Hi :-) >> I just downloaded the FDI-USB.ZIP file (now 178 MB .ZIP'd, unpacks >> to 256 MB .img).
> Yeah, It’s a little big. But, on the other hand it is really hard to find > a USB stick under 512mb. So, other than download size, it isn’t to > important. However, that being said. It should be under 100mb > for individuals who have very limited or expensive bandwidth. The traditional answer would be to have a separate download which contains only the BASE packages and whatever is needed to install, such as UNZIP and the package manager :-) I would still like to hear what the largest packages in FDI-USB are and which packages of which size from Mateusz' 500 MB repository are still missing. Having a separate download would make it easy for people to either enjoy ALL Mateusz' packages on a 500+ MB size stick without having to worry about DOS networking drivers (do you include ANY yet?) and at the same time make things quick and easy for others who simply want a basic install of DOS with a quick download :-) >> 147 MB of "DEVEL"??? Uh ... maybe I could sympathize with OW.ZIP and >> NASM.ZIP (which total "only" 18 MB), but all of the rest is too >> obscure (relatively speaking) for most developers. Hm? Are the "obscures" large? Are FPC, FreeBasic, DJGPP obscure? >> But LBACACHE now loads before UDVD2 and FDAPM, so you still can't >> unload it. :-( > > But, it is the installers boot media. Not the installed system. Does it > matter? Not really. Yet I agree that it is better to load FDAPM early ;-) > The issue is not being able to check for available free space. I just don’t > see it as really being worth the overhead and additional complexity. > FDI starts, tests if there is enough freespace for minimum install. > YES, continue, No, check if there would be enough if current version is > removed. > If not, stop telling user not enough space. You could make it simpler: If there is enough space to install (make a base / all distinction) without deleting anything, be happy. If you have less space, warn the user: They MIGHT be able to install stuff, because the install will overwrite some old versions with newer ones, but they continue at own risk. Give the user a rough idea of free size. > If user wants to make a backup, make sure there will be enough room for > that > an the minimal install. Can we assume that stuff is moved to backups, instead of adding backup size to the amount of already used disk space? > Based on package selection, make sure there will be enough room for that > the backup. I had the impression that you wanted to avoid individual package choices to keep the install simple? Of course the package manager can always be smart and ponder how much space is consumed by installing [list of some packages] but for the moment, I guess knowing how large base / full are should be enough to get a rough idea in the installer, not in fdnpkg :-) > Or: > Just test for Max install size + backup size. Yep. And maybe have a separate BASE-only download: Less disk size used and less download bandwidth used. Plus people can always install extra stuff later using the package manager. Either by feeding it package ZIP files or by getting DOS networking to work. >> http://ericauer.cosmodata.virtuaserver.com.br/soft/specials/free-disk-space-tester-freetest.zip A classic tool for your errorlevel based disk space usage checks ;-) Cheers, Eric PS: It is a bit weird that the current image has to overwrite the whole stick, which often is a lot larger than 256 MB. How about alternatives that you copy to already FAT formatted sticks and a tool to SYS & MBR? I know, FAT is less popular today, but this would be nice for those who do not want to mess up stick partitions or do not know how to redo them. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Site24x7 APM Insight: Get Deep Visibility into Application Performance APM + Mobile APM + RUM: Monitor 3 App instances at just $35/Month Monitor end-to-end web transactions and take corrective actions now Troubleshoot faster and improve end-user experience. Signup Now! http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/clk?id=267308311&iu=/4140 _______________________________________________ Freedos-devel mailing list Freedos-devel@lists.sourceforge.net https://lists.sourceforge.net/lists/listinfo/freedos-devel
