@lakesnative: Welcome to the forum!
There's a trade-off when you ask to have or create
Trying to end up with a laptop that someone else can use with little existing knowledge of linux.
In the end, YOU end up being the person who needs to know a little about Linux because the "someone else" you have in mind will be asking
you when they don't have an answer to something. As such, you end up needing to know a little about Linux in order to support machines which offers it.
Note to anyone with a different opinion: Both Mac/Apple and Windows have the exact same learning curve for someone with no experience. Nobody is born with Microsoft Certification... it all has to be learned and by someone or by others who have already been through the learning process and "by others" can be first hand or through literature.
The challenge with TinyCore as opposed to some of the more "main-stream distributions" of Linux is that we're aimed more at the person who is trying to build a custom-fit environment for a specific purpose, as
@Gadget42 had mentioned, like the Kiosk Mode flavor for a good example. Odds are, this may be
exactly what you're after! In fact, if done correctly, it's what most non-computer-programmer types of people really need... something that can be built to specific needs and desires without all of the extra "fluff" that does come with the main-streams.
If you want to be the one who learns some of the basics of how to install an operating system, how to modify that installation with software applications ("extensions" in our case) and most importantly, if you are okay with being the person that takes the heat and/or disappointment if and when something doesn't go exactly as planned, then pull up a chair prepare (as I playfully say to my kids) for your
edumacation. There are tons of resources online (and these forums along with our wiki are a plethora of first-hand Tiny Core specific experience) but you must come into the picture with the knowledge that this is
your adventure, as is the case with learning anything new, and where my own children (ages 5 and 14) are both very aware, I'm perfectly happy helping someone learn something... but "doing it
for people" is what I go to the office for each morning and what pays the bills. (LOL) Now-a-days there seems to be a fine line between student and client.
Instructions on how to get your feet wet:
- Install TinyCore on your laptop "as is"
- When you're at the desktop, press CTRL+ALT+BACKSPACE which should kill the desktop and leave you at the "shell" or "command line"
This is as close to the "heart" of the running operating system as you can get. - Type in tce-ab and press ENTER; this is the shell based extension manager
You're presented with S)earch P)rovides K)eywords or Q)uit - press the letter associated with what you want to do; in this case, press "K" for KEYWORDS.
Keywords is used when you want to search for an extension which you may not know the name of so you're searching by "topics." In this case, enter "browser" and you'll be presented with a list of extensions that have something to do with that word. If you use "S"earch, it's expecting you know the extensions name, or at least a portion of it. "P"rovides is a search function based on actual file names that reside inside an extension. If you're reading through the forum and someone suggests "...install extension
SOMETHING..." this is a good way to get moving in that direction.
To return to the desktop, type in
startx and press ENTER. The process above is useful for when you add extensions TO your desktop which control HOW it operates as sometimes you need to restart it (as opposed to completely rebooting the machine itself.) The desktop also has an extension or "apps" manager; the goal about teaching you about the shell's version is to give you options for BOTH sides - with a desktop, and without.
READING IS VITAL. While you're experimenting with your extension managers, READ what's in the results! ie: You searched for "browser" -- select one of the results and read the description page that comes with it. This is presented to you
before the extension is installed making you the "informed consumer." Don't worry much about installing extensions you don't need -- it's actually VERY easy to start completely over with Tiny Core Linux without having to reinstall it. In fact, a unique feature of Tiny Core is the "always clean" operating system motif... you have to CHOOSE what ingredients you want in your recipe! More importantly, you can REMOVE ingredients without tainting the flavor of what you're making.
Finally, while you are experimenting, you'll have questions... at the top, right of this page is a search box --
use the power of this force wisely and often. When necessary, step back from the forum and use a main-stream search engine which will broaden the search results quite a bit. If you've tried both and still cannot seem to get in the direction of an answer, then
start a new topic here and ask away. Be sure to tell us which VERSION of Tiny Core you're using, a little history of the hardware (computer, how much memory it has, etc.) and as much detail as possible of what you're trying to accomplish and what you've already tried to do. We're always willing to help those who help themselves!
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