> Do you prefer a distribution that concentrates on the text-based > environment, or is the GUI OK? I have had much success with Ubuntu > http://www.ubuntu.com > and use it almost exclusively. Well, it's my only Linux distribution > of choice, and I only use Windows XP in a virtual machine to play > audio games. Ubuntu includes Orca, which is a screen reader for the > GNOME GUI and works well with Evolution (e-mail), Totem (Media > player), and the alpha builds of the Firefox web browser as well as > decent support of openoffice.org for word processing and spreadsheets > as well as other things you may find usable and enjoyable. > > I know I might get flamed for my choice, since Ubuntu is dropping > support of Speakup in the next release, <smile>, but I have had no > complaints or major breakage with it so far, even after quite > prematurely upgrading to the unstable Gutsy repo. I can also say that > Orca is working quite well for me in a text terminal to do those > things I absolutely must use the command line for like copying and > moving files and installing/removing/upgrading packages, simply > because that's the way I prefer to do those things. Perhaps Ubuntu > will include Speakup in a later release for those who still need pure > text-mode access, but if you use the GUI at all, I highly recommend > Ubuntu, even without Speakup. > > If you prefer to have no GUI and only use text-mode/command-line > applications, I would recommend Debian. Speakup modified versions of > the Debian net install CD's are available for the latest stable > version, and if you like the latest versions of packages, upgrading to > Unstable usually doesn't cause any major breakage. I actually used > Debian Unstable for about 3 years before switching to Ubuntu. I'm not > sure, however, that Speakup modified Debian installers support > software speech at this time. It is possible, though, to bootstrap a > Debian system from an existing Unix-like OS, but this takes quite a > lot of work, and I had trouble with it myself, and I consider myself > somewhat of a power user. > > As for Grml, I had trouble after installing it once, so I didn't try > again. It may have just been the laptop I was instaling it on, but it > behaved differently after the install than the live CD did. This was > about 2 years ago, however, so a lot has probably changed since then. > If your question about Grml was can it be installed in some other way > than using the live CD, the answer is no, since Grml is only a live CD > to my knowledge. If, however, your question is can Grml be installed > to your hard drive, then the answer is yes. There is an install script > that will put it on your hard drive for you with little or no trouble. > If you like, try it out and you may find it quite useful. Grml is also > Debian based, so you should get access to all the packages Debian has > available. > > Hope all this info helps, > Lorenzo > > I've always found anomalies to be very relaxing. It's a curse. > --Jadzia Dax: Star Trek Deep Space Nine (The Assignment)
