Welcome to the
Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux
Screenshots and CD Sales Area.
Buying a CD:
Can you send me a CD of the latest Beta build of
Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux?
Yes! The CD is now available for shipping:
(Two copies are always sent, one for a backup or a second computer)
- Orders are accepted by mail only:
The cost is $20.00 for two copies of the Rapidweather Remaster CD,
payable by check or money order only.
(no credit card processing available, or paypal)
Send your payment in a letter with your mailing address provided to:
M. L. Dawley
Rapidweather
3222 Norma Drive
Pearl, MS 39208-4916
- USA shipments only
- I will promptly send you a CD of the latest Beta Build of
Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux by USPS Priority Mail.
(Two copies of the CD are sent.)
Be sure and give clear instructions as to
where you want the CD(s) mailed.
- Refunds cannot be made, as the cost of making the CD(s), packaging, handling,
mailing to the address required are considered to be equal to the amount paid.
(Your CD has been tested prior to shipment)
- Should you not receive your CD within a reasonable amount of time
(15 days) , send a postcard or letter to Rapidweather.
I will immediately send you another CD without any additional charge.
It may be necessary to use a different mailing address
to insure that you receive your CD .
Use the same mailing address as above to notify me:
Rapidweather
M.L.Dawley
3222 Norma Drive
Pearl, MS 39208-4916
Buyer's Information Area:
The following information has been placed here for the buyer's benefit in making a decision on whether or not to buy the CD.
I want the buyer to know in advance what is needed to run the CD, and to get full benefit from
Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux. I use it as my primary computer operating system on a daily basis.
That does not mean that everyone will find the CD useful in their particular case
or will prefer to use a LiveCD linux distribution such as this one in the place of other operating systems, such as Windows.
- Additional information provided to prospective buyers
of Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux:
(Kindly look through this section before deciding to make the purchase.)
- This Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux
comes with ABSOLUTELY NO WARRANTY,
to the extent permitted by applicable law.
- This means that the CD may or may not boot fully to a desktop on your
computer, or detect all of your hardware correctly in all cases.
For instance, your sound card or modem may not be detected.
For broadband users, wireless cards are probably not going to be detected, it is suggested that you use a wired connection.
Most of the time, you can use Knoppix Cheatcodes to solve some of these problems.
For instance, with a computer with an ATI graphics card, the knoppix cheatcode to use at the boot prompt is
"knoppix xmodule=ati"
- It should be noted that this is a LiveCD Linux distribution,
and will require that your computer be able to boot such a CD
from the CDROM drive.
It will not run from within Windows, for instance.
The entire linux system will run directly from the CDROM drive,
using your computer's memory.
Once the desktop appears, the CD will not have to spin in the drive, until an application is opened, and the CD needs to be accessed.
(The CD is not going to spin in the drive all of the time)
- If you are familiar with and have used LiveCD Linux cd's,
then you should be able to run and use this one also.
You'll find that this one is much easier to use on a daily basis
than many of the other LiveCD Linux CD's, including Knoppix Linux.
- Computers that can boot and run Knoppix Linux 3.4 will also boot
and run Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix linux.
- A cdrom drive that runs at least 24x or better is required,
otherwise the system may be slow to respond.
32x will work just fine, 48x even better. DVD drives will work, also.
- A minimum of 128 MB of RAM is needed to run Rapidweather Remaster
in full graphical mode.
256 MB is better. I have that amount of memory on my main development computers, and it's just fine.
The processor should be at least a Pentium II, with 64K cache.
Rapidweather Remaster runs very well on a computer with a 400 MHZ Pentium II or AMD K6-2
with 64K cache, 128 MB of RAM, a 4 MB graphics card, and a hard drive swap file. I use 32 MB graphics cards on my computers, resulting in faster performance.
Most computers sold in the last 5 years are much more powerful than that, and will run a livecd linux such as Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux with ease.
- For computers with less than 256 MB of RAM, an available Windows 98 hard drive partition is needed to place a Swap File
to improve performance to an acceptable level.
When you first boot up the CD, and no Swap File is detected, you will be given the opportunity to set one up. The size of the Swap File can be 100 MB or more.
See the online Getting Started Guide for details on how to set up a Swap File.
- It's possible to "install" the CD in a hard drive partition, that can easily be set up using QTParted, a disk-partitioning program included in
Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux. All of the files needed to set up an on-screen menu in a Windows 95, 98 or MSDOS partition
are downloadable here. (for Advanced Users)
This is a "loadlin" setup, and is designed to boot the CD from a hard drive partition, having been copied there by using the Knoppix Cheatcode:
"tohd=/dev/hda1" (an example) when the system is booted from the CD. I use this all the time, on all of my computers, so I do not have to use the CDROM drive, leaving it free to burn a CD.
- Currently, there is no form of interactive technical support, either online in the way of a forum, or by mail, or e-mail provided
with or for this linux distribution.
There is a Blog, where information concerning Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux is posted.
This is not a support site, however.
- Built-in Support:
The Getting Started Guide in Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux is
comprehensive, and should answer most questions.
Many of the applications have "help" buttons, providing specific information and assistance for that application.
The Getting Started Guide can be accessed at the top of the menu when Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux boots up.
There is always a current, up-to-date version of the Getting Started Guide online here.
- Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix linux runs and performs like Knoppix 3.4,
except for the additional applications and enhancements that make this linux distribution
unique, more useful , and easier to use than the original.
Knoppix 3.4 uses the 2.4 kernel, which will run on older computers as well as the newer Pentium 4 or Intel Dual Core machines.
It is not designed to run on 64-bit computers.
- You can visit the Knoppix Linux forums, and receive
help and assistance
there for all kinds of general Knoppix questions, that may also apply to Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux.
- You can research most general questions concerning livecd linux distributions
on the internet, by placing your keywords in Google, for instance.
Using that method, you can go directly to your answer, in any linux forum.
- Most likely, someone has had the same problem that you need an answer for, and information
is available on the web that may answer your question.
- The Getting Started Guide provided in the CD is available on the web:
http://www.geocities.com/rapidweather/getting_started.html
Many of the questions that arise while using the CD are answered in the Getting Started Guide.
- It is suggested that if you no longer have a use for the CD,
kindly give it to someone who can put it to good use on another computer.
Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux is perfect for older Windows 98 computers that are no longer safe to connect to the internet because of viruses and trojans.
Many of these computers are being discarded when newer Windows computers are purchased, but can be salvaged and used to run a
secure linux system that has the latest web browsers. A built in firewall is included, and viruses are not a problem with a livecd linux such as
Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux. Usually, all that is needed to connect these older computers to the internet is a network card, and a wired connection to a broadband cable modem or router.
The connection is automatically detected, and is always on.
- Almost any modern personal computer less than 5 years old, that is already connected to the internet with broadband,
and can boot from this cd, will permit the user to surf the web on a secure linux system using Mozilla Firefox, in less than 10 minutes.
There is a built in "wizard" to guide the user through the process of setting up a dial-up connection, for those who have a hardware modem installed in their computer.
This application uses WvDial, and detects the modem, and allows the user to place their ISP's username and password in the comfiguration file.
See the screenshots above for this useful application, designed for users that use a dial-up Internet Service Provider.
Once you have everything set up, it's easy to use Dial-Up with Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux.
- You may copy the CD and give copies away, to anyone wanting a copy.
- It is allowed, therefore, to make copies for each computer in a home, place of business, or school.
Imagine being able to provide a secure linux system to 20 computers in a library that are connected to the internet through a network,
all for the cost of one CD! You do not have to "install" anything, just place the CD in the CDROM drive tray, and turn the computer on, wait
for your linux system to boot up to the desktop!
It's really very easy to do.
Try it out on one or two machines, and if you like the results, put it on all of them.
(Each machine will require it's own CD in the CDROM tray)
Recommended minimum memory is at least 128 MB, with a Pentium II processor.
It is better to have 256 MB of memory, however.
If you have been running Windows 98 on the computers, you may want to set up a "swap file" on the hard drive, for increased performance.
It's easy to do, just check the Getting Started Guide for details.
That file will remain on the computer for each day's use of Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux.
(It can be deleted in Windows if you want).
- Although the version of the CD that you have received is entirely useful, and should serve you for years,
you are encouraged to check the website often to see if there is an updated version with new features that you may want to order.
- Although the software in Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux is free software, there has to be a charge for
sending a CD to those who order one here.
- It is assumed that you have read the above conditions and are aware of them, before ordering a CD.
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Some Notes from M. L. Dawley, the developer of
Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux:
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A Temporary Operating System:
Provide a temporary way to access the internet on a Windows XP
computer that can no longer boot Windows?
Yes.
If the computer is connected to the internet using a cable modem or dsl broadband,
then Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux can be run on the machine
and access the internet with Firefox immediately after the linux desktop appears.
The owner can:
- Surf the web for weather and news.
- Access AOL email. Send and Receive Web-Based email.
- Do online banking. Pay bills online.
- Make purchases online.
- Use Google to find answers on their No-Boot problem.
- Visit manufacturers web sites to read support documents.
- Download drivers for Windows XP (Dell Computers, especially!)
- Take care of Ebay orders.
- Maintain web pages on your server
- Look at online photo albums.
- Post to Blogs.
- Shop on Amazon.com
- Use the file manager (Emelfm) to locate documents stored on the
Windows hard drive. The documents can then be viewed in Firefox, for instance.
- Make a CD of camera photographs stored on your Windows computer,
and other documents on the hard drive.
If the motherboard is bad, move the hard drive with your files to another computer,
boot Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux from the CDROM drive, and
get all of your photographs, songs, other files and copy them to a USB memory stick.
In some cases, a repair of Windows will require a reinstall of the OS,
with a day or so of getting everything running like it was prior to the crash.
The Rapidweather Remaster CD is left with the owner to use until that can be accomplished.
Most unusual feature:
Did you know that Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux allows the user
to easily switch between six built-in mouse cursor themes?
A theme selector is provided that does the work for you. No other LiveCD linux has this feature.
Select your favorite cursor theme, and restore it next time you boot up your system.
Security Control Scripts: For Firefox, Opera, and Flock (The three Web Browsers included)
Be sure and look at the Getting Started Guide for details on these unique and powerful control scripts that the
web browsers run in. For instance, when Firefox is started, it automatically sets up a new default configuration, with no
trace of the user's past web browsing history. Then, when Firefox is closed, everything is deleted, leaving no trace what-so-ever of the use of the web browser. The directories and files in /ramdisk are entirely deleted. It is as if Firefox were never used at all!
In addition, the Control Scripts provide crash protection, allowing two extra restarts of the browser with the current active comfiguration still in place.
So, if Firefox crashes, you can restart it, and then look over the recent web pages visited to return to the one you want. All three of the web browsers are unlikely to crash, they are modern, up to the minute browsers, the latest versions.
Using the "extra restarts" feature, you can close the browser, do something else with your running linux system, and then return to the browser with your current configuration still in place at a later time during the current bootup session.
You get three "starts" of the browser within the Security Control Script, maintaining your current browser setup, then you start over again by using the Menu, Toolbar Icon, or Desktop Icon to start the browser with the Control Script in place once again.
All of this is done to insure your privacy, and to provide security for your linux system.
When you close, no trace remains.
Remaster this CD:
Two fully tested applications are included in Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux that allow
the user to set up a "remastering-copy" of the CD in a linux formatted hard drive partition on the PC,
and then when changes are made to the "master copy", an iso is generated that can be burned to CD.
These are the "Automated Master Copy", and "Automated Remaster" applications.
All that is required to use them is to know the hard drive partition where the master copy is to be placed, i.e. "/dev/hda3", for instance.
The user is guided through this selection by easy to understand dialog boxes.
Remastering this CD does require knowledge on how to make changes to a "master copy".
For advanced users that are familiar with that procedure, these Automated scripts are a great time saver. Just set it and forget it!
The paperback book, Knoppix Hacks, by Kyle Rankin, provides all the in-between steps the user will need to change his
master copy, by adding applications and other changes needed to make a custom remastered CD.
(Use the Amazon.com search box below to find and order that book.)
In a production environment, where changes to the CD by remastering is done often for various reasons, these scripts
are just the ticket to handle the process of making a new CD easy, by doing a lot of the work for you.
On a powerful Pentium-4 computer, a new "master copy" can be placed in a waiting linux hard drive partition in under 15 minutes.
Bright Yellow Boot Prompt:
What's That?
Well, when you boot up Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux, you will immediately find a colorful splash screen, with
a "boot prompt" at the bottom of the screen. Sometimes you have to type something here. This gives the linux system some special instructions.
On laptops, you may have to enter at the boot prompt this: "fb800x600 knoppix acpi=off" for the laptop to boot up properly.
Now for the good part: The text you enter is in Bright Yellow, on a black background, very easy to see!
The original Knoppix livecd does not have this feature, using instead a pale grey text against a black background, very hard to see!
There's more information on "Knoppix Cheatcodes" in the Getting Started Guide.
When you have to get up in the morning before dawn to start your linux system up, you'll thank me for the bright yellow boot prompt.
Internet Radio:
There is an application included called "Station Selector" which is a high speed front-end for the X Multimedia System, allowing
fast switching between internet radio stations.
Check out the Getting Started Guide for information on this unique application.
The Station Selector can be downloaded separately here, and will run on many linux distributions, including Kanotix Linux.
The file is only 12K in size, and you will have to make it executable with "chmod +x station_selector.tcl" for it to run.
The application has dial-up and help sections, that will only work within Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux.
There are screenshots of Station Selector above, and on the Blog.
Web Page Maintenance:
It should be noted that this remaster is ideal for those who have to maintain web pages, for instance,
and have broadband web access that will be automatically detected.
For dial-up users, I have found that hardware modems, (external, pcmcia, pci and isa) can use WvDial to connect to the web.
WvDial is included in the remaster and complete instructions are provided in the Getting Started Guide.
I use the SciTE editor, the Emelfm file manager, and GIMP to great advantage when working on web pages.
There are built in "download" and "upload" directories for your use in handling the page html source.
You may use Opera to view the html source of your web page automatically in the SciTE editor, and then save a copy in your upload directory.
I have found that the combination of Opera and SciTE are extremely accurate, with your web page html source downloaded exactly as written.
SciTE is flawless when maintaining web page html code.
For those using FTP to upload web pages, use Konqueror in
Menu -->Admin - Tools.
Go to the Konqueror help file for instructions on how to use Konqueror to FTP your html file to your server.
This method is
much faster, and easier than using other FTP clients.
Basically, I just open Konqueror and view my upload directory, where I have placed my images and html files.
Then I open a new tab in Konqueror and enter the address of my server:
example:
ftp://yourusername@www.yoursite.com
Once you connect to your server, you will be asked for your password by Konqueror.
Once connected, you click on your local upload directory tab in Konqueror, and right-click or highlight the html file you wish to upload.
copy it to the clipboard with control-c or use the drop down menu in Konqueror.
Then click on the tab for your server's directory. When there,
press ctrl-v to paste it.
It will then upload over your internet connection. If the file is an overwrite, you will be asked to OK that.
In some cases you will upload an image, so you need to enter the "images" directory on your server before you copy and paste to upload your file.
That's all there is to it.
I have tried a lot of other LiveCD linux distributions to maintain web pages, and find it's easier
to use Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux to do that kind of work.
Frankly, it is a lot easier than using most linux distributions, and Windows, for that matter.
I cannot imagine doing web page maintenance any other way.
Here is an example of a web page that is maintained using this remaster:
Changes, when required, and made quickly and accurately.
Also, this web page you are viewing has been entirely developed using Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux.
All of the other web pages on rapidweather.com are maintained using this linux operating system.
You'll find other uses for Rapidweather Remaster of Knoppix Linux, other than ordinary web surfing and e-mail,
and it is hoped that you are happy with the way I have put it together.
Other Notes:
You are invited to use the Amazon search box provided below to shop Amazon.com for Linux computer books.
One that you will be interested in is "Knoppix Hacks" by Kyle Rankin.
This remaster is based on the publishers edition of Knoppix Linux 3.4 included in that book.
If you order the Rapidweather Remaster CD, you will find that I have made extensive changes and additions to the
original Knoppix 3.4.
Please stay tuned for futher developments!
Current Development Information is at the Blog.
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