[Charlug] Minimal GUI install example

[Wade Finger]

I'm a recent subscriber to CharLUG. Below is the process I've used to
install linux and a GUI on an old desktop I own.

The desktop is a Dell 667 MHz PIII with 512 MB RAM and a 17 GB hard drive.
Set up as follows, performance is great in the RAM department (swap almost
never gets used at all) but the bottleneck is the processor, which slows
down everything, including web page loads. Nevertheless, linux enables a
virtually worthless PC to perform pretty darn well, all things considered.

Here's how I set it up:

1) Install linux with CD 1 of Debian Etch. The PC is connected by ethernet
cable to a router, which is in turn connected to my Roadrunner cable modem.
2) I go with automatic partitioning, all files in one partition.
3) When asked if I'd like to use a network mirror for installation, select
"no."
3) Install "standard system" only (ie unselect the desktop installation).
4) Once linux installation is complete, type "nano /etc/apt/sources.list"
and add the following two lines:

deb http://ftp.debian.org/debian etch main contrib non-free
deb-src http://ftp.debian.org/debian etch main contrib non-free

5) Comment out the CD as a source for future updates by inserting a "#" at
the beginning of the line.
6) Type "aptitude update" and <return>
7) Type "aptitude upgrade" and <return>
8) Reboot
9) Type "aptitude install xorg" and <return>
10) Type "lspci" and <enter> to show PCI hardware. The Dell Dimension comes
with an integrated video card, which shows as follows:

00:01:00 Intel 82810E DC-133 CGC graphics controller (rev 03)

However, I've also installed a PCI video card, which shows as follows:

01:08:00 ATI Technologies Inc. RV280[Radeon 9200SE] (Rev 01)

11) Type "dpkg-reconfigure xserver-xorg" and <enter> to configure the video
card, keyboard and monitor.

When xorg was installed in #9 above, drivers for both the onboard Intel
video and the ATI Radeon card were installed automatically. The key is to
make sure xorg is configured to point at the video card you're using. You
can also change the xorg configuration by typing "nano /etc/X11/xorg.conf",
but this is a little dangerous. Were I to go with the onboard Intel video
driver (which I've found to be awful looking compared to the 128 MB ATI
card), the most important part of the file would look like this:

Device
   Identifier     "Intel i810"
   Driver         "i810"
   BusID          "PCI:0:1:0"

12) Type "aptitude install fluxbox iceweasel ssh mousepad sudo xfe htop
rxvt-unicode numlockx conky" and <enter>. This installs the window manager
(ie fluxbox) and applications.
13) Type "visudo" and <enter>. Add the line:

user ALL =3D (ALL) ALL

13) Install fonts I like by typing "aptitude install ttf-bitstream-vera" and
<enter>
14) Type "nano /X.resources" and <enter> to create a file for xterm and
urxvt preferences. Note that "X" is capitalized. My file looks like this:

urxvt*background: black
urxvt*foreground: white
urxvt*cursorColor: green
urxvt*inheritPixmap: true
urxvt*tintColor: DodgerBlue1
urxvt*shading: 50
urxvt*font: xft:Bitstream Vera Sans Mono-12

XTerm*background:       black
XTerm*foreground:       white
XTerm*cursorColor:      green
XTerm*faceName: bitstream vera sans mono
XTerm*faceSize: 12

15) Change the fluxbox menu (right click to see fluxbox's menu) by typing
"nano /.fluxbox/menu" and <enter>. My menu file looks like this:

[begin] (fluxbox)
[exec] (urxvt) {urxvt}
[exec] (xterm) {xterm}
[exec] (xfe) {xfe}
[separator]
[submenu] (Editors)
 [exec] (Mousepad) {mousepad}
 [exec] (Nano) {xterm -T "Nano" -e /bin/nano}
[end]
[submenu] (Internet)
 [exec] (Iceweasel) {iceweasel}
 [exec] (Mutt) {mutt}
[end]
[submenu] (Programming)
 [exec] (Python) {xterm -T "Python" -e /usr/bin/python2.4}
[end]
[submenu] (System)
 [exec] (Aptitude) {xterm -T "Aptitude" -e /usr/bin/aptitude}
 [exec] (Conky) {conky}
 [exec] (Htop) {xterm -T "Htop" -e /usr/bin/htop}
 [exec] (Top) {xterm -T "Top" -e /usr/bin/top}
[end]
[separator]
[submenu] (Styles) {}
 [stylesdir] (/usr/share/fluxbox/styles)
 [stylesdir] (~/.fluxbox/styles)
[end]
[workspaces] (Workspaces)
[reconfig] (Reconfigure)
[separator]
[exit] (Exit)
[exec] (Restart) {sudo init 6}
[exec] (Shutdown) {sudo shutdown -h now}
[end]

I don't use a login manager. After I boot up and log in, I type "startx" to
launch fluxbox.

The fluxbox setup above is very simple, but it has worked well as a platform
for learning linux and surfing the net.

I've found the full-fledged desktop environments such as gnome (and even
xfce) to be way too much for the old Dell PIII to handle.

Everyone on this mailing list is undoubtedly more technical than me, but I
thought I'd post this just in case it could be useful for anyone.
-Wade
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