place what you want to save in the /home/filetool.lst, and backup... |
I assume this means you still need to auto-load your modified bootlocal.sh somehow before the boot process is complete. Is this done through a boot option (mydsl=something), or making a /cdrom/bootlocal.dsl?
EDIT: I found the answer in another thread...apparently it's "yes"