Sorcerer GNU/Linux

The distinctive feature of Sorcerer is the fact it's based exclusively on source code packages. While other operating systems generally make use of a package that contains pre-compiled (executable) programs, Sorcerer GNU/Linux packages compile the source code on the machine at install time.

This method of package installation has many advantages, including increased speed due to compilation optimization for the host's architecture, and easier security scanning of the installed software. The package management system keeps track of updates to packages at the home page of each package, so that new versions can be downloaded and installed as they become available. It also tracks library dependencies, so if a library file is updated, all binaries that depend on that library can be recompiled. Users can add new packages to the packaging system on their local box by creating a "spell" or configuration file for it, and can submit the new spell for inclusion in the general distribution.

One disadvantage is the high minimum system requirements. As of January 2002, these include 256MB RAM and 1GB of swap space. This is suggested because compiling the entire system from scratch consumes large amounts of system resources.

Sorcerer GNU/Linux can be found at http://sorcerer.wox.org/download/

Sorcerer has split into three forks: Lunar Linux[?], Source Mage (run by a large fraction of the original Sorcerer developers), and Sorcerer (run by Kyle Sallee).