I have Knoppix 3.4 on the HD and I apt-get upgrade often.

When I shut down the text that scrolls by says something about shutting down apache. apache

1. this isnt normal, is it?
2. how do i check to see if apache is really running?
3. is this a sign that i might have been cracked? /standard paranoia
4. if this is just a stupid default, who do i blame, knoppix or debian?

Even if this isn't a security issue, its defiantly a bloat issue. I'm fighting to get my system reasonably responsive on my not-that-old hardware. I figure if apache is starting when it boots then who knows what else is starting up.

What is the fastest debian based distro suitable for desktop use? I want anything with trivially easy package installation and vector-linux caliber speed.