Welcome to Slackware 12.1!

Slackware 12.1 is a complete distribution of the Linux operating system.

Here are some versions of major components of Slackware 12.1:

- Linux kernel           2.6.24.5
- C compiler             gcc-4.2.3
- Binutils               2.17.50.0.17
- GNU C Library          glibc-2.7
- X Window System        The latest tested packages from X.Org
- KDE                    3.5.9
- Xfce                   4.4.2

For installation instructions, see the file 'Slackware-HOWTO'.

For instructions to upgrade from Slackware 12.0 to 12.1, see the file
'UPGRADE.TXT'.  You would still be well advised to backup your machine
first if it contains any important data.

For details of important changes from Slackware 12.0 to 12.1, see the file
'CHANGES_AND_HINTS.TXT'.

These are some of the important files and directories found on the Slackware
FTP site:

  ftp://ftp.slackware.com/pub/slackware/slackware-12.1/

There is also a newer (and faster) primary FTP site for Slackware here:

  ftp://slackware.osuosl.org/pub/slackware/slackware-12.1/

Thanks to cwo.com for continuing to help us with hosting for our web site
and ftp.slackware.com, and to the OSU Open Source Lab for hosting our
archives at slackware.osuosl.org.

If you're reading this on a CD-ROM, these directories will probably be
split across several discs.

.
|-- BOOTING.TXT          Tips for troubleshooting boot problems.
|-- CHANGES_AND_HINTS.TXT  A summary of major changes from Slackware 12.0
|                        to 12.1 and common pitfalls.
|-- CHECKSUMS.md5        MD5 format file checksums.
|-- COPYING              The GNU Public License, version 2.
|-- COPYING3             The GNU Public License, version 3.
|-- COPYRIGHT.TXT        Slackware copyright and trademark information.
|-- CRYPTO_NOTICE.TXT    Legal information about encryption in Slackware.
|-- ChangeLog.txt        Log of system changes from Slackware 12.0 to 12.1.
|-- FAQ.TXT              Frequently asked questions and answers.
|-- FILELIST.TXT         List of files on the Slackware FTP site.
|-- GPG-KEY              The GnuPG key used to verify Slackware packages.
|-- PACKAGES.TXT         A detailed list of the core Slackware packages.
|-- README_CRYPT.TXT     Information about installing Slackware with
|                        encrypted LVM.
|-- README_LVM.TXT       Information about how to install Slackware onto LVM
|                        (including the /, if you want).
|-- README_RAID.TXT      Information about installing Slackware using the
|                        kernel's Software RAID (md) levels.
|-- SPEAKUP_DOCS.TXT     Documentation for the Speakup speech synth software.
|-- SPEAK_INSTALL.TXT    How to install with Speakup speech synthesis.
|
|-- Slackware-HOWTO      Instructions for installing Slackware from CD.
|                        If you're new to Slackware, start with this.
|
|-- UPGRADE.TXT          Instructions to upgrade from Slackware 12.0.
|
|-- extra/               Extra packages for Slackware like:
|   |                    aspell-word-lists, bash-completion, bittornado,
|   |                    bittorrent, brltty, btmgr-3.7, dip-3.3.7p,
|   |                    emacspeak, GRUB, INN, the Java(TM) JDK, ktorrent,
|   |                    libsafe-2.0-16, linux-2.6.24.5-nosmp-sdk (a kit to
|   |                    convert the default SMP kernel sources to non-SMP
|   |                    ones, which might be needed to compile drivers or
|   |                    other kernel modules) mpg123, the GNU parted
|   |                    partitioning tool, slackpkg, and slacktrack.
|   |
|   `-- source/          Source code for the extra packages.
|
|-- isolinux/            The ISOLINUX loader and initrd.img used to install
|   |                    Slackware from installation media or the network.
|   |                    Also found here is a README.TXT file describing how
|   |                    to create a Slackware installation ISO image and
|   |                    burn it to CD-R or DVD-(+)R.
|   |
|   |-- README.TXT       How to burn a Bootable Slackware disc.
|   `-- initrd.img       Installation initrd (can also be loaded with Loadlin)
|
|-- kernels/             Precompiled Linux 2.6.24.5 kernel images.
|   |
|   |-- gensmp.s         A generic 2.6.24.5 Linux kernel.  You'll need an
|   |                    initrd to switch from hugesmp.s to this kernel, but
|   |                    you'll save a bit of RAM, may get a slight
|   |                    performance increase, and won't get ugly (but
|   |                    harmless) -EEXIST warnings at boot as udev tries
|   |                    to load modules for things that are built into the
|   |                    kernel.
|   |
|   |-- generic.s        The generic version of huge.s.  This should work
|   |                    on 486 or better equipment.  Like gensmp.s, this
|   |                    kernel will require an initrd to boot.  See the
|   |                    README file in /boot after installing if you're
|   |                    interested in switching to the generic kernel.
|   |
|   |-- hugesmp.s        The default standard install kernel for Slackware.
|   |                    This supports pretty much everything in the
|   |                    2.6.24.5 kernel.  This kernel requires at least
|   |                    a Pentium-Pro processor.
|   |
|   |-- huge.s           A single-processor version of huge.s that will
|   |                    function with older hardware such as a 486 with
|   |                    64 or more MB of RAM.
|   |
|   `-- speakup.s        A huge.s kernel patched to support speakup
|                        speech output through various hardware and 
|                        software speech synthesizers.
|
|-- pasture/             These are packages that have been removed
|   |                    from Slackware, but are useful enough to
|   |                    keep around.  Might not be secure.
|   |
|   |                    Packages currently found here include
|   |                    apsfilter-7.2.5, bison-1.35, db1-1.85, db2-2.4.14,
|   |                    db3-3.3.11, db31-3.1.17, db4-4.1.25, db4-4.2.52,
|   |                    fvwm95-2.0.43ba, ifhp-3.5.18, libxml-1.8.17,
|   |                    links-0.98, lprng-3.8.28, raidtools-1.00.3,
|   |                    wu-ftpd-2.6.2, and xfm-1.4.3.
|   |
|   `-- source/          Source code for the pasture packages.
|
|
|
|-- slackware/           This directory contains the core software packages
|   |                    for Slackware 12.1.
|   |
|   |-- a/               The A (base) package series.
|   |-- ap/              The AP (applications) package series.
|   |-- d/               The D (development) package series.
|   |-- e/               The E (GNU Emacs) package series.
|   |-- f/               The F (FAQ/Documentation) package series.
|   |-- k/               The K (kernel source) package series.
|   |-- kde/             The KDE package series.
|   |-- kdei/            The KDE internationalization package series.
|   |-- l/               The L (libraries) package series.
|   |-- n/               The N (networking) package series.
|   |-- t/               The T (TeX) package series.
|   |-- tcl/             The TCL (Tcl/Tk and related) package series.
|   |-- x/               The X (X Window System) package series.
|   |-- xap/             The XAP (X applications) package series.
|   `-- y/               The Y (BSD games) package series.
|
|-- source/              This directory contains source code for the core
|   |                    software packages in Slackware.
|   |
|   |-- a/               Source for the A (base) series.
|   |-- ap/              Source for the AP (applications) series.
|   |-- d/               Source for the D (development) series.
|   |-- e/               Source for the E (GNU Emacs) series.
|   |-- f/               slack-desc files for the F (FAQ) series.
|   |-- installer/       Source for utilities used in the installer.
|   |-- k/               Source for the K (kernel source) series.
|   |-- kde/             Source for the KDE series.
|   |-- kdei/            Source for the KDEI series.
|   |-- l/               Source for the L (libraries) series.
|   |-- n/               Source for the N (networking) series.
|   |-- t/               Source for the T (TeX) series.
|   |-- tcl/             Source for the TCL (Tcl/Tk and related) series.
|   |-- x/               Source for the X (X Window System) series.
|   |-- xap/             Source for the XAP (X applications) series.
|   `-- y/               Source for the Y (BSD games) series.
|
|-- testing/             This directory contains packages being tested for
|   |                    possible use in future versions of Slackware.
|   |
|   |-- packages/        Contains a package for bash-3.2.029.
|   |
|   `-- source/bash/     Contains source code and patches for bash 3.2.x.
|
`-- usb-and-pxe-installers  These are alternate installers useful
    |                       for large-scale Linux deployment or if
    |                       your machine can boot PXE and/or USB but
    |                       not an optical disc.  For PXE, the initrd.img
    |                       file in isolinux/ is also required.
    |
    |-- README_PXE.TXT
    |-- README_USB.TXT
    |-- pxelinux.cfg_default
    |-- usbboot.img       The Slackware installer for bootable USB flash.
    |
    `-- etherboot         This is a system that starts a PXE install
        |                 from a system that does not need to support
        |                 PXE.  All that is needed to start it is a
        |                 network card and a floppy disk.  For more
        |                 information about PXE installs, see the
        |                 README_PXE.TXT file in the above directory.
        |
        |-- ETHERBOOT_README.TXT
        |-- RAWRITE.EXE
        |-- RAWRITE12.DOC
        |-- RAWRITE12.EXE
        |-- RAWRITE13.EXE -> RAWRITE.EXE
        |-- RAWRITENT.DOC
        |-- RAWRITENT.EXE
        |-- dhcpd.conf
        |-- dnsmasq.conf
        |-- etherboot.img
        |-- etherboot_img.build
        |-- etherboot_pcmcia.img
        |-- populate_tftpboot.sh
        |-- populate_tftpboot_symlinks.sh
        |-- rc.dhcpd
        `-- rc.tftpd
    

If you like Slackware, please consider supporting the project by becoming
a Slackware subscriber.  The announcement (ANNOUNCE_12.1) in this directory
has information about subscribing to the Slackware CD-ROM releases, or you
can read about it (and check out other Slackware products) by visiting the
Slackware store:

    http://store.slackware.com


Enjoy!

Patrick Volkerding
volkerdi@slackware.com