Modification of Public OLPC Software

[Bernardo Innocenti]

big one wrote:

> I often use Linux without any X-Windows, but only svgalib: mplayer, links 2.0 browser, mp3blaster, etc. On FreeDOS (Free Disk Operating System), I can use display, arachne, pppd etc.
> 
> Because OLPC is sold to general public using "Buy 2 Get 1" G1G1, is it possible to customize OLPC:
> 1. Disable internal Flash Drive, and boot from external USB hard disk / external CD-ROM drive.
> 2. Boot to console mode (svgalib).
> 3. Install Fedora, Mandriva or other Linux/BSD distro, FreeDOS. Use TWM / IceWM windows manager.
> Is the above ideas possible?

3 is possible provided you replace the standard Linux kernel with one including
the OLPC patch set.  I've also been told that Minix works.

I doubt the BSDs already support our hardware, but wouldn't be hard. FreeDOS would
be problematic because the OFW does not emulate BIOS services and does not provide
16bit support.  But maybe you can get LinuxBIOS to boot from OFW and then you're
done!

Several people booted regular Fedora 7 and Ubuntu Feisty off USB drives.  I think
the only change needed was installing the kernel package.  The RPM is available
from us, a dpkg should be easy to produce with the Debian kernel development tools.

When enough of our patches will be merged upstream, and the OLPC hardware gets more
widely available, I'd expect the mainstream distros to offer out of the box OLPC
support.

-- 
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 |___|  Bernardo Innocenti - http://www.codewiz.org/
  \___\ One Laptop Per Child - http://www.laptop.org/