Pet projects

I’ve always been find of keeping systems simple. Unfortunately, Windows and applications keep getting more and more complicated. If you have a registry problem or a DLL conflict, chances are it’s going to be a pain to resolve.

In the spirit of “smaller is better”, I found this site, which shows how to pare down a Windows98 install to 4.38 megabytes!

I’m thinking about making my own nano-system. I have a spare Pentium Pro 200 system with 128 megs of RAM. I could install a bare system add TCP/IP networking, and a minimal install of OpenOffice. The Mozilla Project has several smaller projects based on the Mozilla core.

The TinyApps weblog has a list of applications that would fit nicely with a smaller system. To be listed, an application needs to be under 1.44 megabytes in size, free or shareware, and they award bonus points for “self-contained” program that don’t require an installer or write registry entries. The weblog lists graphics applications, web browsers and servers, FTP servers, chat clients and more.

The tinyapps weblog has some interesting programs that work on POP3 email accounts without actually downloading mail to your PC. With one of these programs on a USB keychain drive, you could check a home email account from work without installing software.

Now that Windows98 will be supported for a few more years, a tinybox is a bit more realistic an option.

I could replace my Pentium-II/350 Linux box with a Sun Sparc 2 and set the wayback machine to 1998!