Should Ubuntu Still Be Distributed As A CD ISO?

[phoronix]

Phoronix: Should Ubuntu Still Be Distributed As A CD ISO?

The question of whether the Linux operating system should still be distributed as a 700MB CD ISO or whether they finally need to break that threshold and move to a DVD ISO or a USB-centered image has come up again for the Ubuntu 11.10 Oneiric cycle...

http://www.phoronix.com/vr.php?view=OTQyMg

[mendieta]

In any modern machine, booting off of USB is easier, cheaper, and faster. Reuse a hundred times if you want. No problems with the freakin' laser, and you can even make it persistent. Nice if you wanna try a couple days.

CD (not DVD) support is important for legacy systems, so you need some sort of simple installer for CD. Or just recomend Lubuntu or Xubuntu for those.

DVD? Isn't that dead already?

[judgen]

I really want to keep the possibillity to burn a net-boot mini.iso for network install to a CD. The full distro? meh... Then i defer to the earlier speaker as his/her comment is very valid.

[LauRoman]

Ubuntu already has a dvd version. Sadly that only has language packs. An extended versio of ubunt that doesn't exclude aptitude or proposed future exclusion that resembles the vanilla one would be nice but Canonical doesn't really care and i don't know why. Fedora and i think also OpenSUSE have a gnome and kde livecd and a dvd version and Debian has net-install buisnesscard and cd versions (52) and dvd versions (8). I have no ideea why they dont do a 2-3 gb one.

[LauRoman]

By cd and dvd i mean cd an dvd sized image. Ubuntu does include a tool to change the cd into a usb install. However they still cling to that 700mb.

1 minute editing time window sucks on this (new?) version of the forum. Maybe wanna change it to 5-15 min.

[madjr]

we need an internet install or a way to install the iso from the hard drive (kind like wubi, but for real installs on their own partition, not inside windows), that way it could be as big as they want.

[LauRoman]

we need [...] a way to install the iso from the hard drive (kind like wubi, but for real installs on their own partition, not inside windows)...

I think there is a roundabout way of doing that, but i forgot how.

[GreatEmerald]

I don't mind, since DVDs are pretty much commonplace now. Just that in that case, they might want to use all of the space that DVDs give in order not to waste it, and that would mean larger downloads, which is not entirely fun. Hmm.

[talvik]

Ubuntu downloads a couple dozen MB of translations, dictionaries...

Canonical should think about the people who mirror for them and people with slow connections. If common software and translations were included in a bigger ISO, that would save a lot of bandwidth during the release time.

[jakubo]

Ubuntu downloads a couple dozen MB of translations, dictionaries...

Canonical should think about the people who mirror for them and people with slow connections. If common software and translations were included in a bigger ISO, that would save a lot of bandwidth during the release time.

i dont get how larger images can save bandwith...
id prefer to download 700MB and then configure my system as needed, than to get 4,7GB (makes my head ache just thinking of it) and then to customize...
i think for languages there should be a minimum for live cd. after install you end up fetching the language packs anyway.
besides... i think 700MB is a nice barriert for distros to check whether the distro gets too bloated. if they cant keept it small something is wrong...

P.S. customize means install flash, mp3 support, gallium driver, skype, wine etc... ... and change background in some cases^^