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I am looking for a preos that I can install in dual boot with Windows XP and that can me allow to switch on my PC and be ready in few seconds.

I would like to have this features

  • Browse internet (mail, surfing, ecc.)
  • Chart and IM capabilities (Skype)
  • See images
  • See videos
  • Listen to music

Windows is not free, therefore I imagine I should move to Linux.

What do you suggest?

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I'd like for someone with Archlinux experience to answer. It has a minimalist approach but allows for easy extension. – hyperslug Sep 26 '09 at 14:55
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2 Answers

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I have used Archlinux and it is quite fast if set up correctly. I don't think its "a few seconds" fast though.

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"Grub to GUI in 16 seconds" he says: youtube.com/watch?v=mRK9InfGwcE. And this guy, 26 seconds from power-on to Firefox: youtube.com/watch?v=mzqSjAoQvxM (SSD, though). – hyperslug Sep 26 '09 at 15:53
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up vote 1 down vote

If you can find Windows 3.1 and some software for it, I suppose it'll be fast enough. Windows 98 should also be quite fast on a modern PC.

On the Linux side, you're probably looking at Damn Small Linux, which you can even boot from a usb pen drive. This is reproduced from their site:

DSL has a nearly complete desktop, and a tiny core of command line tools. All applications are chosen with the best balance of functionality, size and speed. Damn Small also has the ability to act as an SSH/FTP/HTTPD server right off of a live CD. In our quest to save space and have a fully functional desktop we've made many GUI administration tools which are fast yet still easy to use. What does DSL have?

XMMS (MP3, CD Music, and MPEG), FTP client, Dillo web browser, Netrik web browser, FireFox, spreadsheet, Sylpheed email, spellcheck (US English), a word-processor (Ted), three editors (Beaver, Vim, and Nano [Pico clone]), graphics editing and viewing (Xpaint, and xzgv), Xpdf (PDF Viewer), emelFM (file manager), Naim (AIM, ICQ, IRC), VNCviwer, Rdesktop, SSH/SCP server and client, DHCP client, PPP, PPPoE (ADSL), a web server, calculator, generic and GhostScript printer support, NFS, Fluxbox and JWM window managers, games, system monitoring apps, a host of command line tools, USB support, and pcmcia support, some wireless support.

You can still extend DSL easily using the Damn Small Linux myDSL Application Extensions.
Although I've never used DSL, I'm a great admirer of this project.

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Does Skype run on Windows 3.1? :) – grawity Sep 26 '09 at 16:07
Apparently it did once - dvhardware.net/software/8084. I doubt that the latest version does. – harrymc Sep 26 '09 at 16:14
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