A minimalistic Linux distribution that can run OpenGL-based applications without X is now available from New Zealand based hacker Zeljko “Zelko” Aksentijevic. Zelko said his “MyOS Miniature OpenGL development system” shows that Linux development systems can be simple.

Zelko said MyOS has been “stripped down of everything, but core necessary files to compile and run OpenGL/C code.” It is distributed as a 12.8MB ISO image, and fits on a 1.44MB floppy disk when OpenGL development tools are removed, according to Zelko.

Zelko said MyOS offers “really all one needs to learn OpenGL.” Additionally, applications written on MyOS can run on “any Linux,” he said.

In order to run OpenGL applications without X, MyOS makes use of SciTech's interesting GPL-licensed SNAP/MGL drivers. The drivers use a portable, cross-platform, HAL (hardware abstraction layer) with an OpenGL API.

In addition to serving as a teaching tool, potential applications for MyOS listed by its creator include: USB key-chain Linux implementations, rescue Linux, secure information storage and processing systems, and embedded applications, such as mobile phones, PDAs, media players, public computers, ATMs, and “other systems or terminals that need to run safely without 'Hard Drive' or entirely from ROM chip.”

MyOS could also serve as the basis for building a graphical windowing system on top of OpenGL, Aksentijevic suggests.

In addition to the SciTech drivers, other components of MyOS are said to include a stripped down and modified GNU GCC compiler, diet libc, Necromancer's windows manager, and of course, busybox.

Further project details are here.

 
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