Super Grub

Forum: Linux and Free Software
Topic: Super Grub
started by: the Missing M

Posted by the Missing M on Mar. 27 2007,06:49

Okay, I hope I'm posting in the right category this time.

To recap;

Quote (the Missing M @ Mar. 25 2007,05:20)

[...snip, for length]

The following is not intended to replace Grub or Lilo, but might be useful in recovering a damaged or *cough* overwritten *cough* MBR, and restoring Grub and/or Lilo and/or Windows and/or all of the above to a usable state.

< http://supergrub.forjamari.linex.org/ >

Whether I need it or not, I will make sure to try this thing out as soon as possible, then get back to you.

Okay. Been there, done that, now.

I do recommend having a look at it, but not for the same reasons I'd expected to.

Super Grub is probably better for educational purposes than in practical, day-to-day use. It does offer an interesting little tour of possible booting options and configurations -- all of them, I think -- without cluttering any one screen too much, at any one time. Each screen devotes itself to a particular topic, and navigating between screens is pretty straightforward, not unlike browsing a tree of hyperlinked documents. Actually, the way it uses arrow-keys for navigation kind of reminds me of Lynx, a text-based web browser.

Yes you *can* screw things up by choosing the wrong option, then following through on that option, but you can also just wander around and learn about stuff, without affecting anything. Only moderate caution is required, but it is required at all times [which might aid the learning process anyway, because at least this ensures you'll be paying attention...].

It does get pretty verbose, and would become tedious in daily use, especially for someone who already knows what they're doing. Each menu is preceded by a description of its various options, and there's no way to avoid the description.

Then again, if only used in emergencies it shouldn't get too repetitive, unless you have a lot of emergencies... Anyway, having to pass through various screens of info might encourage the user to *slow_down*, *chill_out*, and think about what they're doing, when things go wrong. What's your rush anyway? Whatever stoped working will keep not-working, no matter how you feel about it. Might as well just sit back and spend a minute or two weighing your options. In the meantime, at least you've got something to read.

Also, with a little tweaking I could see something like this used as a kind of `pre-boot primer' for a live CD; the default choice being a default boot, without a lot of unnecessary chatter, while the other option branches off into misc reading material, boot-command hints, default username/passwords for the system you're about to run... whatever. Could even throw in some ASCII art pages, if you want.

Patrick.