what happens if i do USE = ""?

[snapple337]

I really want a small system, I don't want anything that i don't need.
So, what happens if I do 'USE=""' in my make conf file? Is this mean use nothing or use everything?

[petu]

The use of USE variables is well documented here http://www.gentoo.org/doc/use-howto.html

Basically if you want to use for example cups for printing then you should add it to use variable. That's because then portage knows that cups should be included to cups compatible programs.

Please read gentoo docs they are there for a reason

[rac]

[corrs_fan]

seems like a not to bad idea if you really only want the bare essentials, but is there any real advantage?