Say what you will about Debian--the development process is slow and plodding, the distribution is always trailing-edge and Debian is always the last to get everything--but installing it today reminded me why I still like it.

An old idea hit me again recently: Why can't you use the memory that's sitting unused on your video card (unless you're playing Doom) as a ramdisk? It turns out you can, just not if you're using Windows. Some Linux people have been doing <a href="http://hedera.linuxnews.pl/_news/2002/09/03/_long/1445.html">it</a> for two years.<p>

I wanted to build a small-as-possible Linux for the purpose of creating a lightweight NAS a few years back. I even downloaded the uclibc development tools and started compiling for the purpose of doing it. Then I got distracted.

I guess it doesn't matter. I think NASLite had beaten me to the punch anyway.

Linux zealots are arguing over whether Dvorak's latest in PC Magazine is stupid or crazy.

I won't call it stupid. But it's ignorant.

I set up a Freesco box over the weekend. It makes less sense now that router/switch/firewall combos from the likes of Linksys sell for $50 than it did when they sold for $200, but if you're long on unused PCs and short on cash, it still works.

My old walkthrough no longer applies directly to the current version 33, but if you're reasonably technically competent it should get you on your way.

It seems like I'm recommending the program MBRwork to someone at least once a month. I recommended it two or three times just last week. But there are a couple of things I don't like about it. One, it's DOS. Creating DOS boot floppies isn't as easy as it used to be. And two, it's proprietary, so it could theoretically disappear any minute.

But similar tools exist for Linux.

LinuxToday linked to a story today about Building a lo-fat Linux desktop. Basically it's a list of applications you can run on a 233 MHz machine without feeling like you're standing in line at the bank.

I run this website off a server running on an ADSL line in a spare bedroom of my home. My server of choice is Debian, because it's Linux which makes it fast, reliable, and cheap, and Debian makes it pretty easy to install only what you want and need, so I can have a server OS that's only using 125 megabytes of disk space, leaving most of my drive available for something useful, like, oh, content.

Now, the downside of modern DSL: Southwestern Bell, like most ISPs these days, uses PPPoE. So not only can your IP address change with no notice whatsoever, you also have the hassles of PPPoE. With the default settings, some unknown but noticeably large percentage of web users won't be able to access a web server running on a DSL connection using PPPoE.

The reason is MTU and fragmentation.

A Slashdot mention of a MadPenguin review of Scribus brought up a very insightful lament: No reviews of Scribus appear online from someone very familiar with the competition, namely Adobe PageMaker and InDesign, and QuarkXPress.

As a University of Missouri journalism graduate, I'm going to tell you what I think of Scribus and simultaneously try to amuse you.

The most evil of evil software companies, SCO, has finally made good on its threats to sue a big Linux user, filing harrassing lawsuits against AutoZone and DaimlerChrysler.

Of course, SCO has yet to prove it even owns the copyrights it claims it owns, not to mention it voided any claims it might have by distributing Linux under the GPL. But that doesn't seem to stop them from filing frivolous lawsuits.

The enemy of your enemy is your friend. Support freedom by shopping at AutoZone, or if you don't have an AutoZone, buy anything Mopar that happens to fit your car, such as spark plugs and oil filters.