 DistroWatch Weekly |
| DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 107, 4 July 2005 |
Welcome to this year's 27th issue of DistroWatch Weekly and happy Independence Day to all our visitors from the United States! Last week's release of SUSE LINUX 9.3 ISO images provided much excitement during the otherwise dull week and many users are now discovering the joys of computing with one of the oldest and best-known Linux operating systems around. In the meantime, the Debian Project ended up with a tarnished reputation for being unable to provide timely security updates for sarge - will this fiasco bring radical changes to the project's security infrastructure? Also in this issue: comment on the recent merger of Mandriva and Lycoris, and an interesting change in the release policy of Fedora Core. Happy reading!
Content:
SUSE 9.3 released to mirrors
 As the news about the availability of SUSE LINUX 9.3 ISO images spread last week, many users on Linux community forums expressed their excitement about the release. SUSE boxed sets are not readily available for purchase outside of Europe and North America and even where they are, not everybody can afford €100 for an operating system that might or might not be to their liking. In fact, this is the first time ever that SUSE LINUX can be downloaded either as a DVD image or as a set of 5 CD images; SUSE 9.2 was only available as a DVD image and SUSE 9.1 only as a Personal Edition CD image, while all previous versions were provided exclusively as directory trees for remote FTP/HTTP installation. That might explain why we noted a dramatic increase in SUSE page views here on DistroWatch last week which will hopefully translate into increased number of satisfied users of this popular distribution.
We installed SUSE LINUX 9.3 to test it out and see how it compares to previous SUSE releases. Although we didn't have time to perform a thorough test of all the new features and check out the new software packages, our first impression was very good indeed. SUSE 9.3 appears to be a solid product with the usual professional attention to detail, perhaps slightly on the cutting edge of Linux development with less well-tested packages and some alpha software, but this is to be expected for a product that is designed to be a base for SUSE LINUX Enterprise Server and Novell Linux Desktop. Also, of all the major distributions, it appears that SUSE is now the only one maintaining a 6-month release cycle - Mandriva has moved to a 12-month release cycle, while Fedora is now moving to a 9-month release cycle (see below for details).
If you are one of those users who are just discovering SUSE LINUX, you might be interested in keeping an eye on Novell's Cool Solutions pages. They tend to get filled with useful tips and tricks to make your life with SUSE more pleasant and they even provide a Wiki page for user-contributed hacks and solutions. Currently, Novell is building a database of "cool tools", and if you are a developer, or have come up with an interesting way to enhance your SUSE installation, you will get a free T-shirt and might even win an iPod Shuffle. Another helpful web site to bookmark and visit frequently is suselinuxinfo.org - a well-maintained and regularly updated site with good information about everything SUSE.
If you have downloaded and installed SUSE LINUX 9.3, how do you like it? Any pleasant surprises or disappointments? Please discuss below.
SUSE LINUX 9.3 is now available for free download
(full image size: 446kB)
Sarge update issues
 If you have installed the recently released Debian sarge, how many security advisories have you received during the past four weeks? Up until late last week the number of sarge-related security advisories issued by the Debian Security Team was exactly zero. Contrast that to Fedora Core 4, which, although released one week later than sarge, has already issued 8 security advisories! So where is the problem? Is the Debian Security Team on strike?
Well, it turns out that the Debian sarge security infrastructure is broken and has been broken since the release of sarge. This was first reported by Heise.de (in German) and later spread to Da Linux French (in French) before a long discussion erupted on the debian-security mailing list. Joey Schultze explains in his blog: "At the time of the release, security.debian.org broke, since the suites stable/testing on the security host did not match the ones on the main archive. In fact, trying to release a security update before the sarge release resulted in a crashed katie program and a half-baked archive. ... So, it looks like we'll be without security updates for quite a while."
This is bad news for those users who have entrusted their servers to the much awaited new Debian release and are now possibly running several applications with known vulnerabilities. The good news is that the above-mentioned instances of "bad publicity" have stirred some action among the Debian Security Team and, by last weekend, the first two Debian security advisories were issued. But the problem is complex and still far from being under control. Martin Krafft explains: "In general, my experience has been that security at debian.org is a black hole, and that offers to help are ignored. Of course, the Debian meritocracy calls for us to just do something to rise the ladder according to our accomplishments, but as with the other obscure domains of the Debian project, which are not open to anyone to just peek at and learn, it's really difficult to do this when it means working as a blind person with a couple of mutes."
It looks like a major upheaval in the security infrastructure of Debian is needed to ensure that the current situation does not happen again. But can it be done? Can a rather boring and thankless task of applying patches are releasing advisories be made more attractive and rewarding? Not easily. But it must be done - before Debian's reputation is further tarnished by more sloppy security work.
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| Lycoris: Looking forward, looking back (by Robert Norton) |
Lycoris: Looking forward, looking back
A good software company is built around its people, not its technology. With a volatile mix of control freaks, egomaniacs and poorly trained volunteers masquerading as employees, it was clear as early as 2003 that Lycoris was almost certain to fail. After a time of destructive indecision, the company's acquisition by Mandriva represents quite an achievement, although given Mandriva's history of botched implementations, it is unclear whether the merger will have any real benefits for either company's users.
There's a lot that could be said about Lycoris' failure to capitalise on its innovations, but I won't dwell too much on this because I think it's improper to air too much dirty laundry in public. While our innovations were real and revolutionary, the problems that plagued us from mid-2002 onwards were as old as time. Although it's true that we failed to acquire any significant venture capital investment and this weighted the odds heavily against us, our other problems - particularly with regards to personnel - would eventually have brought us low anyway.
Joseph Cheek, the CEO and Founder, is a true visionary. In a time when geeks dominated open source and desktop Linux had not even registered on the radar, Joe expanded on the bland Caldera OpenLinux distribution to create a feature-rich, user-friendly, and, yes, Windows-esque Linux desktop that ordinary people could actually use.
When Redmond Linux was released in December 2001, Red Hat Linux 7.2 was the staple distribution of choice. Comparing the two distributions is a bit like comparing Windows 2000 with Windows NT 3.1. Redmond Linux was the first distribution to include centralised access to devices, the first distribution to provide a Windows network browser built on the file manager (rather than a separate application), the first distribution to include a centralised Control Panel that merged system configuration tools with desktop preferences, and the first distribution to slim down the glut of Linux packages to a "best of breed" application set - among other things.
While none of this appears to be revolutionary now, when it often seems that there are more desktop Linux distributions than users, the fact remains that Lycoris was the first to perfect the "desktop Linux" formula. Mandrakesoft, SUSE, Caldera and even please-use-windows Red Hat helped Linux greatly on its journey toward the consumer desktop, but it was Lycoris who perfected the formula for the first time.
Thanks to Mandriva, Joe has the chance to create a fantastic desktop operating system, one that excels in both the technical and usability arenas. Many of Lycoris' technical problems centred around lack of resources, while the last release of Mandrake Discovery Edition was still fairly bloated, in addition to being very ugly, and at times difficult to use. In fact, Mandrake's failure to back up its technical prowess with a highly usable desktop environment was the one of the key factors cited by many new Lycoris users when talking about their decision to switch distributions. Lycoris, in turn, had many technical issues that alienated users, including substandard hardware and application support, an aging installer, and the lack of an automated dependency resolution tool.
The two product offerings, therefore, are highly complementary. Marrying Mandriva's core technology with Lycoris' desktop experience and tools could create one of the best desktop distributions to date. In addition, Joe needs to address three key problems with Mandrake Discovery Edition:
- The poor usability of DrakX, the Mandriva installation tool. DrakX for Discovery Edition has too many steps and remains too complex for new users. With some customisations it could closely resemble the Xandros installation tool in terms of ease of use.
- The ugly and at times unusable default desktop. Joe will need to merge technology such as My Linux System, the Network Browser, the Control Center the btX2 font rendering technology, and the AI2 application integration framework. In addition he will need to add the beautiful Lycoris artwork and desktop theme, as well as cleaning up the awful Mandriva menu structure. (As a side note, finally integrating My Linux System and the Network Browser with KDE, rather than having them as largely separate applications, would add significantly to the functionality of the system.)
- The unintuitive software installation system. Mandriva's RPMDrake still largely revolves around individual packages, rather than the concept of software applications (i.e. hiding the actual packages from users). Lycoris was the first company to include an online software repository with their distribution - the Iris Software Gallery - and Joe will need to merge this highly usable and easily understandable front-end with the technically superior RPMDrake on the backend.
Hopefully Joe will stay with Mandriva long enough to make this vision a reality. Many employees, particularly executives, of newly acquired companies do not stay with their new masters for very long - often less than a year - and it has already been revealed that Joe is only bound to Mandriva by a short-term contract. For all his technical brilliance, Joe's people skills are at times poor, and this may make it difficult for him to work with his new employers in Paris. But by sticking with Mandriva, Joe has the chance he has been longing for: to give his technical innovations the broad audience he has always dreamed about.
For Mandriva's part, it will need to address some of the core problems that have plagued it for years. Timely distribution of retail boxes, the lack of genuine discounts for upgrades, inadequate QA testing and poor consumer channel management have destroyed the company's credibility with many users, although the Mandriva Club has helped to rectify some of these issues in recent times. Mandriva needs to quickly address the problems with its consumer business, or else it risks being relegated to the enterprise space, where it will face steep competition from much larger companies, particularly Novell and Red Hat.
While Lycoris has been relegated to the history books, Mandriva has given its founder a chance to keep on innovating in the desktop Linux space. By merging the desktop know-how of Lycoris with the advanced technology of Mandriva Linux, Mandriva has the opportunity to become of the dominant players in the consumer desktop market after its rough ride over the last few years.
But, as always, a good software company is built around its people, not its technology. Let's hope that both parties will stay the course and adapt to their changed circumstances.
Robert B. Norton worked for Lycoris in a volunteer capacity between 2002 and 2004. He now works for the Sage Group plc, and currently lives in Sydney, Australia.
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| Released Last Week |
Distribution Release: Thinstation 2.1.1
Thinstation is a new distribution on our list - a modern thin client that does work on its own for basic operations like web browsing, managing removable media and printers, but rely on servers for major applications as well as administration of the clients. A new version was released over the weekend: "The Thinstation project is proud to announce that version 2.1 is released and is ready to download from the download page. Expect the TS-O-Matic servers to hold it within a few days too. Among the goodies: IceWM window manager, xtdesk desktop icons, PCMCIA support, wireless network, Mozilla Firefox 1.0, integration with ICA 9 client, NX client, rdesktop 1.4.1 with native disk, sound, port redirection and a lot of bugs fixed. (EDIT: A missing file has bumped the version to 2.1.1.)" Read the release announcement on the project's home page.
Distribution Release: Knoppel 0.6
Knoppel is a Knoppix-based live CD designed for Greek speakers. The newly released version 0.6 comes with a number of updates and improvements, including the following: synchronised with the latest Debian "testing" branch; upgraded kernel to 2.6.11.11, KDE to 3.4.1, ALSA to 1.0.9, OpenOffice.org to 1.1.4; UnionFS with read/write access while running from live CD; included several enhancements from the KANOTIX project, such as improved hardware auto-detection and hard disk installation program; introduction of Synaptic for package management; support for wireless network cards (ipw2100 and ipw2200); updated FreeNX. Read the full release announcement (in Greek) for further details.
INSERT 1.3.5a
An updated version of Inside Security Rescue Toolkit (INSERT) has been released: "This update fixes a few bugs in different places. Firmware for some wireless adapters was added. The browser was switched to Dillo to reduce size and the graphical FTP client was switched to gFTP for more features. A few packages have been updated. A proxy can be set at boot time or via the menu. usb-install should work again." See the complete changelog for more details about this version.
Parsix GNU/Linux 0.60
Parsix GNU/Linux is a Debian-based live CD with support for Persian (Farsi). Version 0.60 was released today: "We are happy to announce that a new version of Parsix GNU/Linux - a live and installation CD with Persian language support - is available now. Parsix GNU/Linux 0.60 uses latest Debian Sid packages (29-06-2005). A short list of most important improvements: new look and feel thanks to ClearLooks 0.6 GTK style/theme, new installer based on the KANOTIX installer, added Parsix launcher panel, added Parsix icon set, updated Parsix-DOC, GNOME 2.10.1, OpenOffice.org 1.1.4, GIMP 2.2.8, Firefox 1.0.4...." The release announcement, changelog, screenshots.
Parsix GNU/Linux - a Debian-based live CD with support for input in Persian
(full image size: 1,994kB)
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Development and unannounced releases
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| Upcoming Releases and Announcements |
Fedora Core 5
We mentioned the existence of a document entitled Proposed Development Areas for Fedora Core 5 and Fedora Project in last week's issue of DistroWatch Weekly, but now we also have a preliminary release plan for Fedora's next release. Interestingly, the previously maintained 6-month release cycle is about to be changed as the final release of Fedora Core 5 is now scheduled for 13 February 2006, nearly 9 months after the release of Fedora Core 4. The first test version is expected in early November. For more details please see the Preliminary Fedora Core 5 Schedule.
UserLinux
Is UserLinux still alive? Several people have been wondering about this on the project's mailing list. The original idea was to release the first version of UserLinux, a commercially supported variant of Debian, as soon as Debian Sarge becomes stable. Surprisingly, there has been no sign of activity on the project's web site and mailing lists even though Sarge has now been stable for several weeks. But maybe things will start moving again - that' according to this message by the project leader Bruce Perens: "I'm catching up after getting a new job. I have all of the pieces and have recently been working on the artwork installer, which was the most broken remaining piece. I hope to have something to show late next week. We would then test the installer and produce CD and DVD masters, and test them." As always, we'll keep you updated with the development.
X/OS Linux 4
X/OS Linux, one of the many distributions rebuilt from source RPM packages for Red Hat Enterprise Linux, is working on version 4, expected later this month: "After several delays, the release of X/OS Linux 4 is now firmly set for the first half of July. Development of the new build system has been frozen and the final builds have been started. Further improvements in the automated build system were finalized, most of the effort spent on additional checking of the build output. With X/OS Linux being a self-hosted distribution, whereby the sources are built upon the binaries generated from the same source, the entire generation process spans several days. Once the final images have been created, additional tests are run to ensure the quality of the final release. With no further difficulties expected at this stage, the first half of July should definitely see the release of X/OS Linux 4." Here is the announcement.
* * * * *
Summary of expected upcoming releases
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| Web Site News |
June donation: Debian Project receives US$420
We promised it shortly after launching the monthly DistroWatch donations programme: the Debian Project will receive our monthly donation as soon as it declares "sarge" stable. This happened early last month, so the June donation now goes to the largest Linux distribution project - Debian GNU/Linux.
Of course, Debian is not just a distribution. By creating a large organisation with a strict social structure and painstakingly thorough quality control, it also developed into a base on which dozens of other Linux distributions are built. This was Debian's stated goal right from the beginning, but the current reality has probably exceeded the expectations of the early project leaders. Some of the Debian-based projects, such as KNOPPIX, Ubuntu, MEPIS, Xandros or Damn Small Linux are now recognised brand names and truly valuable distributions in their own rights. This is probably the main reason why Debian deserves our donation - without Debian, our Linux distribution scene would be a lot less exciting than it is today!
The donation will be made to the Software in the Public Interest, Inc (SPI), which is Debian's legal umbrella. Because SPI only accepts US dollar cheques and money orders originating in the United States, we enlisted the help of our friends at MadPenguin.org who will mail a postal order to SPI to be donated to the Debian Project later this week.
As always, our donations programme is a joint initiative between DistroWatch and LinuxCD.org, which contributes US$50 every month. LinuxCD.org is an online store selling low-cost Linux/BSD CDs - they have the largest selection, inclusive of all the latest releases, and they offer the lowest prices. Next time you need to order your favourite Linux or BSD CDs, get them from LinuxCD.org.
Here is the list of projects that received a DistroWatch donation since the launch of the programme:
New distribution additions
- Thinstation. Thinstation is a modern thin client that does work on its own for basic operations like web browsing, managing removable media and printers, but rely on servers for major applications as well as administration of the clients. The clients may be diskless or boot from local media. Thinstation works as a client using X, ICA, RDP, SSH, NX, telnet, tn5250 and other protocols and works on standard PC hardware.
- Voltalinux. Voltalinux is a GNU/Linux distribution based on Slackware Linux and the pkgsrc package system from NetBSD. The project offers a pre-built distribution where the user can enjoy the clean design of Slackware Linux with the availability of over 5,000 NetBSD ports ready to be installed.
New on the waiting list
- pQui Linux. pQui Linux is a new Brazilian distribution based on Slackware Linux. It is designed as a desktop distribution, especially for users who have never used Linux before.
Discontinued distributions
- Sun Java Desktop System. As widely reported in the Linux media, it appears that the Sun Java Desktop System distribution has been put on the back burner by the company's executives: "The Java Desktop System will continue to exist as a product, but now chiefly as software based on Sun's Solaris operating system and directed at programmers, John Loiacono, executive vice president of software, said at a meeting with reporters here at the JavaOne trade show. 'You're going to see less of an emphasis on JDS on Linux,' Loiacono said. 'The strategy has changed slightly.'" This is hardly a big surprise given Sun's half-baked effort to promote the distribution and the lack of any success stories of large-scale deployments in the enterprise. More information is available in this story at News.com.
DistroWatch database summary
That's all for today. We hope that you enjoyed this week's DistroWatch Weekly!
Ladislav Bodnar
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| Archives |
| • 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 |
| • Issue 1099 (2024-12-02): AnduinOS 1.0.1, measuring RAM usage, SUSE continues rebranding efforts, UBports prepares for next major version, Murena offering non-NFC phone |
| • Issue 1098 (2024-11-25): Linux Lite 7.2, backing up specific folders, Murena and Fairphone partner in fair trade deal, Arch installer gets new text interface, Ubuntu security tool patched |
| • Issue 1097 (2024-11-18): Chimera Linux vs Chimera OS, choosing between AlmaLinux and Debian, Fedora elevates KDE spin to an edition, Fedora previews new installer, KDE testing its own distro, Qubes-style isolation coming to FreeBSD |
| • Issue 1096 (2024-11-11): Bazzite 40, Playtron OS Alpha 1, Tucana Linux 3.1, detecting Screen sessions, Redox imports COSMIC software centre, FreeBSD booting on the PinePhone Pro, LXQt supports Wayland window managers |
| • Issue 1095 (2024-11-04): Fedora 41 Kinoite, transferring applications between computers, openSUSE Tumbleweed receives multiple upgrades, Ubuntu testing compiler optimizations, Mint partners with Framework |
| • Issue 1094 (2024-10-28): DebLight OS 1, backing up crontab, AlmaLinux introduces Litten branch, openSUSE unveils refreshed look, Ubuntu turns 20
| | • Issue 1093 (2024-10-21): Kubuntu 24.10, atomic vs immutable distributions, Debian upgrading Perl packages, UBports adding VoLTE support, Android to gain native GNU/Linux application support |
| • Issue 1092 (2024-10-14): FunOS 24.04.1, a home directory inside a file, work starts of openSUSE Leap 16.0, improvements in Haiku, KDE neon upgrades its base |
| • Issue 1091 (2024-10-07): Redox OS 0.9.0, Unified package management vs universal package formats, Redox begins RISC-V port, Mint polishes interface, Qubes certifies new laptop |
| • Issue 1090 (2024-09-30): Rhino Linux 2024.2, commercial distros with alternative desktops, Valve seeks to improve Wayland performance, HardenedBSD parterns with Protectli, Tails merges with Tor Project, Quantum Leap partners with the FreeBSD Foundation |
| • Issue 1089 (2024-09-23): Expirion 6.0, openKylin 2.0, managing configuration files, the future of Linux development, fixing bugs in Haiku, Slackware packages dracut |
| • Issue 1088 (2024-09-16): PorteuX 1.6, migrating from Windows 10 to which Linux distro, making NetBSD immutable, AlmaLinux offers hardware certification, Mint updates old APT tools |
| • Issue 1087 (2024-09-09): COSMIC desktop, running cron jobs at variable times, UBports highlights new apps, HardenedBSD offers work around for FreeBSD change, Debian considers how to cull old packages, systemd ported to musl |
| • Issue 1086 (2024-09-02): Vanilla OS 2, command line tips for simple tasks, FreeBSD receives investment from STF, openSUSE Tumbleweed update can break network connections, Debian refreshes media |
| • Issue 1085 (2024-08-26): Nobara 40, OpenMandriva 24.07 "ROME", distros which include source code, FreeBSD publishes quarterly report, Microsoft updates breaks Linux in dual-boot environments |
| • Issue 1084 (2024-08-19): Liya 2.0, dual boot with encryption, Haiku introduces performance improvements, Gentoo dropping IA-64, Redcore merges major upgrade |
| • Issue 1083 (2024-08-12): TrueNAS 24.04.2 "SCALE", Linux distros for smartphones, Redox OS introduces web server, PipeWire exposes battery drain on Linux, Canonical updates kernel version policy |
| • Issue 1082 (2024-08-05): Linux Mint 22, taking snapshots of UFS on FreeBSD, openSUSE updates Tumbleweed and Aeon, Debian creates Tiny QA Tasks, Manjaro testing immutable images |
| • Issue 1081 (2024-07-29): SysLinuxOS 12.4, OpenBSD gain hardware acceleration, Slackware changes kernel naming, Mint publishes upgrade instructions |
| • Issue 1080 (2024-07-22): Running GNU/Linux on Android with Andronix, protecting network services, Solus dropping AppArmor and Snap, openSUSE Aeon Desktop gaining full disk encryption, SUSE asks openSUSE to change its branding |
| • Issue 1079 (2024-07-15): Ubuntu Core 24, hiding files on Linux, Fedora dropping X11 packages on Workstation, Red Hat phasing out GRUB, new OpenSSH vulnerability, FreeBSD speeds up release cycle, UBports testing new first-run wizard |
| • Issue 1078 (2024-07-08): Changing init software, server machines running desktop environments, OpenSSH vulnerability patched, Peppermint launches new edition, HardenedBSD updates ports |
| • Issue 1077 (2024-07-01): The Unity and Lomiri interfaces, different distros for different tasks, Ubuntu plans to run Wayland on NVIDIA cards, openSUSE updates Leap Micro, Debian releases refreshed media, UBports gaining contact synchronisation, FreeDOS celebrates its 30th anniversary |
| • Issue 1076 (2024-06-24): openSUSE 15.6, what makes Linux unique, SUSE Liberty Linux to support CentOS Linux 7, SLE receives 19 years of support, openSUSE testing Leap Micro edition |
| • Issue 1075 (2024-06-17): Redox OS, X11 and Wayland on the BSDs, AlmaLinux releases Pi build, Canonical announces RISC-V laptop with Ubuntu, key changes in systemd |
| • Issue 1074 (2024-06-10): Endless OS 6.0.0, distros with init diversity, Mint to filter unverified Flatpaks, Debian adds systemd-boot options, Redox adopts COSMIC desktop, OpenSSH gains new security features |
| • Issue 1073 (2024-06-03): LXQt 2.0.0, an overview of Linux desktop environments, Canonical partners with Milk-V, openSUSE introduces new features in Aeon Desktop, Fedora mirrors see rise in traffic, Wayland adds OpenBSD support |
| • Issue 1072 (2024-05-27): Manjaro 24.0, comparing init software, OpenBSD ports Plasma 6, Arch community debates mirror requirements, ThinOS to upgrade its FreeBSD core |
| • Issue 1071 (2024-05-20): Archcraft 2024.04.06, common command line mistakes, ReactOS imports WINE improvements, Haiku makes adjusting themes easier, NetBSD takes a stand against code generated by chatbots |
| • Issue 1070 (2024-05-13): Damn Small Linux 2024, hiding kernel messages during boot, Red Hat offers AI edition, new web browser for UBports, Fedora Asahi Remix 40 released, Qubes extends support for version 4.1 |
| • Issue 1069 (2024-05-06): Ubuntu 24.04, installing packages in alternative locations, systemd creates sudo alternative, Mint encourages XApps collaboration, FreeBSD publishes quarterly update |
| • Issue 1068 (2024-04-29): Fedora 40, transforming one distro into another, Debian elects new Project Leader, Red Hat extends support cycle, Emmabuntus adds accessibility features, Canonical's new security features |
| • Issue 1067 (2024-04-22): LocalSend for transferring files, detecting supported CPU architecure levels, new visual design for APT, Fedora and openSUSE working on reproducible builds, LXQt released, AlmaLinux re-adds hardware support |
| • Issue 1066 (2024-04-15): Fun projects to do with the Raspberry Pi and PinePhone, installing new software on fixed-release distributions, improving GNOME Terminal performance, Mint testing new repository mirrors, Gentoo becomes a Software In the Public Interest project |
| • Issue 1065 (2024-04-08): Dr.Parted Live 24.03, answering questions about the xz exploit, Linux Mint to ship HWE kernel, AlmaLinux patches flaw ahead of upstream Red Hat, Calculate changes release model |
| • Issue 1064 (2024-04-01): NixOS 23.11, the status of Hurd, liblzma compromised upstream, FreeBSD Foundation focuses on improving wireless networking, Ubuntu Pro offers 12 years of support |
| • Issue 1063 (2024-03-25): Redcore Linux 2401, how slowly can a rolling release update, Debian starts new Project Leader election, Red Hat creating new NVIDIA driver, Snap store hit with more malware |
| • Issue 1062 (2024-03-18): KDE neon 20240304, changing file permissions, Canonical turns 20, Pop!_OS creates new software centre, openSUSE packages Plasma 6 |
| • Full list of all issues |
| 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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| Random Distribution | 
VyOS
VyOS is a community fork of Vyatta, a Linux distribution discontinued in 2013. It is a network operating system that provides software-based network routing, firewall and VPN functionality. VyOS is based on Debian; its features include the ability to run on both physical and virtual platforms, and support for para-virtual drivers and integration packages for virtual platforms. VyOS was completely free to download and use until the release of version 1.2.0 in January 2019 when the project turned commercial, providing the operating system with various levels of support subscriptions. Daily "rolling" images are still available for free download though.
Status: Active
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| TUXEDO |
TUXEDO Computers - Linux Hardware in a tailor made suite
Choose from a wide range of laptops and PCs in various sizes and shapes at TUXEDOComputers.com. Every machine comes pre-installed and ready-to-run with Linux. Full 24 months of warranty and lifetime support included!
Learn more about our full service package and all benefits from buying at TUXEDO.
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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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