A Slackware Desktop Enhancement Guide
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The pros and cons of Slackware could be summarized in one word: minimalism. One element about the Slackware GNU/Linux distribution that few people will argue against is the reputation of Slackware being perpetually stable. Part of the secret to providing such famous stability is a minimalist approach towards packaging the distro.
Minimalism certainly means stability. Minimalism means being able to tinker and learn without feeling like one is stuck in a snake pit. Minimalism means little “spaghetti code.” Minimalism is wonderful because there is less overhead, which means things tend to break less often. When things do break, resolving the problem usually is more straightforward. Minimalism means that people using “older” boxes are still finding a lot of life in their hardware.
Minimalism is a potential two-edged sword, however. Minimalism can be exasperating for some people because the end-user must configure many features with manual editing rather than the more familiar point-and-click. When things break, often there are no point-and-click tools to help fix things. Additionally, in some areas where other distro providers shine, such as automatic hardware recognition, minimalism often means frustration. Even the installation setup can be teeth-grinding at times because the process is linear and there is no way to back-trace and fix mistakes or typos before continuing. Minimalism means more time and effort by users to customize and tweak the distro to personal taste. That minimalist approach typically means a steeper learning curve for many users, and that one aspect tends to discourage many potential users.
In the long-term, however, minimalism means stability because the distro is not packaged with ill-conceived patches, work-arounds, or convoluted scripts. Yet, that minimalist approach means that unlike many distros, little gets in the way of making that effort. Some distros are packaged with so many hurdles arguably designed to protect users that customizing those distros is a challenge.
This minimalist approach means that Slackware retains a reputation of being a difficult GNU/Linux distribution to install and maintain. In some respects this reputation is mere falsehood and legend, but sadly, in other respects the reputation is well deserved. Slackware also maintains a reputation as a “server” system rather than a desktop system. This statement is one of those misleading but infamous legends and falsehoods. Nonetheless, to massage Slackware into a solid graphically-based desktop operating system, some straightforward usability tweaks are needed to help the typical desktop user.
My goal with this guide is to help people overcome some of the common usability hurdles infamously associated with Slackware. The result is a stable and satisfying operating system and one that responds well.
An Important Starting Point—Documentation and Online Resources
Getting Started
Those Mysterious Quotations and Sayings When Logging In
Configuring xorg.conf for Mice with Scroll Wheels
Configuring Slackware for a GUI Startup—Part I
Configuring Slackware for a GUI Startup—Part II
Configuring Slackware for a GUI and a Command Line Startup
A More Flexible rc.4 Script
A Colorized Runlevel 3 Login Screen
Colorized Slackware rc.d Scripts
Colorized Man Pages and Screen Output
Adding User Accounts
Harmonizing the Bash Startup Scripts
Creating a Nominal /etc/skel Directory
Configuring Sound
Installing GRUB
Parallel Port Printers
Adding Additional Video Screen Resolutions to xorg.conf
Simple Konsole Tweaks
Automagically Running Programs During Startup and Shutdown
Finding Files
Configuring the APM Daemon
Configuring the NTP Daemon
Dual Booting with the DHCPC Daemon
Configuring the Right Alt Key The Same As The Left Alt Key
A White Mouse Pointer Without Themes
Configuring a Plug-and-Play ISA Modem
Eliminating Common Nuisance Messages
Enabling the Samba Web Administration Tool (SWAT)
Installing Slackware Without a CD Drive
A Flexible Firewall Strategy
A Backup Strategy
Listing Non Stock Slackware Packages
Improving Slackware Boot Time
A GRUB Splash Image
Slackware Xfce Improvements
Updating Slackware