Filed under: OS Updates, Linux
NimbleX : Portable Linux That's Ready to Rock
by Lee Mathews Jul 23rd 2008
How much awesome can you cram into a 200MB live CD? A whole lot. NimbleX comes with 550 packages preinstalled, and you'll find the usual Linux apps here: Firefox, K3B, XMMS, MPlayer, Gimp, Kopete, Transmission, Klam AV, and K Office, to name a few. Boot times are wicked fast, even from CD, and installation to a hard drive or USB flash drive is dead simple.
Desktop performance is equally impressive, even on our shabbily-equipped VirtualBox setup (256MB memory, 8MB video, 8GB hard drive). On that note, it's worth mentioning that NimbleX also comes with VirtualBox installed just in case you decide you want to get Windows XP running in it.
NimbleX is built on Slackware, which means you'll be running one of the most solid, secure distros out there (here come the arguments from hardcore Linux users). Hardware support is excellent, and Bluetooth works out-of-the-box. Don't like the default KDE 4 environment? Enlightenment 17, Enlightenment 16, EDE, IceWM, Fluxbox, Openbox and TWM are also included.
If that's not enough, you can customize your own ISO on their website. Check a few boxes to specify what you want to do with your install, and you're given tons of optional components to add to your ISO. OpenOffice, Wine, Blender - you name it, you can add it. It's an unbelievably cool way to get your hands on a Linux live CD that has exactly the apps you want.
For 200MB, the average person looking to try Linux will be hard pressed to find a nicer distro.
If that's not enough, you can customize your own ISO on their website. Check a few boxes to specify what you want to do with your install, and you're given tons of optional components to add to your ISO. OpenOffice, Wine, Blender - you name it, you can add it. It's an unbelievably cool way to get your hands on a Linux live CD that has exactly the apps you want.
For 200MB, the average person looking to try Linux will be hard pressed to find a nicer distro.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Mike Cerm said 6:27PM on 7-23-2008
It's one thing to target low-spec machines, but if you're going to create a live CD, you might as well use up the full 700 megs!
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Lee Mathews said 6:28PM on 7-23-2008
Sure, but how do you fit 700mb on a mini-CD? Roll your own and bloat it up, if you want, it's still a bad-ass distro!
dan said 8:59PM on 7-23-2008
Virtualbox included FTW!!!
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Fera said 2:39AM on 7-24-2008
I'm using it for a couple of hours now and it's truly awesome.
Why isn't this A LOT more popular?
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Megan said 3:46AM on 7-24-2008
This is impressive! Why didn't I know about this?
Why isn't this VERY popular?
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Abdo said 4:02AM on 7-24-2008
I've got an old Dell lying around:
Pentium III 933MHz
128 MB RAM
20GB HD
It's currently running XP, very slowly. Will this be a step up? Will it also be slow?
I know almost nothing about Linux either, so is this a good idea?
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Lee Mathews said 4:03AM on 7-24-2008
It should run very well - your machine probably isn't any worse than the VirtualBox machine I ran it on. Best way to find out: download, burn, and boot the LiveCD - give it a test run and see how it performs!
Abdo said 8:59AM on 7-24-2008
So that does that mean I don't have to take away XP first?
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Fera said 8:59AM on 7-24-2008
You don't have to take XP out and Nimblex will run and it will be usable but considering that you only have 128 RAM and Firefox alone can use that much RAM it will probably not run as fast as Nimblex can be. For my 600MHz machine with 256 RAM it's excellent but 128 RAM is very little and yours will probably be slower even if you have a much faster CPU.
Mark Kemp said 10:58AM on 7-25-2008
So I burn the iso on a CD, reboot my PC from the CD, the opening menu goes away before I can read even the 3rd option, Nimble X seems to start, gives me a gray startup screen with a Username Password prompt that will not accept blank entries.
What??
There's a reason Linux OSs are not popular and, as it seems, will never be. Their developers are incapable of comprehending the concept of usability and they expect users to jump through thechno-geek hoops to learn how to use their software.
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Lee Mathews said 10:59AM on 7-25-2008
The reason is that people don't read enough before they jump in. A quick look at the NimbleX FAQ reveals that the login is root/toor, a common pairing with Linux distros.
sodapop said 8:51AM on 7-26-2008
@Lee ... that's common for people who are Linux savvy. You are basically supporting Mark's opinion, which is you have to be a geek to use Linux.
Lee Mathews said 8:53AM on 7-26-2008
Reading an FAQ makes you a geek? No, it makes you prepared. I'm basically saying "read the FAQ first," which is pretty common with any download.
Mr_Ed said 12:36PM on 7-27-2008
The username and password is right on the page where you download the iso. It's even in the same box as where you click to download it. If it's too "geeky" to read something 1 inch down from where you click to download, then it's a good thing breathing is an automatic reflex!
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Mark Kemp said 6:53AM on 7-29-2008
The default user name and password should be shown on the window that asks for it, not to mention automatically entered in the text fields unless there's a new username/password set for the OS.
When I scanned the links for which one to pick for the download I saw the FTP links and picked the first FTP link. I remember scanning over the MD5SUM label but didn't notice anything else.
Just the idea that someone should take the time to read through a website just to start the software they downloaded is even geekier than I pointed out in my original criticism of having a username and password requirement in the first place.
As far as reading FAQs, same thing applies there: FAQs are read for finding answers to popular and expected problems, not forced on users to even use software in its initial and default configurations.
It's the same thing with forcing users to go through FAQs and readmes and forums and help files and all kinds of trouble to figure out if a previous version of a program should be uninstalled before installing a newer version of it.
Lee Mathews said 6:58AM on 7-29-2008
That's too bad, Mark. The note saying "Default username and password" was right next to the MD5. Saying that Linux is too "geeky" because you happened to not read something just isn't right.
Also, explain to me how checking the MD5 (something almost no average user does) is less geeky than reading an FAQ (something almost everyone does now and then).
PeskyEskie said 7:16PM on 7-27-2008
You've heard about those that are too stupid to empty the contents of a boot with the directions on the heel? Well go figure. And then they want to blame someone else for their ignorance and ineptness while standing tall, chin up and their chest all puffed out. If it wasn't so sad it would be funny!
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Titi said 2:43AM on 7-29-2008
If you ask me it already rocks!
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Joe said 11:39PM on 7-30-2008
Runs well. I too had a problem with the username/password, but a quick check on the Forum gave me the answers--root/toor. I like the distro. Runs well and you don't have to download codecs to play mp3s like you do for the latest Ubuntu distro. I tried to install NimbleX to a flash drive, but it didn't boot and it partitioned the flash drive. Can't undo the partition in either Windows Vista or NimbleX. Oh well, it's only a cheap 1 GB flash drive. :)