Ubuntu without pre-installed software?

[Liam Proven]

On 19 September 2012 09:30, Tom H <tomh0665 at gmail.com> wrote:
> On Tue, Sep 18, 2012 at 9:55 PM, Liam Proven <lproven at gmail.com> wrote:
>> On 18 September 2012 22:57, Tom H <tomh0665 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> On Tue, Sep 18, 2012 at 12:32 PM, Liam Proven <lproven at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>>>> As for a minimal, customisable Ubuntu - well, the netinst ISO is a
>>>> good suggestion. Failing that, there is Debian!
>>>
>>> netinst?! I don't think that Ubuntu has such an ISO. :)
>>
>> Yes it does. Here you go:
>> https://help.ubuntu.com/community/Installation/MinimalCD
>
> My point was that it isn't called netinst...

Ah. Then I will consider my hair truly split, in that case, and I
salute the sharpness of your logical razor.

>>> I don't think that an Ubuntu install will be larger or significantly
>>> larger that a Debian one for the same WM or DE.
>>
>> Nah, there is not a lot in it. Debian is a bit smaller and runs a bit
>> better on low-end hardware, but it doesn't have Ubuntu's graphical
>> startup and shutdown screens, replacement init dæmon and thus fast
>> bootup and shutdown times and some other niceties.
>
> I'd like to see some hard data on that no just some claim based on the
> meme that Debian's more geeky/nerdy and therefore has a smaller
> footprint.

It's nothing to do with its nerdiness. It's to do, I think, with
niceties like a fancy, event-driven init replacement, graphical
screens with progress or activity meters on certain functions and so
on. The exact sort of stuff that /is/ the difference between Ubuntu
and its progenitor, these days.

If you want hard data, I'll be happy to provide. Is this the right
private email address that I should send the invoice for my time to?

> I mostly install X-less boxes of both Ubuntu and Debian and
> there's basically no difference.

That's right. Because they are X-less. The difference is in the
graphical desktops.

> I suspect that this extends to WMs
> and DEs. You'll also see that I said "significantly" because I've
> noticed that Ubuntu sometimes adds extra dependencies to packages
> (bizarrely IMO).

Precisely. That /is/ the difference.

I've run raw Debian, modified Debians such as Crunchbang and LMDE, and
various Ubuntus up on legacy machines in the 5-8y age range this year.
Have you?

> On the speed front, I'll take Ubuntu's upstart to Debian's sysvinit anyday!

I agree. It is nice and speedy.

Until you try it on a machine from 2000 with a Pentium 3 and 128MB of RAM.

-- 
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