 DistroWatch Weekly |
| DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 48, 10 May 2004 |
Welcome to this year's 19th edition of DistroWatch Weekly. Its content has been somewhat reduced due to the fact that the layout of DistroWatch has undergone some changes, and some of the existing content needed to be migrated to the new layout. Nevertheless, we have a new Knoppix release from early this morning, 7 new distributions on the waiting list and an article about a user's experiences with source-based Linux distributions. Enjoy!
Content:
Source-based Linux distributions from a beginner's perspective
(contributed by Arvan Reese)
I recently decided to build a Linux installation from scratch. I am not a programmer or a professional writer. I am however, very enthused with Linux and want to offer my experiences to other non-programmers in the hope that it will inspire or invite them to take the plunge from Windows to Linux. I also hope that my comments will be read by programmers, to see opportunities for themselves to make their Linux creations more available to non-programmers.
To preface this article, I want to say that I don't believe that any one distro is better, worse, good or bad. I really know very little about Linux and this story should be proof of that. So, to the programmers that read about my mistakes with their creations, please don't be offended.
Why did I want to compile from source?
I've been using PC's since 1989. I used MS DOS, Win 3.11, Win 95/NT4.0/XP. Back with DOS and Win 3.11, I grew used to constantly tweaking the system files and memory settings in order to install a new program. I think that experience actually gave me the perseverance to dive into the OS repeatedly. A trait that is really helpful in Linux. Or, as my spouse says - I like messing with things and I'm a control freak. No need to comment further on that subject.
I started using Linux about 15 months ago. I built a working PC from the scraps of three discarded PCs I found when walking the dog. I named this PC 'the frankenputer' because I created life from the parts of dead PCs. I thought that if I had a free PC, I might as well try a free OS. So...Linux it was.
I used Mandrake for almost one year. I loved how easily it installed. However, my NVIDIA GeForce2 MX400 didn't work as well in Linux as it did in Windows XP. (Note to beginners - create a dual-boot system! It was extremely helpful for getting drivers, .iso images to burn and access to the User Forums to get questions answered. Don't cut your umbilical cord to e-mail, web surfing and games. You may need to blow off some steam in Castle Wolfenstein.) Mandrake is great, but I couldn't get the graphics to perform as quickly. Yes, I do know that the NVIDIA drivers are a 'challenge'. Still, I have what I have and I want what I want. Also, with Mandrake I noticed that while installing programs from source, Mandrake sometimes had locations for files that differed slightly from the source code's expectations.
Then, I jumped into Slackware. I chose it because Red Hat's package management was similar to Mandrake and because I wanted to learn a little more about how Linux works. I also heard that Slackware is very UNIX-like and that intrigued me. I got along with Slackware pretty well and had better luck compiling programs. Still, I didn't get the video performance that I wanted. I also ran into some of the same installation problems when compiling from source. I had been reading about getting the best performance by using a source-based distro for months and decided to take the plunge. Actually, I had heard about source-based distros from this web site early on in my Linux adventure. I even tried Lunar, Source Mage, Sorcerer and Gentoo in my first month. However, as a beginner I was in way over my head! My knowledge gap was too big and installing from the prompt or ncurses was too scary.
How did I prepare?
As I said, I had a dual boot. I downloaded a free program for Windows called the Belarc Advisor. I used it to verify my hardware. I printed the manuals for all my hardware, MB, graphics card, NIC, Monitor, HDDs, etc.
I backed up my e-mail and saved files on a separate drive and configured my e-mail program to leave mail on the POP server of my Internet provider. Then, I printed the installation documents for the distro that I would use, punched them into a 3-ring binder.
I also gave myself two mental tools. First, I set a goal of success in 30 days. This is good practice because most CD-ROM installations (Mandrake, Slackware, Windows, etc.) all happen pretty quickly. Compiling is slow and if someone like me is doing it, it goes REAL slow! I make many mistakes and there's a lot that I don't know about Linux. Which leads to my second gift to myself - I gave myself permission to make lots of mistakes. The files were saved, e-mail and addresses wouldn't be lost, so all I needed to do was keep at it and be patient. Expect the process to take a long time - longer than you think.
What happened?
Remember, none of my experiences and challenges are distro based. They're me based. What I know and really - what I don't know are the main factors in how things turned out.
I started with Lunar Linux 1.4.0. After a few stops and starts inside the installation, I was able to boot into the Lunar Linux. The installation instructions were OK. I definitely recommend access to the user forum for this one. I started the basic lin process (lin perl, lin moonbase, lin lunar, lunar update) but I couldn't get GNOME to compile completely. There were some broken dependencies with Gconf. I spent a couple of days on the forum looking for help and decided to try something else. I did learn something that I found helpful and a little more familiar. I installed and configured XFree86, my mouse and then installed XFce4 and Mozilla. These both compile pretty easily and allowed me to surf the user forums without having to reboot into Windows. I used this technique on every install afterward and suggest it to everyone when compiling a source-based distro. I felt that if I knew a little more about Linux, then I would have been fine with this distro.
I went to Source Mage 0.9.2. I had a few botched installs and then got a bootable Linux. However, I ran into trouble getting my NVIDIA drivers to work. The NVIDIA program was looking for kernel headers and the CD-ROM kernel didn't install them on my HDD. I checked the forum for this problem and there was a bug open, but I didn't know how to work the solution. There was also a broken depend on hdparm. I had some more trouble with GNOME compiles being incomplete. There was one 'spell' that needed an extra line break at the end of the file for it to compile correctly. I got GNOME up, but getting OpenOffice.org to install was real hard. After about a week, I moved on. Once again, my lack of Linux skill hampered me. The installation instructions are nearly identical to Lunar. In fact, by reading the two of them, I was able to get further along with both installations. I did manage to get the nifty little audio program to work and every time I successfully compiled something, Captain Kirk told me how happy he was. That broke up the install monotony and made me laugh every time. Still, I wanted more.
My third stop for compiling from scratch was Gentoo 2004.0. Their installation document was DETAILED!!! It covered everything. I got frustrated when I installed everything exactly as they mentioned - but I couldn't boot into Linux. I did it over and over until I found the problem - Gentoo uses Grub as a bootloader and I was dual-booting with my Linux partitions on the second hard drive. Only by researching Grub did I find that it only wants to be on the first hard drive. This detail wasn't in the Gentoo installation documents. (I hope that they put it in for rookies like me.) I reinstalled, this time with Lilo and voila! I was in Linux. Gentoo has other documents for Desktop configuration, printing, ALSA and more. I do recommend reading the documents on Portage, USE=options, rc-update, ALSA and more. I made a mistake that forced me (from knowing any alternative) to rebuild. However, since I learned the Lilo vs. Grub trick, it has been smooth sailing. I have installed GNOME, KDE, AfterStep, XFce, Xsane, Evolution, Mozilla, Setiapplet, GIMP - all without fail.
Conclusion
My graphics are faster. I'm still playing with AGP options to see where I'm most satisfied. I've got some games programs to install, but Gentoo has a forum devoted to games, so I am sure that I'll be OK. My choice is Gentoo because I got it to work. I really wanted Source Mage and Lunar to work, but I just needed a little more help at install. Gentoo provided that and, outside of the Grub issue, I will bet that anyone who follows the Gentoo instructions will be able to get a Gentoo Linux up and running. I'm really happy with the results.
I feel a great sense of accomplishment by compiling my own Linux, from source, just the way I want it. I learned more about Linux and I haven't booted into Windows in 3 months.
New bug-infested distro eases transition from Windows to Linux
Humorix reports about an innovative new Linux distribution called "Notdows", by Pee-aitch-bee Enterprises:
A key component of Notdows is the killrandom daemon process, which randomly kills running processes, faithfully simulating the Windows experience. Over time, however, killrandom will operate less frequently, allowing the user to smoothly transition to a stable operating system.
"Ordinary distros built by geeks are designed to be as stable as possible," said a Pee-aitch-bee developer/manager. "This does not work well for some naive ex-Windows users, who become disoriented and lost in such a foreign environment. While recent versions of Windows are more stable than predecessors, the difference between Windows and Linux can still be quite jarring. We hope to ween these users away from Windows' flakiness without causing unnecessary emotional duress."
More details about this exciting new project can be found on this page.
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| Released Last Week |
Mandrakelinux 10.0 for AMD64
The AMD64 port of Mandrakelinux 10.0 has been announced and released: "Mandrakesoft today announced the availability of Mandrakelinux 10.0 Official for the AMD64 platform (Athlon64 and Opteron). Mandrakelinux 10.0 for AMD64 delivers all the features and robustness of Mandrakelinux 10.0 Official to the 64-bit platform from AMD, with an average performance gain of 20% compared to the IA32 version." Read the complete press release and visit the product's features page to get the full details. Mandrakelinux 10.0 for AMD64 processors can be ordered from Mandrakestore for US$129.90.
Sun Java Desktop System 2
Sun Microsystems has announced the release of Sun Java Desktop System 2: "Today, Sun releases Java Desktop System, Release 2, the next version of Sun's affordable, comprehensive, and secure enterprise-class desktop solution. More cost-effective than Windows, the Java Desktop System is a enterprise desktop solution that works with your existing infrastructure. The fully integrated desktop solution ships with a client desktop, including an office productivity suite, email, calendar, browser, instant messaging tools, and more. It also includes developer and system management tools for remote administration in a single package." See the press release, the product pages and the release notes for further information. Sun Java Desktop System 2 is available for purchase at $100 USD per desktop per year, or $50 USD per employee per year if purchased for all employees.
Astaro Security Linux V5
This is the first stable release of Astaro Security Linux V5, officially numbered as 5.005: "Astaro is pleased to announce the availability of the Astaro Security Linux V5 General Availability Release. Astaro Security Linux V5 includes two major new capabilities - Intrusion Protection and Virus Protection for the Web - as well as many enhancements that improve security, management, and scalability. Key features of this latest release include: Intrusion Protection; Virus Protection for the Web (HTTP traffic); transparent POP3 spam protection; improvements to WebAdmin for even greater ease of use and flexibility; enhanced reporting, with pre-defined metrics and automated report generation..." The full release announcement.
YES Linux 2.0.6
YES Linux is a Red Hat-based distribution with the goal to enable a Mom and Pop Store (MaPs) to quickly and easily build an internet presence. Version 2.0.6 has been released: "YES Corporation would like the announce the immediate availability of YES Linux. YES Linux represents the first public release of YES Linux, the next generation of YES Server. All current development is focused on getting YES Linux to feature complete status." Read the rest of the release announcement and visit the distribution's web site to find out more about the product.
Knoppix 3.4-2004-05-10
An updated release of Knoppix 3.4 is now available: "V3.4-2004-05-10 (small updates). Removed some SCSI modules from the regular knoppix26 (Kernel 2.6) startup because they are unstable, use 'expert26' to load them; added script for generating bootfloppies in Knoppix 'Utilities' menu; harddisk installer update from Fabian Franz; 'knoppix splash' fixes; timezone and language setting add-ons; added linlinc1 for captive-ntfs for download capabilities; changed some e100/eepro100 network driver entries in hardware detection; the usual Debian package updates." The full changelog.
The much awaited Knoppix 3.4 is out!
(full image size 461kB)
Development and unannounced releases
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| Upcoming Releases and Announcements |
SUSE LINUX 9.1 FTP Edition
Several readers have emailed about the updated message on the SUSE FTP server indicating that the freely downloadable FTP edition of SUSE LINUX 9.1 will be available on 4 June 2004: "This tree contains the source RPM packages for the SUSE LINUX 9.1 distribution. The SUSE LINUX 9.1 ftp version will be published on June 4th in this directory."
Source Mage GNU/Linux 1.0
Eric Sandall, the lead developer of the Source Mage GNU/Linux distribution, has posted a roadmap leading towards stable version 1.0: "I have a rough Roadmap written and would like some comments. I'm planning on adding a list of the bugs needed to be fixed for the 1.0 release, but if others would also like to pitch in, post here and we'll talk about it. ;) You'll note that I haven't done any post-1.0 lists on there as I'd like to get 1.0's Roadmap up first." The details are available here.
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| Web Site News |
Web site layout changes
Based on our recent discussion in this forum, the DistroWatch web site has been given a makeover. The changes are largely cosmetic; some less important content has been removed from the top of the pages, thus reducing the site's title and navigation bar into a more compact entity on the top of each page. This should satisfy those users who previously complained that they had to scroll down to see the site's main content.
The migration to the new layout has uncovered some less than ideal design faults of the existing content, which will take a few days to fix. I have tested the layout extensively in the latest versions of Opera, Mozilla, Firefox, Galeon and Konqueror, but if you use a different browser, or find bugs, please report them. As always, you are welcome to comment, and even express criticism on the site's new layout and colour scheme, or suggest any other ideas that would make DistroWatch.com a pleasant site to visit and navigate.
A new policy regarding release announcements
It is happening with an increased regularity - maintainers and developers of several distributions have acquired a habit of submitting a release announcement of their products to DistroWatch, without publishing the announcement on their own web sites. To prevent any misunderstandings whether a distribution "release" is official or not, a new announcement policy comes into effect on DistroWatch immediately. From now on, a distribution release will not be announced on DistroWatch unless a release announcement (or at the very least a changelog) is also published on the distribution's own web site. The announcement doesn't have to be in English, but it should include a basic list of new features, and it should give a clear indication about the availability of the new product, or a new version of the product.
New additions
- m0n0wall. m0n0wall is a project aimed at creating a complete, embedded firewall software package that, when used together with an embedded PC, provides all the important features of commercial firewall boxes (including ease of use) at a fraction of the price (free software). m0n0wall is based on a bare-bones version of FreeBSD, along with a web server (thttpd), PHP and a few other utilities. The entire system configuration is stored in one single XML text file to keep things transparent. m0n0wall is probably the first UNIX system that has its boot-time configuration done with PHP, rather than the usual shell scripts, and that has the entire system configuration stored in XML format.
New on the waiting list
- CalyptOS Linux. CalyptOS Linux is one of the newest and most original Linux distributions around. We've built it from the ground up and have customised it to be the perfect solution not only for the desktop user, but also for the business workstation. Package installation is as easy as a few clicks (see our screenshots), uninstallation is as simple as deleting the folder. The desktop environment is lightweight, yet feature filled. Instead of using GNOME or KDE like most distros, we've taken and modified the best pieces out of many desktop managers. You get the best of the best.
- Knorpora. Knorpora is a modified version of the Knoppix 3.3 Live CD for students of corpus-based computational linguistics. Like Knoppix, the Knorpora CD allows you to run a fully operational Debian/Linux operating system from the CD-ROM drive, without installing anything on the computer. The Knorpora edition of Knoppix contains programs and data files that should be of interest to computational linguistics students (WordNet, the Natural Language Toolkit, taggers, etc.)
- Buhawi Linux. Buhawi (Filipino for tornado) is a compact Linux distribution optimally designed for network servers. It uses a concise file system hierarchy and lean, fast, text-based configuration tools. Buhawi was developed mainly because of the tendency of many other Linux distributions to put more emphasis on desktop systems and less on servers, for which Linux has already been proven to be an ideal operating system.
- Honeywall CDROM. The Honeywall CDROM combines all the tools and requirements of a Honeynet gateway on a (hopefully) easy to use, bootable CDROM. The intent is to make honeynets easier to deploy and customise. You simply boot off the CDROM, configure it based on your environment, and you should have a Honeywall gateway ready to go. The CDROM supports several configuration methods, including an interactive menu and .iso customisation scripts. The CDROM is an appliance, based on a minimised and secured Linux OS.
- Pebble Linux. Pebble Linux is a smallish (smaller than 64MB, larger than 8MB) distro image designed for embedded style devices such as the Soekris boards, or a Stylstic 1000. It is based off of Debian GNU/Linux. It runs on many different types of systems, such as old 486 machines, mini-itx boards, or the $199 machine down at Frys.
- N-iX Desktop Linux. N-iX Desktop Linux is the best solution for all who use Novell NetWare as the server operating system as well as for those who want to setup Linux workstations for small organisations and enterprise customer use. With N-iX Desktop Linux you get all software needed for efficient work and you get it for free. Our distribution includes OpenOffice, Mozilla browser, Gaim and licq messengers, GIMP graphic editor, windows terminal server client, etc. ....
- GNOX. GNOX is a Slackware-based Linux operating system with Dropline GNOME 2.6, bootable from a mini CD.
DistroWatch database summary
- Number of Linux distributions in the database: 287
- Number of BSD distributions in the database: 6
- Number of discontinued distributions: 33
- Number of distributions on the waiting list: 78
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| Reader Feedback |
OpenBSD first impressions
RS has sent in his first impressions after installing OpenBSD:
"Hi, I installed OpenBSD 3.4 on my laptop. I have just a few first impressions that you might find interesting.
I decided to install to the laptop because the OpenBSD fdisk program is really scary and it's easy to wipe out a partition you want to keep. Since there was nothing important on the laptop, that didn't matter. One thing that makes it scary is that it doesn't tell you anything about what is on the hard disk already, plus it displays sizes by the number of blocks (at least that's what I think it does) rather than human-readable form (like megabytes or gigabytes). Anyway, I managed to get it to work.
One good thing it does (like FreeBSD 5.x) - it detects the PCMCIA network card without a hitch. I've had trouble with Linux distros getting the card to be recognised.
A disadvantage is configuring X. Like FreeBSD, it uses xf86cfg and xf86config, both of which are rather primitive. I have not been able to get X working with either BSD on this laptop, but that's not such a big deal.
A big issue right now - ethernet file transfer speeds are slow. I'm not sure why - with both Linux and FreeBSD on that laptop, it was very fast.
The version of OpenBSD that I have came with a magazine on a single CD, so it's not complete. It doesn't include Bash, for example, but I found that I could take already downloaded *.tgz files from /usr/ports/distfiles on my FreeBSD partition and use those. Most of the time, it works, and I was able to install Bash. Emacs was not included - the only editor is vi (yuch), but from FreeBSD ports I copied 'zile' which is an Emacs-lite editor and it mostly works OK.
One thing that is really good are the man pages. They are superior to those in Linux and FreeBSD - all man pages should be this clear!
So far, overall impression is good except that I'm concerned about this slow ethernet. After all, this is a network operating system, so performance is a big issue. I will subscribe to the OpenBSD mailing list today and see what I can find out."
One more on BSD nomenclature
KK has this to say about last week's discussion on naming BSDs:
"Here's my opinion on how you should (not?) call the several BSD systems.
You say, 'to differentiate between Linux distributions and the BSD projects, we need a common term referring to all of the BSD projects', but using the term "distribution" would not fit that cause at all: you would be throwing BSDs and Linuxes together. The 'distribution' term, as you (and we) are using it nowadays, is strongly Linux-biased. You should not force Linuxisms on BSD, since it would seem to BSDers that either you don't pay the same respect to BSD as to Linux (since you refuse to use BSD terms for Linux issues), or that you might not have understood what differentiates Linux from BSD... :/
Therefore, I would humbly suggest that you should pay a little more attention to the BSD users, because it's them who will have to live with your labelling. (In particular, you might agree to me that 'Berkeley Software Distribution Distribution Release' does not sound too smart. ;)) Don't anger the BSD users, or you might be putting their acceptance of your project at risk. Considering a term 'old-fashioned' or 'in different use today' just because it was invented 25 years ago is ill-advised: would you call Unix(-Clones) old-fashioned?
Please rethink your Linux-biased perspective. Open Source is not all about Linux, and with your inclusion of the BSDs as 'something like Linux, but not quite' you won't be doing anyone a favor.
Another risk is that Linux newbies will be shocked to find that that spiffy new "BSD distributions" does not have things like modprobe or such. ;)"
I hope you enjoyed this edition of DistroWatch Weekly and see you all next Monday :-)
Ladislav Bodnar
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| Archives |
| • Issue 1151 (2025-12-08): FreeBSD 15.0, fun command line tricks, Canonical presents plans for Ubutnu 26.04, SparkyLinux updates CDE packages, Redox OS gets modesetting driver |
| • Issue 1150 (2025-12-01): Gnoppix 25_10, exploring if distributions matter, openSUSE updates tumbleweed's boot loader, Fedora plans better handling of broken packages, Plasma to become Wayland-only, FreeBSD publishes status report |
| • Issue 1149 (2025-11-24): MX Linux 25, why are video drivers special, systemd experiments with musl, Debian Libre Live publishes new media, Xubuntu reviews website hack |
| • Issue 1148 (2025-11-17): Zorin OS 18, deleting a file with an unusual name, NetBSD experiments with sandboxing, postmarketOS unifies its documentation, OpenBSD refines upgrades, Canonical offers 15 years of support for Ubuntu |
| • Issue 1147 (2025-11-10): Fedora 43, the size and stability of the Linux kernel, Debian introducing Rust to APT, Redox ports web engine, Kubuntu website off-line, Mint creates new troubleshooting tools, FreeBSD improves reproducible builds, Flatpak development resumes |
| • Issue 1146 (2025-11-03): StartOS 0.4.0, testing piped commands, Ubuntu Unity seeks help, Canonical offers Ubuntu credentials, Red Hat partners with NVIDIA, SUSE to bundle AI agent with SLE 16 |
| • Issue 1145 (2025-10-27): Linux Mint 7 "LMDE", advice for new Linux users, AlmaLinux to offer Btrfs, KDE launches Plasma 6.5, Fedora accepts contributions written by AI, Ubuntu 25.10 fails to install automatic updates |
| • Issue 1144 (2025-10-20): Kubuntu 25.10, creating and restoring encrypted backups, Fedora team debates AI, FSF plans free software for phones, ReactOS addresses newer drivers, Xubuntu reacts to website attack |
| • Issue 1143 (2025-10-13): openSUSE 16.0 Leap, safest source for new applications, Redox introduces performance improvements, TrueNAS Connect available for testing, Flatpaks do not work on Ubuntu 25.10, Kamarada plans to switch its base, Solus enters new epoch, Frugalware discontinued |
| • Issue 1142 (2025-10-06): Linux Kamarada 15.6, managing ZIP files with SQLite, F-Droid warns of impact of Android lockdown, Alpine moves ahead with merged /usr, Cinnamon gets a redesigned application menu |
| • Issue 1141 (2025-09-29): KDE Linux and GNOME OS, finding mobile flavours of Linux, Murena to offer phones with kill switches, Redox OS running on a smartphone, Artix drops GNOME |
| • Issue 1140 (2025-09-22): NetBSD 10.1, avoiding AI services, AlmaLinux enables CRB repository, Haiku improves disk access performance, Mageia addresses service outage, GNOME 49 released, Linux introduces multikernel support |
| • Issue 1139 (2025-09-15): EasyOS 7.0, Linux and central authority, FreeBSD running Plasma 6 on Wayland, GNOME restores X11 support temporarily, openSUSE dropping BCacheFS in new kernels |
| • Issue 1138 (2025-09-08): Shebang 25.8, LibreELEC 12.2.0, Debian GNU/Hurd 2025, the importance of software updates, AerynOS introduces package sets, postmarketOS encourages patching upstream, openSUSE extends Leap support, Debian refreshes Trixie media |
| • Issue 1137 (2025-09-01): Tribblix 0m37, malware scanners flagging Linux ISO files, KDE introduces first-run setup wizard, CalyxOS plans update prior to infrastructure overhaul, FreeBSD publishes status report |
| • Issue 1136 (2025-08-25): CalyxOS 6.8.20, distros for running containers, Arch Linux website under attack,illumos Cafe launched, CachyOS creates web dashboard for repositories |
| • Issue 1135 (2025-08-18): Debian 13, Proton, WINE, Wayland, and Wayback, Debian GNU/Hurd 2025, KDE gets advanced Liquid Glass, Haiku improves authentication tools |
| • Issue 1134 (2025-08-11): Rhino Linux 2025.3, thoughts on malware in the AUR, Fedora brings hammered websites back on-line, NetBSD reveals features for version 11, Ubuntu swaps some command line tools for 25.10, AlmaLinux improves NVIDIA support |
| • Issue 1133 (2025-08-04): Expirion Linux 6.0, running Plasma on Linux Mint, finding distros which support X11, Debian addresses 22 year old bug, FreeBSD discusses potential issues with pkgbase, CDE ported to OpenBSD, Btrfs corruption bug hitting Fedora users, more malware found in Arch User Repository |
| • Issue 1132 (2025-07-28): deepin 25, wars in the open source community, proposal to have Fedora enable Flathub repository, FreeBSD plans desktop install option, Wayback gets its first release |
| • Issue 1131 (2025-07-21): HeliumOS 10.0, settling on one distro, Mint plans new releases, Arch discovers malware in AUR, Plasma Bigscreen returns, Clear Linux discontinued |
| • Issue 1130 (2025-07-14): openSUSE MicroOS and RefreshOS, sharing aliases between computers, Bazzite makes Bazaar its default Flatpak store, Alpine plans Wayback release, Wayland and X11 benchmarked, Red Hat offers additional developer licenses, openSUSE seeks feedback from ARM users, Ubuntu 24.10 reaches the end of its life |
| • Issue 1129 (2025-07-07): GLF OS Omnislash, the worst Linux distro, Alpine introduces Wayback, Fedora drops plans to stop i686 support, AlmaLinux builds EPEL repository for older CPUs, Ubuntu dropping existing RISC-V device support, Rhino partners with UBports, PCLinuxOS recovering from website outage |
| • Issue 1128 (2025-06-30): AxOS 25.06, AlmaLinux OS 10.0, transferring Flaptak bundles to off-line computers, Ubuntu to boost Intel graphics performance, Fedora considers dropping i686 packages, SDesk switches from SELinux to AppArmor |
| • Issue 1127 (2025-06-23): LastOSLinux 2025-05-25, most unique Linux distro, Haiku stabilises, KDE publishes Plasma 6.4, Arch splits Plasma packages, Slackware infrastructure migrating |
| • Issue 1126 (2025-06-16): SDesk 2025.05.06, renewed interest in Ubuntu Touch, a BASIC device running NetBSD, Ubuntu dropping X11 GNOME session, GNOME increases dependency on systemd, Google holding back Pixel source code, Nitrux changing its desktop, EFF turns 35 |
| • Issue 1125 (2025-06-09): RHEL 10, distributions likely to survive a decade, Murena partners with more hardware makers, GNOME tests its own distro on real hardware, Redox ports GTK and X11, Mint provides fingerprint authentication |
| • Issue 1124 (2025-06-02): Picking up a Pico, tips for protecting privacy, Rhino tests Plasma desktop, Arch installer supports snapshots, new features from UBports, Ubuntu tests monthly snapshots |
| • Issue 1123 (2025-05-26): CRUX 3.8, preventing a laptop from sleeping, FreeBSD improves laptop support, Fedora confirms GNOME X11 session being dropped, HardenedBSD introduces Rust in userland build, KDE developing a virtual machine manager |
| • Issue 1122 (2025-05-19): GoboLinux 017.01, RHEL 10.0 and Debian 12 updates, openSUSE retires YaST, running X11 apps on Wayland |
| • Issue 1121 (2025-05-12): Bluefin 41, custom file manager actions, openSUSE joins End of 10 while dropping Deepin desktop, Fedora offers tips for building atomic distros, Ubuntu considers replacing sudo with sudo-rs |
| • Issue 1120 (2025-05-05): CachyOS 250330, what it means when a distro breaks, Kali updates repository key, Trinity receives an update, UBports tests directory encryption, Gentoo faces losing key infrastructure |
| • Issue 1119 (2025-04-28): Ubuntu MATE 25.04, what is missing from Linux, CachyOS ships OCCT, Debian enters soft freeze, Fedora discusses removing X11 session from GNOME, Murena plans business services, NetBSD on a Wii |
| • Issue 1118 (2025-04-21): Fedora 42, strange characters in Vim, Nitrux introduces new package tools, Fedora extends reproducibility efforts, PINE64 updates multiple devices running Debian |
| • Issue 1117 (2025-04-14): Shebang 25.0, EndeavourOS 2025.03.19, running applications from other distros on the desktop, Debian gets APT upgrade, Mint introduces OEM options for LMDE, postmarketOS packages GNOME 48 and COSMIC, Redox testing USB support |
| • Issue 1116 (2025-04-07): The Sense HAT, Android and mobile operating systems, FreeBSD improves on laptops, openSUSE publishes many new updates, Fedora appoints new Project Leader, UBports testing VoLTE |
| • Issue 1115 (2025-03-31): GrapheneOS 2025, the rise of portable package formats, MidnightBSD and openSUSE experiment with new package management features, Plank dock reborn, key infrastructure projects lose funding, postmarketOS to focus on reliability |
| • Issue 1114 (2025-03-24): Bazzite 41, checking which processes are writing to disk, Rocky unveils new Hardened branch, GNOME 48 released, generating images for the Raspberry Pi |
| • Issue 1113 (2025-03-17): MocaccinoOS 1.8.1, how to contribute to open source, Murena extends on-line installer, Garuda tests COSMIC edition, Ubuntu to replace coreutils with Rust alternatives, Chimera Linux drops RISC-V builds |
| • Issue 1112 (2025-03-10): Solus 4.7, distros which work with Secure Boot, UBports publishes bug fix, postmarketOS considers a new name, Debian running on Android |
| • Issue 1111 (2025-03-03): Orbitiny 0.01, the effect of Ubuntu Core Desktop, Gentoo offers disk images, elementary OS invites feature ideas, FreeBSD starts PinePhone Pro port, Mint warns of upcoming Firefox issue |
| • Issue 1110 (2025-02-24): iodeOS 6.0, learning to program, Arch retiring old repositories, openSUSE makes progress on reproducible builds, Fedora is getting more serious about open hardware, Tails changes its install instructions to offer better privacy, Murena's de-Googled tablet goes on sale |
| • Issue 1109 (2025-02-17): Rhino Linux 2025.1, MX Linux 23.5 with Xfce 4.20, replacing X.Org tools with Wayland tools, GhostBSD moving its base to FreeBSD -RELEASE, Redox stabilizes its ABI, UBports testing 24.04, Asahi changing its leadership, OBS in dispute with Fedora |
| • Issue 1108 (2025-02-10): Serpent OS 0.24.6, Aurora, sharing swap between distros, Peppermint tries Void base, GTK removinglegacy technologies, Red Hat plans more AI tools for Fedora, TrueNAS merges its editions |
| • Issue 1107 (2025-02-03): siduction 2024.1.0, timing tasks, Lomiri ported to postmarketOS, Alpine joins Open Collective, a new desktop for Linux called Orbitiny |
| • Issue 1106 (2025-01-27): Adelie Linux 1.0 Beta 6, Pop!_OS 24.04 Alpha 5, detecting whether a process is inside a virtual machine, drawing graphics to NetBSD terminal, Nix ported to FreeBSD, GhostBSD hosting desktop conference |
| • Issue 1105 (2025-01-20): CentOS 10 Stream, old Flatpak bundles in software centres, Haiku ports Iceweasel, Oracle shows off debugging tools, rsync vulnerability patched |
| • Issue 1104 (2025-01-13): DAT Linux 2.0, Silly things to do with a minimal computer, Budgie prepares Wayland only releases, SteamOS coming to third-party devices, Murena upgrades its base |
| • Issue 1103 (2025-01-06): elementary OS 8.0, filtering ads with Pi-hole, Debian testing its installer, Pop!_OS faces delays, Ubuntu Studio upgrades not working, Absolute discontinued |
| • Issue 1102 (2024-12-23): Best distros of 2024, changing a process name, Fedora to expand Btrfs support and releases Asahi Remix 41, openSUSE patches out security sandbox and donations from Bottles while ending support for Leap 15.5 |
| • Issue 1101 (2024-12-16): GhostBSD 24.10.1, sending attachments from the command line, openSUSE shows off GPU assignment tool, UBports publishes security update, Murena launches its first tablet, Xfce 4.20 released |
| • Issue 1100 (2024-12-09): Oreon 9.3, differences in speed, IPFire's new appliance, Fedora Asahi Remix gets new video drivers, openSUSE Leap Micro updated, Redox OS running Redox OS |
| • Full list of all issues |
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| Random Distribution | 
Zephix
Zephix is a live Linux operating system based on Debian's stable branch. It runs totally from removable media without touching any files stored on the user's system disk. The aim of Zephix is to provide a free modular operating system that users can carry with them and use wherever there is a laptop or a desktop system available. The default ISO image used to come without any graphical interface, with several desktop modules made available separately; however, starting with version 8 the project adopted the i3 window manager as the sole graphical user interface.
Status: Active
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| Star Labs |
Star Labs - Laptops built for Linux.
View our range including the highly anticipated StarFighter. Available with coreboot open-source firmware and a choice of Ubuntu, elementary, Manjaro and more. Visit Star Labs for information, to buy and get support.
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