Re: An easy-to-install Hurd distribution

[Robert J. Chassell]

   On Wed, Nov 29, 2000 at 09:17:20AM -0500, Robert J. Chassell wrote:
   > I would very much appreciate it if you would improve the current
   > Debian GNU/Hurd distribution such that I can do the following:

Marcus.Brinkmann@ruhr-uni-bochum.de respon:ed

   Nothing of what you described will ever happen the way you imagine
   it, if I am any judge, but almost everything (except step 4) is
   already possible by different, slightly more complicated, but also
   more flexible means.

The `more complicated' is the key.  In addition to developers, the
process needs to attract those who lack time.

Debian and one of its deriviative distributions illustrates this.

Last week at my sister's, I installed Debian for the first time in
more than a year.  (Since Debian has such a good package management
system, on my home machine I had simply been running `apt-get
dist-upgrade'.)

As reputed, the straight Debian distribution takes time to install and
requires a little expertise.

But then I installed a derived Debian distribution on another machine.
This installation was fast and easy.  The install program autodetected
everything correctly, even some rather old and obscure hardware.  (The
distribution is called `Storm Linux' and besides its easy install, it
packages a small subset of the complete Debian distribution.  I don't
know how the install module is licensed; I looked on the CD but could
not find any info.)

After installing Storm, I simply used `apt-get' to upgrade to the
current straight Debian distribution.

Assuming the Storm software is freely redistributable, then it makes
sense for a novice or time-short user to install from Storm and
upgrade to the current straight Debian.

I am hoping that someone will do the same for the Hurd.

-- 
    Robert J. Chassell                  bob@rattlesnake.com
    Rattlesnake Enterprises             http://www.rattlesnake.com