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DATE: 11-September-2008
Filed Under: Linux, USB Devices

I am running Puppy Linux from a 512 MB Lexar Firefly USB drive. Running Linux from this device allows me to take Linux with me wherever I go. The Firefly is small physically, but just the type of device for Puppy Linux. Puppy is a scaled down distribution of Linux that could be run entirely from your systems memory and includes everything you might need when you are away from your computer.

Puppy includes many of same programs that are found in other Linux distributions but the programs are scaled down and without all the bells and whistles. If you do the room and want to add additional capability Puppy offers Puppy on a Leach and the ability to recompile Puppy.

Puppy's desktop includes twenty icon shortcuts so I thought I would start here and briefly identify their uses:

1. Home
   Opens a window with your default folders like your "My Documents", "My Applications", and "Puppy Reference", ECT.

2. Help
   Includes information about Puppy and application documentation.

3. Drives
   Allows you to view USB drives that are connected to your PC and allows you to mount (access) your files on these devices.

4. Install
   Allows you in install additional packages (software) to Puppy.

5. Setup
   Setup includes wizards to help you setup different components and services in Puppy like the firewall, printers, network interface, sound, ECT.

6. Edit
   Spawns Geany a text editor.
   

7. Console
   Opens a console window otherwise known as a termical window in Linux. The rxtv terminal allows you to become one with your machine.

8. Write
   The Write icon opens AbiWord a great open source and feature rich word processor. This posting is being written in AbiWord.
   

9. HTML
   The HTML shortcut opens Composer a simple, but effective Web editor.
   

10. Calc
    Allows you to access Gnumeric a full featured spreadsheet program that allows you to save your documents in multiple formats including a Microsoft spreadsheet. 
    

11. Paint
    Spawns mtPaint a graphics creation, editor, and screenshots program. The screen shot for this posting was taken with mtPaint.
    

12. Draw
    Opens InkscapeLite a Scalable Vector Graphic (SVG) creation program.
    

13. Browse
    Spawns SeaMonkey a Mozilla web browser.
    

14. Email
    Opens the SeaMonkey email and newsgroup browser
    

15. Chat
    Starts Gaim an open source chat and instant messaging client.
    

16. Play
    Allows you to access Gxine, Puppy’s default media player. Gxine is a full featured media player that plays content in multiple formats.          

17. Connect
    Allows you to connect to the Internet through your modem or network interface.

18. Lock
    Password protects and locks your Puppy desktop.

19. Pupzip
    As the name implies Pupzip allows you to either zip or unzip files and directories.

20. Trash
    Same as the Windows Recycle Bin, but with a cool icon.