A Puppy 4.3.x Rant

[puponmanyoldlaptops]

Since Puppy 2.0.x, I've used this Linux with great confidence, spread it and defended it for four years.

When Puppy 4.2.1 was available, it was nirvana. Best of show. A pride in craftsmanship.

The beautiful boot splash, the way it handles, the ease that made me like Puppy to begin with was polished and improved so much that it is a joy to behold.

Then......Puppy 4.3.

This Pup is rough. Gone is the beautiful bootsplash in the GRUB menu. Gone is the cool shutdown dialog box.

While Seamonkey works OK, adding Firefox 2.0.0.7 breaks something.

I can't change the default home page. I get a ghost window and have to restart X to get things back to pre-FF install.

I can't code to save my ass. At 56, I'm trying to know Linux well, but it's slow going.

What works here?

How do we get the gorgeous bootsplash back? What's it take to get the great shutdown dialog box that was in 4.2.1 back?

What must I do to get a Firefox working in this Puppy version?

How can this missing stuff be added back into this version of Puppy?

[01micko]

in a word... "dpup".. (check http://murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic.php?t=47592)

Same sweet kernel as 431 but with some enhancements from 421 and some Debian polish too

[DaveS]

For Firefox, go here:
http://www.murga-linux.com/puppy/viewtopic.php?t=46390

Runs beautifully, is the latest version, and accepts auto-updates.

I have not made a shutdown dialogue .pet, mainly because to make it work requires an edit of the underlying .jwmrc file, though I do set one up on my own system. Maybe I should make one which just works from a simple menu button, which would be easier to install?

Splash screen? No clue

4.2.1 was a Community Edition release, basically put together by the Puppy Community at large, while 4.3.1 is a Barry K release, rather more true to Puppy philosophy. The next Community release is in early development now and is currently called 4.4. Please dont let the more minimalistic appearance of 4.3.1 put you off. The underlying system is superb.

[WhoDo]

What works here?

How do we get the gorgeous bootsplash back? What's it take to get the great shutdown dialog box that was in 4.2.1 back?

What must I do to get a Firefox working in this Puppy version?

How can this missing stuff be added back into this version of Puppy?

Some of it can, if you download the requisite packages from here:

http://distro.ibiblio.org/pub/linux/dis ... uppylinux/

You will find most of what you want in the pet_packages-4 directory. The Puppy Package Manager (PPM) in 4.31 won't show them to you, so you'll have to get them by downloading (right click > save as).

The shutdown dialogue is shutdown_jwm-1.pet
RoxRightClicks is also there and I now find that indispensible.

As for the rest, look for packages with 42 in the name. The gfxboot program was put together by CatDude and if you search for graphical boot on the Puppy Google Search you should find it.

Hope that helps

[DaveS]

The shutdown dialogue is shutdown_jwm-1.pet
RoxRightClicks is also there and I now find that indispensible.

Totally WhoDo, especially for touchpad users. That should be a Puppy feature in every release. Just a tiny script a nd a couple of icons makes such a difference to the overall experience.

ps: I vaguely remember wmpoweroff and wmreboot are not where the shutdown dialogue expects them to be in 4.3.*?

[craftybear]

That's right. 4.21 had both Icewm and JWM.

The Icewm from 4.21 does NOT run properly in 4.31, at least not in my copy.

[trapster]

@ puponmanylaptops.

Why did you feel the need to "upgrade"? If it aint working for you, stay with what does.

[mikeb]

Why did you feel the need to "upgrade"? If it aint working for you, stay with what does.

because new is better ..... as the salesman says....isn't it?

Simplepup showed me that puppy does not have to be ugly with a geeky browser and tonnes of superflous menu entries and icons....if you want looks and handy features choose a derivative or make yer own.

Please dont let the more minimalistic appearance of 4.3.1 put you off.

I wonder how many potential users are put off by that and how many were drawn in by the sophistication of 4.2 (I nicked those tarty folder icons )

I know a company making billions mainly on looks and handy features...boss called bill I believe

mike

[Béèm]

I know a company making billions mainly on looks and handy features...boss called bill I believe

But having a useless product.

[mikeb]

I want billions for a useless (mishandled) product.... .
Puppy is pretty useless until fixed anyway.....

mike

[DaveS]

Puppy is pretty useless until fixed anyway.....

mike

Oh Mike... a little harsh?

[mikeb]

I just tell it as it is

mike

ps no censorship is the policy here now I believe.......

[puponmanyoldlaptops]

Why did you feel the need to "upgrade"? If it aint working for you, stay with what does.

because new is better ..... as the salesman says....isn't it?

Simplepup showed me that puppy does not have to be ugly with a geeky browser and tonnes of superflous menu entries and icons....if you want looks and handy features choose a derivative or make yer own.

Please dont let the more minimalistic appearance of 4.3.1 put you off.

I wonder how many potential users are put off by that and how many were drawn in by the sophistication of 4.2 (I nicked those tarty folder icons )

I know a company making billions mainly on looks and handy features...boss called bill I believe

mike

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After looking around I have seen that Firefox 3.5 works with that great pet in the forum.

The bootsplash will go back in thanks to the directions from the answer I see here.

So will that spiffy shutdown dialog I miss, (and I think others really liked).

Thanks to you all I have my faith back in Puppy and am enjoying it again as half the drive in a Dell Optiplex GX 260.

And I'm learning more about tweaking a Linux =^). Not bad for a 56 YO half-geek.

P.O.M.O.L.

[mikeb]

Puppy , just like life, is what you make of it...that's why we come back for more

mike

[puponmanyoldlaptops]

Please dont let the more minimalistic appearance of 4.3.1 put you off.

I wonder how many potential users are put off by that and how many were drawn in by the sophistication of 4.2 (I nicked those tarty folder icons )
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Puppy has the right to evolve. Minimalistic appearance isn't necessarily a deal-killer in a Linux.

And I don't call Puppy minimalistic. What Puppy is is a small but extremely useable and good-looking Linux.

What made 4.2.1 amazing was the color bootsplash, the "everything-just-works" part of Firefox 2.0.0.7, the easy network and dial-up connectivity.

It has a more "finished" look for a small distro (the lack of finish turns me off about Damn Small).

When presenting a Linux to people I demonstrate it to, I see the pleased looks when I show a polished desktop and the overall workability I mentioned.

And I'm huge on the re-use of old computers. Puppy has been my salvation there.

Puppy has been in the top 5 of FrozenTech's Live Linux CDs, again IMHO, because of the greatness of 4.2.x.

Please keep that going.

[puponmanyoldlaptops]

I just tell it as it is

mike

ps no censorship is the policy here now I believe.......

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I gotta tell you, Mike, Puppy is to older machinery what Ubuntu is to new computers.

Don't sell it short. It has a solid place in computerdom, as long as Pentium II and III boxen are in the homes of the not-so-rich.

A near-normal computing experience for most machinery despite however "broken" it may be considered.

Don't ever sell it short.....

P.O.M.O.L.

[DaveS]

I wonder if the next Community Edition will see a return to (no offense intended) 'bling'. I have been using the latest NOP version from Gray, which I really like. It has the nice Xfce desktop, which surprisingly seems snappier than earlier versions, shutdown dialogue of course, launchbar by default, and a later CUPS. Two little bugs with pfind, but otherwise really nice. Opera is the standard browser.

[mikeb]

A near-normal computing experience for most machinery despite however "broken" it may be considered

well the assumption that puppy was perfect was beginning to catch up on itself

mike

ps... changing to xfce 4.2 is the first move I make with any puppy...small, fast and erm stable...I like full screen video and a menu I can edit and system monitors that don't hog the system , and consistant theme accros applications, and...........

[DaveS]

changing to xfce 4.2 is the first move I make with any puppy...small, fast and erm stable...I like full screen video and a menu I can edit

How do you edit the menu Mike?

[mikeb]

With the menu editor

mike