[NBLUG/talk] Need help with Debian

[E Frank Ball III]

On Mon, Jun 17, 2013 at 05:16:32PM -0700, marcus barrett wrote:
 >    I want to install a minimal installation of Debian
 >    to my Laptop, it's specs are 256MBs of RAM,
 >    600 MHz Celeron processor, 10 GB HD.
 > 
 >    I have a somewhat obscure PC-Card PCMCIA
 >    Card that does WiFi, I would like that configured.
 > 
 >    I do have Ethernet.* If that is necessary.
 > 
 >    So, my help would be a streamlined version of
 >    Debian.* Maybe Fluxbox, I liked that one. I
 >    would consider some kind of script that auto-
 >    magically strips an install if there is such a
 >    thing.
 >    --
 >    [1]bamarcus77 at gmail.com

Marcus,

I don't have any scripts for you, but a few tips.  At the last meeting I
was showing off my old laptop with 128MB of RAM running Debian 7.

You should use the ethernet for the install.  Worry about the wifi
later.  You will probably need one of the firmware packages from the
non-free repositories. You need non-free on the deb line in
/etc/apt/sources.list:

deb http://ftp.us.debian.org/debian/ squeeze-updates main non-free

During the install it will run "tasksel":
 "You can choose to install one or more of the following predefined
 collections of software.  Choose software to install:"

Select "SSH server" and "Laptop".  Nothing else.  That will give you a
fairly minimal install to start with, then add just what you want.
In the past (Debian 6) it would install exim anyway (the mail agent),
but it's easily removed.

gmemusage is a nice graphic utility to see what's using RAM.

xfce4-screenshooter is a good small utility with few dependencies for
capturing screenshots.

xfce4-notifyd is good small notification deamon with few dependencies.

epdfview is a good very small pdf viewer.

If you want a file browser xfe is small.

I'm having some problems since I upgraded to Debian 7 with network
managers.  gnome's network manager is having permissions problems.  It
runs but I can't change what wifi network I connect to.  I'm still
working on it.  wicd had problems too, and uses more RAM.  Jezra just
mentioned connman https://connman.net/, which looks promising.

midori is the smallest of the full featured web browsers.  Smaller, but
with limited features are dillo, surf, w3m, elinks, lynx, uzbl,
netsurf-gtk.

I'm using fvwm as my window manager but fluxbox should work well too.

stalonetray is a stand-alone system tray that works with many window
mangers and allows to you have applets, like nm-applet (gnome network
manager).

feh for image viewing and setting background images.

pianobar is text based Pandora player, pithos is small graphical Pandora
player.

You can suspend with "sudo /usr/sbin/pm-suspend" if you don't want a
power-manger running (they are all pigs).

Getting the xserver installed, without getting a couple GB of gnome
crap, can be a little tricky.  Try installing the xserver-xorg xorg
x11-apps x11-utils x11-session-utils x11-xserver-utils xbase-clients
packages.

I use the xdm display manger, it's the smallest, but it doesn't have all
the features of gdm, kdm, or lightdm.  Try lightdm if xdm doesn't cut it
for you.

Good luck,

   E Frank Ball          frankb at frankb.us