DistroWatch Weekly |
DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 121, 10 October 2005 |
Welcome to this year's 41st issue of DistroWatch Weekly. A very busy week of exciting new releases is behind us, but that doesn't mean that this week will be any less interesting - in fact, we expect a new KDE 3.4.3 on Wednesday, while the "Breezy Badger" family of Ubuntu Linux and its partner projects are scheduled for release on Thursday. Also in this issue: we'll analyse the events of the past week, introduce Mandriva 2006 Discovery Live, feature WIENUX 1.0, continue with the usual release summaries, and conclude with a handful of interesting new distributions. Enjoy!
Listen to the Podcast edition of this week's DistroWatch Weekly in ogg (13.1MB) or mp3 (11.2MB) format (courtesy of Shawn Milo).
Join us at irc.freenode.net #distrowatch
Content:
SUSE download servers under "attack"
October 6th 2005 will go down as one of the busiest days in the history of Linux distribution releases. On that particular day, two major distributions (SUSE and Mandriva) announced final versions of their products, while another major one (Ubuntu) published a release candidate for one last week of testing. And as if that wasn't enough, several smaller projects also found this past Thursday to be an excellent day for announcing new products. Surely, there is something thoroughly auspicious about October 6th!
SUSE was the first to reveal the fruits of the recently launched openSUSE project with a release of SUSE Linux 10.0. This was also the first time ever that SUSE Linux ISO images were made available to general public immediately after their release - with a result that took the inexperienced SUSE release team completely by surprise. The main SUSE FTP server was flooded with requests hours before SUSE 10.0 was even announced - largely thanks to certain news sites (Heise.de and OSNews.com, just to name a few) that just couldn't resist publishing their "pre-announcements" and linking directly to the main SUSE FTP server. As a result, many desperate users attempted (and failed) to download the ISO images from the only server that had them at the time, thus preventing legitimate SUSE mirrors to synchronise with the main server.
In order to avoid a similar release disaster in the future (and also because of the lack of discipline among some Linux users), SUSE would be wise to consider implementing changes to its release and mirroring setup. Perhaps they could learn from the Fedora project which allows only approved mirrors to synchronise with its main server for a few days prior to opening up the repository to general public. That way, by the time a new release is officially announced, dozens of up-to-date Fedora mirrors are ready to serve the new files. Although it can be frustrating to know that the release is ready, but you can't have it, it is even more frustrating to have access, but unable do get any reasonable download speeds due to the fact that hundreds of other users are trying to download the images from the only available FTP server.
The moral of the story? Don't ever try to get ISO images from a distribution's main FTP server, especially not within the first few days after a major release. Instead, let the mirrors synchronise first before using one of them as a source of your files. You will find that your downloads are not only much faster, they are also much more likely to complete without any interruption or file corruption.
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Mandriva Club infrastructure falters
If the release of SUSE Linux 10.0 was a disaster from the point of view of file availability and mirroring, Mandriva's own release did not fare much better. After much noise on its forums and obvious unwillingness of the responsible parties to announce any release date, it was finally revealed that Mandriva Linux 2006 would be made available to Club members on October 6. This was nearly a week after it had been released to "early seeders" - Club members willing to "seed" the ISO images for the benefit of those who'd join the BitTorrent peer-to-peer file sharing process later on.
But this release mechanism had its flaws too - as several early seeders started exchanging information about the much awaited new release on Mandriva Club's forums, many other members felt frustrated by the delay. Additionally, the ISO images were not released until late afternoon Paris time - unless you had requested FTP access, that is, in which case you were granted access earlier. As the rumour about this loophole spread, many members started requesting FTP download access - until Mandriva stopped granting them. But worse was to come during the next few days when the Mandriva Club web site collapsed several times under the demand. Subsequently, many torrent and web site links were moved or modified, which resulted in interrupted downloads and more frustration. Several members also reported all sorts of bugs and error messages while buying or upgrading their Club memberships.
Those of you who have been around for a few years will remember the time when Mandrake Linux ISO images were announced and released to public without any delay and restrictions, and with dozens of mirrors ready to serve them immediately after each release. But things have changed. Nowadays, the various membership levels and access rights, ranging from early seeders and those who prefer FTP access to the Standard, Silver, Gold and Platinum members (with further geographical divisions), as well as club contributors, is bound to create complexity and hard-to-trace bugs in the system. But even if everything went right, BitTorrent downloads often take much longer than they should - despite the above-mentioned SUSE mirroring troubles, I had the 10.0 DVD image downloaded in less than 24 hours after the release, while Mandriva's 2006 PowerPack DVD is still trickling down at a painfully slow rate - that's after four days of continuous download!
What are your experiences with the Mandriva Club and Mandriva Linux 2006? Are they worth the investment? Is there room for improvement? Are the complaints on the Club's forums just some noise by never-happy eternal "moaners" or are they legitimate gripes about poor customer service? Why is it that SUSE has moved from being a mostly closed and somewhat proprietary distribution to a completely free and open project, while Mandriva has shifted in the opposite direction? Have these developments influenced your decisions while choosing a distribution? Please discuss below.
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Mandrake Move becomes Mandriva Linux Discovery Live
Lost among all the excitement of last week's Mandriva Linux 2006 release, the company's "Discovery" product line was also made available to Club members. Designed for Linux beginners and incorporating elements from Lycoris Desktop/LX (one of Mandriva's acquisitions from earlier this year) Discovery now comes in two editions: "Discovery" and "Discovery Live". While the former is Mandriva's entry-level product, the "Live" edition represents a continuation of "Mandrake Move", Mandriva's very own live CD project.
I was curious about Discovery Live, especially since it did not go through the normal beta testing process, but was still released at the same time as the main Mandriva product. Was it meant to be a surprise? Unfortunately, I did not have much luck with the live CD. On my main test system, which happily boots KNOPPIX, SLAX and most other live CDs, Discovery Live halted shortly after starting the X server - with a blue screen. Although there were no messages, the Mandriva blue screen was as deadly as its infamous Windows counterpart and only the reset button was able to bring the computer back to life.
My second test system, a 1.6 GHz Pentium 4 laptop fared a little better. Discovery Live booted straight into KDE, but I still had to fiddle around with a configuration file to increase the meagre 800 x 600 pixel screen resolution the hardware detection program had set up. I also found the system very slow to boot and surprisingly sluggish in normal operation. On the positive side, the live CD now supports a large number of languages, fonts and input methods, and it comes with several stunning wallpapers and screensaver images.
What are your experiences with Discovery and Discovery Live? Do they work for you? Or do you wish the two products had been through a more rigorous beta testing process prior to their releases? Please comment below.
Mandriva 2006 Discovery Live is designed for Linux beginners - notice the task oriented menu entries. (full image size: 1,070kB)
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Featured Distribution of the Week: WIENUX |
WIENUX 1.0
Although WIENUX is unlikely to be of interest to users outside of Austria and other German-speaking nations, we are pleased to give it some extra exposure to demonstrate how far Linux has gone in the last few years. Launched by the City of Vienna in January and formally released in June this year, WIENUX is a Debian-based distribution with a goal to replace proprietary operating systems and applications on the municipality's thousands of desktop computers with free and open source alternatives. The distribution can serve as a great example for other government organisations and municipalities around the world. If the prosperous Austrian capital is happy to abandon long-established computing systems in favour of free and open source solutions, there is no reason why less well-off government entities could not to do the same.
We downloaded the WIENUX ISO images as soon as they were made available on the project's download page. Although WIENUX is based on Debian "sarge", it does not use Debian's new system installer; in fact, the first ISO image includes KNOPPIX hardware detection modules to auto-configure the system, while the second one contains DEB packages for installation. The power of the installer is very limited - for example, it insists on auto-partitioning your hard disk, while refusing to install on anything except the primary master (/dev/hda). This makes it complicated to evaluate the distribution, but it also clearly indicates the purpose of WIENUX - it really means to wipe out the existing operating systems from Vienna's computers!
There are other areas where the WIENUX installer makes things extremely simple at the expense of giving users choices. All partitions are formatted with the ext3 file systems, GRUB is automatically set up and installed in the Master Boot Record, and users don't get a chance to select packages for installation. The intention here is obvious - to provide an identical system for all of the thousands of new WIENUX computers. This way, the WIENUX installer effectively functions in a fashion similar to Fedora Kickstart where all the choices were decided in advance and incorporated into the installer.
Once you boot into WIENUX for the first time you will find yourself in a standard KDE desktop with somewhat customised menu entries. OpenOffice.org 2, Firefox and the usual range of open source applications complement the working environment. It is not clear whether the distribution was built by a group of in-house developers or whether the municipality hired outside contractors for the job, but it would be nice to see some details about the development of WIENUX, as well as further reports about the status of the deployment, problems, if any, and users' reactions after migrating to the new system.
Either way, we applaud the decision of the authorities in Vienna and wish them all the best with their Linux migration plans! For more information about WIENUX please visit the project's web site here (in German).
WIENUX 1.0 - a Debian-based distribution developed and deployed by the City of Vienna. (full image size: 733kB)
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Released Last Week |
ATmission 2.0
ATmission is a Fedora-based live CD designed to allow users to experiment with the Linux operating system and other open source software without having to install anything on a hard disk. Version 2.0 has been released: "Based on the Fedora Core 4 release with Linux kernel 2.6.11. With the new release of the cowloop 2.16 driver, cowfiles can now be placed on a NTFS partition. All packages are updated. Now it's possible to copy the ROOTFS file to hard disk which increases performance." See the release announcement on the project's news page for more information.
Berry Linux 0.63
A new version of Berry Linux was released today. Berry 0.63 comes with a number of updated packages, including Firefox 1.0.7, Mozilla 1.7.12 and OpenOffice.org 2.0 beta2 (1.9.128) - both English and Japanese editions of the above applications are included. Also updated were e2fsprogs to version 1.38, file to version 4.15 and GTK+ to version 2.6.10. One other change is the inclusion of Whiz 0.51 (Delphinus) + SCIM 1.4.2 + SCIM-Whiz 0.02 packages. Read the rest of the changelog for further details.
IPCop Firewall 1.4.9
IPCop Firewall has been updated to version 1.4.9: "I am pleased to announce the official release of IPCop 1.4.9. A year ago, first of 1.4.0 series was released. The overall download counter for IPCop on SourceForge is now at more than 2,500,000. Thank to all who make IPCop work, to all who contribute by supporting users, tracking bugs, writing code, documentation, working in the background. IPCop v1.4.9 is only bug fixes and is released with minor changes from 1.4.9test1. As usual, this version can be installed as an update from a previous v1.4.x version or with a ready-to-go ISO for a fresh install. 1.4.9 update installation will mainly reload firewall rules; a reboot is not necessary." See the release announcement has a complete list of changes.
Wolvix 1.0.3
An updated version of the SLAX-based Wolvix live CD has been released: "Wolvix version 1.0.3 has been released. New applications: Skype, Linphone, Graveman, wxMusik, Icecast and more. Updates: Firefox 1.0.7, Thunderbird 1.0.7, Wesnoth 1.0, AbiWord 2.4.0 and more. This release features desktop icons for Fluxbox and IceWM using IDesk, HOWTOs, various fixes and tweaks." More information can be found in the release announcement on the project's home page and in the detailed changelog.
Lineox Enterprise Linux 3.122
Lineox Enterprise Linux is a distribution rebuilt from source RPM packages for Red Hat Enterprise Linux. The new version 3.122 includes all recent upstream updates: "Always Current Lineox Enterprise Linux 3.122 with Update 6 available. In the 3.122 version the installation environment is rebuilt, so it offers better hardware support during the installation. Note, however, that booting from a floppy is no longer supported in x86 edition. The x86_64 edition has never had floppy boot support. New features introduced in this update include: improved support for dual-core processors; kernel and user support for 2 TB partitions on block devices...." Read the rest of the release announcement for further details..
SUSE Linux 10.0
SUSE Linux 10.0, the first product of the recently launched openSUSE project, has been released: "I'm glad to announce the final version (aka the Goldmaster) of SUSE Linux 10.0. Developing 10.0 as part of the openSUSE project with an open Bugzilla was a new and great experience. Thanks a lot to everybody that contributed in testing, reporting and fixing bugs, discussions etc. The mirrors are still downloading all the files and it will take a few days until all are synced. Detailed download instructions can be found here." Read the rest of the release announcement and visit Novell's product page for more information
Mandriva Linux 2006
Mandriva Linux 2006 has been released: "2006 is the ultimate version of Mandriva Linux. It is the fruit of the convergence of three technologies: Mandriva, Conectiva and Lycoris. Mandriva Linux 2006 is also more easy-to-use, more user-friendly and more powerful. It is ideal for the needs of all customers, from the beginner to the SOHO user. New features in 2006: Desktop Search tool, Interactive Firewall, new package manager: Smart, DeltaRPM updates; new installer feature; new software: graphical desktops: KDE 3.4 & GNOME 2.10; better look-and-feel and ergonomics...." Read the full release announcement and release notes for all the glory details.
WIENUX 1.0
WIENUX is a Debian-based Linux distribution developed by the City of Vienna in Austria. Its main purpose is to replace proprietary operating systems and applications on the municipality's thousands of desktop computers with free and open source alternatives based around KDE, OpenOffice.org and Firefox. Originally announced in January and formally released in July this year, WIENUX 1.0 is now available for free download from the project's download page (in German). WIENUX 1.0, based on Debian "sarge", contains kernel 2.6.11, KDE 3.3.2, Firefox 1.0.1, OpenOffice.org 2.0 beta and other applications.
GoblinX 1.2
GoblinX is a beautifully designed Linux live CD based on Slackware. Its latest version is 1.2, released yesterday: "After almost seven months of development we are proud to announce the release of GoblinX 1.2. GoblinX 1.2 adds better hardware support, including 3D acceleration support for ATI/Radeon video cards. Added 'The Magic Center' - a control center which has many functions, added many xdialog/kdialod scripts to become easier to use, added more cheatcodes, upgraded modular system, upgraded kernel (2.6.12.3), upgraded several packages, and included 'liveupgrade' - a tool to upgrade the live CD without the need of installation on hard disk." See the release announcement and changelog for full details.
GoblinX 1.2 - a beautifully designed Linux live CD based on Slackware. (full image size: 722kB)
Honeywall CDROM 1.0-hw189
Honeywall CDROM is a Fedora-based distribution with the goal of capturing the activities of cyber threats and analysing the captured data. An updated version was released yesterday: "The latest version of the Honeywall CDROM, 1.0-hw189 has been released. This release has numerous new features, bug fixes, and updates." What's new? "The CDROM now only supports layer 2 bridging mode, it no longer supports layer 3 routing (NAT) mode; headless installation has been disabled by default; yum(1) now automatically updates both the operating system and all honeywall functionality; you now get a daily summary report via email of all honeynet activity, including suspicious connections...." The project's download page has a complete list of changes.
STUX GNU/Linux 0.8.1
STUX GNU/Linux 0.8.1 has been released. The new version is a quick bug-fix update to the new 0.8 series, which the developers launched a week ago. Some of the new features include: "Based on Slackware Linux 10.2 and Knoppix 3.7 for kernel and modules; all procedure and interfaces have been substantially reviewed; added boot option 'toram' to load STUX image in RAM and run from there; STUX Network Panel added - configure network for dial-up, ADSL, ethernet and wireless connections; STUX Media Center added; USB support enhanced; hard disk and USB installation process enhanced; created BitTorrent UI, also integrated in Firefox...." See the project's news page for a complete list of changes.
Lineox Enterprise Linux 4.053
Following the recent release of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 2, the developers of Lineox Enterprise Linux have also released a new set of ISO images incorporating all of the upstream updates: "Lineox Enterprise Linux 4.053 with Update 2 available. In version 4.053 the installation environment is rebuilt, so it offers better hardware support during the installation. The x86_64 release requires either AMD Opteron or Athlon64 CPU based computer. Some new Intel Xeon and Pentium IV processors with EM64T (Extended Memory 64 Technology) will also be able to run this version. Always Current Lineox Enterprise Linux is a version of Lineox Enterprise Linux 4.0 which is constantly updated and contains only current versions of program packages." The release announcement.
m0n0wall 1.2
Following a long series of beta releases, the developers of the FreeBSD-based m0n0wall firewall project have released version 1.2 final: "m0n0wall 1.2 released! m0n0wall 1.2 includes many new features as well as improvements to existing ones (captive portal, PPTP VPN, logging, DHCP relay, diagnostics, DynDNS updater, IPsec). Countless small changes have been made to make the webGUI even more useful, and many bugs have been fixed in all components. Most important changes in this release: IPsec certificate support; improved firewall rule handling in the webGUI; RFC 2136 DNS updater; more diagnostics pages (Traceroute, ARP, firewall states)...." Find more details in the release announcement and changelog.
OpenLab GNU/Linux 4.0
OpenLab GNU/Linux is a South African distribution based on Slackware Linux, designed primarily for deployment in schools throughout the region. The project's latest release, version 4.0, was announced yesterday: "OpenLab International proudly announces the release of OpenLab 4. OpenLab 4 is an all-encompassing GNU/Linux software distribution, catering to desktop, power and server users alike. ... The base distribution is OpenLab4 LIVEcd, which is available for free download. LIVEcd contains the entire operating system, and all basic applications including KDE, OpenOffice.org and Firefox, all on a single CD. LIVEcd is complimented with two further CDs - POWERcd and KARMAcd." Read the rest of the press release for more details.
OpenLab GNU/Linux - a Slackware-based South African distribution designed primarily for schools (full image size: 935kB)
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Development and unannounced releases
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Upcoming Releases and Announcements |
Summary of expected upcoming releases
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Web Site News |
New distribution additions
- Komodo Linux. Komodo Linux is a distribution based on PCLinuxOS with a custom set of packages and a new theme.
- Nonux. Nonux is a Dutch Linux distribution, a combined live and installation CD based on Slackware and GNOME. It is optimised for business use, with some applications localised into Dutch. The main features of Nonux are automatic hardware detection, careful selection of business and office applications, and presence of tools for a seamless integration into an existing (Windows) software and network environment.
- WIENUX. WIENUX is a Debian-based Linux distribution developed by the City of Vienna in Austria. Its main purpose is to replace proprietary operating systems and applications on the municipality's thousands of desktop computers with free and open source alternatives based around KDE, OpenOffice.org and Firefox. WIENUX is released under the General Public License and available for free download from the distribution's web site.
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New on the waiting list
- My Knoppix. My Knoppix is a Linux live CD for a digital home - complete with multimedia applications and a range of video sharing and broadcasting tools.
- LiveLAMP. LiveLAMP is a bootable CD that turns a spare computer in the classroom into a Linux development server for students to practice and publish programming exercises in over a dozen computer languages. As the name suggests, the primary emphasis is on core technologies which underpin the LAMP platform: Linux + Apache + MySQL + PHP. Python, Perl, Ruby, PostgreSQL, C++, C, Pascal, Fortran, CVS, Apache, Lex/Yacc, text editing, HTML, JavaScript, CSS and XML are also included.
- Tuquito GNU/Linux. Tuquito GNU/Linux is a Debian-based Argentinian live CD distribution with the goal of providing excellent out-of-the-box hardware detection and support.
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DistroWatch database summary
That's all for this week. We hope you've enjoyed this issue of DistroWatch Weekly!
Ladislav Bodnar
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Archives |
• 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 |
• Issue 1061 (2024-03-11): Using a PinePhone as a workstation, restarting background services on a schedule, NixBSD ports Nix to FreeBSD, Fedora packaging COSMIC, postmarketOS to adopt systemd, Linux Mint replacing HexChat |
• Issue 1060 (2024-03-04): AV Linux MX-23.1, bootstrapping a network connection, key OpenBSD features, Qubes certifies new hardware, LXQt and Plasma migrate to Qt 6 |
• Issue 1059 (2024-02-26): Warp Terminal, navigating manual pages, malware found in the Snap store, Red Hat considering CPU requirement update, UBports organizes ongoing work |
• Issue 1058 (2024-02-19): Drauger OS 7.6, how much disk space to allocate, System76 prepares to launch COSMIC desktop, UBports changes its version scheme, TrueNAS to offer faster deduplication |
• Issue 1057 (2024-02-12): Adelie Linux 1.0 Beta, rolling release vs fixed for a smoother experience, Debian working on 2038 bug, elementary OS to split applications from base system updates, Fedora announces Atomic Desktops |
• Issue 1056 (2024-02-05): wattOS R13, the various write speeds of ISO writing tools, DSL returns, Mint faces Wayland challenges, HardenedBSD blocks foreign USB devices, Gentoo publishes new repository, Linux distros patch glibc flaw |
• Issue 1055 (2024-01-29): CNIX OS 231204, distributions patching packages the most, Gentoo team presents ongoing work, UBports introduces connectivity and battery improvements, interview with Haiku developer |
• Issue 1054 (2024-01-22): Solus 4.5, comparing dd and cp when writing ISO files, openSUSE plans new major Leap version, XeroLinux shutting down, HardenedBSD changes its build schedule |
• Issue 1053 (2024-01-15): Linux AI voice assistants, some distributions running hotter than others, UBports talks about coming changes, Qubes certifies StarBook laptops, Asahi Linux improves energy savings |
• Issue 1052 (2024-01-08): OpenMandriva Lx 5.0, keeping shell commands running when theterminal closes, Mint upgrades Edge kernel, Vanilla OS plans big changes, Canonical working to make Snap more cross-platform |
• Issue 1051 (2024-01-01): Favourite distros of 2023, reloading shell settings, Asahi Linux releases Fedora remix, Gentoo offers binary packages, openSUSE provides full disk encryption |
• Issue 1050 (2023-12-18): rlxos 2023.11, renaming files and opening terminal windows in specific directories, TrueNAS publishes ZFS fixes, Debian publishes delayed install media, Haiku polishes desktop experience |
• Issue 1049 (2023-12-11): Lernstick 12, alternatives to WINE, openSUSE updates its branding, Mint unveils new features, Lubuntu team plans for 24.04 |
• Issue 1048 (2023-12-04): openSUSE MicroOS, the transition from X11 to Wayland, Red Hat phasing out X11 packages, UBports making mobile development easier |
• Issue 1047 (2023-11-27): GhostBSD 23.10.1, Why Linux uses swap when memory is free, Ubuntu Budgie may benefit from Wayland work in Xfce, early issues with FreeBSD 14.0 |
• Issue 1046 (2023-11-20): Slackel 7.7 "Openbox", restricting CPU usage, Haiku improves font handling and software centre performance, Canonical launches MicroCloud |
• Issue 1045 (2023-11-13): Fedora 39, how to trust software packages, ReactOS booting with UEFI, elementary OS plans to default to Wayland, Mir gaining ability to split work across video cards |
• Issue 1044 (2023-11-06): Porteus 5.01, disabling IPv6, applications unique to a Linux distro, Linux merges bcachefs, OpenELA makes source packages available |
• Issue 1043 (2023-10-30): Murena Two with privacy switches, where old files go when packages are updated, UBports on Volla phones, Mint testing Cinnamon on Wayland, Peppermint releases ARM build |
• Issue 1042 (2023-10-23): Ubuntu Cinnamon compared with Linux Mint, extending battery life on Linux, Debian resumes /usr merge, Canonical publishes fixed install media |
• 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 |
MoviX, MoviX², eMoviX
MoviX was a package that allows you to create bootable CDs able to boot & autoplay your multimedia files. It was intended mainly to play video files but if you want it can be used to play also audio files. I plan to release eventually a distro similar to MoviX but aimed at audio only, so stay tuned! The philosophy behind MoviX was to make possible to generate video/audio CDs that are self-sufficient, i.e. that you can play on every PC regardless of what was installed on it: just insert the MoviX CD inside a CD/DVD-ROM and boot the PC from there! MoviX2 was a small Linux distro on CD aimed at playing multimedia: when you boot your PC with the MoviX2 CD the distro should be able to start X-Window and launch gmplayer, the GUI interface to mplayer, so that you are left with a nice user-friendly interface you can control by your mouse. At that point you can safely remove the MoviX2 CD and play all multimedia files you want: DVD [no zone constraint], VCD, DivX, avi, mpg, mp3, ogg etc.
Status: Discontinued
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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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