<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Strict//EN"
"http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-strict.dtd">
<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml">
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1" />
<title>Debian GNU/Linux -- The Universal Operating System</title>
<meta name="Description" content="Debian GNU/Linux is a free distribution of the GNU/Linux operating system. It is maintained and updated through the work of many users who volunteer their time and effort." />
<meta name="Keywords" content="debian, GNU, linux, unix, open source, free, DFSG" />
<meta name="Language" content="English" />
<meta name="Author" content="J.A. Bezemer, debian-boot@lists.debian.org" />
<link rev="made" href="mailto:debian-boot@lists.debian.org" />
<link href="css/debinstall.css" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" />
<link href="css/debinstall-print.css" media="print" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" />
</head>
<body id="readme">
<!-- The HTML and TEXT file are NOT the actual source code. -->
<!-- For that, see http://svn.debian.org/wsvn/debian-cd -->
<div id="header">
<div id="upperheader">
<div id="logo">
<a href="http://www.debian.org/" title="www.debian.org"><img
src="pics/openlogo-nd-50.png" width="70" height="120"
alt="www.debian.org" /></a>
</div><!-- end logo -->
<p class="section"><em>Installer</em></p>
</div><!-- end upperheader -->
<!--UdmComment-->
<div id="intro">
<div id="splash">
<h1>
Welcome to the exciting world of
<span id="debian-img"><img
src="pics/debian-61.png" alt="Debian GNU/Linux"
height="94" width="211" /></span></h1>
<p>This disc contains the installer for the
<a href="http://www.debian.org/">Debian GNU/Linux</a> distribution.
Debian is a very extensive collection of software. But it
is more. It is a complete Operating System (OS) for your
computer. And it is <a href=
"http://www.debian.org/intro/free">free</a> (as in
“freedom”).</p>
</div>
</div>
<p id="breadcrumbs">
<span class="alt">(<a href= "README.txt">Text version</a>)</span>
Debian GNU/Linux 5.0.0 "Lenny" - Official i386 NETINST Binary-1 20090214-14:36
</p>
</div><!-- end header -->
<div id="outer">
<ul class="toc">
<li><a href="#introduction">Introduction</a></li>
<li><a href="#thisdisc">About This Disc</a></li>
<li><a href="#install">Installing</a></li>
<li><a href="#lastmin">Last-Minute Notes</a></li>
<li><a href="#apt">Installing software using Apt</a></li>
<li><a href="#cdmanuf">CD/DVD Manufacturers</a></li>
<li><a href="#other">More Information</a></li>
<li><a href=".">Browse This Disc</a></li>
</ul>
<h2 id="introduction">
Introduction
</h2>
<p>An operating system is the set of basic programs and
utilities that make your computer run. At the core of an
operating system is the kernel. The kernel is the most
fundamental program on the computer, which does all the basic
housekeeping and lets you start other programs. Debian is
kernel independent. It currently uses the <a href=
"http://www.linux.org/">Linux</a> kernel but work is in
progress to provide Debian for other kernels, using <a href=
"http://www.gnu.org/software/hurd/hurd.html">the Hurd</a>. Most
of the basic operating system tools come from the <a href=
"http://www.gnu.org/">GNU project</a>; hence the name
GNU/Linux.</p>
<p>Debian is available for various kinds of computers
(“architectures”), like “IBM-compatible” PCs (<em>i386</em>),
Compaq's <em>Alpha</em>, Sun's <em>Sparc</em>, Motorola/IBM's
<em>PowerPC</em>, and <em>(Strong)ARM</em> processors. Check the
<a href="http://www.debian.org/ports">ports</a> page for more
information.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.debian.org/intro/about">Read more...</a></p>
<h2 id="thisdisc">
About This Disc
</h2>
<p>This disc is labeled
<small><strong>Debian GNU/Linux 5.0.0 "Lenny" - Official i386 NETINST Binary-1 20090214-14:36</strong></small>
.
It contains programs ("binaries") for `i386' computers.</p>
<p>This disc is a <em>netinst</em> image. It contains the installer and
a very basic system. Any other packages you might want to install will
be downloaded from the network.</p>
<p>The Release Notes for "lenny" are available on the
<a href="http://www.debian.org/releases/lenny/releasenotes">Debian web
site</a>.</p>
<h2 id="install">
Installing
</h2>
<p>Because Debian is a complete Operating System, the
installation procedure may seem a bit unusual. You can install
Debian GNU/Linux either <em>alongside</em> your current OS, or as
the <em>only</em> OS on your computer.</p>
<p>An <b>Installation Guide</b> for this disc is available from
<a href="http://www.debian.org/releases/lenny/installmanual">the
Debian web site</a>.</p>
</p>
<p>For the impatient ones: you can start the installation program easily by
booting off this disc. Note that not all (esp. older) systems support
this.</p>
<p>You can also examine the <tt><a href="install/">/install/</a></tt>
directory; you might be able to start the installation system directly
from there.</p>
<h2 id="lastmin">
Last-Minute Notes
</h2>
<ul>
<li>You should keep in mind that this is a beta disc of the current
development version of the Debian system. This means that all sorts of
bugs may be present anywhere in the system. Please report any bugs you
find in the Debian Bug Tracking System; details at <a
href="http://bugs.debian.org/">bugs.debian.org</a>.</li>
<li>If you're reporting bugs against this disc or the installation
system, please also mention the version of this disc; this can be found
in the file <tt><a href="/.disk/info">/.disk/info</a></tt>.</li>
</ul>
<h2 id="apt">
Installing software using Apt
</h2>
<p>After installing or upgrading, Debian's packaging system can
use CDs, DVDs, local collections, or networked servers (FTP,
HTTP) to automatically install software from (.deb
<em>packages</em>). This is done preferably with the ‘apt’ and
‘aptitude’ programs.</p>
<p>You can install packages from the commandline using
apt-get. For example, if you want to install the
packages ‘commprog’ and ‘maxgame’, you can give the
command:</p>
<p>
<code>apt-get install commprog maxgame</code>
</p>
<p>Note that you don't have to enter the complete path, or the
‘.deb’ extension. ‘Apt’ will figure this out
itself.</p>
<p>Or use aptitude for a full screen interactive selection of
available Debian packages.</p>
<h2 id="cdmanuf">
CD/DVD Manufacturers
</h2>
<p>You are completely free to manufacture and re-distribute CDs/DVDs of the
Debian GNU/Linux Operating System, like this one. There is no charge from
us (but of course donations are always welcome).</p>
<p>For all needed information and contact addresses, please
refer to:</p>
<p>
<a href="http://www.debian.org/CD/">http://www.debian.org/CD/</a>
</p>
<h2 id="other">
More Information
</h2>
<p>There is much more information present on this disc. Besides
the already mentioned installation and upgrading procedures,
this is the most interesting:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<a href="doc/FAQ/">Debian FAQ</a>
</li>
<li>
<a href="doc/constitution.txt">The Debian Constitution</a>
</li>
<li>
<a href="doc/debian-manifesto">The Debian Manifesto</a>
</li>
<li>
<a href="doc/social-contract.txt">Debian's Social Contract</a>
</li>
<li>
<a href="doc/bug-reporting.txt">Bug reporting instructions</a>
</li>
</ul>
<p>Also on the Internet are many resources. To name a few:</p>
<ul>
<li>
<a href="http://www.debian.org/">The Debian homepage</a>
</li>
<li>
<a href="http://www.debian.org/doc/">Debian Documentation</a>
</li>
<li>
<a href="http://www.debian.org/support">Debian User Support</a>
</li>
<li>
<a href="http://www.tldp.org/">The Linux Documentation Project</a>
</li>
<li>
<a href="http://www.linux.org/">General Linux homepage</a>
</li>
</ul>
<div id="fineprint">
<p>
See the Debian <a href=
"http://www.debian.org/contact">contact page</a>
for information on contacting us.</p>
</div>
</div>
</body>
</html>