Sort-of instructions sort-of checklist for installing GNU+Linux to my liking on a desktop. Assumes I’m starting with a minimal Debian operating system. Not finished yet — I’ll complete these instructions the next time I install a Debian desktop.

Make the system usable:

su -c 'apt-get install sudo nvi screen'

sudo update-alternatives --config editor

Get tools to get my regular configuration files and scripts:

sudo apt-get install ssh unison-some_version git

Get my my configuration file sync script and use it to bootstrap the rest of my files:

scp ...:bin/myunison ./myunison
chmod +x myunison
./myunison -batch

Setup essential symbolic links:

• .bashrc
• .bash
• .exrc
• And others…

Setup X:

apt-get install xserver-xorg awesome rxvt-unicode