[GTALUG] debian Linux -- Installation DVDs Full Set - ShippedTo Canadian Destination ??

[Russell]

On March 4, 2018 8:55:11 AM EST, "Steve Petrie, P.Eng. via talk" <talk at gtalug.org> wrote:
>Replies below.
>
>Steve
>
>----- Original Message ----- 
>  From: Russell via talk 
>  To: Antonio Sun ; GTALUG Talk ; Antonio Sun via talk 
>  Sent: Saturday, March 03, 2018 12:26 PM
>Subject: Re: [GTALUG] debian Linux -- Installation DVDs Full Set -
>ShippedTo Canadian Destination ??
>
>
>
>
>On March 3, 2018 10:52:45 AM EST, Antonio Sun via talk
><talk at gtalug.org> wrote:
>  >On Sat, Mar 3, 2018 at 9:44 AM, Steve Petrie P.Eng. wrote:
>  >
>  >>
>  >> >3. I already own two (2) WD 1 TB USB drives, acquired for taking
>  >hard
> >> >disk backups of the new PC. So I'll try using one of those for the
>  >> >debian Linux (LXDE) installation device.
>  >> >
>
>  <snip>
>
>  >IMO,
>  >
>  >- System Rescue iso is good for some one-off hacks e.g. disk
>  >manipulation
>  >but not a good way to do Debian Linux Installation.
>
>Why not? It's a very small download, fits on a cd and as a live distro
>it supports multiple file systems. Its a pretty good way to get started
>with the look and feel of GNU linux. 
>
>Just remember to type startx at the console and you are good to go. You
>could explore and scarify old disks for reuse, or lay the foundations
>for the new. 
>
> >- Even if you get all three installation DVD images onto that 1TB USB
>  >drive, that may still be a less optimal option as you most probably
>  >need
>  >massive update during or right after the installation.
>
>Updates are optional. If there is an issue for some security reasons,
>or something needs to be  managed under some policy or other, you will
>be glad you wet your feet on a live distro first.
>
>  >
>  >The least-trouble option, contrary to what it seems, is to take your
>>machine to your friend's place with high speed Internet connection,
>and
>  >do
>  >the initial installation there. All other options just defer the
>  >problems,
>  >which you will bump into sooner or later.
>
>I find a usb pen and a few disks to be a lot easier to carry around
>with me than an entire system assembly. They get heavy and you can bump
>into problems there as well. At least optical disks are cheap and
>resilient.
>My mind did wander back to the advantages of DVD versus USB memory
>sticks. And the mention of "cheap and resilient" adds to the
>attraction. Maybe start with System Rescue on a CD / DVD.
>
>And use USB memory stick(s) for the regular debian Linux install isos,
>that will need to be updated on a frequent basis ??
>
>I need the optical drive on the new PC anyway, for playing music on a
>few CDs.

USB pens have one advantage over CD's, in that it is possible to have a live distro which also has persistent storage on the stick. There are tutorials for linux and I believe a free app for Windows which will set this up for you.

It is possible to use the System Rescue iso as the base for a permanent install to a fixed disk, but the steps are kind of convoluted compared to other live images which provide an install routine.

It may or may not be trivial to place the System Rescue iso on a larger usb pen with persistent storage. At that point, without high speed at home and to save bandwidth, you could make note of required package updates sizes and update small packages over dialup and larger or more numerous correlated packages elsewhere.

Dpkg is the native tool for extracting and installing .deb files. Aptitude is the tool for managing those packages from a central download repository. A short blurb on how Gentoo deals with extracting .deb files may be found here.

https://devmanual.gentoo.org/ebuild-writing/functions/src_unpack/deb-sources/index.html

Of course once your system is installed and working you should get essential update notices while dialed in. You could make note of those you really need and copy them to any portable medium. There is no real need to use a live distro with storage, but this is a real world task which will help you to familiarize yourself with linux filesystems and the tools that go along with it.
>
>-- 
>Russell
>---
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-- 
Russell