Version 37 of Puppy Linux

What: Puppy Linux

 Where: http://www.goosee.com/puppy/wikka/PuppyLinuxMainPage
        http://www.goosee.com/puppy/
        http://www.goosee.com/puppy/news.htm
        http://www.goosee.com/puppy/wikka/JesseLileyMUT
 Description: Yet another one of the gazillion [Linux] distros available.
        New version 1.0.4 out.  Contains MUT - a brand new Tcl/Tk application that detects
        and mounts devices.
        Currently at 1.0.4.
 Updated: 07/2005
 Contact: Barry Kauler <mailto:[email protected]>

Remarkable for two reasons:

it is very small (60 Mb or so) and otherwise desirable [L1 ];
the creator is very fond of Tcl. About half of the bundled applications are written in Tcl/Tk.

Besides:

It boots and runs off its installation CD, like Knoppix.
Very easy to try. Designed to fit on a business card size CD and easy to install to a USB pen drive or Zip disk.
Runs entirely in RAM, so it's fast, and releases the CD drive for other use.
It can be rejigged to run on low-spec. PCs (586, 32RAM; 128MB recommended).

NEM: There doesn't seem to be any mention of Tcl or Tk on the website. Is it just not advertised?

LES: I tried an old version, 0.8 I think. Many of the applications and scripts are Tcl/Tk. This version even has specTcl and visual Tcl. These were removed in the newest releases, but snack got in. Open the 2004 "news" page [L2 ] and look for "20Jun04". Also, check the developers' page [L3 ] and look for "guiding philosophy". The author states: "applications ... must be written in Tcl/Tk, C or C++".

AET 11feb05 A remarkable little distro. I easily got it working in Windows XP by downloading one of the .iso's and booting it in qemu [L4 ]. My first look at both Puppy and qemu. Reportedly very easy to rebuild, so a 'roll your own' version with lotsa Tcl goodies is viable. Puppy can use a USB stick or other device for a persistent /home.

AET 13jul05 Latest Puppy boasts a very usable combination of OS and software with lots of good, down-to-earth help. New project allows Puppy to reside on a Multi-Session CD, and /home is saved to CD when you finish. Needs a CD writer, naturally, but no hard disk or memory stick. You can remove the CD and only replace it when you close a session. Even has its own package manager (written in Tcl/Tk) which effortlessy installs a growing number of user-supplied software packages, and perports to install other packages. A new package manager in Tcl/Tk is in the pipeline.

I think that Puppy has a lot in common with StarKits; Simple deployment, and endless configuration possibilities.

LV I always thought that Puppy should make a lot of use of starkits - distribute each tcl extension in a starkit, then have the apps mount it. With Tcl module support, this should be easy.

escargo 14 Jul 2005 - For a recent review of Puppy Linux: [L5 ].

CJL - It also gets a positive (but fairly superficial) mention in the current Linux Journal - http://www.linuxjournal.com/issue/136 . The article is at http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/8302 (non-subscribers will have to wait a month or two to see the full article)

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