Re: Damm Small Linux

From: Robert Baer (robertbaer_at_earthlink.net)
Date: 11/29/04 

Date: Mon, 29 Nov 2004 08:58:40 GMT

Guy Macon wrote:
>
> Joel Kolstad wrote:
> >
> >"Rich Grise" <rich@example.net> wrote...
> >
> >> You can still compile a kernel that'll fit on a couple of
> >> 1.4MB floppies, if you don't want to load it all up
> >> with modules.
> >
> >Umm... that's still well over an order of magnitude more than QNX,
>
> With QNX you can fit the entire OS with drivers for a wide variety
> of hardware, dialup and Ethernet support, a full-featured web
> browser, plus various other programs, all on ONE 1.44MB floppy.
>
> >Last I heard, some distributions of Linux still re-compile the Kernel during
> >installation -- something that should never be needed in a 'modern' OS.
>
> That's a deliberate design decision, based on the fact that a kernal
> that uses extra CPU features such as MMX or optimizes for the pipeline
> in some of the new CPUs runs faster. Other OSs either have to restrict
> the code to what runs on a 386 or have a bunch of different kernel
> versions for different systems.

  Concerning MMX, isn't that mainly to support sound and maybe partly
extend some low-level video functions?
  Then it is useless, as there are other processors that do far better
(and faster) off-CPU chip - namely a Creative Labs-like sound chip or
equivalent, and some very fancy video processors that make MMX functions
look stone-age.
  In fact, MMX was almost obsolete when it came out for those reasons.