Damn Small is small enough and smart enough to do the following things:
-Boot from a business card CD as a live linux distribution (LiveCD).
-Boot from a USB pen drive
-Boot from within a host operating system (that's right, it can run *inside* Windows).
-Run very nicely from an IDE Compact Flash drive via a method we call "frugal install".
-Transform into a Debian OS with a traditional hard drive install.
-Run light enough to power a 486DX with 16MB of Ram.
-Run fully in RAM with as little as 128MB (you will be amazed at how fast your computer can be!).
-Modularly grow -- DSL is highly extendable without the need to customize.

DSL has a nearly complete desktop, and many command line tools. All applications are chosen with functionality, size and speed in mind. Damn Small also has the ability to act as an SSH/FTP/HTTPD server right off of a live CD. In our quest to save space and have a fully functional desktop we've made many GUI administration tools which are fast yet still easy to use.