[wplug] Small Linux

[Vanco, Don]

John Harrold <mailto:jmh17 at pitt.edu> scribbled on Thursday, September 25,
2003 9:34 AM:
> Sometime in September Weber, Larry A assaulted the keyboard and
> produced: 
> 
>> I have developed a small product using Linux as the OS.  The OS and
>> application reside on a 64Meg compact flash.  Now that the design is
>> done, I need to have our manufacturing plant program blank compact
>> flash devices. This is easily done in Linux but they do not want to
>> be restricted to using and maintaining specific (i.e. Linux) PC's
>> for the task, and dual booting is out of the question.   They want
>> to drop in a CD and run a batch file.  All of their PC's are running
>> Win9x or XP. 
>> 
>> So I need either a program that will enable Windows to
>> create/write/read ext3 filesystem (not likely).  Or, a version of
>> Linux that will run off of a floppy, CD or combination floppy+CD. 
>> All it needs to do is fdisk, mkfs.ext3, mount (sda1), and copy (tar)
>> the OS (I have the embedded OS tarred) and copy the application
>> (second tar ball).  I looked into Tom's Rootboot but it doesn't have
>> the capabilities.  Any suggestion? 
> 
> bootable cd? you might want to look into knoppix
> (http://www.knopper.net/knoppix/index-old-en.html),
> i use this a lot as a rescue disk.
> 
> or perhaps the bootable business card
> (http://www.lnx-bbc.org/).
> 
> i hear there is also a gnoppix
> (http://www.gnoppix.org/)
> like knoppix but it uses gnome.
	If you're dealing with Windoze users you might also consider the
Lindows bootable CD.  It's similar to Knoppix, but a little more stripped
down and dumbed-down.  
	However - I really believe that with a little scripting you could
likely make a bootable business card (above) that would do all the required
bits and then prompt the user to either stick in the next flash device for
programming or reboot the box to it's former bloated, unstable OS.

	Any flash device I've ever purchased has arrived with a DOS format
already on it - is there no way to work with the mfg. direct to get your
image on it?  Seems like a much easier route to me.....  Or is that the
"factory" that reference above?

	If it's a fixed sized flash device why not a bootable CD and a
simple use of "dd"?  Heck - you could do it from a file on the CD or another
live flash device.

Don