Tiny Core Linux 2.1
New In This Release
Here’s a list of some of the new features from the changelog:
* New modutils results in much space savings.
* New changed from using initramfs to tmpfs for better support of df and mount bind option.
* New squashfs module to prevent spurious squashfs errors upon boot.
* New aterm for better interaction with appbrowser.
* New waitforX eliminates WM timing issues, update your .xsession.
* New busybox to 1.13.4 – command line history set to 150.
* New usbinstall, a command line tool to install to pendrive, usbhdd, usbzip, or usbext.
* New upgrade_tce.sh command line script, an extremely conservative batch upgrade script.
* New added modules hwmon & rfkill for better support of laptops.
* Deleted memdisk and mbr.bin as they are available in extensions.
Installation
As usual, I fired up Tiny Core Linux in VMWare to check it out. I had no problems loading it at all. Took less than a 30 seconds to get it going and running in VMWare.
I should be careful here to point out that running it in VMWare in first mode does not mean it was really installed. Rather it was simply running in RAM and apps were downloaded as I needed or wanted them.
Tiny Core Linux is not a distribution that you need to install in the same way that you’d install Linux Mint or Fedora or other, larger desktop distro. Think of TCL as a portable Linux that can be taken wherever you need to go so a traditional installation really doesn’t apply for this review. You can run it right in RAM and it will work beautifully for you.
I hope that clarifies this section a bit as I don’t want people to download it and try to install it quite the same way as some of the larger desktop distributions.
Desktop & Apps
The Tiny Core Linux desktop will never be confused with other rather bloated…er…feature filled… environments like KDE or Gnome. It’s bare-bones and that’s exactly the way it should be. TCL uses the JWM Window Manager for its desktop environment.
You can simply right-click anywhere on the desktop to access a menu with a list of choices including:
Apps
Apps Browser
Control Panel
XShells
Tools
Help
Run Command
When it first loads you’ll notice a Dock-like panel (wbar) at the bottom with icons that get larger if you pass your cursor over them. An odd touch for such a minimalist distribution. I liked it though so no complaints. It reminded me of Mac OS X in a weird way which is not what I would have expected from Tiny Core Linux. Let’s face it, Mac OS X is not really known for being…er…lightweight at all.
(5 votes, average: 3.60 out of 5)
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“Let’s face it, Mac OS X is not really known for being…er…lightweight at all.”
Surely you know that now that Steve Jobs is back, he will send the Goon Squad over to properly flog you.
But seriously, you did see the “search” box in the apps list. I found that it works much the same as the search box in Synaptic.
I too have only tried TCL in a VM, but have it in the to do pile for further study.
Hi tlmck,
Perhaps it’s just that I am a browser more than a searcher? I like to poke around and see what’s in there without necessarily having a particularly definitive idea in mind of what I’m looking for.
I think it might have to do with being a reviewer as I’m checking to see what my readers are going to find so categorized apps are very helpful so I can pull out this one or that one and include them in the list so people know what’s available.
This distro could be interesting given further development. I am not sure how it would work out in a server or netbook environment given your review. While it ~sounds like~ its intended to fit that mold, what are the current state of the repo’s, and what repo’s does it use for that matter? Can you use the regular Debian repo’s?.. If thats the case, then this distro is indeed ready for the prime time.
Jim, clearly the idea with a Tiny Core is to provide just that – the Tiny Core, and then allow each individual to tailor it to their specific needs. I think you did a good job of explaining the various ways you can set up the system initially. Either I did not see that the first time I gave this a look or they’ve added quite a few features since the initial version.
I’d like to see how you believe that Tiny Core stacks up against SliTAZ – which was previously the smallest Live CD out there, and DSL, the classic one that people go for.
Based on my earlier criteria, I considered SliTAZ to be about as small as I wanted to go; neither Tiny Core, SliTAZ, nor DSL, seem to have much to offer in the way of wireless support (though DSL may have some minimal support. IF you need that, Puppy seems to be about the smallest Live implementation that has a pretty powerful Live setup, and in release 4.2.1, they FINALLY got it right, fixing some of the bad drivers that they included in 4.2.
Moving up the chain, I am actually not that big a fan of SLAX, though others are. The modules I see don’t tend to do what I am interested in doing – which is typically to browse the Web remotely and with Wireless – SLAX does a lousy job, in my opinion, with wireless.
Further up the chain, TinyMe and antiX both do an excellent job of providing really solid hardware support — and — they get wireless right, especially antiX.
I’m going to give Tiny Core a shot in my Virtualbox and see how it goes. Meanwhile, something you may consider as you build up your repertoire of distros is to categorize them, contrast them with others in a general category, and list where each one is strong and weak. I’ve just given you a light taste of some quick impressions on some of the Live distros I’ve used, going from the tiniest, Tiny Core, up to the midrange TinyMe and antiX, ignoring the really big ones like PCLinuxOS, SimplyMEPIS, or the classic, KNOPPIX.
To the reviewer,
If you had’ve waited about another 5 minutes before downloading firefox, you woulda seen 3.5 is in the tce repositories :)
I actually installed 3.0.11 the other day and then a few minutes later, 3.5 was there. Bad timing.
Brian,
TCL has perfectly good wireless support, it’s just in an extension, that’s all, you need to load it up.
Hey, thanks Subline Porte! I did not grab the software yesterday, so maybe my delayed timing worked to my benefit; I got to read your feedback. I’ll have to take a look, thanks!
[...] Tiny Core Linux 2.1 [...]
I am getting TC 2.2 RC 1 and will try it out in a Virtualbox. Looks pretty cool to me, so it is about time to try the new RC – which is dated July 8.
I spent some time with Tiny Core RC 1 in a Virtualbox. My comments are that the packaging tool is a bit erratic – maybe the download mirror was not performing consistently, maybe it was because I was in a Virtualbox, but I doubt it. Response was good once I did get packages going.
I found Firefox to be broken in RC 1, but Seamonkey works well, so I used it, since I generally prefer it anyway. I used Geany to do a bit of small editing, and fooled around a bit.
Tiny Core is just right for just that – a tiny core of stuff. I would not use it for more than browsing and basic stuff since I can do what it does and more with lots of other distros, but it was just right for simple browsing. I agree with Jim, the packaging arrangement is pretty basic; it would be nice to have some categories or something to break it down at least a little bit. Synaptic and the way it works would be a good model, but hey, what is there is simple, fast, and it gets the job done.
I am inclined to give this a 3 – OK, but not great. On the other hand, as a really tiny, basic core, it hits the mark pretty well, so I may give it a near perfect score on reaching its target objective. That it does quite well, and it is pretty fast, too.
I use a tweaked version of Tiny Core as my primary operating system since three months now and generally I’m very satisfied
Pros
- extremely customizable. I gave it a XP-like look with desktop icons, background picture, fast launch buttons, start menu… Even my wife can use it.
- runs at the speed of light. On my four year old system it boots to the desktop in ten seconds. Firefox (with Flash plugin) starts in less than three seconds and is extremely responsive, most smaller apps like media player, picture viewer etc. start instantaneously.
Cons
- newbies will not get the max out of this distro
- hardware support somewhat erratic – seems more oriented to desktops than to laptops