In order to boot any operating system your computer needs not only that operating system but also a bootloader. A bootloader is a piece of code that runs before any operating system is running; it is used to boot operating systems.
Once you have your first Puppy running, you can use frugalpup for any future projects. https://puppylinux.rockedge.org/viewtop ... 1588#p1588. The hurdle is getting that first Puppy.
It is always recommended that you try to boot any Puppy first by installing it to a USB-Stick (alternatively by burning it to a CD/DVD). It makes little sense to install any operating system to a computer's hard-drive and mess with the computer's current bootloader --with the possibility of locking yourself out of a functioning system-- if you can't get that new operating system to boot and function adequately.
[Under windows, terabytes' burncdcc will do one thing only, and simply: 'burn' an ISO to a CD or DVD. Available from here, https://www.terabyteunlimited.com/downl ... ftware.htm. Don't be put off by the 9/29/2012 release date. It was last updated 2020-07-30].
If you are already running any Puppy or DebianDog and you DO NOT HAVE a computer employing the UEFI boot mechanism or gpt formatting, the easiest bootloader to use is grub4dos. Your puppy/debiandog probably already has it on its Setup Menu. If not, obtain shinobar’s http://shino.pos.to/linux/puppy/grub4dos-0.4.4.v1.9.pet. See the instructions for manually installing Puppy to a USB-Stick.
Running Windows, you have a number of choices including:
LICK Puppy’s ‘Homegrown’ : https://oldforum.puppylinux.com/viewtop ... ef#p462720
Linux Live USB-Creator: https://www.linuxliveusb.com/.
If you use either Rufus or Linux Live, leave any choice regarding creation of ‘Persistence’ blank/none. Puppy has its own technique.
Running Linux, Unetbootin which is probably in your current Linux’s repo. If not, the download and instructions are here, https://unetbootin.github.io/linux_download.html
However, I recall there being a problem with unetbootin regaring Puppies. The instructions it writes to the USB-Stick treats the ‘Stick’ as a CD. To boot Puppy, you have to start a text editor, open config files and change CD to USB. [I’ve often posted that I have a flaky memory. I suggest if you need to use Unetbootin that you ask how on the Beginner’s Section].
Thanks to Clarity, https://puppylinux.rockedge.org/viewtop ... 1561#p1561 we have just learned about ventoy, https://www.ventoy.net/en/index.html. "Ventoy is an open source tool to create bootable USB drive for ISO files. With ventoy, you don't need to format the disk again and again, you just need to copy the iso file to the USB drive and boot it. You can copy many iso files at a time and ventoy will give you a boot menu to select them". A quick-scan of its "Tested OSes" list includes Fatdog64, ToOpPy --which IIRC is a French rethinking of Precise Puppy, a 32-bit OS-- and the general but ambiguous "Puppy".
The Website provides Downloads and instructions for both Windows and Linux packages.
