I know Knoppix is based on Debian and when Knoppix is installed to the hard drive it is "basically" Debian. Another Live CD which is based on Debian, Mepis, has weasel words about Mepis not being exactly Debian and warnings about Mepis divergence from Debian. So, my questions:

Just how does Knoppix differ from a Debian installation?

Is Knoppix "diverging" from Debian?

Are there plans to develop a Knoppix repository or will Knoppix continue to use Debian applications and be compatible with the Debian repository? In other words, will Knoppix continue to be "Debian Lite" or will Knoppix decide to become the next "latest and greatest" distro?

I am very concerned about the proliferation of distros, all trying to be the next "latest and greatest distro", diverging from the base and becoming more and more isolated. If Linux has one major problem, it is the 300+ distros, all competing for resources. Think of the potential if all the energy and resources that are being expended on 300+ distros were concentrated on just 10 distros.

Anyway, just the ramblings of a newbie, jimbo