DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS (or why)
MultiOS is designed to allow advanced systems administrators access to
their data from any computer.  I wanted to create a mobile environment
for accessing the web and email regardless of what was already installed
on a computer.  Instead of having my data and configurations tied to
a single machine, like a typical desktop user, I wanted the freedom to
use anyone's computer and still have my familiar programs available.

I think projects like these have a lot of potential when one realizes
the flexibility and modular strengths loopback filesystems have over
ordinary filesystems. MultiOS could be used as a full-blown computing
environment, or as a customized loader for a game or application. Entire
operating systems could be held in flash memory without the need for a
conventional hard drive.

Most consumers, even though they might run the same OS, have different
programs installed on their computer's hard drive. This makes it hard
to share files if their cohort doesn't have that specialized windows
driver program to read it. MultiOS could ultimately ease this pain by
literally putting both the OS and user files into the consumer's pocket.
A one gigabyte CompactFlash card, completely blank, sells for about $300 
today, and will go for even less tomorrow. It won't be too long before 
someone starts selling them with operating systems preinstalled. Think
about it.

So what's the difference, you ask, between MultiOS and other embedded
distributions?  One major difference is, I use a CompactFlash card
instead of a floppy to store the OS, your configuration changes, and
your data.  My boot procedure is a little different than most because
of the compressed loopback filesystems used for / and /usr. Other than
that, nothing earth-shattering. 

The main thing that sets MultiOS apart is the simple fact that I put
it together from scratch, and it works well for me :) I wrote all of the
scripts in /root/bin, /etc/rc.sysinit. /etc/init.d/fs, and linuxrc.c. That
C program controls all the low-level aspects of booting encrypted and
unencrypted loopback filesystems.