 DistroWatch Weekly |
| DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 165, 21 August 2006 |
Welcome to this year's 34th issue of DistroWatch Weekly! A slow week in terms of distribution releases, but an exciting one for those who attended the LinuxWorld show in San Francisco. Missing from the exhibition for the first time in years, Red Hat also failed to release the first beta of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 - apparently due to issues with Xen. But the company was represented by a Fedora booth - a distribution that is rapidly regaining trust among its users and passion among its developers. In other news, we'll take a quick look at Linux in Cuba, point you to a list of new features in Ubuntu "Edgy Eft", and link to a chart depicting Linux distribution timeline. A range of new distributions should make up for the lack of other news this week. Happy reading!
Content:
- News: LinuxWorld San Francisco, Debian in Cuba, RHEL beta delay, Fedora's Max Spevack, Linux distribution timeline
- Released last week: Kate OS 3.0, Momonga Linux 3
- Upcoming releases: NetBSD 3.1
- New additions: Ekaaty Linux, RoFreeSBIE
- New distributions: DDbackup, FIRST LIVE, Nethence Linux, Ubuntu Christian Edition, Ubuntu Lite
- Reader comments
 Listen to the Podcast edition of this week's DistroWatch Weekly in OGG format (3.6MB)
Listen to the Podcast edition of this week's DistroWatch Weekly in MP3 format (3.0MB)
(The Podcast edition is provided by Shawn Milo.)
 Join us at irc.freenode.net #distrowatch
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| Miscellaneous News |
LinuxWorld San Francisco, Debian in Cuba, RHEL beta delay, Fedora's Max Spevack, Linux distribution timeline
Much of last week was dominated by news and reports from LinuxWorld Expo in San Fransic so. Unlike many of the previous shows, the most recent event was characterised by solemn dignity, rather than exciting announcements and buzz of major expectations. The absence of Red Hat, Inc, surprising as it was, did not detract from the success of the exhibition and both those who looked for business solutions for their companies and organisations, and those who enjoyed the more informal atmosphere of the dot-org pavilion were equally impressed with the quality of Linux products on offer. Rumours about the imminent release of a Red Hat-based Oracle Linux turned out to be false and so did those of a possible acquisition of the North Carolina Linux company by the database giant. Despite that, the show has proved once again that Linux is already firmly entrenched in the consciousness of many in the IT industry and that it offers a wide variety of low-cost, reliable solution for those who are prepared to evaluate alternative operating systems available on the market.
Have any of our readers attended the show? If so, what were your impressions? And what do you think was the best booth on the exhibition floor? Please discuss in the forum below.
* * * * *
 Speaking about Red Hat Linux, it seems that the popular enterprise distribution has run into some trouble with getting a new version out for testing. The first development build of Red Hat Linux 5, originally scheduled for release in July, will be delayed: "Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 was slated to move into beta testing in July but that has been pushed back until September, sources close to the company said. ... The source said the reason for the delay was a technical snag engineers originally thought was a memory corruption issue related to Xen but later identified as a kernel debugging issue. It is now being fixed." Despite the delay, Red Hat intends to ship the final version before the end of the year as planned. For more information please see this article at InformationWeek.
* * * * *
 Possibly one of the best distribution-related interviews in recent months, the Fedora Project leader Max Spevack answers ten questions by the ever inquisitive Slashdot readers. One of them discusses the interviewee's view on the most annoying shortcoming in Fedora - the split between "Core" and "Extras": "I would like for the Core/Extras distinction to go away, and instead be replaced by the idea of a Fedora Universe, which is a giant pile of packages that are blessed by Fedora, and any subset of those packages that produces a functioning OS can be called Fedora. It's going to happen, but it's not an overnight sort of change." Also, don't miss Spevack's explanation about the purpose and goals of Fedora in question number 8. It's an excellent interview - definitely worth reading even if you are not a Fedora user.
* * * * *
 Our statistical analysis of readers' interest in DistroWatch in Central America, published in last week's DistroWatch Weekly, coincided with an interesting report of a Debian developer David Moreno Garza in Cuba. He concluded his experiences with: "Cuban free software effort and community, just as most of the communities in Latin America, are growing. Every day, more free software is being adopted by the government and interest is rising in urban communities. Lots of Cubans are into computing careers and building even stronger social bows while using free software and adopting Debian. This has been the reality in Latin America, which is expected to keep going up." The full report is available here.
* * * * *
 Although Ubuntu's next stable release, code name "Edgy Eft", is still in early stages of development, there is little doubt that a more experimental and adventurous version of the popular distribution is in the works. This article, published on a worldpress.com web log, has collected information about some of the new features in Ubuntu 6.10 and GNOME 2.16 for your reading pleasure: "GNOME 2.16 Beta has been in Edgy Eft (Ubuntu 6.10) for the past few days. It is functioning extremely well. I've seen some occasional crashes with Epiphany and Nautilus but I hope that it will be fixed soon. Other than that, there are lots of new things in GNOME 2.16. Nautilus, Evolution, Tomboy, GEdit all have had great speed improvements. Evolution used to use around ~45 MB on my machine and now it uses barely 25 MB. Its functionality has improved as well. Nautilus uses less memory. As usual, GNOME Terminal has also undergone some speed improvements." The article is accompanied by a good selection of screenshots.
* * * * *
Last week one of the readers emailed us a link to a Linux Distro Timeline, a graphical chart depicting the evolution of the many popular distributions over time. It goes back to 1991 with the first release of Linux (the kernel), followed by what would later be recognised as the first Linux distribution - SLS. Its successor, Slackware Linux, remains the oldest surviving Linux distribution, beating Debian GNU/Linux by several months. SUSE Linux is shown as a branch of Slackware, although it later deviated from its predecessor so much that few would see the connection between the two just a few years after SUSE's decision to go its own way. Red Hat Linux arrived on the scene in late 1994, while Mandrake Linux started as a branch of Red Hat Linux in early 1998. Gentoo Linux is shown as coming into existence in 2002, although extensive work done prior to the source distribution's first stable release makes it a much older distribution. The chart also gives a visual impression that the years from 2002 to 2004 gave birth to a large number of new Linux distributions, including the popular KNOPPIX, MEPIS Linux, Ubuntu and Fedora Core.
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| Released Last Week |
Momonga Linux 3
Masaru Sanuki has announced the release of Momonga Linux 3, a complete Japanese community distribution loosely modelled on Fedora Core. Code named "Mikuru", the project's newest release is now available for both the i386 and x86_64 architectures. The most important new features include: kernel 2.6.17; GCC 4.1.1 with Stack Smashing Protector; glibc 2.4 with NPTL; GNOME 2.14.2 and KDE 3.5.4; introduction of yum; increased compatibility with Fedora Core 5; adoption of OpenPrinting standards; Sun Java 1.5; Xen virtualisation; SATA support; Ruby on Rails. Please see the release announcement (in Japanese) for a detailed list of new features.
Lineox Enterprise Linux 4.096
Following the release of update 4 for Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4, a new version of Lineox Enterprise Linux, incorporating all upstream updates, is also out: "Always Current Lineox Enterprise Linux 4.096 with Update 4 available. In the version 4.096 the installation environment is rebuilt, so it offers better hardware support during the installation. See the release notes for full information. 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." Here is the full release announcement.
Piebox Enterprise Linux 4 Update 4
The UK-based Piebox Enterprise Linux has released a new update to their Red Hat-based commercial distribution: "Update 4 of Pie Box Enterprise Linux 4 was made available today. This update includes the following enhancements: new kernel features including Device Mapper mirroring support, IDE disk dump support and Vmalloc support >64MB; enhanced kernel features including multi-core scheduler support and performance and power enhancements for Intel's Core2 Duo and Xeon 5100 series processors; source re-base to Firefox 1.5, Thunderbird 1.5, OpenOffice.org 1.1.5...." Read the rest of the release announcement for more details.
Kate OS 3.0
The KateOS project has announced the availability of KateOS 3.0. Although the new version was released over a week ago, it was only announced yesterday due to earlier problems with the project's web site: "After seven months of hard work, KateOS 3.0 is now ready! This version starts a new series which will be supported for at least a year. It is also a jubilee version: the project, originally known as Kate Linux, was founded circa three years ago, near the end of 2003." Read the release announcement and release notes for further information.
Network Security Toolkit 1.4.2
A new version of Network Security Toolkit (NST) has been released: "We are pleased to announce the latest NST release: v1.4.2. This release is based on Fedora Core 4 using the Linux kernel 2.6.17. Many new NST WUI features and capabilities have been included with this distribution: addition of Fruity, Fruity templates and the nstfruity script to simplify the management of Nagios; addition of Sguil and the nstsguil script to simplify the setup and use of Sguil; addition of the barnyard link package; addition of NiktoRAT reports and a NST WUI management page; addition of the tidy plugin for Firefox to aid one in validating the HTML produced by web servers...." Read the release announcement and changelog for more details.
* * * * *
Development and unannounced releases
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| Upcoming Releases and Announcements |
NetBSD 3.1
The NetBSD project has published a detailed release schedule of the upcoming NetBSD 3.1: "The NetBSD release engineering team is planning to roll out the NetBSD 3.1 release in a few weeks. Prior to the final release, a few release candidates are planned. We encourage you to test these and report any bugs using the send-pr(1) utility. The first release candidate (3.1_RC1) is scheduled for August 21, followed by a second release candidate (3.1_RC2) on September 4. If no significant problems arise, we plan to release NetBSD 3.1 final on September 18, otherwise another release candidate will follow, delaying the release another two weeks." More information about the 3.1 schedule, and instructions for getting release candidates, can be found in Geert Hendrickx's email to the NetBSD-Announce list.
Summary of expected upcoming releases
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| DistroWatch.com News |
New distributions added to database
* * * * *
New distributions added to waiting list
- DDbackup. DDbackup is a Linux live CD based on the popular SLAX live CD Popcorn Edition. It includes several utilities for backing up disk drives, partitions and files.
- FIRST LIVE. FIRST (Forensic Investigation and Recovery Systems) LIVE is a bootable CD created with the objective to provide an immediate environment for performing computer forensic analysis, incident response, data acquisition and recovery, virus scanning and detection, and vulnerability assessment.
- Nethence Linux. Nethence Linux is a light, Slackware-based distribution incorporating NetBSD's pkgsrc package management tools and concepts.
- Ubuntu Christian Edition. Ubuntu Christian Edition is a free, open source operating system geared towards Christians. It is based on the popular Ubuntu. Along with the standard Ubuntu applications, Ubuntu Christian Edition includes the best available Christian software. The latest release contains GnomeSword, a top of the line Bible study program for Linux based on the Sword Project. There are several modules installed with GnomeSword including Bibles, Commentaries, and Dictionaries.
- Ubuntu Lite. The idea behind Ubuntu Lite is to bring the power of Ubuntu across to the users of legacy systems.
* * * * *
DistroWatch database summary
And that concludes our latest issue of DistroWatch Weekly. The next issue will be published on Monday, 28 August 2006. Until then,
Ladislav Bodnar
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| Reader Comments • Jump to last comment |
1 • Cool cool summer (by Mark Soluth on 2006-08-21 19:02:07 GMT from Zürich, Switzerland)
Just back from a long vacation, and Distrowatch Weekly is the best thing about being back at my desk! Thanks Ladislav :-)
2 • Slow week (by ladislav on 2006-08-21 19:03:27 GMT from Bratislava, Slovakia)
Sorry guys, this week's issue is a bit thin on content. I tried to include a distro report, but had no luck with the ones I tried - Momonga 3 wouldn't install on my test system (unhandled exception in Anaconda half-way through the install process) and Mandriva 2007 beta 2 was a little too rough for my taste: too many serious issues and not enough new features to write about.
So instead of a first look report I decided to add two new distros to the database. Ekaaty is quite nice, but I really enjoy the RoFreeSBIE live DVD. Give it a try!
Happy Monday :-)
3 • Ubuntu Christian Edition (by nobody on 2006-08-21 19:04:54 GMT from Sestri Levante, Italy)
whaaaaaat?!?!?!?
software and religion? i don't think that we need some kind of division also in software...
4 • Great! (by Gil C. Rodriguez on 2006-08-21 19:05:11 GMT from , Puerto Rico)
Good read!
A bit late but great nevertheless! The time-line is interesting!
PD: Slackware 11.0 coming along! This is great news indeed! Maybe in a week or two perhaps taking in cosideration that PV released a RC2 a couple of days ago :D
5 • Great Read ! (by Rohan Dhruva on 2006-08-21 19:14:47 GMT from , India)
Great read as always, even though it was 'thinner' this time :) .. The fedora interview was excellent !
BTW, is it me, or is the link to the image of linux timeline not working ?
6 • JesusUbuntu??!?! (by Sam on 2006-08-21 19:32:33 GMT from Knoxville, United States)
Oh Jeeez. I have to ask, but just how long is the waiting line for Distros to make it onto Distrowatch.org? I heard rumor it is very lengthy. Why then does someone who has packaged "christian software" into Ubuntu get a release on here? No offense intended to the creators of this distro, but with a few clicks of synaptic or apt-get I could create MuslimUbuntu, BuddhistUbuntu, a Kosher Ubuntu even. Should distros that are serious developments or redevelopments be on this site while the various personalized flavors of Linux be relegated to some other tracker like "I_tweaked_the_fonts_and_played_with_packages_distrowatch.com"?
7 • Additions (by Anonymous Penguin on 2006-08-21 19:33:30 GMT from Roma, Italy)
Ladislav,
Thanks for the additions to the database. Those two look really interesting.
8 • Slackware 11.0rc2 (by The Sphinx on 2006-08-21 19:46:05 GMT from , Egypt)
Hooray!! It's almost here :)
9 • No subject (by Anonymous on 2006-08-21 19:49:15 GMT from Los Angeles, United States)
Tried all week to get a review out of a-linux. But their fancy download screen times out after about a half hour. I could not find
any mirrors. Has anyone else got any luck getting it?
10 • An alternative... (by 1c3d0g on 2006-08-21 19:52:59 GMT from Oranjestad, Aruba)
Besides Ubuntu Lite, there's also Fluxbuntu, which appears to have similar goals. Just a heads up. ;-)
http://www.fluxbuntu.org/
11 • Re: 2 (RoFreeSBIE) (by Jowgli Morealis on 2006-08-21 20:04:44 GMT from Savannah, United States)
I have tried the RoFreeSBIE live DVD, and was very impressed, particularly considering it's a newcomer on the scene. It makes a nice complement to Frenzy, since it is more of a full-featured, 'heavyweight' live FreeBSD-based release compared to Frenzy, which is much lighter and faster.
There is certainly a lot happening with BSD right now, and with NetBSD 3.1 just around the corner, these are certainly exciting times in the BSD world!
12 • KateOS.org down + Gentoo Release (by Deathspawner on 2006-08-21 20:11:13 GMT from , Canada)
KateOS.org has been down for two solid weeks at least... does anybody have any info as to why? I found it odd that they managed to release 3.0 with their site being down.
Regarding Gentoo 2006.1... it's getting late in August and it doesn't seem that the release is actually going to happen... at least according to the official roadmap. I am curious to see if it will make it on time!
Thanks for another great DW ladislav!
13 • Christian Ubuntu... sigh. (by Per M. on 2006-08-21 20:17:03 GMT from Asnæs, Denmark)
A distribution geared towards people of a certain religion is really a bad thing to release. With the KDE/GNOME war, the Konqueror/Firefox/Opera war and all the other wars in the software world today, now we have religion too. Not good. If it just had something very special from Ubuntu, but just adding a couple of packages targeted at a religion is horrible.
- Per
14 • Christian Ubuntu (by Who cares on 2006-08-21 20:30:00 GMT from , Finland)
As mentioned above. Could it be removed from distrowatch?
15 • Ubuntu Christian Edition (by SFN on 2006-08-21 20:35:21 GMT from Rochester, United States)
My problem with it isn't that it's a religious distro. In fact, my problem with it is that it's nothing of the sort. It's Ubuntu with GnomeSword preinstalled. That's not a new distro in any way.
That's like taking the stock install of SuSE, adding nMap and calling it SuSE Enchaced Security Edition.
16 • Ubuntu derivatives, especially christian version (by ezsit on 2006-08-21 20:42:21 GMT from Chandler, United States)
Let me concur that an Ubuntu distribution with a few apps geared towards Christians does not a new distribution make. Please ignore this spin-off and do not give it a separate distrowatch page.
I might just release a Satanic Ubuntu and ask that it be given its own Distrowatch page. I'll include some pretty artwork, upside down crosses and such, and plenty of info on witchcraft, spell casting, human sacrifice, and many more topics all anti-Christian. I would expect you to list that "distribution" as well.
Obviously I am kidding. However, my point is that simply adding a bunch of religious oriented software to an already established distribution does not make a new distribution.
I think Distrowatch might be better off listing Ubuntu once, and just include links in the related category field to all the derivatives of Ubuntu. Kbuntu, Xbuntu, Fluxbuntu, etc do not deserve their own listings since the only real difference is the window manager. Think about it.
17 • Christian Ubuntu (by linbetwin on 2006-08-21 20:52:05 GMT from Ploiesti, Romania)
You do have a point about the lack of technical merit of this distribution, but your vitriolic comments betray your bias against the Christian religion (of which I am a non-vocal member). I have seen this attitude on many Linux forums and I bet people woudn't protest as much against a distribution with Buddhist/Hindu/[insert Oriental religion here] software.
On the other hand, there is a piece of software called Dixit, a GPL-ed Romanian dictionary installable on Linux and Windows. I bet I could squeeze that onto an Ubuntu ISO and call it RObuntu. Would it make it into the database?
18 • Christian Ubuntu (by ezsit on 2006-08-21 21:03:35 GMT from Chandler, United States)
Hey, I capitalized Christian, did I not? I fail to see how my comments betray an anti-Christian bias. Satan is a Christian character. Certain religions have an antropomorphic character representing evil, but I chose a purely Christian character in keeping with the theme.
19 • 17 (by AC on 2006-08-21 21:09:57 GMT from Olympia, United States)
As the term is historically used, Christianity too is an "Oriental" religion. And as the term is used in present-day vernacular, neither Buddhism nor Hinduism are "Oriental".
Being sure to include the GPL'd Dhammapada that it is in the Debian repositories would not a "Buddhist" distriibution make. And, not religious, but a lot of people have objected to Hikarunix, which - unlike the Christian Ubuntu - includes a great deal of specialized Go software.
Whether and at what point the addition of specialized software makes a distinct distribution worthy of the name is a vague boundary at best. Personally, if I were ladislav, I wouldn't try picking and choosing. But I don't see the objections as necessarily rooted in any anti-Christian bias.
20 • Speeling correction to Christian Ubuntu comments (by ezsit on 2006-08-21 21:17:31 GMT from Chandler, United States)
"antropomorphic" should read "anthropomorphic." Sorry for the confusion. BTW, I am part Romanian. My father's parents both emigrated from Romania between 1910 and 1913. My grandfather was a communist organizer in the 1920s-1930s. I still have relatives in Transylvania. I'd be happy to see a Romanian Ubuntu, being an Ubuntu user myself.
Sorry if my humor was offensive.
21 • 16 Satanic distributions (by AC on 2006-08-21 21:18:36 GMT from Olympia, United States)
EvilEntity Linux!
Or given the views of some Christians concerning magic, Sourcemage or Sorceror!
And since Slackware is named for and has mascots from a "cult" religion, we might as well count that too.
22 • Silly (by Garrett on 2006-08-21 21:20:53 GMT from Clovis, United States)
I'm a Christian. But this is rediculous. Putting some christian apps on a distro is no more changing it than putting a Christian t-shirt on an athiest. I fail to see how religion could EVER become an integral part of an OS.
2c
23 • No subject (by AC on 2006-08-21 21:22:30 GMT from Olympia, United States)
http://ichthiux.free.fr/wikini/wakka.php?wiki=Main
24 • Slackware, Christian UBUNTU?? (by Xlayn on 2006-08-21 21:24:22 GMT from , Guatemala)
Slackware 11.0 RC2!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HURRAY
Christian Ubuntu its not a distro!
I would forbid mix religion with software, its just a way to "divide, separate" those who think some and those who dont!
btw, christian ubuntu have removed all the "demons" from the distro!
25 • Stop judging the Christian Ubuntu (by Eric on 2006-08-21 21:27:30 GMT from Toronto, Canada)
OK, im not even a believer in a GOD so to say, but to me, the idea of a tailored distro to fit the needs of churches and bible camps and sunday schools or w/e just fills in another gap of the current ppl left out that may want a christian based GNU/Linux distro. Its basically the same as a security centric distro, or a distro based on elementary school or high school educational needs, or any other distro tailored for that specific need. I dont believe any ppl here would object to add more users to the opensource world, and using the ubuntu base, ubuntu users should be happy having another distro want to have a spin off of their primary distro choice. I dont go to church, and im not religions, but if its a filler of something thats needed, then whatever, they've got decent motives.
26 • Ubuntu Christian edition (by NK on 2006-08-21 21:28:31 GMT from Salt Lake City, United States)
Christians should expect to see the hate on the boards by this, as anything remotely relegious brings a strong vitriolic response from "enlightened" people.
What people forget is that a *very* significant portion of this country *is* red-state, and the reason someone who is arguably incompetent managed to get re-elected to the white house.
This provides for increased Linux adoption for those areas, which is good for everybody. People are going to have their bible software whether it's on windows, a mac or Linux. This makes it easy for those that want to move to Linux.
I thought GNU was about "freedom", and not "freedom to hate".
27 • 26 (by AC on 2006-08-21 21:44:57 GMT from Olympia, United States)
Who has expressed hatred of Christians? C'mon!
28 • No subject (by AC at 2006-08-21 21:51:34 GMT from Olympia, United States)
Incidentally, the most prejudiced assumption seen here has been your insinusation that only people in "red states" study the Bible.
29 • ubuntu christian edition (by ray carter at 2006-08-21 21:51:45 GMT from Idaho Falls, United States)
I doubt that the intent is to imply that other editions are 'agnostic' - though that may or may not be the case. I can certainly see the value of something like this. I intend to pursue it on one of the 'spare' donated computers at our church. I see some things listed in the announcement that could be quite valuable for church use.
30 • 25 (by AC on 2006-08-21 21:52:32 GMT from Olympia, United States)
I agree, which is why I posted the Ichthux link.
31 • timeline (by ray carter at 2006-08-21 21:55:24 GMT from Idaho Falls, United States)
I get a page not found error on the timeline chart - could you check the link, please. BTW - I notice they are indeed closing in on me. I used to show up as 'from Medidian, US' , now it's 'Idaho Falls' - I'm actually in Chubbuck, Idaho, but I'd certainly settle for Pocatello - at least IF is a couple of hundred miles closer than Meridian. I suppose that has to do with my ISP - I'm on Teton Wireless now, having dumped Qwest.
32 • What happened to the Linux community? (by Digital Vampire on 2006-08-21 21:59:42 GMT from , United States)
Christian UBUNTU huh? While not exactly my style, I don't think the apparent rejection or criticism is all that necessary either. What happened to the legendary "Free" spirit and support of the Linux community that is so appealing to many newcomers? If this is lost, Linux will soon follow.
33 • Re: satanic distributions, KateOS (by andrew on 2006-08-21 22:06:23 GMT from Forestville, Australia)
Actually EvilEntity and Sorcerer are (or were) very original distributions. Sorcerer is one of the oldest 'source-based' distros out there while Evil Entity took an interesting approach of trying to create the best possible desktop while *not* trying to look like Windows.
On unrelated topic, I just wanted to add that Kateos.org is back online, and the new release rocks!
34 • Ubuntu Christian Edition (by PastorEd on 2006-08-21 22:06:57 GMT from Bothell, United States)
Obviously, with my name, one can correctly guess that I'm on the pro-Christian side of things. However, let me attempt to explain something:
Ubuntu Christian Edition certainly isn't intended to be an evangelistic tool to sway non-Christians into Christianity.
It's designed as an evangelistic tool to sway non-Linux using Christians into the Linux community. Subtle, but crucial difference here.
It's been my experience (after 20 years of being a minister) that a minority of Christians are technically savvy enough to install numerous faith-related software packages, even on their Windows computers. let alone having them deal with a completely foreign operating system.
So, what possible reason could their be for bias against a needs-specific distro which targets a pre-existing community with software already installed and defaults pre-tweaked? I see on the Distrowatch list a number of distributions which already do this same thing - distros which are targeted at the scientific community, distros for the gaming community, distros for the enterprise community... so why *not* a distro for a specific religious community?
After all, isn't that what Free / Open Source Software is all about? The freedom to CHOOSE?
If you don't agree with someone's belief structure, then don't follow it. If you don't like someone's software choices, then don't install them. But they should have just as much right to use Linux as the rest of us, regardless of their philosophical standpoint.
Otherwise, I'd expect to see comments for Ladislav to remove all of the niche-specific distros, and have Distrowatch only cover the "major" players.
And THAT would be boring.
Just a thought...
35 • antichristian free speech but not for them post (by postaldave on 2006-08-21 22:12:56 GMT from Louisville, United States)
two hundered different *buntu distros with an update every single minute of the day resulting in SPAMbuntu all day every day and THIS one sends everyone over the edge?????
today's linux=freedom except for YOU!
me=shaking my head at such hypocrisy.
it's a sad day on distrowatch.
36 • Xubuntu/Kubuntu must stay christian must leave (by Anonymous on 2006-08-21 22:16:23 GMT from Shiraz, Iran, Islamic Republic of)
Personally I find a separate for Xubuntu to be useful since I was looking for a good lightweight distro for an old laptop and I could quickly and easily review the packages from this site. I don't see why Chrisitan Linux must have a page because I expect all the other packages etc are just standard.
37 • No subject (by AC on 2006-08-21 22:17:18 GMT from Olympia, United States)
Agrees with PasterEd and applauds his not playting the victim in the process
38 • 33 (by AC on 2006-08-21 22:18:37 GMT from Olympia, United States)
Agreed. Slackware too is an original distro. Just commenting on the existence of "Satanic" distros, not drawing comparisons to Christian Ubuntu
39 • Ubuntu Christian edition (by Larry on 2006-08-21 22:21:16 GMT from Tewksbury, United States)
I've sampled this Ubuntu Linux and at this point it's nothing more than Ubuntu with bible study software though I understand the project intends to expand the library of study tools and resources and eventually it will grab the attention of thousands upon thousands of bible believing people from all over the Linux world but for now it is just Ubuntu. There was a time when Kanotix looked like Knoppix and Knoppix looked like Debian. Debian itself has many children dressed with pretty faces to distinguish them from their parent and some of them are listed here at DW.
I can understand the dignified objections concerning the legitimacy of this suedo distro but the attacks that appear to be aimed at the concept of a Christian distro are sadly lacking common sense.
Larry
40 • Thanks (by rexbinary on 2006-08-21 22:34:59 GMT from Miami, United States)
I guess it's OK to say Thanks if your from Switzerland. ;P
41 • Just the SAME (by Ely on 2006-08-21 22:36:50 GMT from Mandaluyong, Philippines)
in Ubuntu:
Use apt-get and install few packages for Chritian and you'll get Christian Ubuntu - woah! a new distro!
Use apt-get and install KDE and some apps (ie: amaroK) and you'll get Kubuntu - woah! a new distro again!
Use apt-get and install XFCE and some apps (ie:Thunar) and you'll now have Xubuntu! - a new distro again!
Use apt-get and install apps used in school education, you guessed it right - Edubuntu - a new distro again
Should other derivatives be removed on dw? I don't know but I believe dw is doing the right thing now. Actually at home, I installed Xubuntu and Kubuntu desktop on my Ubuntu Dapper but this does not mean I have multiple OS on my system. I could also install nUbuntu if only they made it available in the default repo. I know, you can install it some other way or by adding some repo but I'm too LAZY.
42 • No subject (by elimisteve uses gmail on 2006-08-21 22:36:58 GMT from Santa Barbara, United States)
Firstly, I am an Atheist. Secondly, I am taken aback by the degree of blatant discrimination being voiced against Christianity and, specifically, Ubuntu Christian Edition (UCE). It would be discriminatory to purposely disclude UCE from the DW database; is this not obvious?
It is also ludicrous to claim that UCE is not "different enough" (by some subjective, arbitrary measure) to be counted as its own distribution, not to mention the fact that this is the FIRST VERSION of UCE; in other words, the developers have not been working to differentiate. I am disappointed.
Stop the prejudice.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J3YOIImOoYM
43 • re; No Subject (by NK on 2006-08-21 22:46:43 GMT from Salt Lake City, United States)
"From an AC"
Incidentally, the most prejudiced assumption seen here has been your insinusation that only people in "red states" study the Bible
I made no such insinuation. The insinuation is that more of them vote in Red States, representing a greater peopulation of conservatives. I really wouldn't even call that an insinuation. It's a fact.
44 • Ubuntu Lite & Fluxbuntu... (by Caraibes on 2006-08-21 22:52:57 GMT from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic)
I am very much in favor of such lite distro ! It is a great idea to have modern distro able to make something of an old dinosaur.
I have one PC running Xubuntu, but I feel it is already too heavy, and would love something lighter, while remaining an Ubuntu OS...
Both Fluxbuntu & Ubuntu Lite strike me as being very constructive projects, especially for us down here in developping countries, where we canibalize many PC parts to build a new PC, and sometimes we don't get lucky, and parts are old...
As of the religion theme, I am not disturbed by any religion whatsoever, it is not a problem for me to include Christian Ubuntu. However, as another poster said, it would be constructive to have all the *buntu's derivative in the same window... That way it would be clear.
45 • to pastor ed (by NK on 2006-08-21 23:01:08 GMT from Salt Lake City, United States)
While you're at it, how about working on a BSD edition that doesn't have that cartoon demon that business associates would find offensive. The balloon logo redisgn was/is real stupid also. It's embarassing to the point that I can't reccomend it to local people who are *staunchly* religous, as they wouldn't take the cartoon demon character or balloon seriously and they would see it as representing low quality software, which it is not. The BSD guys really dropped the ball on that one.
Software people in the FOSS community really need to learn how to wear a suit and what it means to wear one, aka being a little professional. Also, not everyone has/is a clone of their/your thought process.
And before somebody whacks on me that they wear a suit, I mean *more* people.
46 • UCE (by Andrew on 2006-08-21 23:01:47 GMT from Red Deer, Canada)
It's unfortunate that the first Christian distro mentioned here is mediocre - it seems that the work of the developers could be summed up in a new desktop background and a disturbingly small shell script. That's not to say, however, that those who see it as insignificant or a waste of Kbs on Ladislav's server are antitheistic or antichristian. Besides, it's still on the waiting list for a good reason: let's wait until the project matures, and if it still includes no modifications other than the addition of Gnome Sword, then it should be denounced for being a waste of a web page. But not yet.
47 • epistemology (by Sam on 2006-08-21 23:04:43 GMT from , United States)
As I previously contributed to this tennis match of reader comments, after watching a few back-and-forths I wanted to add one more comment.
As a Ubuntu using archaeologist (and seminary graduate, btw) I've toyed with the idea of creating a Linux distro chock full of archaeological software goodies. I've even played with Morphix and customizing Knoppix. For my own daily use, I've taken the easy way out and have downloaded all the GIS, database, and archaeology software I need using Synaptic on Ubuntu Dapper. Do I now have Archaeology Ubuntu and just don't know it?
If I were to create software for a niche community of users (okay, Christians are a pretty big niche) on any other OS I'd create a suite of utilities for that audience -- Church Manager, or Archaeological Surveyor, or Buddhist Sangha Organizer (the Dhammapada is in the Debian repositories? seems logical!). I wouldn't think of it as creating a new distribution of Windows -- Windows JC???
I suppose beneath the rhetoric, the Christian posters worried about persecution, the non-Christian posters wondering about the separation of Church & Linux, I'm wondering an epistemological question of what exactly defines a distro? What defines a derivative distro? If a distro, such as Christian Ubuntu has "future plans" to greatly expand its offerings customization should those future hopes count toward its derivative status? How can we tell the difference between "future upgrades/customizations" and the old "vapor-ware"?
48 • Christian Ubuntu (by Soloact on 2006-08-21 23:16:50 GMT from Redding, United States)
Why not have a Christian version of Ubuntu? As PasterEd (msg 34) mentioned, it gives Christians an introduction to Linux. Biased, many say? Well then, think about Edubuntu or Eduknoppix (very nice by the way) as being biased toward schools. So what if a group wants to introduce their peers into using Linux, isn't that what Linux users want to do?
On the other hand, it really isn't a separate Distro, neither is Edubuntu, so perhaps a "derivatives" page is in order for such "Distros" so that they at least are able to get the attention of those of whom they are targeting as potential Linux users.
49 • 43 (by AC on 2006-08-21 23:22:46 GMT from Olympia, United States)
"From an AC"
Incidentally, the most prejudiced assumption seen here has been your insinusation that only people in "red states" study the Bible
"I made no such insinuation. The insinuation is that more of them vote in Red States, representing a greater peopulation of conservatives. I really wouldn't even call that an insinuation. It's a fact."
And do only people who vote conservative study the Bible?
And I am not "an AC (anonymous coward). Those are my initials. i post here regularly, as many know.
50 • 47 (by AC on 2006-08-21 23:36:35 GMT from Olympia, United States)
http://packages.debian.org/unstable/misc/display-dhammapada
apt-get install display-dhammapada and you've got Sangha Debian. Or some such.
51 • Re : 5 & 31 - Timeline (by ShakaZ on 2006-08-21 23:39:19 GMT from Bruxelles, Belgium)
Found it on kde-look.org : http://www.kde-look.org/content/files/44218-linuxdistrotimeline-6.8.2.png
seems like it was posted by npu (nonplusx@gmail.com) based on some other existing timelines...
52 • No subject (by Igh on 2006-08-21 23:42:19 GMT from Caracas, Venezuela)
The BSD daemon does a good job in scaring stupid people away from a good OS.
53 • Specialized distros (by Bryan Siegfried on 2006-08-21 23:42:37 GMT from Staunton, United States)
I agree with Soloact - why not attract people to Linux by showing them the possibilities with Linux. Not only will Windows not be coming out with a Windows Christian Edition (although they have ascetic windows now), but there is a Christian version. Not only that, some people may discover that they are empowered by Linux to make it what they envision.
Many people, including myself, will also poo-poo this, saying a few minutes with synaptic, apt-get, emerge, urpmi, yum or what not you would essentially have the equivalent of UCE. However, once people have become familiar with Linux, you will probably see them stray away from whatever specialized distro drew them in for one of the broader, mainstream distro. If UCE lives up to the claim, it is essentially going to be another *buntu installer. Maybe that's a waste of time, but maybe it is a stroke of genius in OS design, too. Let people install whatever specialized set of software they desire. If it doesn't break the underlying framework, they have great old ubuntu to work with, with thousands of packages ihn the repos. I imagine the same could be done with fedora, debian, or mandriva (but it seems to be debians that spawn this more).
Sorry for the long winded comment!
54 • Listen To Yourselves! (by Farley Farley Gnarly on 2006-08-21 23:50:11 GMT from Savannah, United States)
You've all been pwned! The whole point of this very slight modification of Ubuntu is publicity!
Look at the number of comments in this weeks thread about it (and it was only a tiny footnote to say the distro was going on the waiting list, along with yet another version, by the way - UbuntuLite) versus the comments about everything else! Suckers - you can't stop yourselves from adding to the ridiculous publicity bandwagon that is Ubuntu.
At the present rate, in another year or two about half of the top 100 distros are going to be Ubuntu-derivatives. It's getting ludicrous, people..
Take a deep breath and ignore the Manx Marketing Machine!
(See! Even my anti-Ubuntu comment adds to the noise surrounding all things Shuttleworth! Aaarrgh!)
55 • Satanic distro's (by tom on 2006-08-21 23:52:29 GMT from Helena, United States)
There is already a Satanic Distro:
Windows XP
56 • 50 (by tom on 2006-08-21 23:59:30 GMT from Helena, United States)
AC- Thanks for the link.
57 • Linux Distro Timeline (by Shane G at 2006-08-22 00:27:29 GMT from Cleveland, United States)
The link does not work- is there any other place I can get my hands on that graphic? I really want to add it to my collection of random images.
58 • Christian Ubuntu (by ShakaZ on 2006-08-22 00:29:13 GMT from Bruxelles, Belgium)
I'm quite amused at all the fuss about that distro... the only relevant issue is if it should be listed on Distrowatch or not.
It most certainly will be usefull to some, however i agree that some distros listed here can not be considered as really innovative or independent & many distros (hundreds at least) aren't listed for similar reasons, so the question is legitimate...
I don't have anything against a Christian-oriented distro, though personnally i'd be more interrested in an all-religions/philosophies distro that could perhaps help some conflicting communities to understand & accept each other with their different beliefs.
59 • Re : 57 - Timeline (by ShakaZ on 2006-08-22 00:31:35 GMT from Bruxelles, Belgium)
Look UP
60 • U a Hater? (by Paul on 2006-08-22 00:44:39 GMT from Saint Louis, United States)
Distros tailored to the interests of enthusiasts have lots of precedence at Distrowatch. Perhaps the name Chrisitan Unbuntu is just not descriptive of what you get. As if everyone who simply is interested in studies of the King James becomes "Christian" by clicking the accept button on some EULA. Wouldn't it be great if it were that easy?
Maybe the author's faith overshadows the real value in the distro. I would encourage the developers to not assume that anyone who installs this distro is just like them or shares their beliefs. It's a matter of interests. That much, I've learned from PastorEd.
Paradoxically, don't you just cringe when U.S. Christians accuse anyone of hatred or persecution? Especially for criticism of a distro. You are free to create any distro you like... but any critics are haters? The Chrisitian mind is fascinating. I hope they let me live long enough to understand it.
61 • Ubuntu Christian Edition, blah blah, blah (by ezsit on 2006-08-22 00:58:47 GMT from Chandler, United States)
Wow, what a discussion. I just love seeing the persecuted-minority mentality come out of the woodwork.
I did not object to a Christian Ubuntu as much as to the splintering of Ubuntu. Every version of Ubuntu is about the same, save the desktop environment. I do not believe any of the Ubuntu derivatives warrant a separate Distrowatch page, none of them. But, hey, it ain't my website. I'm just mouthing off.
For all these people stating that Christians need to feel included and welcomed into the FOSS experience, I say, why? What makes Christians special? Is there a Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Shinto, Rastafari, Navajo, Aborigine, etc. Ubuntu? Should these groups feel left out because some poor shmoe forgot to produce a "new distribution" with their religion on it?
I would love to see Distrowatch.com exercise some more restrictive judgement when including distributions, but, as I said, it's not my job.
62 • The REAL Satonic Distro in this world (by Sid on 2006-08-22 01:05:09 GMT from Lewiston, United States)
[QUOTE]
There is already a Satanic Distro:
Windows XP
[/QUOTE]
I second that motion.
63 • ?ubuntu (by ray at 2006-08-22 01:10:31 GMT from Idaho Falls, United States)
Having thought about the situation and read the former contents (as usual there is the occasional flash of inspiration with a lot of noise content) - I have a suggestion to think about. Rather than listing Ubuntu and Kubuntu and Xubuntu and EDubuntu as separate distributions (and, of course there are other similar situations - take SLES/SLED) it might be better and bring less confusion to list, for example, Ubuntu as the distribution with Kubuntu, et. al. as variants of that distribution. I realize it would take some forethought and real planning to come up with criteria - since in the past we've had lots of significant distributions based on other established distributions. In a lot of cases they really were new distributions, in others, at least for some period of time, they could have been classified as variants.
So, how about it - should the toxonomy be changed to recognize distributions and variants?
64 • Just a quick question (by Anonymous on 2006-08-22 01:27:03 GMT from Fayetteville, United States)
Are all these Ubuntu spin-offs really worth being listed as distributions in their own right? I mean, they aren't even changing the name for crying out loud... just a question.
65 • 49 (by NK on 2006-08-22 01:31:58 GMT from Salt Lake City, United States)
From AC;
"And do only people who vote conservative study the Bible?"
Obviously not. But my original premise still stands. I significant percentage of people in this country do study the bible. If that percentage is only 4%, that represents about 10 *million* people in the USA (the rest of the world) that might find this distribution useful. I'm sure many more go to church on a regular basis. I bet even the people who go to church once a year on Easter might say to themselves, "you know what, I'd like to have a Linux distro installed because I don't like adware/spyware/crapware and Dansguardian might be neat to get a handle on what the kids might see" even if they don't want to use the bilbe software.
So by any stretch of the imagination, there are literally millions of people who might like this project, even if it is in its infancy.
I'm sorry that you got hung up on the red-state/blue state reference and what a conservative may or may not be. The fact is this last election people were voting values (enough for GW to win electorally or Kerry to lose, any way you like it), because they sure weren't voting intelligence. The fact that it was even close says a lot by itself.
My original premise stands. Millions of people (that live in red states and vote conservatively making it a "red state") might be interested in this distro. Let alone the millions of others worldwide (including blue-state California).
Beyond this point you are trolling.
66 • errata 65 (by NK on 2006-08-22 01:34:46 GMT from Salt Lake City, United States)
"(excluding the rest of the world)"
67 • Linux Distro timeline (by erwin on 2006-08-22 01:43:56 GMT from Jakarta, Indonesia)
Somebody change the url ???
it is not there any more.....
68 • resonse to pauls fear of death. (by postaldave on 2006-08-22 01:53:23 GMT from Louisville, United States)
"You are free to create any distro you like... but any critics are haters? The Chrisitian mind is fascinating. I hope they let me live long enough to understand it."
that statement was just plain crap. you want to bash it for using ubuntu go ahead, i dislike that the distro myself. others here were saying it didn't have a "right" to be here. those are two completely different things.
you wonder if they will let YOU live? they guy just wanted to add YET another *buntu distro out. why don't you let him live.
do you really think he is going to hunt you down and kill you?
that is childish.
69 • Satanic Distro (by tom on 2006-08-22 02:44:28 GMT from La Junta, United States)
If you play the Windows XP install CD backwards you you will hear demonic voices worshiping Satan.
Worse, if you play it forwards it installs Windows XP.
70 • Remove all the ?Ubunto distros! (by KnightFire on 2006-08-22 03:07:14 GMT from Calgary, Canada)
Hmm... this is a tough one... at present I'd have to vote to remove all the ?Ubuntu distro's and just leave Ubuntu.
71 • The Answers Kinda Obvious - Have 1 "DaddyBuntu" (by GregOmaha on 2006-08-22 03:12:17 GMT from Denver, United States)
With all these Ku, Xu, Edbu, or just plain FooBuntu, why not combine these things, into one big BuntoTent called DaddyBuntu? Except of course for the new step-child "Mepis" (which really is a separate distro).
72 • 69 (by tom on 2006-08-22 03:13:53 GMT from La Junta, United States)
http://www.kde-look.org/content/preview.php?preview=1&id=44002&file1=44002-1.jpg
73 • No subject (by TripleA on 2006-08-22 03:28:31 GMT from Bruxelles, Belgium)
... and the Lord said :" Let there be Linux",and there was Linux !
ha LOL
74 • Linux Diversity (by |TG|Mateo on 2006-08-22 03:41:16 GMT from Belmont, United States)
Wow. Just Wow.
First, it was KDE v. GNOME. Then, it was GPL 2 v. GPL 3. Then XFS v. Every other file system (as if anyone really, in their heart of hearts, actually cares).
Now its Jesus v. Linux?
Are you all out of your farking minds? It is the diversity of open source that gives the movement, and the operating systems that we haggle over, strength.
Now, personally, I have no use for any of the SWORD projects applications, but many do. More power. I have noticed that several "planned" distros on the waiting list tried to do something with it, but never really got out the door....I guess the lord wasn't with them.
I think this was the right way to go for them: take a major distro, and incorporate the software.
Do I care if it is another Ubuntu derivative? No. I wouldn't mind seeing 100 *buntus. Who cares? Things like Ubunutu Christian just illustrate how great open source is: someone saw a need, and they went to work. Could you do that with Windows? OSX?
You all need to quit the squabbling, and focus on spreading the open source love.
BTW: Evil Entity was one distro I really was watching close, but it's "un"dead now innit? Too bad. I really like the idea of a desktop distro that does not go for the whole "start button/let's look like windows" mentality.
75 • Distro Timeline (by bluejay on 2006-08-22 03:54:01 GMT from , Australia)
Thanks for thr Linux Distro Timeline. Great for a newbie to get an idea where each distro fits in. Would be good as a link from your front page.
Linux has come so far in 15 years - the mind boggles at where it will be in an other 15.
Bluejay
76 • Re 61 - why? (by Anonymous on 2006-08-22 04:00:45 GMT from Salt Lake City, United States)
ezsit said;
"For all these people stating that Christians need to feel included and welcomed into the FOSS experience, I say, why? What makes Christians special? Is there a Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Shinto, Rastafari, Navajo, Aborigine, etc. Ubuntu? Should these groups feel left out because some poor shmoe forgot to produce a "new distribution" with their religion on it?"
Why would anyone want to use Linux anyway? Because if they do they will be put down and belittled by a bunch of elitists who have surperior knowledge to everyone about everything in the universe.
Anyone of anystripes can start their own linux distro. Nothing is stopping any "shmoe" whether he wants to or he "forgot". I thought GNU was about "freedom". Oh wait - this is Linux and "too special" for everybody.
I'm glad pastored started this distro up so people have a place where they don't have to deal with elitists ahd haterz.
77 • Christian Ubuntu (by klhrevolutionist on 2006-08-22 04:00:50 GMT from Jackson, United States)
well i am going to look into this. I hope that the developers are sincere. If that is the case ole revolutionist will have a new linux & community to help out.
78 • 65 (by AC on 2006-08-22 04:36:44 GMT from Olympia, United States)
"Beyond this point you are trolling."
I wasn't aware that it was trolling to question someone's linkage of political demographics with religion in a forum that rightly has to do with neither. Thanks for setting me straight on my nettiquette.
Incidentally, I've shown my Bible study interested clients how to install GNOMESword on their Debian systems and I'm always eager to make any of my friends of Free software catering to a variety of interests. And I'm on record (post 19) as saying that Ladislav probably shouldn't try separating distros according to some criteria of distinctness. But I've also questioned the rhetoric used against some of the critics. If you want to accuse me of vitriol or call me "enlightened" with scare quotes or to say I'm trolling, fine. But i've been pretty balanced in what I've said on the issue.
79 • #63 Ubuntu and Slax (by raymond on 2006-08-22 04:44:51 GMT from Forestville, Australia)
"should the toxonomy be changed to recognize distributions and variants?"
Yes I agree. Compare Ubuntu with Slax. Ubuntu has several variants: Kubuntu, Xubuntu, and EDubuntu (+ more), and Slax has several variants: Standard, KillBill, Server, Popcorn, and Frodo editions. Each of the Ubuntu and Slax variants are updated at the same time. But the Slax variants are not listed as separate distros (nor even as variants) on DW. Only Slax is listed by itself. Yet all of Ubuntu's variants are listed as separate distros. This does not make sense, especially when the Slax variants are more different from their parent than the Ubuntu variants. It would be nice to see some reorganisation so that Slax, Ubuntu, etc., are listed as one distro, and on their individual pages their variants are listed to reduce the confusion and clutter. If down the track a variant becomes more unique it could then be given its own listing.
80 • Re:42; Good video segment ('The End of Faith' by Sam Harris) (by KnightFire on 2006-08-22 04:47:12 GMT from Calgary, Canada)
Just watched the video... convinces me more that the decision to remove, or not to remove the ?Ubuntu derivations is a tough one; where does one draw the line. As #41 so noted, there is little difference between them, and I for one just don't believe the ?buntu derivations will fork off enough to be truely called distributions. But then Mandrake's KDE vs Red Hat's Gnome was debated a while back too. Ladislav will have to put his foot down on this one as he had to do with the BSD and Minix decisions.
{ Apologies for all the bad spelling }
81 • 79 (by AC on 2006-08-22 04:48:19 GMT from Olympia, United States)
Now there's a reasoned position with which I sympathize. And it shows an apparent inconsistency in the status quo, rather than seeming like an ad hoc anti-Christian thing. I suspect your post, unlike many of the others, has really given ladislav something to consider.
82 • Re: 79, 81 (by KnightFire on 2006-08-22 04:53:04 GMT from Calgary, Canada)
Agreed, well said Raymond.
83 • Just a thought (by ezsit on 2006-08-22 05:54:17 GMT from Scottsdale, United States)
OK, I'll stop with the religious talk, and make a suggestion for
Distrowatch of a technical nature. The current homepage shows
individual distributions in hit rank order. I propose to rethink this
arrangement.
Let's say the distribution database contained data fields to hold
parent and child information for each distro. In addition to all the
distribution specifics that each record contains, if there were also
data fields to designate the parent distribution (maybe several fields
indicating parent, grandparent, great grandparent, etc.) and data
fields to record children (spin-offs).
Top level parent distros would include Slackware, Debian, RedHat,
source-based, etc. The right column of Distrowatch.com would become
much shorter. To the right of each top level parent listing would be
the sum of all page hit rankings of all its children. To the left of
each top level parent would be an expansion icon to expand the list and
view the children/spinoffs. Likewise, each spinoff that has born
children of its own would have its own sub-list. In this way, it would
be easy to see the real strength of popularity and influence of each
distribution. The list could serve as a citation index for Linux
distributions, as the database would reveal the true extent of a
distribution's influence and how relevant that distribution is to the
world of Linux.
I typed this late at night, so bear with me. If I had any database
programming skills, I'd offer them now, but I'm a better idea person
than an implementer.
84 • Re: 69 • Satanic Distro (by Ariszló on 2006-08-22 07:55:33 GMT from Budapest, Hungary)
Tom wrote: If you play the Windows XP install CD backwards you you will hear demonic voices worshiping Satan.
Worse, if you play it forwards it installs Windows XP.
The funniest post this morning (Central European time).
85 • the main goal of *buntu (by a thinking man on 2006-08-22 07:57:55 GMT from Kiev, Ukraine)
among all the discussuoin flood there is the main goal of ubuntu forgotten - to make an easy-to-install-one-single-cd-distro. You have to keep that in mind before you judge about some new *buntu product. If there is come some new addition to that family, why there're so many objectives? sure, "apt-get install gnomesword bibletools etc" will be solution for a Christian debian user, as much "as apt-get install kde/gnome" - makes kde/gnome env-t at a bare new installed deb-system, but it takes some add. knoledge do to that, while there some many people that are a-scaring with unix' black comand-line. Let the boy play their own game, don't be trying to discoruage them.
86 • Buntubuntu (by pekka on 2006-08-22 08:14:42 GMT from Kajaani, Finland)
Kubuntu, Xubuntu, Edubuntu and all of the other Ubuntu's extension modules will soon become irrelevant when people start using DVDs. You cannot fit both KDE and GNOME onto one CD-ROM if you also want to include a variety of common desktop applications. But you can very well fit them both (plus XFCE and some light-weight window managers) on a DVD.
OK, you've got a bit more mega bytes to download if you get all the Ubuntu extensions on one DVD but if you have a slow net connection, you can order your DVD from the Shipit service.
So I don't see any future for any of these Ubuntu extensions and DistroWatch has obviously made a mistake in giving them each a separate page, IMO.
87 • Qualifications for an independent distro? (by ezsit on 2006-08-22 08:46:20 GMT from Scottsdale, United States)
I've read a few posts from people concerned about the process of determining the independent/derivative status of a distribution. I have a small list of criteria that may provide a starting point.
An independent distribution must meet these basic requirements:
1. Is NOT dependent upon the continuation of its parent, ie. if the parent died today, the independent distribution can still survive. This means that the packages and build process are self-supporting. This assumes enough motivated developers to continue the work of producing and distributing the distribution.
2. Has an active online community to provide forums, listservs, website, and user support independent of the parent distribution.
3. Remains actively developed.
By these standards, Slackware, Debian, RedHat, Fedora, Mandrake, Gentoo, openSUSE (or whatever they call themselves this week), all three major BSDs, and many more would all qualify as independent distributions. I know I've left several out, but I'm only giving examples.
Dependent Child status would include most of the distributions out there. All distributions would have parent/child info contained within the database and linking the records to show family relationships would be a matter of SQL manipulation.
Variants would be another category. A variant is not really a child, but a flavor of a particular distribution. The various Xubuntus, Kubuntus, Slax editions, Knoppix flavors, etc., would all fall into this type of category. Variants are merely customizations ontop of a distribution, and variants spring from independent distributions and dependent distributions alike. The various Ubuntu flavors are variations on Ubuntu, which is itself a dependent child distribution of Debian. Other distributions, such as Slax, are dependent children of an independent distribution, namely Slackware.
All this talk is just fantasy until Ladislav Bodnar decides to change the way Distrowatch.com is organized. Good night one and all.
88 • please do not add any religious material to your database (by brizz on 2006-08-22 08:47:05 GMT from Reims, France)
i won't explain here my whole point of view about religions, but... one can believe in whatever he wants, one can use or make free and religious software, i don't mind. but i don't think distrowatch should add these materials to its database. linux is not christian, muslim, jewish or whatever.
religions are mankind's poison. please stay away from them.
89 • Thanks ! (by klhrevolutionist at 2006-08-22 09:17:10 GMT from Jackson, United States)
I want to thank all the people who replied in regard for the Christian Ubuntu.
Please discuss this at your local forum & chat so that others may find out about this project !
90 • no religious stuff please (by Agnostic on 2006-08-22 09:48:09 GMT from Stoke Mandeville, United Kingdom)
If one "insists" on premoting Ubuntu Christian Edition (or any thing similar)
then one should also premote a Muslim version AND a Budist Version AND
a Hindu Version AND a version for ALL OTHER religions etc. etc.
Personally I would prefer that NO spacific religious distro's were premoted
as in "my mind" all this does is premote religious in-tollarance around the world.
Open Source has nothing to do with any spacific religion = so let us aviod any thing that may premote simplistic people who will end up with this :-
My religion is better than your religion
Just like the statement = My distro is better than your distro
Let us not premode in-tollerance
Just my 2 cents worth
91 • 90 (by AC on 2006-08-22 10:28:44 GMT from Olympia, United States)
To be fair, I am sure that if a Zoroastrian, Wiccan, or Sikh-oriented distribution were announced today, Ladislav would cover it. If anyone is aware of a distribution tailred to any religion that is not being listed on Distrowatch, I am sure Ladislav would well being informed. His job is to report what is out there and if only a Christian-based Ubuntu is being made, it is not "promoting one religion" for him to report on that fact.
92 • OK... (by 1c3d0g on 2006-08-22 11:54:08 GMT from Oranjestad, Aruba)
Enough! All of you anti-Christian scumbags have a serious attitude problem. BSD has the daemon as a mascot etc., all the Sorcerer/Source Mage etc. distro's have their magic "casts" and "spells", and just because of one lousy Christian distro y'all have to give this outcry and fall in shock and horror? Go screw yourselves! You will never, ever beat us into obscurity. God is here forever, so you better get used to Him.
93 • Ubuntu Christian edition? Hah. (by UltraZelda64 on 2006-08-22 12:22:05 GMT from Alliance, United States)
I might as well create my own Ubuntu-based distribution geared towards rock and metal fans, "Metalbuntu: Linux for Metalheads". The only difference being the default web page of all Web browsers would be darklyrics.com, with bookmarks of various other lyric and rock/metal web pages, and a darker theme. Oh yeah, and various audio players for music listening.
Who's with me?
Just kidding by the way, but seriously - this is stupid. I vote for Christian Ubuntu to be removed. Ubuntu makes installing packages dead-easy - even the dumbest person on the face of the planet could do it, probably while stoned *and* drunk. Why not just add this bible study crap to the repositories? It's not like there are hundreds (or even dozens) of Christian-related apps, so what's the point in a whole distro for one or two specialty apps? Besides, isn't Ubuntu's slogan - Ubuntu - Linux for Human Beings - friendly enough for Christians?
94 • From the Ubuntu CE Developer. (by Jereme Hancock on 2006-08-22 13:17:00 GMT from , Japan)
Hi all,
I am the guy you are all talking about. I am the guy who created this "psuedo" distro that is the worst thing since Veggie Tales. I mean Christian cartoons, who would ever watch that.
Ok, I am being sarcastic. I just want to hopefully clear up a few things.
1. I never claimed this to really be a true distro or derivative even. In fact if you take a moment to read the FAQ page on the UCE site you will see that.
2. The idea is not to bring Jesus to Linux users it is to bring Linux to Christian believers.
3. The first release was developed more as a proof of concept version focused mainly on stability.
4. The latest release also incorporates Dansguardian web content filtering preinstalled with a custom GUI to edit the filter settings.
5. The lastest release also contains the only available Catholic Bible for GnomeSword. My reason for mentioning this is the fact that I get the feeling that people think this is an evangelical movement. As a matter of fact I will soon be studying to become Catholic. However, I want my "distro" to meet the needs of as many Christians as possible, from Protestants, Catholics, Lutherans, and the like.
6. I did not do this as a publicity thing. Although I truly appreciate the help guys. Without your help I am not sure this would have gotten out there so fast. :)
7. Yes, UCE looks just like Ubuntu. I never set out to change too much of the look and feel of Ubuntu. In fact I figured if it "ain't broke don't fix it", and yes a I am from the south, (Alabama). :)
8. There is not a lot of Christian Linux software out there. I hope that the attention that this has received will help foster some development in the Christian arena.
9. I don't mind people saying why have a Christian version if they approach it from the technical standpoint. What really bothers me is all the Christian hatred. I remember when Kubuntu was first mentioned and people went nuts. However, that was just a technical/preference issue. This is my Faith and bashing it is just unwarrented. If you look closely at the project site and read through some Ubuntu Forum threads you will see that I am not out to get you to be Christian. I just want the Christian market (which is huge) to find Linux.
10. I know you can just apt-get it or synaptic it. I think we sometimes forget that some people have never even heard of Linux much less some of the terminal commands to install software. I saw somewhere recently that Linux had a whopping 0.36% of the market share. That can change if we want it to. Linux is a superior OS, but until we as Linux users quite thinking that makes us superior Linux will remain for techies and hobbyists.
11. I have not removed the daemons or kill or anything like that. I did remove gnome-games, but only to make room for Dansguardian. I also added a simple way to reinstall everything that was removed.
12. Future releases will contain the Ubuntu Christian Edition Installer. It is sort of like Automatix except it will be used to install Christain, Educational, and other programs that I feel will be useful to the core user base.
13. Canonical is not officially supporting this project. They have given their blessing with a few guidelines.
14. Open Source is meaningless if we force out those who have a different world view. I mean if a SatanicUbuntu came out, I would not like it because I do not share their beliefs. However, I would recognize there right to do it and the power that that right gives you.
15. Most of the comments that I have read saying why not MuslimUbuntu and so on are just plain childish. I mean if you want to create it do it. Contribute and stop complaining when someone else does.
16. Does Ubuntu Christian Edition belong on DistroWatch? Well, I obviously think so. I mean I see a lot of distros that will never have the same impact that this one has the potential of having on DW and no one says a word. Also I think it is a slippery slope if we begin to debate semantics when it comes to the question of what constitutes a distro or a derivative. It is very subjective and I think contrary to the spirit of Open Source.
Well, I could go on and on. I just hope this will give some of you an idea of where I am coming from and what my motivations are.
Jereme Hancock
95 • Distro/Varients definition (by Tashi on 2006-08-22 13:42:55 GMT from Washington, United States)
This isn't a new arguement limited to Ubuntu's off spring.
Perhaps a definition by Ladislav regarding what is considered a Distro and what is considered a varient.
Is it a level of change? Installer/Package repositories/etc
Is it a different "ownership"? ie a different group not associated with the parent distro maintains it?
What does only adding some specialized software (System Tools/Music&Graphic Tools/Game Tools/Religous Tools) mean?
96 • Christian Ubuntu (by Daggy Dougal on 2006-08-22 14:03:37 GMT from Jerusalem, Israel)
How come people read Distrowatch regularly and still don't understand how it works??
Ladislav added the Christian Ubunto to "New distributions added to waiting list".
That means he did the minimum of mentioning that distro (so they can't accuse him of ignoring them) and quite likely thinks it's pointless and will **not bother creating a Distrowatch page for it**.
I won't mention my opinion of Christians (or Jews or Moslems, for that matter), but I actually think it **would** be a good idea to have a "Christian" distro.
I'll go even further: have a "priesthood" distro. Just think how many Christian priests there are in the world and what would happen if you create a special distro for them and get them all off of W****s?
"Linux users" is not some fancy elite club. You have to put up with the fact that people you don't like might also use Linux... There could be Christians, Jews, Moslems, cops, soldiers, rapists, paedophiles, Nazis, lorry drivers, Hollywood actors... Maybe even Bill Gates uses Linux at home since he knows very well that a certain other OS is crap.
I say new distros should be added only if they're actually **new** -- something that can't be easily made by slightly modifying an existing distro.
BTW: I thought Hikarunix was great! It's an example of what a distro **should** be like: unique, useful, well made. If someone likes Go, they can take it with them everywhere and use it for it's purpose without any hassle.
No, I was not being sarcastic about the "priesthood" distro.
97 • Re : 92 • OK... (by 1c3d0g) (by Anonymous on 2006-08-22 14:06:01 GMT from Bruxelles, Belgium)
So much for the respect of others...
You're the one who seems to have the biggest attitude problem in here!!!
98 • "Christian" Linux LOL (by RedBoar on 2006-08-22 14:06:26 GMT from Chicago, United States)
I knew personally the guy who started the Sword Project, he makes the Pharisees of Jesus' day look reasonable.
99 • 88 • brizz wrote... (by Pavel on 2006-08-22 14:11:17 GMT from Shrewsbury, United States)
88 • brizz wrote: "religions are mankind's poison. please stay away from them."
Biblical Christianity is not religion as is Islam, Roman Catholicism, Hinduism, Atheism, etc., nor is it a denomination derived from a particular religion. It's just a simple way of life following its Leader. What passes for established Christian religion has almost always persecuted those who love the simple way of life and in the last 200 years it is the humanist, who have no use for the simple christian, who have won the bloody crown of oppression and have given the traditional established religions a run for their blood money. Now if you know the history of religious pluralism in North America you'd know it was established by tolerant christian folk and their cousins.
I personally remain stedfast in my belief that Open Source Software and Linux in particlaur is good for all of us. Even for those secular humanists who are as poisnous as their counterparts within the world of religion. God spare us from both!
Our forum owner appears to be a just minded individual and I'm sure he will do what he considers best for Linux and its advancement.
A tourist in the states who escaped the heavy hand of the humanists,
Pavel
100 • One more thing (by RedBoar on 2006-08-22 14:12:28 GMT from Chicago, United States)
The creator and founder of the Sword Project has not and will not use FreeBSD for this reason and I shit you not: because the mascot is a little demon-looking character.
101 • Re: 94 (by Azazel McDangerous on 2006-08-22 14:23:02 GMT from Savannah, United States)
I still don't see the point of this - with the Rapture going to happen 'any day now', surely all the Christians will disappear off the face of the Earth very soon anyway (and I think we can all say a big 'Amen' to that prospect!)? So why even start working on this crap in the first place?
By the way, I think it's hilarious when someone refuses to use BSD because of Beastie. Classic! lol111!!!!1 etc.
102 • UCE (by ezsit on 2006-08-22 14:28:09 GMT from Scottsdale, United States)
15. Most of the comments that I have read saying why not MuslimUbuntu and so on are just plain childish. I mean if you want to create it do it. Contribute and stop complaining when someone else does.
This is not the point at all. My point was that the creation of a slew of variants based off of Ubuntu catering to different religious groups is stupid and worthless and does nothing but add to confusion to an already splintered marketplace. It is not that I believe the world needs a couple dozen more Ubuntu variants. I think the world is fine with two or three and people are free to customize them as they see fit. Calling one person's customizations a distribution in its own right is stupid.
The popularity of the UCE is just a depressing fact, if that popularity exists at all.
103 • Ubuntu Christian Edition - Missing The Point (by SFN on 2006-08-22 14:55:22 GMT from Rochester, United States)
It amazes me how many people have turned this into either a religious deabte or one about whether or not a derivative should be given its own listing. How many of you have actually looked at this "derivative"?
It's Ubuntu. Just Ubuntu. When it was released, the only thing that was different was GnomeSword and it's modules. Even the desktop wallpaper was the stock Ubuntu wallpaper. Since then they have added DansGuardian. Other than that, it's just Ubuntu.
This may evolve into something but right now, it's nothing you don't end up with by installing Ubuntu and adding a couple of packages.
Anybody who's going to complain because a distro has been tied to a religion should be complaining about software like GnomeSword existing in the first place, but nobody does. Why not? Because it's a stupid complaint. Moaning about the existence of a particular piece of software is dumb. Likewise, complaining about the existence of a particular distro or even a derivative is dumb.
The only real problem I can see here is that this is being branded as something unique and its not. Of course, its possible that the reason its not is that this project was announced prematurely. Down the road, this could mature into something VERY unique.
GnomeSword appears to be a very robust application and I could see it being handy as a study tool for a number of faiths. It could even go on to be the basis for an immensley helpful study tool for other topics.
I'll add that I'm an atheist but I can see no reason to exclude a distro because it's based around a religion. If we do that, the various distros based around a particular science need to go as well.
104 • UCE (by Rob from Ohio on 2006-08-22 15:02:33 GMT from Cincinnati, United States)
Re: 42
"... I am taken aback by the degree of blatant discrimination being voiced against Christianity and, specifically, Ubuntu Christian Edition (UCE). It would be discriminatory to purposely disclude UCE from the DW database; is this not obvious?"
You've got it wrong. It isn't 'against Christianity'.
How about this:
UserA: "I'm gonna make me a new Distro."
UserB: "Great. Tell me about it."
UserA: "Well, I'm gonna take Red Hat Linux, switch all the red hat logos to the Pope's hat, and call it 'PopeHat Linux'.
UserB: But that's not a new Distro, you just made a minor change."
UserA: "I am taken aback by the degree of blatant discrimination being voiced against Christianity."
UserB: "It's not about Christianity. I just don't think that your changes constitute a new Distro, and should not get it's own Distrowatch page."
UserA: "It would be discriminatory to purposely disclude UCE from the DW database; is this not obvious?"
User B: "No, no, no,,,"
While I think Jerome's idea is well-intentioned, it would set the stage for having excessive 'minor variants' clog things up.
Jerome, instead of spending time on making a new Distro, use that time to set up a website showing all the Christian oriented software available, and write easy instructions showing how the software can be added to Ubuntu. Maybe a Wiki type page.
Hope it didn't seem like I was bashing UCE. I wasn't.
105 • Missing news about Mandriva ( beta 2 Odin + compiz/XGL/AIGLX integration ) (by FACORAT Fabrice on 2006-08-22 15:46:45 GMT from Saint-Michel-sur-Orge, France)
Still in the Beta release cycle, Mandriva release a second beta of Mandriva 2007 "Odin".
This beta 2 features :
- New packages version ( KDE 3.5.4, Gnome 2.16 beta 2, kernel 2.6.17 )
- New Mandriva theme for windows "Ia Ora" ( only available under Gnome at present ) which comes in 4 flavours
- a new drakvpn tools with integration with net_applet. drakvpn support vpnc and OpenVPN at present.
- Release Notes : http://qa.mandriva.com/twiki/bin/view/Main/MandrivaLinux2007Odin
- New DrakVPN : http://qa.mandriva.com/twiki/bin/view/Main/DrakVPN
- details about "Ia Ora" theme : http://www.linux-wizard.net/index.php?id_blog=82
After this beta release mandriva also works on XGL/AIGLX integration in the future Mandriva 2007.0. Now the system is able to automatically enable XGL or AIGLX depending on your graphic card driver capabilities. This work both under Gnome and KDE. Testing 3D desktop under Mandriva Cooker is as simple than installing the metapackage task-3ddesktop et login.
- Announce by Mandriva team with Video : http://corp.mandriva.com/webteam/2006/08/21/say-hello-to-3d/
- More informations on how to enable/disable and tweak it : http://www.linux-wizard.net/index.php?id_blog=83
106 • Timeline (by Marc on 2006-08-22 16:23:55 GMT from Montréal, Canada)
I think Mepis line should be stopped from Debian et start back from Ubuntu
or this is and old chart from a couple of months.
107 • uh... not *my* distro (by PastorEd on 2006-08-22 16:32:42 GMT from Bothell, United States)
Just thought I'd clear up something mentioned in a previous post:
I didn't create Ubuntu Christian Edition (as per post #76). I just know about it. I'm thankful that Mr. Hancock logged in to explain a bit more about UCE.
However, I think that posters #6, and 62 stumbled upon a really interesting idea: What if someone developed a distro that during install had a number of check boxes that would allow various modules to be installed (Christian texts, Buddhist Texts, Muslim texts, Sikh texts, etc) for comparitive study?
Personally, I think that would be fascinating, and well worth developing. But then again, I really love to study, compare, and contrast. Not everyone is interested in that kind of examination of faith-based material.
This is already possible using Synaptic, or various package managing tools. But for the people who are new to Linux (and remember, this is LINUX evangelism we're talking about, not religious), I think this could be a handy tool.
I actually *am* working on developing my own distribution of Linux... but while I've installed it on a few local computers, I've not yet been able to figure out the whole "LiveCD" approach that seems so popular... so I've never released it into the wild. Oh well, maybe someday...
108 • some more *buntus (by ROFL on 2006-08-22 17:40:19 GMT from Bingen Am Rhein, Germany)
Who's first to add some nude wallpaper and release p0rnbuntu?
Maybe this will bring many lost souls to linux ;-)
If Christianbuntu gets its own site at distrowatch then we have to separate PCLinuxOS in three "distros" as well (BigDaddy, Junior and MiniME).
Then rename the page in distrovariantwatch. "Put the fun back into computing. Use Linux, BSD or any variant."
109 • News Flash - This is a news site (by kilgoretrout on 2006-08-22 18:23:37 GMT from Dallas, United States)
And Ubuntu Christian Edition(UCE) is news. The number of comments generated by the mere mention of UCE proves its release is a newsworthy event that should be covered and followed by DWW.
I'm not suggesting that there should not be some editorial control over what is included here; newsworthyness should not be based soley on popularity. For example, Nazi Linux would probably generate just as much public interest/outcry, but I don't think anyone would argue it should be included on DWW. However, public interest is a significant factor to be taken into consideration. That is why all other *buntus have a place on DWW and the various Slax versions are not separately listed - there is currently greater public interest in all things "buntu" than all things "slax", at least in the editor's judgment.
I think that's what it really boils down to, not to some ephemeral definition of what constitutes a "derivative". And that's why "Zorastrian Linux" probaly would not be listed, not enough public interest. Meanwhile, hypothetical distros like Nazi Linux, Pedophile Linux and Jihad Linux should not be listed because of the offensive values espoused by those target groups that the distros serve. Personally, while I may not agree with the stereotypical views of those that seriously study the Bible as Divine revelation, I don't find the values espoused by the perceived target users of UCE to be so offensive as to warrant banishment from DWW. Maybe some do, but at least they should talk about that issue directly if that is the case. I also believe there is sufficient public interest in UCE to justify the minimal step of considering whether or not to include this distro on DWW.
110 • Re: 94 Here is a great idea... (by ezsit on 2006-08-22 18:42:37 GMT from Chandler, United States)
"12. Future releases will contain the Ubuntu Christian Edition Installer. It is sort of like Automatix except it will be used to install Christain, Educational, and other programs that I feel will be useful to the core user base."
This is a fabulous idea. It illustrates what I and others have been saying, that the numerous variations on Ubuntu are not distributions in and of themselves.
Simple scripts could be developed and maintained by interested parties that supply a double-click method to installing an entire set of customizations ontop of Ubuntu. This installation method should allow for easy, double-click removal as well.
A user could download the Kubuntu installer script executable and within minutes, select to install, update, or remove the Kubuntu Desktop. A similar installer script for Xfce, Fluxbox, Christian software, etc. These interested parties who develop and maintain the installer scripts would not have the burden of an entire distribution and could focus on just what really excites them.
The Kubuntu project, the Xubuntu project, the UCE project could optionally release an .ISO containing all their customizations available for download and distribute it to people without high bandwidth net connections or those who just want to install offline.
Think about how much more room on the cd image people would have once released from the burden of providing an entire operating system and duplicating the Ubuntu cd plus a few apps. Isn't this the Unix philosophy? Reuse components and reduce duplicative effort.
If Ubuntu were to devlop a reference framework for such an installer script, they could include the scripts on the releases and people could simply install Ubuntu once, and them play around with simple double-click installers for customization sets.
Now all this is already avilable through Synaptic and/or apt-get. However, having a set of predefined installer script executables immediately avilable to the end-user would simplify the new user experience.
111 • RE: 107 PasterED (by Taishi on 2006-08-22 18:55:28 GMT from Washington, United States)
I like the idea of a customized Linux CD for the study of comparitive religions as well. But then that is an area of interest of mine.
112 • Religous debate vs. Distrowatch (by Claus Futtrup on 2006-08-22 18:59:34 GMT from Tranbjerg, Denmark)
Dear all, I just checked in to read the DW Weekly. I am a bit baffled by the content flooded with religious and political subjects. To cut it short I do not believe in dividing the current distros into forks and/or variants. To distinguish can become complicated. Also I believe that any distro deserves a place on Distrowatch - anything else would make for a hot political debate. I know that Ladislav Bodnar is smart enough to have foreseen this already.
What seems to be the root cause of the debate is, that many distros are on a waiting list nowadays. They are not put on the Distrowatch list in order of appearance (not kind of FIFO). Which ones should have a higher priority? There is no simple and precise answer to this.
Another issue - many distros seems to be quiet, but are not removed (maybe they have asked to stay on Distrowatch? - maybe their "names" can be sold for profit to future projects, providing a head-start on Distrowatch). Many people feel that Distrowatch could need a brush-up. First remove the dead ones. Second move the new ones onto the scene. This implies a lot of work, of course.
113 • re 111 answer to Pastor Ed (by Caraibes on 2006-08-22 19:56:54 GMT from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic)
Yes, the live-cd about comparative religion surely seems like an interesting idea. Make it a light distro, so it's accessible to everyone.
As of Mr. Hancock, I respect his views, and I understand his point of view...
That said, I am happy with "one size fits all" distros, when it comes to spirituality...
114 • Re: 102 • UCE (by Ariszló on 2006-08-22 21:11:04 GMT from Budapest, Hungary)
ezsit wrote Calling one person's customizations a distribution in its own right is stupid.
Unfortunately, you have no other choice. GenieOS is called GenieOS, despite the fact that it is pure Debian with an alternative installer, because the Debian project does not allow using Debian in the name of an alternative installer of Debian.
115 • 115 (by AC on 2006-08-22 22:04:55 GMT from Olympia, United States)
Ariszlo makes an interesting point. because of trademarks, Ubuntu would have to sanction Christian Ubuntu. One wonders if they would also sanction others. And where they draw the line.
116 • 110 (by AC on 2006-08-22 22:20:01 GMT from Olympia, United States)
Something similar is already in process with Debian: http://wiki.debian.org/CustomDebian
117 • Distro of Choice (by Anonymous on 2006-08-23 00:46:11 GMT from Linden, United States)
Hello all!
As a true child of GOD; I first must recommend you read the Bible for yourself before drawing conclusions...Also be careful of your own bias entering and/or permeating said conclusions...May GOD draw his elect to himself as he sees fit...
As for my distro of choice...I like Puppy Linux...(and am looking forward to the soon to be released version 2.10!)
PS...Here's a recent review http://www.linux.com/article.pl?sid=06/08/14/1544231
For serious Bible info download some of these files,,,(mp3's of a live telephone call in program mon-fri)...(click on red squares & download) http://worldwide.familyradio.org/zusa/english/connect/audio_archive/forum/frame/download/
118 • 119 (by AC on 2006-08-23 00:55:17 GMT from Olympia, United States)
A Christian GNU/Linux distro becomes an excuse to proselytize, totally off-topic. And no doubt any who fault that show anti-Christian bias. I won't say what that sounds like to me, but you'll find it on farms, don't want to step in it, and won't find the smell very appealing.
119 • distro timeline (by vampire_janus on 2006-08-23 02:25:10 GMT from Mandaluyong, Philippines)
i thought suse was based initially on some unpopular german distro?
120 • UCE (by Clint Canada on 2006-08-23 02:54:14 GMT from Philippine, Philippines)
Guys,
Isn't foss about scratching an itch? There's a need for the creator to make the distro (introduce linux to christians), so why deride him for that?
I'm a catholic, and I have friends who I have worked with in linux who are from all walks of life. They know my beliefs, I know theirs. All in all, it all comes down to respect. We don't fight, we just put out something that works for our part and would like to share it with others. Same goes for people who are in other projects. I've seen people who are christian who are involved in quite high profile projects like mozilla. And for that reason alone you would like to shut them up for it?
Come on guys. foss is about sharing. not quibling about biases regarding religion.
121 • 121 (by AC on 2006-08-23 03:58:52 GMT from Olympia, United States)
Few have disputed the right to make a Christian-oriented distribution. And no one has said that Christians should be excluded from software development. But people have questioned the distinctiveness of such a distro being enough that it should be promoted on Distrowatch as a separate distribution. And for their questions, they've been accused of persecuting Christians.
122 • parents and children (by agendelman on 2006-08-23 04:07:55 GMT from Hempstead, United States)
I have little interest in whether or not a Christian oriented distro is legitimate or not. I suspect it is. If we review what we've accepted as legitimate distros, this one seems to fit the bill.
The more interesting question is, what constitutes a legitimate distro. Most of what we talk about here are one cd distros that owe their life to one of the "parent" distros. Let's look at the children. Many add some eye candy, and little else. They take most of their code unaltered or barely altered, from the parent. Are they really distros? Add kde packages to ubuntu and do you really have a different, independent distro? I don't think so. In fact, the thought of it is laughable
What questions should we ask to determine whether or not we have a real distro on our hands or just a cheap knock-off of one of the parents?
Ask some quesions. What does the "child" add to the experienxce? Is there a better installer? Is hardware recognition superior? Does it answer a glaring need of the parent ( significantly more updated software etc)? Does it add new technology that was lacking in the parent, new functionmality etc?
Even so, we can't escape the glaring fact that without the parents, there would be no children.
123 • linux variants (by raymond on 2006-08-23 04:23:44 GMT from , Australia)
Puppy is another distro with numerous variants: barebones, onebone, empty crust, grafpup, mean puppy, pizzapup, simplepup, chubby puppy (and it is still breeding). Only Puppy and Grafpup are listed separately on DW, the rest are not.
This is going to become more and more of a problem as it becomes easier to make Linux distros. More distromakers are already providing variants, as already mentioned. There is the full distro and the mini distro (like PCLinuxOS and Berry), the standard distro and the multimedia distro (like DreamLinux, Wolvix), the free distro and the commercial distro (like SUSE, RedHat and Linspire) etc. Big headaches all round !!
124 • 123 and counting (by tom on 2006-08-23 05:28:42 GMT from La Junta, United States)
With all the hype I decided to try some of these new distros.
These distros are all source based so they are all optimized to all architectures. As is true to Linux there are always at least 2 ways of accomplishing any task and these distros are examples of options in action. All the configuration is done automatically for you.
As an example I started with Christianity. It took 7 days to install. Actually 6, but I took the last day off. Still feel guilty for that. Christianity and Judaism are like Ubuntu and Debian in that Christianity is Judaism with an additional library "Jesus".
I tried the Satanic distro as it claimed to be for the "power user". The sacrifice is an old 64 bit virgin CPU was well worth it. Problem was it ran so hot my box caught on fire.Perhaps you heard of Dell Laptop that catching on fire, no?
Zen was very fast using the sudden installation method. All the files in /etc are empty and the system "just works".
Wait list: Muslim-ism, Hinduism, Paganism, ...
Final observations:
Although I have a Large hard drive with lots of free partitions for testing purposes, I soon ran into compatibility problems. It seems you can only have one of these faith based distros installed at a time or they will "interfere" with each other. The Judaism variant in particular seemed vulnerable.
I then found you could switch distros by running "conversion" which is a simple script to change your apt/sources.list and then update your system.
It depends on faith so if you do not have faith you will need to edit the source list for yourself and may want to start with Atheism as it is one of the easiest to configure.
Sometimes conversion does not work in which case you need to run forced conversion (conversion -f ) . See man conversion for details.
A word of caution: Do not mix sources.
125 • Umberto Eco and OS religions (by ezsit on 2006-08-23 05:41:27 GMT from Scottsdale, United States)
Does anybody remember the Umberto Eco write up on how the Macintosh is Catholic and DOS is Protestant? Here is a link, its a bit long to post here.
http://www.eff.org/Net_culture/Folklore/Humor/eco_on_micros.excerpt
The author of the thread adds his own commentary about Unix which I will paste:
"UNIX is Jewish!
Of course, Just like DOS, Unix allows interpretation of scripture, demands
difficult personal choice, etc. Not surprising, as the Prtotestants
thought that they were going back to the Judaic roots of Christianity...
But Unix is more. First, in order to fully understand and use Unix, you
must master a strange and unintellegible language, used only by the
faithful. The full extent of revalation can be understood only by
learning the commentaries ("man pages") written in such seeming gibberish
that the student cannot hope to understand them without a rabbi ("system
administrator") to elucidate the meanings. However, once the rabbi
explains them, their meaning is crystal clear, and the student finds
immense spritual treasure. When one cannot understand how to do
something, one asks a question of his rabbi (system administrator) who
gives detailed instructions of what to do. The instructions seem
preposterous, but they usually work very well. However, there are numerous
ways to achieve the same goal, and 3 rabbis (system adminstrators) will
give you 4 opinions about how to do something....Yes, Unix is Judaism.
Notice, also, how it is the least popular of the major operating
systems.... Except among those who really understand how computers
work... "
Now, the world has changed since 1994 and Linux has become the most dominant bastard offspring of Unix. Does this make Linux the new Christianity?
126 • 125 (by AC on 2006-08-23 07:13:33 GMT from Olympia, United States)
Perhaps NetBSD is Hasidic Judaism, Debian is Reform judaism, modern GUI-centric distros are Humanistic Judaism?
127 • 126 (by ezsit on 2006-08-23 07:54:37 GMT from Scottsdale, United States)
Rethinking this whole mess, I guess I'd say:
Solaris/SCO/HP-Linux/AIX = Orthodox Judaism
NetBSD/FreeBSD/OpenBSD/All other BSDs = Conservative Judaism
Linux = Reformed Judaism
DOS/Mac/Windows = Christianity
128 • No subject (by AC on 2006-08-23 08:06:28 GMT from Olympia, United States)
Actually, even though branded Unixen like Solaris bear the name legally, the BSDs generally and NetBSD in particular adhere more closely to Unix traditions in some respects (e.g. NetBSD has the Almquist shell - a Free Bourne shell clone - and C shell as default shells, rather than bash, tcsh, or ksh). I certainly wouldn't call a branded Unix MORE Orthodox.
GNU/Linux, like Reform Judaism, has many variants, some far more conservative than others.
129 • update to 127 (by ezsit on 2006-08-23 08:08:29 GMT from Scottsdale, United States)
OK, last effort for tonight:
Solaris/SCO/all other SVR5 Unix ............. = Orthodox Judaism
NetBSD/FreeBSD/OpenBSD/all BSDs ..... = Conservative Judaism
Linux ..................................................... = Reformed Judaism
DOS/Windows ....................................... = Christianity
Mac .......................................................= Islam
130 • # 124 (by Anonymous on 2006-08-23 12:29:34 GMT from Brasília, Brazil)
"The Judaism variant in particular seemed vulnerable."
Does it started killing muslims?!
http://www.uruknet.info/?p=m24885&hd=0&size=1&l=e%0A>
131 • Hallowed be Thy Operating System. (by Lobster on 2006-08-23 12:36:24 GMT from Rochdale, United Kingdom)
Dear Friends of St Tux
here is something I originally posted on Digg.com
Let us Pray
Our Linus, Who art in Tux Land,
Hallowed be Thy Operating System.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy Will be done, on Desktop as it is on Servers.
Give us this day our daily kernel.
And forgive us our dependencies,
as we forgive those who Ubuntu against us.
And lead us not into Apple,
but deliver us from Vista.
Debian.
132 • 130 (by tom on 2006-08-23 12:43:29 GMT from La Junta, United States)
That is the kind of problem I am referring to.
These things just can not seem to get along. One or the other is always problematic. It does not seem to be a problem of the source code and seems to come from an "error during compilation".
You certainly need to have only 1 of these on you box at any time otherwise conflicts seem inevitable.
133 • 129 (by tom on 2006-08-23 12:44:46 GMT from La Junta, United States)
Interesting.
The way I see it:
DOS............................... Judaism
Windows........................ Christianity
Macintosh (OS 8,9)........ Muslimism
BSD................................ Hinduism
Linux.............................. Buddhism
OSX ? Conversion
134 • Developer note (by Jereme Hancock on 2006-08-23 14:18:59 GMT from , Japan)
I think a good point was made earlier that the fact that UCE can generate this kind of debate at least shows that it should be included on DW. I also wanted to note that I have contacted Ladislav directly about UCE. We discussed it in length via email and he has let me know that UCE will be added to DW. It will just have to wait in line.
I am also going to be building some meta-packages for UCE so users of Ubuntu can install the UCE stuff easily.
The reason I wanted this to be a distro that can be downloaded, burned to cd, run from cd, and installed is because whether you all know it or not there are some people who have never heard of Linux. There are also many that will never use Linux unless someone "brings it to them". That is what my project is all about. Bringing Linux to Christian, which makes up 1/3 of the worlds population by the way.
I also want to say that the initial release was not intended to be all that different from Ubuntu. It was more of a proof of concept release and focused mainly on stability. The second release came out because I really wanted to get the Dansguardian thing out there. The next release is planned to be a more mature release. This is how I planned it. I never knew that it would be this fast moving.
Oh, and for those who do not like the recent surge in forks and derivatives, I understand your concern and I think it has validity. However, to me that is one of the major strengths of OSS. In fact I think that is the whole point. OPEN SOURCE!! If you want a centralized OS with no forks with the control coming from the top why not just use Windoze!
Jereme
135 • Re: 130 (by ezsit on 2006-08-23 16:03:12 GMT from Scottsdale, United States)
Unix (Judaism) only starts killing off the Mac (Islam) when the Mac violates its freedom and right to exist by closing the source code.
136 • 135, 130 (by tom on 2006-08-23 16:13:39 GMT from Helena, United States)
Seems to be a problem of not respecting the partition table and arguing over the MBR and which one is (GRUB) default.
This is a serious bug in the compilation of these OS and can lead to continued system instability and if not corrected total system failure. Each OS cites the faults of another, but none is able to see it's own. The situation can become quite explosive.
137 • Jereme (by |TG|Mateo on 2006-08-23 18:46:17 GMT from Quincy, United States)
Hey, that's great news about getting included in DW.
Interesting this dustup...noone batted an eye when Arabian added Koranic stuff to the distro, probably because noone reads Arabic, but you add the SWORD project, and suddenly it's a Holy War!
Of course, you realize I have to create Satanic Linux (or Budda Linux) just to be completely contrary. :-P
Viva Open Source!
138 • 130 (by AC on 2006-08-23 20:01:21 GMT from Olympia, United States)
Ever notice that the people who casually equate Judaism with the military decisions of Israel would fly into a rage if you equated state-sponsored terrorism by predominantly Mulsim countries with Islam?
139 • Is Mac Muslim? (by Andrew on 2006-08-23 21:00:59 GMT from Red Deer, Canada)
While Macs have inspired beautiful GUI design and poetic coding, I seriously doubt that I will see thousands of protesting mac users taking to the streets, chanting "death to Linux" and burning large papier maché penguins any time soon - oh, and I've never heard of OS X becoming a "martyr" to destroy any heathen OSes co-habiting the hard drive.
140 • re: being contrary (by PastorEd on 2006-08-23 21:43:35 GMT from Oak Harbor, United States)
TG|Mateo:
>Of course, you realize I have to create Satanic Linux (or Budda Linux) just to be completely contrary. :-P
Well, Buddhism isn't about being contrary...
...and the meaning of the word "Satan" is Adversary...
...so I'd suggest that you go with SatanicBSD (since they already have the little devil logo thing going.
141 • RE:Pastor Ed (by |TG|Mateo on 2006-08-23 22:28:43 GMT from Boston, United States)
Since we are talking open source, Satanic Linux would hardly be adversarial, would it?
142 • re: being contrary (by PastorEd on 2006-08-23 22:31:03 GMT from Oak Harbor, United States)
TG|Mateo:
>Of course, you realize I have to create Satanic Linux (or Budda Linux) just to be completely contrary. :-P
Well, Buddhism isn't about being contrary...
...and the meaning of the word "Satan" is Adversary...
...so I'd suggest that you go with SatanicBSD (since they already have the little devil logo thing going.
143 • Peace (by tom on 2006-08-24 00:13:09 GMT from Helena, United States)
If you all spent as much time on mutual respect, understanding, and tolerance as you did on anger, blame, and bigotry we would all be better off.
If you can not make the shift all at once, try starting with a 50:50 split.
I, for one, find much of the comments on this page made in the name of "god" or "religion" disconcerting.
144 • Macintosh OSX is Muslim (by ezsit on 2006-08-24 00:32:20 GMT from Chandler, United States)
How Mac OSX is like Islam
1. There is only one source of immutable truth, and it comes down from the prophet Steve Jobs.
2. The prophet Steve Jobs requires complete submission from the faithful users, developers, hardware manufacturers, etc.
3. The cost of admission is high, requiring great personal sacrifice.
4. The faithful receive hardware and an operating environment of spiritual proportions, satisfying all their physical and metaphysical needs.
5. All change comes down from the top of the hierarchy, even though the faithful are told nothing ever changes and all rules and practices are everlasting.
6. Although the source code was ripped from an already established system, the prophet Steve Jobs claims it as his own and has closed the source code that makes the Mac special and the one true system (religion).
The above description can also be applied to Windows and Bill Gates. But the Mac users (Muslims) would probably just say that Bill Gates is the false prophet Jesus, who took himself too seriously and assumed himself to be the son of God.
145 • #134 DW listing (by raymond on 2006-08-24 05:35:36 GMT from Boondall, Australia)
"Ladislav ... has let me know that UCE will be added to DW. It will just have to wait in line... Bringing Linux to Christian, which makes up 1/3 of the worlds population by the way...If you want a centralized OS with no forks with the control coming from the top why not just use Windoze!" - Jereme
According to what you say it seems that Ladislav lists distros on DW according to his own list of requirements: their uniqueness, their future potential, and whether they can attract new people to Linux or not. Overall, potential popularity of the distro plays an important part. The Slax and Puppy variants are probably not that popular, so they are not listed. But quite a few people might be interested in GrafPup so it is listed. And Ubuntu is so popular that its variants need to be listed separately to cater for the interest.
To the outsider, however, DW is confusing because the distros do not seem to be listed via a more technical classification - such as unique distros only, with close variants either not listed or listed on the parent's individual page.
146 • LinuxWorld (by Joel Ebel on 2006-08-24 07:06:53 GMT from Sunnyvale, United States)
No one else has commented about LinuxWorld yet, so I figured I should mention it. I want to one day of LinuxWorld. I also was at Ubucon the weekend after, mostly helping to host it. LinuxWorld was very corporate. I wished I could have met more of the little guys from smaller distributions. There was certainly lots of action around the .org booths, but most of the attendance and booths were enterprise related. The two big themes seemed to be virtualization and linux on mobile devices. Motorola was there for the first time, since they're putting linux on some new phones. They had a large booth with milk and cookies, and they had a keynote. They keynote was pretty dull. Basically a "look, we're putting linux on our phones. Watch this phone that runs linux play nsync." However, Larry Lessig's talk on read-write culture was really good. He encouraged the use of licenses that allow users the right to re-use content in creative ways.
Distrowatch was repeatedly mentioned by the local ubuntu guys as evidence that ubuntu is the most popular distribution.
Ubucon on the other hand was really small. Perhaps smaller than expected, since we had a lot of leftover food. I think it was poorly advertized. Many of the talks we expected to have didn't happen, since we couldn't get speakers. However, Canonical representatives did express some interest in helping to provide a better advertized conference that they would be more involved in. But it did go well. We had some interesting discussion, and a nice demonstration of some new features for edgy.
147 • Re: 98 • "Christian" Linux LOL (by Ariszló on 2006-08-24 07:13:17 GMT from Budapest, Hungary)
RedBoar wrote: I knew personally the guy who started the Sword Project, he makes the Pharisees of Jesus' day look reasonable.
The creator and founder of the Sword Project has not and will not use FreeBSD for this reason and I shit you not: because the mascot is a little demon-looking character.
A project may be good or bad irrespective of the personality of its author. Many consider RMS a weirdo but where would Linux (aka. GNU/Linux) be without GNU or where would Open Source be without the FSF and the GPL?
148 • RE: 145 DW listing (by ladislav on 2006-08-24 07:14:55 GMT from Bratislava, Slovakia)
DW is confusing because the distros do not seem to be listed via a more technical classification
The way I decide whether a project is a new distribution or just an edition of an existing distribution is simple - if a distro has its own web site (listed as a separate domain name), then it's a DISTRIBUTION. But if a project produces a number of different ISO images, which are all listed under the same domain name and are obviously developed by the same person or team, then it's just an EDITION of a distribution.
Based on the above criteria, the different products by SLAX or Puppy are just editions, not distributions, while Ubuntu Christian Edition would have to classified as a separate distribution (despite the name "edition" in its name).
Personally I'd prefer if "Ubuntu Christian Edition" was called something else, something completely different. I find its current name confusing - it implies that it is an edition of Ubuntu while the fact is that it's simply an Ubuntu-based distribution designed for a very specific purpose. But of course, it's the developer's decision how he names his project and there is not much we can do about it.
As for all the different *buntu distributions/editions debate, some might remember that originally Kubuntu wasn't an official subproject of Ubuntu, but rather an independent initiative to create a KDE-centric Ubuntu. The same goes for Edubuntu and Xubuntu. It was only later that they came under the Ubuntu umbrella and became essentially editions of Ubuntu, rather than separate distributions. By that time, of course, all three of them were already listed on DW as separate distributions.
149 • article on puppy linux (by tup on 2006-08-24 08:45:30 GMT from North Hills, United States)
Here is a recent article on Puppy Linux that should be linked in the Puppy Linux page:
http://www.linux.com/article.pl?sid=06/08/14/1544231
150 • </i> (by Ariszló on 2006-08-24 09:06:06 GMT from Budapest, Hungary)
</i> Resetting typeface to roman.
151 • Try again (by Ariszló on 2006-08-24 09:07:40 GMT from Budapest, Hungary)
</i> Now, it should be OK.
152 • Holidays (by Johannes Eva on 2006-08-24 09:34:40 GMT from Amboise, France)
I've just come back from 1 month holidays without computer and Internet (yes, it's possible!)... just wanted to say how great it is to read Distrowatch again :-)
153 • Ladislav 148 (by AC on 2006-08-24 13:26:32 GMT from Olympia, United States)
Thank you so much for stepping in to clarify matters. And let me say that your distinction strikes me as eminently reasonable and spares us debating arbitrary questions about how distinct a distribution must be.
154 • Ubuntu CE Now On DistroWatch!! (by Jereme Hancock on 2006-08-24 15:58:23 GMT from , Japan)
I just want to take a moment to thank Ladislav for the recent addition Ubuntu CE to the DistroWatch database. It is an honor and a privilege to be included here.
http://distrowatch.com/table.php?distribution=ubuntuce
Thanks, Jereme
155 • Timeline chart error re PCLinuxOS (by Fractalguy on 2006-08-24 19:02:31 GMT from San Diego, United States)
The chart shows incorrect date for pclinuxos, late by about two years.
(note, distrowatch is a better source. :)
156 • Ä°ltifat (by Yalcin Cinar on 2006-08-24 19:09:21 GMT from Ankara, Turkey)
distrowatch.com ufkumuzu açan, bizlere yol gösteren süper bir site ve başarılı yönetimi ile bizleri Linux konusunda anında bilgilendiriyor ve yönlendiriyor. Bu nedenle distrowatch.com' un çalışkan Redaksiyon' una başarılar diler, sonsuz teşekkürlerimi sunarım.
Sevgilerimle ve Saygılarımla,
Yalçın ÇINAR
info@asmabahceler.com
157 • Religion oriented OS (by Zu on 2006-08-24 21:21:03 GMT from Poznan, Poland)
After all that BS I've red I can say only this: any religion is a virus. I wish my OS stays clean.
158 • No subject (by RedBoar on 2006-08-24 21:51:06 GMT from Chicago, United States)
Hey Ariszló I fully agree with you, and I was at Scottsdale Community College when RMS visited and the guy is a scum! He literally sucks on his long unkempt hair. Regardless, I wasn't invalidating the value of the Sword Project or anyone besides the founder who's dedicating their time, money and resources upon this project. I bet there'd be a lot less Christians throughout history if they found out what kind of guy Paul was! However, this guy is a royal jerk and mistreated and gossiped about people who were his friends. His sisters are hot though, I wouldn't mind finding out what the younger one is doing these days!
159 • RE: #157 (by Anonymous Penguin on 2006-08-24 23:33:51 GMT from Roma, Italy)
"After all that BS I've red I can say only this: any religion is a virus."
Generally speaking I agree. Spirituality, however, is very important for me.
By Spirituality I mean my own set of beliefs which come from within. They are in no way influenced by religion, which is what others want you to believe.
Having said that, I can't see how an OS and religion can be related, other than, inside your OS, you can run whatever software you like, much the same as a container can hold everything.
160 • Thumbs up for more distros! (by Fractalguy on 2006-08-25 02:38:47 GMT from San Diego, United States)
There is a very good use for these specailty distros and that is their use in spreading the Linux usage. I have attended some Linux classes and the use of live CDs was always present. These are evening classes for the community. If the class were about using Word or PowerPoint, then the installed Windows or Mac computer was fine. But when it came to Linux the live CD was used. Favorites included: Fedora for setting up web servers, Knoppix for general Linux apps, and clusterKNOPPIX for parallel computing (image ray tracing). All live CDs that the student could take home.
I gave a Ubuntu to a retired guy at one of the classes who has a computer (broken Windows box, not usable at all) and no Internet connection. He bought the WinBox for $20. He, a total newbie, installed Ubuntu 5.10 by himself and is tickled pink over it. He just got Ubuntu 6.06 in the mail from Canonical and will over write his 5.10. What is not on the CD he will not be able to get.
I mention the Internetless newbie because there are many out there and many others with slow dialup. Then cannot down load and upgrade like us who have a fast link to the Net. Hey, I'm a distro (and distrowatch) junky and burn several CDs a week and I like to burn rubber with my sports car too. Not everyone has that luxury. :/
So I think UCE distro would make a great addition for its intended sector, just like many other distros. There is a window (if I can use the word (oops can I say that too)) of opportunity for Linux now that Windows is about to make the move to Vista and the hardware changes that involves.
I think a great distro live CD would be a literature/reference Ubuntu loaded with great readings from the Gutenburg project. So, want some reading, boot up Gubuntu. :)
161 • Re: Ubuntu CE Now On DistroWatch!! (by Ariszló on 2006-08-25 09:00:36 GMT from Budapest, Hungary)
8 hits so far in the Last 1 month column:
http://distrowatch.com/stats.php?section=popularity
162 • Ubuntu Christian - unhappy namegiving! (by tibor on 2006-08-25 09:57:24 GMT from Bonn, Germany)
Hi,
this Ubuntu for Christians is somewhat unhappy. I am a Christian, I studied Theology, I am a Pastor. So I would prefer a naming that refers to a profession, not to a religion. If there is a Distro for Audio/Video issues, there could be a Distro specialized on Software that empowers a professional work with things related to biblical Texts (like BibleWorks on Windows), commentaries, dictionaries for hebrew an/ or greek, that can be used by professionals and lay people, too.
But exactly as a theologian I disagree to substitute some kind of holyness or the like to a software. So, my proposal is not a removal of the distro, but a new name and a somewhat more professional description. Naming Ubuntu "Christian" wakes an understanding: the whole Distro (including kernel, et)c. is being developed by Christians and even more studpid Ideas.
Thanks
163 • Religion (by Thomas on 2006-08-25 11:57:47 GMT from Brighton, United Kingdom)
I say NO to religious OS's.
164 • No subject (by Tjotser on 2006-08-25 12:14:58 GMT from , Netherlands)
Today Tom Cruise announced he was giving full financial backing of the Scientology Distribution called ScientoLinux. I can't wait to try it.. :S
165 • UCE on Distrowatch (by Sam on 2006-08-25 16:16:05 GMT from Knoxville, United States)
I look forward to burning an ISO on this one. Of course, now this means ArchaeOLinux (linux for archaeologists) is going to be in the pipe soon. :)
166 • RE: 157 (by Anonymous on 2006-08-25 16:32:07 GMT from Eschborn, Germany)
I second that.
Religions are viruses which are destroying peoples brains.
167 • 166 (by AC on 2006-08-25 21:45:53 GMT from Olympia, United States)
It only muddles legitimate questions and fuels Christian delusions of persecution to post things like that.
168 • Ubuntu 4 Christians (by tom on 2006-08-26 04:21:56 GMT from La Junta, United States)
Again, I would like to take this opportunity to promote tolerance and mutual respect.
Ubuntu 4 Christians is a tool and like all tools is neutral, neither good or bad.
In my opinion, if it is used to promote Linux and help people, presumably Christians, learn Linux this would be a good use of a tool.
If it is used to force Christianity on Non-Christians this would be a not so good use of the tool.
Otherwise, like any other distro, if you do not like it do not use it. No need to be hostile.
If there is a need, I would encourage Non-Christians to make their own faith based distro's.
I suspect most of us do not choose an OS based on faith but rather on needs or preferences on how and why we use our boxes. Not all our needs are the same and if some of us make faith based decisions so be it.
In the end, Ubuntu 4 Christians only adds to the diversity of Linux and perhaps will encourage additional, similar tools.
Hostility, on the other hand, does not serve to promote Faith, Linux, BSD, or any OS and, in the end, promotes only continued hostility.
169 • Nvidia Driver for xOrg 7.1 (by LiQuid Kermit on 2006-08-26 04:39:22 GMT from Jakarta, Indonesia)
Maybe somebody already post this news. I'm sorry, i don't want to read 168 comment on religion war just to make sure nobody has post this news.
Finally, nvidia release a new driver with the xorg 7.1 support. I myself use radeon 9250. go to nvidia web page for more info and download.
cheers from indonesia.
170 • Bandung not jakarta (by LiQuid Kermit on 2006-08-26 04:42:45 GMT from Jakarta, Indonesia)
Hmmm...i'm pretty sure i'm in bandung right now. maybe the isp thing? can't tell, i use public comp.
171 • Ubuntu Christians - Faith based Science and other myths. (by Bill Savoie on 2006-08-26 17:56:05 GMT from Tuscaloosa, United States)
No one can stop you. Sitting in La Junta, United States, you can make it a 'faith based issue'. We here in the United States spend more money on weapons than all other countries combined. That is the little known fact in our phobic society. Of course we need to point our fingers in other directions! Anything to keep us steady in the rut. We are bringing Christianity to the rest of the world. We have a faith based President, and in 'God we trust.' Don't bother with evidence, the real issue is faith. The world needs more faith. The kind of faith the United States has. Would your country like to buy some of our powerful new weapons? We invite you into our dream, all the world needs is more faith. So now money is being moved from La Junta, to DistroWatch. Spreading the Faith.
I encourage DistroWatch to accept your money, and fly the Christian flag of Bible Based Linux. Money spent here will not be spent on 'Weapons of Mass Destruction' and it will make your dream 'seem' more real. These are source based developers who are comfortable with evidence. They are open and not phobic or worried about reality. Why not take your money and thank you for it too. No one can stop them.
The sad thing is the soil that gets spread on the good name of Ubuntu.
172 • I am all for any use of FOSS. In schools in churches, and in lunch rooms (by Distrowatch reader on 2006-08-26 21:36:52 GMT from Lake Havasu City, United States)
One Kosher Ubuntu on a warm bun with kraut please!!
173 • RE171 (by TripleA on 2006-08-26 23:09:45 GMT from Bruxelles, Belgium)
How about FDL (Faith inDubya Linux) , comes with "christian software" AND weaponscatalog ,maybe include a catalog of "terrorists and fascist religions"?
Also included cad software for "intelligent design".
Indeed ,very very sad .
174 • Hypocritical use of religion... (by Anonymous Penguin on 2006-08-26 23:49:36 GMT from Roma, Italy)
Is nothing new in the history of mankind.
Just go back to ancient Egypt for an example of what I mean. Contrary to what everybody believes, real power was not in the hands of the Pharaoh, but of the priests.
Don't you believe me? Have a look at the life of Akhenaton!
175 • 157 Zu (by Per M. on 2006-08-27 08:17:34 GMT from Asnæs, Denmark)
I couldn't agree more...
Number of Comments: 175
Display mode: DWW Only • Comments Only • Both DWW and Comments
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| • 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 |
| • Full list of all issues |
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| Random Distribution | 
VNLinux
VNLinux consists of two subprojects - vnlinuxCD and VNLS (VNLinux Secure). vnlinuxCD was a Vietnamese Linux live CD based on Mandriva Linux and designed for desktop use. Its default desktop environment was GNOME and it can be installed on hard disk with a simple installation wizard. VNLS was a server oriented distribution based on EnGarde Secure Linux designed for Vietnamese users.
Status: Discontinued
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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!
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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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