 DistroWatch Weekly |
| DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 268, 1 September 2008 |
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Welcome to this year's 35th issue of DistroWatch Weekly! The world of Linux distribution has traditionally associated the arrival of September with the start of a grand testing period as all major projects are about to finalise their feature lists, freeze their development trees and begin fixing any remaining bugs. So what can we expect when the final products eventually hit the download mirrors? We'll take a look at the feature lists of all major distributions to see what's coming up in the next few months. In the news section, Debian announces the code name of its post-Lenny release, Novell launches SUSE Studio - a web-based tool for building custom distributions, and Linpus Technologies releases an installable Linpus Lite live CD for netbooks. Also among the interesting web links, a user reports how Xubuntu has managed to turn an OLPC into a perfect travelling companion, while the developers of FreeNAS tell us why their FreeBSD-based distribution is an excellent way of storing important files on a remote machine. All this and more in this week's issue of DistroWatch Weekly. Happy reading!
Content:
 Listen to the Podcast edition of this week's DistroWatch Weekly in ogg (13MB) and mp3 (13MB) formats (many thanks to Russ Wenner)
 Join us at irc.freenode.net #distrowatch
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| Feature Story |
The upcoming release season
As has been tradition in the distribution development circles, the arrival of September usually means one thing: a highly intensive testing period prior to a big flurry of distribution releases. These will start hitting the download mirrors in the following months, making the time between late September and Christmas the most eagerly anticipated period of the year by all DistroWatchers. Fancy a fresh distro full of updated packages? Enjoy discovering what new features and exciting enhancements the developers have integrated into their products? Eager to exchange the look and feel of your desktop for something fresher and crispier? Then you are at the right place. While we wait for those magic moments, let's take a brief tour of the distribution's feature lists to see what will become reality in just a few short weeks.
* * * * *
 We'll start with the world's biggest distribution - Debian GNU/Linux. While the expected release date of version 5.0 and code name "Lenny" is uncertain due to Debian's policy of "release when ready", the release team has targeted September 2008 as a month with a good chance of completing the current development. This means that, if everything goes as planned, the hundreds of developers who work on the distribution have no more than a few weeks to prepare the new stable version for public consumption. Will it arrive this month? With Debian, one never knows, but it does seem like a strong possibility, given the increased activity on the project's mailing lists and the urgency with which the release team calls for fixing the remaining critical bugs. So what are the most interesting features of the new Debian GNU/Linux 5.0?
- Linux kernel 2.6.26, glibc 2.7, GCC 4.3.1, X.Org 7.3 (xorg-server 1.4.2), GNOME 2.20, KDE 3.5.9, OpenOffice.org 2.4.1
- Over 25,000 binary packages available for installation
- Support for IPv6, NFS 4 and large files
- Switch /bin/sh to dash
- Minor installer improvements and a variety of live CDs as installation option
* * * * *
 Next on the release calendar is Mandriva Linux 2009, scheduled for arrival on 9 October 2008. Given that all of its four development builds released so far were on time, the likelihood of any delay of the final release is fairly small. All that's left to do now is to test the two upcoming release candidates, the first of which is expected later this week. As for the features, all eyes are on Mandriva's integration of KDE 4.1 into the distribution, but there are a few other surprises:
- Linux kernel 2.6.27, glibc 2.8, GCC 4.3.2, X.Org 7.3 (xorg-server 1.4.2), GNOME 2.24, KDE 4.1, OpenOffice.org 3.0
- Radically redesigned installer, both in terms of look & feel and functionality
- Switch to Fedora's system-config-printer as the default printer configuration tool
- Firefox 3.0 with the XULRunner runtime environment
* * * * *
 Three weeks after Mandriva 2009, it will be the turn of Ubuntu to showcase its latest and greatest in the all-new version 8.10 "Intrepid Ibex". No longer constrained by the need to consider long term supportability, this should be a more experimental version than the project's current stable one. At the same time, the Ubuntu base system is likely to be in a much healthier state, since it is based on a Debian tree that was rapidly converging towards a stable release at the time of branching. Following the already completed four alpha builds, the Ubuntu 8.10 development tree has now entered a feature-freeze period, so don't expect any major surprises, other than the usual testing builds - alpha 5 should arrive this week; this will be followed by alpha 6, a beta and a release candidate in roughly two-week intervals. The final release of Ubuntu 8.10 is scheduled for 30 October 2008. Expected major features:
- Linux kernel 2.6.27, glibc 2.8, GCC 4.3.2, X.Org 7.4 (xorg-server 1.5), GNOME 2.24, KDE 4.1, OpenOffice.org 3.0
- Complete theme overhaul (but brown still dominant)
- Compiz 0.7.7 with tons of new effects
- Official USB installation support for converting ISO CD image files into USB-live compatible files.
- Secret ~/Private folder with encryption
- System cleaner for removing unnecessary files and improved Network Manager with 3G support
* * * * *
 Next, it will be the time to focus our attention to Fedora, which has become one of the most bleeding-edge distributions on the market. The original release date of Fedora 10 was scheduled for the end of October, but following the recent compromise of the project's download servers, work on the distribution suffered a two-week delay. The upcoming beta has been rescheduled for 23 September, with the preview release coming at the end of October, and the final release on 18 November 2008. But what can we expect to find in Fedora 10?
- Linux kernel 2.6.27, glibc 2.9, GCC 4.3.2, X.Org 7.4 (xorg-server 1.5), GNOME 2.24, KDE 4.1, OpenOffice.org 3.0
- Web-based software installation interface for Fedora packages
- First Aid Kit - an automated recovery tool that brings together common recovery processes
- OpenChange for accessing Microsoft Exchange
- New security audit system and intrusion detection system
- Miscellaneous improvements to start-up speed, printing, web cam support and remote control systems
* * * * *
 The list of major distribution releases will be completed on 18 December 2008 with the début of the brand-new openSUSE 11.1. Given the prolonged development period and the amount of time still available, it is hardly surprising that the feature list has not been finalised, but a trickle of small announcements indicating new enhancements has been hitting the project's news page in regular intervals. Many expect openSUSE 11.1 to be more of a consolidation and bug-fix release, rather than a major build with thousands of experimental features, but its continued integration of KDE 4 into the distribution should be of interest to KDE fans. Keep an eye on the openSUSE 11.1 page for further updates prior to the release.
- Linux kernel 2.6.27/28, GNOME 2.24, KDE 4.1.1, OpenOffice.org 3.0, Firefox 3.0
- Support for SELinux as an alternative security framework
* * * * *
So which of these looks to be the most interesting release? Ubuntu 8.10 has some unusual features, such as the ~/Private folder or the new Compiz effects, but Fedora is also coming up with some notable improvements, especially in its web-based installation infrastructure and new security features. On the other hand, Mandriva seems to be concentrating on the integration of KDE 4.1 into the distribution and installer improvements, none of which seem like ground-breaking features. Debian is the same as ever - likely to be solid, stable and dependable, but hardly cutting-edge. And openSUSE? It's still a little unknown at this stage as work on the new version has barely started.
So here is the topic for this week's discussion: which distribution release do you most look forward to and why? Do you intend to do any serious testing and bug reporting during the next few months? Are there any features that you are missing from the features lists? Please discuss below.
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| Miscellaneous News |
SUSE Studio, Lenny + 1 = Squeeze, Xubuntu on OLPC, Linpus Linux Lite, interviews - openSUSE's Joe Brockmeier and FreeNAS's Olivier Cochard-Labbe and Volker Theile
Let's start the news section with an announcement about an interesting service launched recently by Novell. Called SUSE Studio and dabbed as a "Linux construction kit", this web-based interface is designed to provide a number of useful services, such as the ability to create a variety of custom openSUSE distributions tailored to one's individual needs: "What can you do with SUSE Studio? Create a tuned server appliance, containing your application and just enough operating system components; spin a live CD or DVD with just the packages and software you need; create a ready-to-run VMware or Xen virtual server appliance; create a live USB key and carry your Linux system with you wherever you go; build a hard disk image for pre-loading onto hardware; install from your live CD, DVD or USB key to your hard drive." SUSE Studio is currently looking for beta testers - if you are interested, you can sign up on the project's home page. A screencast illustrating its main features is also available.
Speaking about openSUSE, a web site called How Software Is Built has published an interview with Joe "Zonker" Brockmeier, the openSUSE community manager: "Q: What are the usual things that you do when you're putting together a distro? Where does the work of the upstream project stop and your work start? A: To illustrate one of the problems historically between a distribution and an upstream project, say you have Fedora and Ubuntu and openSUSE and all these other different distros working on something. You get lossiness when one project decides to innovate in one area or add a few patches or whatever, but those changes don't necessarily make it upstream, or they do make it upstream but after the main project has also started working on the same feature or problem in tandem. As much as possible, we try to work within the projects like GNOME or KDE that benefit us, rather than doing the patches in our own little area and then maybe submitting them back, or letting them come get them, or whatever."
* * * * *
As the Debian development team puts its finishing touches on the upcoming release -- version 5.0 and code name "Lenny" -- many people have been curious about the code name of Lenny's successor. So what will it be? According to a post published today on the debian-devel-announce list, Lenny + 1 = Squeeze: "We will continue to use Toy Story character names for Lenny's successor, which will be called "Squeeze" (three-eyed space alien)." If you've never watched the film or if you've forgotten what Squeeze looks like, here is a picture. Some of the other noteworthy updates mentioned in the above post include guidelines for package uploads during Lenny's freeze period, the upcoming release candidate for Debian Lenny Installer, the bug-squashing party scheduled for later this week, and a call for updates to the release notes.
* * * * *
  OLPC as a portable laptop for everyday work? Surely, nobody in their right mind could possibly consider the hardware designed for children in the developing world as a useful laptop for general computing tasks? Oh yes, claims James Turner, in an article entitled Hacking the OLPC. With a little tweaking and Xubuntu as the operating system running on it, it is entirely possible to use this highly durable piece of hardware for general computer work while on the road: "Within a week I had a pretty amazing little portable to carry around. Although the screen is smaller than a traditional laptop's, its resolution is higher. The XO is light and durable, has superb Wi-Fi reception, and is an eye-catcher wherever it goes. And nothing beats it as a portable Gmail reader at a conference. Even with its limited memory and economy-class processor, the XO runs browsers and remote desktop sessions as well as regular business-class laptops do. I can't wait to try it out on a plane -- no more laptop-in-the-belly syndrome, and the battery might even last the whole flight. You can keep your ASUS Eee PC. I love my Xubuntu-powered XO!"
* * * * *
 Still on the subject of "netbooks" (or ultra-portable laptop computers), a reader has emailed us about the availability of a new version of Linpus Linux Lite, a distribution specially tweaked to run on low-cost, low-resource computers. Unlike the first release of Linpus Lite in December last year, the new version can also be installed to a hard disk. The distribution comes with two user interface types - a "tabbed" one (a heavily customised Xfce), which is very similar to what the ASUS Eee PC ships with, and a standard Xfce for more advanced computer users. One click on an icon in the bottom panel is all it takes to switch between the two. Linpus Linux is based on Fedora, but one important difference between itself and its parent is the use of APT for RPM and Synaptic for package management, together with pre-configured repositories containing extra desktop and server packages. The CD image can be downloaded from here: Linpus_Lite-i386-DVD.iso (699MB, MD5). Apart from Linpus Lite, the distribution's FTP server also provides full installation DVD images for the recently released Linpus Linux 9.6.
Linpus Linux Lite - the "tabbed" desktop
(full image size: 536kB, screen resolution: 1280x800 pixels)
Linpus Linux Lite - the standard Xfce desktop
(full image size: 645kB, screen resolution: 1280x800 pixels)
* * * * *
 Finally, here is a brief interview with Olivier Cochard-Labbe and Volker Theile from the FreeNAS project. This free, specialist operating system based on FreeBSD is gaining momentum as a superb solution for anybody who needs a file-level data storage connected to a computer network: "Few recent trends in storage have had as much momentum as Network Attached Storage (NAS). A NAS device can make a network more efficient and secure by supplying file-based data storage services to networked devices, or it can be used for applications such as streaming media. FreeNAS is free, light-weight, open source network-attached storage server software, based on FreeBSD. You can find a good tutorial on how to set up a free NAS server with it here. We recently caught up with Olivier Cochard-Labbe, FreeNAS founder, and Volker Theile, project administrator." Thiele explains the purpose of FreeNAS: "Two years ago I had a hard disk crash and lost some of the data that had been stored on it - photos and documents. I began to search for a solution to store data more securely. I had some hardware components lying around in the cellar, and I searched the web for a free NAS solution. OpenFiler was a little bit too big for what I was looking for, so I came across FreeNAS. It was easy to install and use."
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| Released Last Week |
Ubuntu Christian Edition 4.0
Jereme Hancock has announced the release of Ubuntu Christian Edition 4.0: "We are excited to announce the release of Ubuntu Christian Edition 4.0. Ubuntu Christian Edition has been on hold for quite a while for various reasons, but we are back up and running. This is a 'back to the basics' release. We have discontinued most of the Windows program installers that we had in previous releases due to the difficulty in maintaining them and changes in some of the Windows programs that made it very difficult to install them automatically. We have added BibleTime as well as a bunch more resources for BibleTime and GnomeSword. We have replaced OpenOffice.org with GNOME Office to keep the ISO size below the 700 MB threshold. We have also updated the site with a cleaner web 2.0 feel." See the release announcement and changelog for further information.
Ubuntu Christian Edition 4.0 - the default desktop
(full image size: 936kB, screen resolution: 1280x1024 pixels)
Beyond Linux From Scratch 6.3
Randy McMurchy has announced the release of Beyond Linux From Scratch (BLFS) 6.3, a book that provides detailed build instructions for extending a base Linux From Scratch (LFS) system with popular desktop and server packages and their libraries: "The BLFS Development team is pleased to announce the release of the 6.3 version of BLFS. Many new packages have been introduced in the 6.3 version, as well as many updates, refinements and additions to the existing packages. The BLFS book now provides build and configuration instructions for almost 500 packages. Some of the new packages introduced in this version are: Dash, ksh, D-Bus bindings, Wireshark, rxvt-unicode, Gutenprint, Pidgin, GnuTLS, Qt version 4.x, GnuPG version 2.x, and Amarok. Major updates include GNOME 2.18.3, KDE 3.5.9, Firefox 2.x, Thunderbird 2.x, and most of the mainline server packages." Read the release announcement and release notes for further information.
Turbolinux 12
Japan's Turbolinux has announced the availability of Turbolinux 12 (marketing name: Turbolinux Client 2008 Net User Package), a commercial, user-friendly desktop Linux distribution that combines the best of open source and proprietary software in one compact package. The system is based on a Linux kernel 2.6.24.7 (co-developed at Mambo-Labs in cooperation with Mandriva) and includes KDE 3.5.8 as the default desktop, ATOK X3 Japanese input method, StarSuite office suite, NVIDIA and ATI proprietary graphics drivers, a software update tool and other conveniences. The product is available from several online retailers for ¥9,800 (US$90). For more information please read the press release and visit the product pages (both links in Japanese).
Turbolinux 12 - a new desktop release by one of the world's oldest Linux companies
(full image size: 410kB, screen resolution: 1280x1024 pixels)
Kiwi Linux 8.08
Jani Mosones has announced the release of Kiwi Linux 8.08, an Ubuntu-based distribution with support for multimedia codecs, encrypted DVDs, Flash and other desktop conveniences: "Kiwi Linux 8.08 is a desktop CD derivative based on Ubuntu 8.04.1 LTS for the x86 architecture. It contains packages necessary for playing restricted audio, video and Flash formats by default and supports the SpeedTouch 330 USB ADSL modem. Differences with respect to Ubuntu 8.04.1: packages up to date as of 28 August 2008; Thunderbird as the default mail client, Audacious as the default music player; Flash plugin and all GStreamer codecs; Compiz extra settings GUI; unrar and MS TrueType fonts; a graphical tool for restoring GRUB; Midnight Commander; the Medibuntu repositories enabled by default to allow installing w32codecs, Skype and Google Earth." Read the full release announcement for more details.
PC/OS 2008v2
PC/OS is a user-friendly distribution based on Xubuntu, with out-of-the-box support for popular multimedia formats, Flash and Java, and addition of packages for content creation and software development. An updated release, version 2008v2, was announced yesterday: "We are proud to announce the general availability of PC/OS 2008v2. This update brings to PC/OS all the bug fixes and distribution updates for Ubuntu 8.04.1, as well as separate application updates for some of the installed packages. Some of the highlights of the client release are: Linux kernel 2.6.24; Flock browser replaces Firefox; MPlayer and GNOME MPlayer replace Movie Player; Audacious and gtkpod replace Rhythmbox; Screenlets 1.4 are now included; for dial-up users GNOME PPP is included. We have also included Picasa for photo management and Google Gears for offline access to Google Applications." Read the rest of the release announcement for further information.
* * * * *
Development, unannounced and minor bug-fix releases
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| Upcoming Releases and Announcements |
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Summary of expected upcoming releases
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| DistroWatch.com News |
August 2008 donation: Parsix GNU/Linux receives US$300.00
 We are pleased to announce that the recipient of the August 2008 DistroWatch.com donation is Parsix GNU/Linux, a Debian-based distribution and live CD. It receives US$300.00 in cash.
Parsix GNU/Linux is a desktop distribution built around Debian's testing branch, but with a custom kernel and kernel modules for improved hardware compatibility. The project's lead developer, Alan Baghumian, is an active contributor to Debian. Besides developing Parsix, he has written a number of Linux books in Persian and has co-developed an English-to-Persian dictionary and other Persian utilities. DistroWatch interviewed Alan in January 2006.
As always, this monthly donations programme is a joint initiative between DistroWatch and two online shops selling low-cost CDs and DVDs with Linux, BSD and other open source software - LinuxCD.org and OSDisc.com. These vendors contributed US$50.00 each towards this month's donation to Parsix GNU/Linux.
Here is the list of projects that received a DistroWatch donation since the launch of the programme (figures in US dollars):
- 2004: GnuCash ($250), Quanta Plus ($200), PCLinuxOS ($300), The GIMP ($300), Vidalinux ($200), Fluxbox ($200), K3b ($350), Arch Linux ($300), Kile KDE LaTeX Editor ($100) and UNICEF - Tsunami Relief Operation ($340)
- 2005: Vim ($250), AbiWord ($220), BitTorrent ($300), NdisWrapper ($250), Audacity ($250), Debian GNU/Linux ($420), GNOME ($425), Enlightenment ($250), MPlayer ($400), Amarok ($300), KANOTIX ($250) and Cacti ($375)
- 2006: Gambas ($250), Krusader ($250), FreeBSD Foundation ($450), GParted ($360), Doxygen ($260), LilyPond ($250), Lua ($250), Gentoo Linux ($500), Blender ($500), Puppy Linux ($350), Inkscape ($350), Cape Linux Users Group ($130), Mandriva Linux ($405, a Powerpack competition), Digikam ($408) and SabayonLinux ($450)
- 2007: GQview ($250), Kaffeine ($250), sidux ($350), CentOS ($400), LyX ($350), VectorLinux ($350), KTorrent ($400), FreeNAS ($350), lighttpd ($400), Damn Small Linux ($350), NimbleX ($450), MEPIS Linux ($300), Zenwalk Linux ($300)
- 2008: VLC ($350), Frugalware Linux ($340), cURL ($300), GSPCA (Linux webcam support) ($400), FileZilla ($400), MythDora ($500), Linux Mint ($400), Parsix GNU/Linux ($300)
Since the launch of the Donations Programme in March 2004, DistroWatch has donated a total of US$18,883 to various open source software projects.
* * * * *
New distributions added to database
* * * * *
New distributions added to waiting list
- iMagicOS. iMagicOS is a commercial Linux distribution based on Ubuntu. Its main features are ease of use, 3D desktop, out-of-the box support for the CNR software installation mechanism and strong compatibility with Microsoft Windows.
- Linux Tiger. Linux Tiger is an Ubuntu-based distribution that uses a new package management technology called SFS. Web site in Italian only.
Linux Tiger 1.0 - Ubuntu with SFS, a new system for software management and usage
(full image size: 1,465kB, screen resolution: 1280x1024 pixels)
- Macpup. Macpup is a remastered build of Puppy Linux. It ships with the same packages as Puppy itself, but its IceWM window manager comes with a dockbar and a Mac OS X theme. This distribution is a "donationware".
- Salgix. Salgix is an Ubuntu-based GNU/Linux operating system developed by GMSI for use on its line of workstation and server computer systems. It has been developed primarily for multimedia creation and visual computing uses.
Salgix 3.5 - an Ubuntu-based distribution designed as a multimedia creation system.
(full image size: 379kB, screen resolution: 1280x1024 pixels)
- ScratchLinux. ScratchLinux is a French distribution inspired by Linux From Scratch. The project's main purpose is to create a 210 MB mini live CD with a graphical interface based on GNOME, some text-mode utilities and networking tools. Web site in French only.
* * * * *
DistroWatch database summary
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And this concludes the latest issue of DistroWatch Weekly. The next instalment will be published on Monday, 8 September 2008.
Ladislav Bodnar
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| Reader Comments • Jump to last comment |
1 • I announce Foobuntu (by Distronator on 2008-09-01 11:29:11 GMT from Germany)
My new {K,X}Ubuntu-based distribution features an out-of-the-box 3D desktop, Flash, various multimedia codecs and playback of copy-protected DVDs. The color-sheme is "mauve". All hail me.
2 • Back from vacations ! (by Caraibes on 2008-09-01 11:36:24 GMT from Dominican Republic)
I am happy to read my good old DWW this morning, as I am back from my vacations, away from computers & internet for 2 weeks :)
I look forward to test the new stuff, Debian of course, Ubuntu also, Mandriva to check things out...
Glad to be here again !
3 • idiot (by BunToo on 2008-09-01 11:51:23 GMT from United States)
Idiot! I actually googled "Foobuntu" only to realize it was a gag. I'm such an idiot.
4 • Picture of Jesus (Ubuntu CE) (by Joseph Thomas on 2008-09-01 11:53:26 GMT from United States)
Did anyone else notice it?
I don't know why, but I laughed so hard when I saw it. No offense to anybody.
5 • salgix's menu (by asi57 on 2008-09-01 11:53:58 GMT from Turkey)
I think Salgix's menu is very good, how do I use it in ubuntu? What is the name of this menu? Thanks.
6 • missing features list (by SlaxFan on 2008-09-01 12:00:33 GMT from United States)
The main feature I'd like to see listed is better support for WPA and wireless G. While I have found several distros that support my Netgear PCMCIA card through madwifi, most don't allow me to connect to my WPA static IP network. Puppy does. The older Slax does with some downloadable scripts. Most newer distros don't.
7 • Linpus LINUX Servers (by Dr.Saleem Khan on 2008-09-01 12:03:34 GMT from Pakistan)
Ladislav Bodnar;
Hello
As per routine the Linpus LINUX servers are dead or inaccessable due to some unknown reason. I tried to leech their iso files many a times previously too but it never worked for me.
Both the iso and ftp servers links ( which are same ) don`t work.
8 • Anticipated Distro (by Paul Bruce on 2008-09-01 12:28:37 GMT from United States)
I will probably try most of them, but Mandriva will be a must. Mandriva has a good grasp of mice, wireless, and video that may not be the best in each category, but allows installlation without re-inventing these wheels.
However, if a new distro has a good samba configuration routine, I can be bought.
9 • Hail, Distronator! (by Andy Axnot on 2008-09-01 12:36:36 GMT from United States)
And you're number one!
10 • debian lenny has gnome 2.22 (by mike on 2008-09-01 12:52:25 GMT from Turkey)
Ladislav, Debian Lenny has gnome 2.22 in testing brach and will be ship with gnome 2.22 probably.
11 • Anticipated distro (by Anonymous on 2008-09-01 12:59:14 GMT from Canada)
"which distribution release do you most look forward to and why?"
Mandriva for desktop.
Debian for server.
12 • Gnome in lenny (by Barnabyh on 2008-09-01 13:11:58 GMT from United Kingdom)
I really do hope it will be 2.22 since I want the world clock feature, that's way more interesting than the mono inclusion and its apps back then (which I routinely cut out anyway).
Anythin older would really spoil it (for me).
13 • Lenny (by fireedo on 2008-09-01 13:13:53 GMT from Indonesia)
Yup Lenny will be has GNOME 2.22 not 2.20
and Debian not only for server it's can be for great dekstop too :)
14 • Ubuntu Christian Edition (by Anonymous on 2008-09-01 13:14:27 GMT from Slovenia)
Comment deleted (disrespectful).
15 • Anticipated distro (by anticapitalista on 2008-09-01 13:14:29 GMT from Greece)
"which distribution release do you most look forward to and why?"
None of the mentioned.
Instead I'm looking forward to MEPIS 8 and sidux "Πόντος"
16 • Rankings (by DOS on 2008-09-01 13:15:42 GMT from Canada)
Idea: Rankings based on number of registered users to a distros official forums.
17 • Re: Rankings (16) (by cgrille on 2008-09-01 13:23:55 GMT from Germany)
Mh, based on number of active registered forum users (last 30 days etc.)
18 • Anticipated Distro (by porter on 2008-09-01 13:47:12 GMT from United States)
I am looking forward to Debian, solid and stable!
19 • PC/OS (by JackL on 2008-09-01 14:02:02 GMT from United States)
What is a main purpose to choose it over mint...?
20 • Anticipated Distributions (by Dr.Saleem Khan on 2008-09-01 14:02:53 GMT from Pakistan)
The list of my anticipated distributions goes like that.
1:PCLinuxOS
2: Klikit-Linux 1.9 RC3 ( http://loscompanion.com/forums/index.php?topic=4753.0 )
3; Mepis Linux 8.0
All the three are good for home use.
21 • SUSE Studio - not really a news (by Spyhawk on 2008-09-01 14:11:19 GMT from Switzerland)
SUSE Studio was formerly announced in June
http://digg.com/linux_unix/SUSE_Studio_alpha_build_your_own_Linux_distro
22 • http://en.opensuse.org/Factory/News (by Anonymous on 2008-09-01 14:18:07 GMT from Germany)
Is a wiki page detailing more of the openSUSE changes.
23 • Kubuntu (by Duhnonymous on 2008-09-01 14:41:10 GMT from United States)
I think the big news this season will be Kubuntu. The combination of features from Ubuntu + KDE 4.1 should be a popular hit.
RE: salgix's menu - I think that's USP.
http://code.google.com/p/ubuntu-system-panel/
24 • No subject (by Anonymous on 2008-09-01 14:46:39 GMT from Canada)
The most anticipated distro is NobodyHeardOfThisDistro Linux.
Why? Because I think I'm kool if I use this distro, I'm special, I'm not like everybody else. I also think I'm smarter because I discovered a distro that nobody else is using. And lastly, I have more Linux knowledge since I use an obscure distribution.
25 • re 23 (by Anonymous on 2008-09-01 14:48:12 GMT from Canada)
"The combination of features from Ubuntu + KDE 4.1 should be a popular hit."
If they manage to reduce the number of bugs.
26 • Anticipated Distributions (by Dante on 2008-09-01 14:51:19 GMT from Netherlands)
Mine will be:
1 OpenSUSE 11.1
2. Fedora 10
And always any release of Sabayon of course, which is my main distro, but he isn`t in the list today :).
Great DWW again Ladislav!!
cheers!
Dante
27 • Re 19 PC/OS vs. Mint (by Anonymous on 2008-09-01 15:04:36 GMT from United States)
19 • PC/OS (by JackL on 2008-09-01 14:02:02 GMT from United States)
What is a main purpose to choose it over mint...?
I chose PC/OS because it has XFCE, which is faster than Mint's Gnome on my older computer.
28 • re #5 & SFS (by Clem on 2008-09-01 16:09:51 GMT from Ireland)
It's mintMenu (it doesn't look like the oldest version though). I'm glad to see one of our tools being adopted. Ideally I'd like to see this menu adopted upstream by the Gnome project.
SFS looks very interesting: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SFS_Technology
29 • Looking forward to... (by Jesse on 2008-09-01 17:07:00 GMT from Canada)
I'm looking forward to Fedora 10. I'm a long-term Fedora user and I'm hoping version 10 irons out the many little problems that came with version 9. There's a lot of good innovation in this project, it just needs some polish.
30 • Thanks for the donation! (by Eyes-Only on 2008-09-01 18:19:10 GMT from United States)
Thanks to Ladislav and all for the kind donation to the Parsix Project! I installed this distro perhaps around a month ago, 1.5r1 "Viola", and I don't remember enjoying a distro more than Puppy actually! Everything in Parsix has worked for me, plus it's been jet-fast with the Gnome desktop.
I'm admittedly a "desktop/window manager junkie", however, and this is where the beauty of Synaptic and the Debian repos comes to play here in Parsix. :) Another thing? Unlike most distros where I have had to jump through hoops to get an accurate menu-list to appear for each and every window manager's menu (eq: IceWM, Fluxbox, LXpanel, Openbox, etc.) I have never come across this in Parsix either: Install the desktop, logout/login, and there is a totally accurate and faithfully recreated menu-list. XDG works perfectly making my job so much easier!
Kudos to all involved and thanks once again to Ladislav and those who have donated to Parsix!
As to the distro's whose development I'm most looking forward to? Mine would be:
#1: Mandriva (I run 2008.1 Spring on another partition and love it as well---thanks to Andy here! :) ) I'm interested in seeing how the installer has changed! Not so interested in KDE4.1 as I'm a Gnome/GTK2 kind of person myself.
#2: Puppy Linux 4.1 as Barry Kauler (who is retiring after this version) has once again worked even more magic upon the distro. I have this installed on another partition with multiple desktops/window managers.
Thanks for the space all. Great DWW this week!
Amicalement/Cheers!
Eyes-Only/L'Peau-Rouge
31 • Looking forward Distro (by Gene Venable on 2008-09-01 18:35:55 GMT from United States)
The era of really interesting distros seems to be over. I will keep looking at DistroWatch, though.
I will stay with Sidux and Mint, for the time being. I wish there would be a new version of Wolvix, which was fun. I have become less interested in Puppy Linux, probably because a lot of recent versions are not working well with either my BCM43xx wireless or with my USB Flash drive setup.
32 • Thanks For Donation! (by Arash M on 2008-09-01 19:32:36 GMT from Iran, Islamic Republic of)
Parsix is really a powerful and nice distro! I've migrated from Ubuntu to Parsix while parsix offers more speed and more stability.
33 • Distro most anticipated (by DonJoyceWard on 2008-09-01 19:34:12 GMT from United States)
Easy call....SimplyMEPIS 8.0 and AntiX (whatever the next iteration is) are my top two distros.
34 • looking forward to: (by zipi dachimp on 2008-09-01 19:41:40 GMT from Canada)
was looking for pclinuxos 2008, but since it's now sept/08, might as well skip that and go straight to pclinuxos 2009. whenever! really like mandriva, but would use mint 5 if I could get it to load w/lcd monitor.
35 • debian (by Anonymous on 2008-09-01 20:06:15 GMT from Australia)
why choose a distro like debian when in less than a month it is outdated it is far better to install ubuntu but then who really wants either
36 • Thanks for The Donation (by mandog on 2008-09-01 20:13:34 GMT from United Kingdom)
Parsix is a top distro in every aspect the 64bt version is faultless to use. this donation will be used with pride i'm sure.
37 • Treasure Troves or Iron Pyrite ? (by Kana tian Beaver hunter on 2008-09-01 20:39:37 GMT from Canada)
Ladislav Thnx for your valued services
(Wondering - DW (all of Sun) displayed Aug 27 as archived
The comments URL - displayed Aug 18 posts
Wha happened ?
For a Mo', the Brwosers were getting dark looks
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Which Distro seems most interesting ?
All & none (why)
Viewing displays on "dealer" lots:
Offerings abound -
Gas saving Mini-cars (minimalist distros)
Fully accessorised limos (codecs/accelerated X)
Armoured VIP cariers (hardened GLSA)
Heavy-duty transporters (Servers)
I shuffle back to 1/2 ton beater
May not be new - but reliable, multi-tasks &
EZ for back-yard tinkerers to repair
Hauls assorted compiler tools, transports to hidden fishing Gems
I do a lot of tire-kicking - but in end mumble:
Grass may look greener - B4 planting, it may be well to remember
someone has to do the weeding -
(Where did that d_ _ _ remote go now )?
Viewing displays on "dealer" lots:
Offerings abound -
Gas saving Mini-cars (minimalist distros)
Fully accessorised limos (codecs/accelerated X)
Armoured VIP cariers (hardened GLSA)
Heavy-duty transporters (Servers)
I shuffle back to 1/2 ton beater
May not be new - but reliable, multi-tasks &
EZ for back-yard tinkerers to repair
Hauls assorted compiler tools, transports to hidden fishing Gems
Grass may look greener - B4 planting, it may be well to remember
someone has to do the weeding -
38 • Future feature improvement (by My Name on 2008-09-01 20:43:08 GMT from United Kingdom)
Ubuntu and Sabayon seem to have wireless usb sorted by now (mandriva not quite handling (wep) encrytion. Hope the new versions of distros will rise to this challenge (if they want to be taken seriously)
39 • Dangers of chewing on wood (by K~ Eager Beaver on 2008-09-01 20:46:19 GMT from Canada)
Sorry - Must have sat on remote
The repeat channel button is......
Plse delete
40 • Parsix Donation (by Anonymous on 2008-09-01 20:52:46 GMT from Iran, Islamic Republic of)
Gratz on the generous donation towards the Parsix project. It totally took me by suprise. They definitely deserve it, nice one!
41 • New distros - so what. (by Fresh Distro on 2008-09-01 20:53:40 GMT from Australia)
I have a new distro virtually every day.
The beauty of Arch.
Always fresh, always current, always works.
42 • Distro most anticipated (by zak on 2008-09-01 20:59:01 GMT from United States)
openSUSE 11.1. It's the only major distro I really am interested it. I have heard some criticize openSUSE for always "bringing more of the same". Of course they do. When you get something right, you don't change it for no reason! You try to drop the bad from what you have and make the good better. SUSE has done just that. Yast's package manager is ridiculously fast (I can't click "Skip Autorefresh" before it's finished loading), zypper brings all the apt-get goodness I loved about Ubuntu, and their KDE4 implementation is the best I have seen so far. like playing with the other "small" distros in Virtualbox; Zenwalk, Kwort, Arch, LFS, maybe Vector and Puppy in the future.
@23: Maybe Kubuntu will pull ahead now. I hope so. It is a great idea, but currently, it seems to me to be a bit of a misfit. It's like someone pulled the head off Ubuntu and shoved raw KDE ontop. Very little appears to have been done to integrate KDE and make it "Kubuntu". Which makes it great for trying out KDE, but imho makes the distro too "bland" for my taste. No individuality, I guess.
43 • okay enough already (by anonymous on 2008-09-01 21:07:49 GMT from United States)
I'm all for variety but really aren't there enough ubuntu based distributions already?
Before anyone else has the urge to make yet another ubuntu based version of linux I want to quote a scene from spinal tap that I got from imdb.
Nigel Tufnel: The numbers all go to eleven. Look, right across the board, eleven, eleven, eleven and...
Marty DiBergi: Oh, I see. And most amps go up to ten?
Nigel Tufnel: Exactly.
Marty DiBergi: Does that mean it's louder? Is it any louder?
Nigel Tufnel: Well, it's one louder, isn't it? It's not ten. You see, most blokes, you know, will be playing at ten. You're on ten here, all the way up, all the way up, all the way up, you're on ten on your guitar. Where can you go from there? Where?
Marty DiBergi: I don't know.
Nigel Tufnel: Nowhere. Exactly. What we do is, if we need that extra push over the cliff, you know what we do?
Marty DiBergi: Put it up to eleven.
Nigel Tufnel: Eleven. Exactly. One louder.
Marty DiBergi: Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top number and make that a little louder?
Nigel Tufnel: [pause] These go to eleven.
Get the idea?
44 • Parsix (by Anonymous Penguin on 2008-09-01 21:18:44 GMT from Italy)
Another thank you for donating to such a nice, great distro, another "Debian on steroids" :) (this title belonged once to Libranet, one of the greatest Debian derivatives ever).
45 • Anticipated Distributions (by IMQ on 2008-09-01 21:23:09 GMT from United States)
Of the 4 mentioned distros, I am looking forward to:
1. Debian Lenny --> Solid. An improvement over Etch in term of more hardware support (for me) and more packages. Debian continues to make incremental improvements over the older releases. For home users like me, Debian fits the bill.
2. Mandriva 2009 --> The making of KDE 4.x as a replacement for KDE 3.x series. I am not impressed with any of the new releases based on KDE 4.x. I still wait for that "WoW!" from KDE 4.x to come in the hopefully not so distant future.
I like both Fedora and openSUSE but I don't use these two as much as I do with Debian-based (1st) or Mandriva-based (2nd).
46 • Distronator (by Debian Rules on 2008-09-01 21:31:36 GMT from Italy)
Hail Distronator! Let's all make our Ubuntu derivative. All we have to do is to change the wallpaper.
47 • What I'm waiting for. (by Verndog on 2008-09-01 21:36:10 GMT from United States)
I was looking forward to Ubuntu Intrepix. In fact I installed the alphas, but had so many bugs I uninstalled it. Sticking with Hardy for now. I'm also looking forward to Lenny. I'm running the testing version of it right now WITHOUT any errors. I'm amazed how well it performs.
48 • @ 43 Maybe - some damns shouldn't be plugged (by Beaver sez on 2008-09-01 21:46:22 GMT from Canada)
(Getting remote stuck up nether regions, was a painful accident)
OTOH - B4 attempts to turn up volume hurt sensitive ears:
Switch channels >
http://www.mindspring.com/~mfpatton/sketch.htm
(Dentures may be loose - lack bite
but we can always paddle away)
"You can't depend on your eyes when your imagination is out of focus."
~ S.Clemens
49 • Ubuntu CE? (by A Question on 2008-09-01 22:04:02 GMT from United States)
Comment deleted (off-topic).
50 • Parsix (by MacLone on 2008-09-01 22:50:06 GMT from Mexico)
Yes, i agree parsix is a great distro but i have to say again: the installer kills any possibility to take this distro more serious.
51 • Eagerly awaited (by Rich on 2008-09-01 23:25:40 GMT from United States)
Probably Mandriva first, after that Debian since it seems most everything these days is based on it and that a new debian means a new 90% of the distro universe. Third slot Fedora. I've always been interested, but lacked the time or ambition to actually try it out. This may be the charm.
Suse I'm not sure why, but it has never interested me I always figure it's more for a business user than a home user.
52 • No subject (by NeverMyself on 2008-09-02 00:18:36 GMT from United Kingdom)
After Fedora 8 & 9 flopping, hopefully 10 will be worthwhile. And more *buntu based distros...sigh.
I'm trying to get into zenwalk at the moment
53 • Eagerly awaiting (by Glenn on 2008-09-02 00:23:25 GMT from United States)
I'll be sticking with the "big" distros for my main desktop, i.e. OpenSUSE 11.1 and Fedora 10, and maybe PC/OS. But I'll also be using Mint or Dream Linux for multimedia and video. I agree with post #31 - the era of really interesting and different distros is ended.
54 • I see... (by Anon E Moose on 2008-09-02 01:00:18 GMT from Canada)
so many people putting their faith in Ubuntu as a base for derivative works that I begin to wonder about the sanity of it all, given the nature of Ubuntu itself.
Though I do not presently use it, as far as I'm concerned Mint is all one needs for that out-of-the-box (or Off-of-the-CD?) multimedia experience from a Ubuntu start point.
Why does the world need an endless variety of Ubuntu deviations? What does this continued forking of Ubuntu contribute outside of giving confusion to the new user and eliciting groans from the established community?
Hell, the project itself should get with the program and roll the 3 major desktop environments into a single DVD distribution. That's hardly a new concept.
That being said, I'm going to put Mint on the old PCs that we donate to the community. The only reason for that is I can quickly bang out the installs without having to do much additional work to get things up to the level of utility that users expect from a computer in 2008. Mint is the final bit of polish that completes Ubuntu.
55 • Debian lenny won't use dash as /bin/sh (by Raphael Geissert on 2008-09-02 01:28:17 GMT from Mexico)
Hi,
Despite the release goal to switch /bin/sh to dash for lenny, the next Debian release is only supposed to be *capable* of switching to dash without being harmed by bashisms. There switch was not made because there are just too many bashisms and not all have, yet, been fixed. If people help, squeeze will for sure use dash as /bin/sh.
56 • Re: #1 (by Martin Ultima on 2008-09-02 01:46:31 GMT from Germany)
Brilliant idea! Here -- I'll change the color scheme to more a bit bluish, mess around with the wallpaper some, and as an added bonus I'll throw in a network-enabled package manager. Voilla! Now to just think of a name.
57 • No subject (by tt on 2008-09-02 03:07:44 GMT from United States)
I look forward to MEPIS and Mint-KDE releases... assuming Mint stays with KDE 3.5.9. These people know how to put together a set of user-friendly software that truly works. They are artists as well as technical gurus.
58 • #7: Linpus download + Most anticipated distros (by Caitlyn on 2008-09-02 03:48:58 GMT from United States)
#7: I had no problem at all downloading the Linpus Lite DVD image. It downloaded very quickly indeed. They may have had an outage when you tried. I'd try again.
My most anticipated distros:
1. Vector Linux 6.0 (Standard and Light). I've looked at the alpha. Very promising.
2. Zenwalk 5.4. Again, some of the stuff in snapshot is also very promising.
I find these are just plain faster than most of the big distros and just plain work for me.
59 • #58 and #7 Linpus download (by Anonymous on 2008-09-02 04:53:13 GMT from United States)
Linpus and Kiwi downloads were very slow for me this week too.
Any mirrors yet?
60 • sickbuntu (by notyou on 2008-09-02 05:13:16 GMT from United States)
I'm so sick of $buntu.
NOT UBUNTU but all the $buntu's need to go. Ubuntu by itself is a decent project with good ideas, but all of these spin offs are just idiotic.
If only a handful of these people would devote some time into solving some of the 46,433 +/- open bugs, then Ubuntu might actually be usable for longer than a quick install, 3 weeks of work arounds, 10gigs of updates
.......... hey look new beta ..............
3 weeks of applying work arounds 15gigs of updates
------ hey look new beta --------
Why fix old bugs when we can introduce new ones!
61 • Recent distros (by RollMeAway on 2008-09-02 05:34:12 GMT from United States)
1. Linpus Lite download is from 01/03/2008, NOT a new release.
2. SALGIX is yet another ubuntu clone. Maybe they changed the wallpaper?
Boot up has single choice of "install".
Selecting this starts the hard drive trashing.
I chickened out, and aborted. It might think its the only distro and wipe out all.
Yawn.
62 • Live linux with Atheros WiFi (by fdavid on 2008-09-02 06:42:59 GMT from Austria)
Hello DW Community,
could you please recommend me a live linux distribution, where the Atheros WiFi works out-of-the-box?
Thanks.
63 • @62 Atheros (by davecs on 2008-09-02 07:21:35 GMT from United Kingdom)
Depends precisely what Atheros chip you have, but PCLinuxOS is a live CD and has the MADwifi (Multiband Atheros Driver) included as standard.
64 • @62 (by Anonymous on 2008-09-02 07:33:00 GMT from France)
Mandriva One
65 • Not too many Buntus (by dubigrasu at 2008-09-02 07:56:26 GMT from Romania)
I strongly disagree with those unsatisfied with too many Buntu based distros. I have on my PC 5 such fine distros, all made by myself. I have: MyBuntu, OurBuntu, Damn Small Buntu, PuppUntu From Scratch (which is in fact a Debian based on Ubuntu with PupGet package manager) and my best creation TetrisBuntu which is a heavily customized Buntu by inclusion of Tetris. Also I have one called UselessBuntu which for some reason doesn't work.
So you see, stop complaining and do your Buntu today!
66 • Who can help (by Onkel Ho on 2008-09-02 08:58:17 GMT from Germany)
http://www.gnomefiles.org
This great site are hacking and now offline.
I am use it for many times to download sources and read and learn from
different gtk-projects and build rpms.
Who can contact or help the siteowners to rebuild this?
thx
67 • re: 62 (by Dante on 2008-09-02 09:17:53 GMT from Netherlands)
Try Sabayon, it should work hopefully :)
Cheers,
Dante
68 • Off topic; idea for the rankings (by Sertse on 2008-09-02 10:10:41 GMT from Australia)
(Yes yes, I know the rankings can be flawed and stuff...yada yada)
I wish there was way to "visualise" the spread in hits... like Ubuntu is 1, then quite a drop to Suse as 2, then again to Fedora as 3.. but it and Mint (4) and PCLOS (5) are quite close...etc
69 • @68 (by Anonymous on 2008-09-02 10:19:11 GMT from Canada)
Ubuntu - Five so far
- but fear not, the week is young
70 • Fedora 10 (by Luther at 2008-09-02 11:16:37 GMT from India)
Fedora has kept up with its reputation of being the most technologically advanced distribution in the Linux World.
I am using Fedora 10 Apha on my home computer and beleive it or not, I have yet to find any major bugs. Fedora rocks.
71 • re 60 - sickbuntu (by Anonymous on 2008-09-02 12:40:35 GMT from Canada)
Hey Sick Buntu,
I feel your pain. Imagine Debian's pain though. If all those *buntu communities would focus their resources on improving Debian, wouldn't it be even better?
Cheers,
Not_A_Debian_User
72 • @71 (by notyou on 2008-09-02 13:41:39 GMT from United States)
I agree.
Thing is, when Ubuntu came out 4 years ago, it filled in a spot that was needed. Easy way to install Debian. And it was actually a fantastic Distro. Debian and Ubuntu were even binary compatible. Not anymore. I believe if patches are submitted upstream by Ubuntu, quite a few are rejected because of quality concerns.
Debian has made enormous gains in that department (Installation). Hopefully some much deserved respect goes back to Debain after Lenny's release.
Just wish people would read the changelogs -
revert back to debain closes bugs #-----
ubuntu hack
ubuntu patch
sync with debian
Now, it's just a hack on Debian, and more times than not, Debian Testing has newer + more stable software.
Not my quote but I like this -
"ubuntu' is an African word meaning "I can't figure out how to configure Slackware."
You know you have issues, when there are so many hacks on code you need an entire repo just to handle patches!!!!
http://patches.ubuntu.com/
Is Ubuntu not submitting fixes to upstream? Or are the hacks so bad upstream rejects them?
73 • No subject (by Debian Rules on 2008-09-02 13:43:14 GMT from Italy)
LOL @ dubigrasu.
I have also built one. It is called ExtraSuperBuntu.
What is the difference? A lovely, naked girl as the wallpaper!
74 • Ubuntu hate (by Duhnonymous on 2008-09-02 13:54:38 GMT from United States)
Why do we always see so much Ubuntu hate in these comments week after week? Don't you haters have anything better to do?
You hate Ubuntu? Fine. But everyone else loves it. You'll get over it.
75 • No subject (by Anonymous on 2008-09-02 14:32:53 GMT from United States)
@6
Wicd is the best wireless tool I have come across. If you want smooth wpa, wireless g and static ip support. Give Wicd a try. I’m sure you won’t be disappointed. I am using it in Arch-linux and it works like a champ.
@41
Cuoldn’t have said it better myself.
As far as distro’s I look forward to is the next sidux release and definitely Debian Lenny. Stability like no other.
And I will say I don’t hate Ubuntu but I damn sure don’t like it. In MY experience, it just does not get the job done. One of the slowest implementations of gnome I have use.. Don’t believe me? Try Parsix or even Lenny, you’ll see what I mean. Ubuntu does gnome wrong. And let’s not even talk about the forgotten step-child that is Kubuntu. If canonical is going to be so gnome centric. Just do everyone a favor and drop Kubuntu completely so no one has to experience that half-ass attempt at a kde based distro. Now that’s not hate, that’s just calling it like I have seen it.
@72
Very much agreed.
76 • People are So WEAK! (by Eddie Wilson on 2008-09-02 15:11:53 GMT from United States)
Good Day All, Its really sad to see so many unhappy people. You would think that people who has a chance to use open source software would be more happy. I see more crying and bitching here than you would see on Microsoft forums. Everybody is going to find something wrong with every distro being used. SO WHAT? Its really none of our business what distro Joe Blow uses. If someone wants to make a distro based on another major distro then thats their business alone. Don't give me that bull when you say they should use their efforts to improve the parent distro. Maybe they don't like the parent distro. I like Ubuntu but don't really care for Debian. That doesn't mean that Debian isn't any good that just means I like Ubuntu better and no I haven't had all the problems that so called Ubuntu haters have. There again what I use is nobody else's business. And I don't think deep down that any body really cares. Except for maybe RMS. I've used all the major distros and like most of them. I have a job so I don't have time for Gentoo or Slackware. I'm not saying they are not good distros, I'm saying I don't have time for them. And guest what #75, a lot of people really like Kubuntu and don't care what you think. I don't like Kde so I'm not one of them. Anyway you can give your opinions but please understand that they don't mean anything and just because you can't get something to work for you doesn't mean that it won't work for someone else. Its nice to talk about the different types of distros but we should keep the bitching down becuase nobody cares about the rants.
77 • Woah... (by Rob on 2008-09-02 15:37:57 GMT from United States)
I saw "PC/OS" and "2008" and I thought hell froze over and PCLinuxOS 2008 was finally released! Guess I'm gonna have to wait and install it at the same time as Duke Nukem Forever...
78 • No subject (by Anonymous on 2008-09-02 15:38:24 GMT from United States)
@76
"And guest what #75, a lot of people really like Kubuntu and don't care what you think. I don't like Kde so I'm not one of them."
if your not one of them then how on earth can you claim that "a lot of people really like kubuntu"?didn't know you worked for zogby...
I would challenge you to try kubuntu and then try another kde implementation like sidux and tell me what your experience is like.
I don't have any problems getting things to 'work', but I do have a problem with an OS that is unstable and bug ridden, as kubuntu tends to be, at least more so then other kde based distros..
I also having a problem with you not providing any real opinion other than your rant above. Thats what the comments section is for no? All of us have an opinion and this is a place to share them. I welcome any opinion on what your experience has been, but your opinion on how others should voice their opinion is worthless. Thanks for nothing.
you want people to stop bitching, so you post a response bitching about others bitching? hiliarious...
79 • Linpus download (by Michiel on 2008-09-02 16:05:02 GMT from Netherlands)
I tried downloading Linpus Lite, but I can't connect to the website/ISO. By using a chinese proxy, I managed to get a little further, but it's unusably slow :(
On the website, it mentioned the date of the ISO as 1/9/2008, so it's probably a newer version than the one someone here mentioned.
Linpus should start using bittorrent for releases...
80 • Monty Python's Life of Brian (by davecs on 2008-09-02 16:13:40 GMT from United Kingdom)
"Who are we? The Judean People's Front!"
"Who do we hate? The People's Front of Judea!"
Meanwhile the Romans ruled unchallenged.
One distro may be better than another, for your hardware, the other one may be better with someone else's. But sometimes I get the impression that we are a little bit like the Judean People's Front and the People's Front of Judea whilst M$ continues to rule.
People are entitled to praise their favoured distro, and say why it's better than another, but bashing the other one just plays into the hands of M$. Let's stop distro bashing, folks!
81 • #62 -- Live CD with Atheros working (by Caitlyn on 2008-09-02 16:28:24 GMT from United States)
Some that have worked for me:
Wolvix (Hunter or Cub)
Vector Linux Live
AliXe
HTH...
82 • Looking forwards to openSUSE 11.1 (by Muhammad Fahd Waseem at 2008-09-02 16:31:25 GMT from Germany)
Nothing beats SUSE. Save the "interoperability" thing with Microsoft (which I neglect anyway, for plenty of reasons), I do not think there are many distros that offer so much for everybody. Most anticipated for me.
Ubuntu and Mandriva should be good too...
83 • No subject (by Anonymous on 2008-09-02 16:33:52 GMT from United States)
@80
I don't think pointing out problems, issues or experiences you had with a particular distro is considered bashing. And if a user feels strongly about how a distro goes about putting their os together like comment 72, then so be it. I thought it was all about CHOICE. If it is then why can't people chose to say whatever they want. I think some users are too sensitive.
So your saying only praise distros don't criticize them?
84 • Mint 5? (by Muhammad Fahd Waseem on 2008-09-02 16:35:18 GMT from Germany)
Anybody tried Mint 5? What are the new changes over Mint 4?
85 • LINPUS (by Light Rider on 2008-09-02 16:35:39 GMT from United States)
Linpus-9.6-i386-DVD.iso is available at M*n*nova.org. I am downloading it now
and it's coming down at 200kb/s using Azureus.
86 • @71 and stuff (by davemc on 2008-09-02 16:37:45 GMT from United States)
"If all those *buntu communities would focus their resources on improving Debian, wouldn't it be even better?
Cheers,"
No. Debian is Debian and does things the Debian way. Besides, that project already has a small army of developers working on it.
87 • How to get Linpus to download quickly (by Caitlyn on 2008-09-02 16:39:05 GMT from United States)
Downloading the Linpus Lite Live CD from their website is painfully (OK, impossibly) slow as reported by a number of people here. You need to go to the FTP site to get a fast download. That does work for both Linpus Lite 9.4 and the full Linpux 9.6. See: ftp://ftp.linpus.com/dists/Lite1/iso/dvd/ for Lite.
Those who say that this isn't a new release are absolutely correct. What's new, as Ladislav correctly reported, is that this is an installable version rather than a Live CD with no installer.
88 • Linux for Older PC (by Steve Graham on 2008-09-02 16:57:10 GMT from United States)
I have family who have a 233 MHz PC with about 77MB of RAM. I am looking for a version of Linux which can run in such and hopefully support a graphical UI. The main use is surfing the 'Net and they have a wireless network connection.
Thanks, Steve
89 • @88 (by Anonymous on 2008-09-02 17:04:27 GMT from United States)
That list is going to be damn small.
damnsmalllinux that is.... :)
check it out. sounds like what your looking for
www.damnsmalllinux.org/
90 • No subject (by Anonymous on 2008-09-02 17:07:04 GMT from United States)
@88
what wireless card you got?
91 • #90 (by Steve Graham on 2008-09-02 17:12:54 GMT from United States)
It's an offbrand, whose name I don't remember at the moment. Have to look once I get home.
Thanks, Steve
92 • @91 (by Anonymous on 2008-09-02 17:15:01 GMT from United States)
yeah if you can verify that card, it would be easier to determine which distro would be best suited for your needs. damn small linux is perfect for those specs, but since it uses an older kernel, some of the wireless cards dont play nicely. Let me know steve.
93 • Quick note (by Adam Williamson on 2008-09-02 17:28:25 GMT from Canada)
You wrote:
"Ubuntu 8.10 has some unusual features, such as the ~/Private folder or the new Compiz effects...On the other hand, Mandriva seems to be concentrating on the integration of KDE 4.1 into the distribution and installer improvements, none of which seem like ground-breaking features."
Mandriva 2009 will have the new version of Compiz, of course. We just considered that a "well duh" thing that wasn't worth mentioning, we'd expect any distro which includes Compiz to update to the latest version.
94 • unfortunate icon (by Jason on 2008-09-02 17:58:00 GMT from United States)
When I first looked at the desktop picture for Ubuntu CE, I thought Jesus was holding a cigarette butt because of the icon placement.
95 • Anticipated Distributions (by Lee on 2008-09-02 18:07:34 GMT from United States)
> Which distribution release do you most look forward to and why?
Ubuntu 8.10! I installed Ubuntu over two years ago from a shipit
disc. Since then I've updated it every couple of weeks. At six
month intervals the Update Manager notifies me of an upGRADE and
a few mouse-clicks and 40 min. later, I have the new release.
My desktop is Gnome, grey, littered w/icons, 1366x768 displayed
on my 26" HDTV.
Very boring, very reliable,very ... comfy.
96 • No subject (by Gigi on 2008-09-02 18:12:02 GMT from Singapore)
I will try
Mandriva - because I like the mandriva control center and the folks at #mandriva. My laptop dual boots mandriva with Archlinux
Archlinux - much of a rolling release. I do a full system upgrade every two weeks or so.
Fedora - because Fedora9 is missing Xen so I am expecting Fedora 10. Xen is needed as part of my work.
Debian Lenny - My desktop is running Lenny since Oct'07. It has been quite stable since then ;-) Maybe I will stick with Lenny for 2008 and move to
Slackware - KDE4.1 is in testing and Slackware and we can expect slackware to ship a "vanilla" kde4.1
97 • Ubuntu Derivatives (by drizake on 2008-09-02 19:11:12 GMT from United States)
I don't think people are complaining about the Ubuntu spin-offs. They are just making fun of the ridiculous number of new "distros" that are based on Ubuntu, but offer nothing. Granted, I am a Mint user, but I feel they offer enough enhancements to make it worth while. All this discussion just makes me want to graduate to Debian Testing. :)
98 • RE: Live linux with Atheros WiFi (by fdavid on 2008-09-02 19:28:28 GMT from Austria)
@63, @64, @67, @81: Many thenks for your recommendations!
@63: I don't know the exact type of the Atheros device. It's in a Fujitsu Siemens Lifebook E8110. The lspci output is:
Atheros Communications, Inc. Unknown device 001c (rev 01)
@67: I tried Sabayon 3.3. It didn't work out-of-the-box. Maybe a newer version?
99 • Lenny's Xorg slight correction. (by Anonymous on 2008-09-02 19:42:43 GMT from United States)
The majority of the packages that make up an Xorg release are at the 7.4 version numbers within Debian Lenny. The only two packages that aren't at the 7.4 version are Mesa and xserver-xorg.
100 • upcoming releases (by robertogle.com on 2008-09-02 19:44:08 GMT from United States)
"So here is the topic for this week's discussion: which distribution release do you most look forward to and why?"
Most looking forward to the new mandriva 2009. Many reasons but want to see how well the integration of KDE 4.1 is done.
101 • #88: DIstro for Older Machine (by Caitlyn on 2008-09-02 19:59:27 GMT from United States)
#88: Steve, I disagree with the recommendation for Damn Small Linux, simply because it runs an old 2.4.x kernel and older software. Your system is limited but something like Vector Linux Light should run very well and give you both a 2.6.x kernel and up-to-date versions of lightweight software. See: http://vectorlinux.com/news/vectorlinux-light-edition-released The JWM desktop will be the fastest of the three offered on your system, followed by Fluxbox and then LXDE.
102 • #88: DIstro for Older Machine (by anticapitalista on 2008-09-02 20:51:42 GMT from Greece)
You could give antiX-M7.5 'Toussaint Louverture' a try.
103 • No subject (by Anonymous on 2008-09-02 21:07:47 GMT from Canada)
I was one of those that refused to use opensuse because of the microsoft deal.
Since biting the bullet I can say that opensuse 11 is a fantastic distro
stable
loads of packages
easy to use
104 • Ahem (by Nobody Important on 2008-09-02 23:41:06 GMT from United States)
First off, is it Ubuntu's fault that there are so many derivatives? No. I hope no comments were intending to suggest this.
I like Ubuntu. Stable, works fine, never crashed for me. Certainly doesn't have "10 GB of patches," as one user claimed. I'm still running 8.04.1 on my computer without internet, and even without any updates or bugfixes it runs like a charm.
I have to wonder where this flow of hate is coming from, because it certainly isn't based in fact.
105 • #88 (by rich on 2008-09-03 00:11:24 GMT from United States)
Puppy should run on those specs. I was running it on 500 Mhz AMD K6-2 with 128 MB of ram(8MB of which were used by onboard video) It ran extremely snappy on that. It might be a bit slow on yours though.
106 • Viva la difference (by mikkh on 2008-09-03 00:12:30 GMT from United Kingdom)
All the Ubuntu derivatives is getting rather silly, but the latest two currently showing on top (Kiwi and PC/OS) are so far apart it's unbelievable.
I don't mind a good reworking of a popular distro if they've showed some effort and actually bought something new to the game.
Kiwi is quite frankly a joke, they appear to have made zero effort in customising a bog standard Ubuntu, apart from adding a few bits of restricted software. That one went straight in the bin
PC/OS on the other hand, have gone to a great deal of effort to stamp their style on their variation and I like it so much I've installed it on one of my PC's - Great job you guys
107 • my 2 cents (by tech2k on 2008-09-03 00:21:20 GMT from United States)
Good to see so many comments about who likes what distro without the flames.I like all open source ones myself and the fact that so many developers share their work for all of us to play with :)
I prefer the idea that less is more and like to start with a kernel and add just what I need from there.
Heres a few links I hope some find interesting :
http://www.busybox.net/ Yes I consider this a "distro" and it's one of my favorites.I got hooked on it years ago when a Morphix re-spin failed to boot and dumped me to a console where I could say "./busybox command" and do things like use telnet and chat on irc with netcat.Today a current version built with "make defconfig" has many new commands and is getting very close to a full blown replacement for the many packages who's commands it provides.Its quite easy to build little 16meg intrid root file systems that livecd/usb boot to a ramdisk (and free the cd) with isolinux and if you add a few things like lilo,mkisofs,mke2fs,aspell, dialog,lynx,etc you get a rescue disk you can be proud of and it's just more fun sometimes to be running *your* distro and writing some shell scripts,
http://landley.net/code/firmware/ A very easy way to build from source for other targets under qemu instead of cross compiling.The developer (Rob Landley) is actually working towards a 3 package build system that can rebuild itself from source using busybox(or his new toybox),tcc and uClibc.He is already doing it with about 7 packages and it generates code that runs perfect on my tomtom3 (armv5l).
http://www.linuxfromscratch.org/lfs/ Take a look at clfs embedded and try uClibc.
http://free-electrons.com/pub/video/2008/ Geek out with the ols and elc videos now free-electrons has some bandwidth and theres some good info in these vids.
My "big bloated bells and whistles" distro is still a TinyMe rebuilt with development tools that seems to compile anything I toss it's way.Looking foward to hacking a 2009 edition ;)
As always,DW roX,keep up the good work and have fun.
108 • Re: Linux for Older PC (#88) (by Steve Graham on 2008-09-03 04:43:50 GMT from United States)
Okay, the RAM is only 64MB and the wireless network card is Zonet Wireless PCI Adapter w/ Extended Antenna. The model number looks like ZEW1602A.
109 • RE: Live linux with Atheros WiFi (by fdavid on 2008-09-03 05:44:26 GMT from Austria)
@63: I found out the type of the Atheros device form the device id. It is the AR2425 / AR5007EG. (http://madwifi.org/wiki/Compatibility/Atheros). It odesn't work at the moment, but the problem is being worked on. So I may have to wait some time, till the fix hits the main branch madwifi and the live distros, see: http://madwifi.org/ticket/1192
Many thanks, again.
110 • #108 (Steve) - 64MB Is Fine (by Caitlyn on 2008-09-03 05:45:12 GMT from United States)
Hi, STeve,
Vector Linux Light (my recommendation) is designed to work in 64MB of RAM. All the older Atheros chipsets should be correctly supported by the included MadWifi driver. It should all work for you.
111 • RE Hater Haters (by Distronator on 2008-09-03 09:19:07 GMT from Germany)
Guys and girls, what's up with the hate mongering? Making fun of something (Ubuntu clones, just in case you missed it) is different from hating something. You are the ones who are doing the "hate" thing, not those who make fun of Ubuntu Clone 23.
Back to business:
Thank you, Martin, these are great suggestions. But I think I will stick to mauve. It's my favorite color.
112 • re: #30 Apologies to "Adam" here, etc. (by Eyes-Only on 2008-09-03 15:26:58 GMT from United States)
First off, in my post I incorrectly identified the person responsible for me using Mandriva as "Andy". My sincere apologies to our Kind Sir here Adam Williamson. -blush!- Adam? I keep doing the exact same thing when I've re-installed Mandi on different partitions and fill in the hardware report... I either get the first name wrong or the last. LOL! Are you up for a name change mate? ;) If you're like me you don't mind what people address you---as long as it's not "Late For Dinner!", eh?
Secondly: It's wonderful to see Caitlyn posting here! I'm always a very big (literally at 134kg) admirer of your reviews, writings, postings, etc. Thanks for enclosing your website URL as I've had---yet again---another delightful and thoughtful hour of reading!
Likewise Caitlyn: Thanks for posting about the release of Vector Light 5.9. I missed its release. And when I saw the date when it had come out I realised why: I'd moved, went without internet for a couple of weeks, and then spent a few more being ill. So that's another "must download and try". Like you, I've always been a fan of Vector and Wolvix (ATM it's Parsix 1.5r1 that's caught my attention).
Thanks to Ladislav for the bandwidth where I could correct a wrong and give thanks to two very wonderful people working hard to keep us likewise well-informed.
Amicalement/Cheers!
Eyes-Only/L'Peau-Rouge
113 • ## 108 and 110 (by kilgoretrout on 2008-09-03 16:18:39 GMT from United States)
Madwifi is for atheros based wifi cards and the zonet card in question appears to have a marvel chipset based upon my quick googling. As such, I wouldn't count on the madwifi driver to support that card. I saw some indication that ZEW1602A will work with ndiswrapper, however. It can be confusing because vendors sometimes use completely different chipsets on the same model number card but I'm fairly certain you have a marvel chipset on that card.
If you're not familiar with ndiswrapper, it's a linux application that allows you to use the windows driver for a wireless card in linux. Setting up a wireless card with ndiswrapper is not the most user friendly experience for someone new to linux. Here's a discussion on the ubuntu forum on getting that card working with ndiswrapper:
http://ubuntu-virginia.ubuntuforums.org/showthread.php?p=4839180
114 • @112 (by Adam Williamson on 2008-09-03 16:41:20 GMT from Canada)
Don't worry, I have decided to get used to being addressed as any name that begins with an A. :)
115 • @98 @109 (by Adam Williamson on 2008-09-03 16:43:15 GMT from Canada)
In fact, the Atheros 001c part works with the ath5k driver:
http://linuxwireless.org/en/users/Drivers/ath5k
this is going to more or less replace madwifi going forward. Most distros should be switching to ath5k with the upcoming release cycle, if they're on top of things.
116 • #110 (Caitlyn) (by Steve Graham on 2008-09-03 16:53:00 GMT from United States)
Caitlyn,
Thanks for the suggestion.
The Zonet website says that interface card is based upon the Marvell 88W8335+88W8010 chipset. Is that the same as the Atheros chipset?
Steve
117 • #113 (by Steve Graham on 2008-09-03 16:55:51 GMT from United States)
Thanks for the info about ndiswrapper. I saw that last night while investigating this issue. I wonder how easy it would be to set up for DSL or Vector Light.
Steve
118 • Wifi (by Forest on 2008-09-03 21:32:53 GMT from United Kingdom)
Having read the comments...good and bad...I would like to say simply that whatever distro, please oh please can the developer(s) sort out the wifi/hardware/network/connection bit as first priority.
I would suggest developers take a gander at Ubuntu. Within seconds of installing Ubuntu you are connected via wifi. Type in the P/W, sorted. Result. No messing around with sudo this, that and the other. Not all of us can or can be arsed to do the terminal thing. We just want to get away from MS/Mac.
Once online simply access the repositories and d/l what you want for what you want. I cannot see the need to cram everything onto a 700MB disc or try to fill a DVD disc. You never need all the stuff bundled in anyway, so why bother to d/l it the first place. If you're into saving-the-planet you will see the advantage of energy saving. On which note...
119 • Source Mage xorg + new package manager (by magus on 2008-09-03 23:06:05 GMT from Finland)
Hi,
I found a message on SourceMage-discuss from one of the main developers of Source Mage GNU/Linux that their distro isn't really getting all the publicity it deserves.[1]
I think that that the developer is right. I'm a pretty advanced user myself and I wouldn't recommend a source-based distro like Source Mage GNU/Linux to new users. It requires a bit of knowledge before you're able to use a source-based distro. Nevertheless, it's an excellent distro for experienced users who want perfect control over the software they use on their computer.
Source Mage GNU/Linux is, at least for me, the ultimate distro for someone who likes to get full control over the software they use. In Source Mage you compile all packages from source and, therefore, you get the full control over the system you build. Source Mage GNU/Linux gives you an easy way to manage the dependencies of individual packages. Also, Source Mage makes over 5000 software source packages available for you. That's more than most distros can offer.
And Source Mage GNU/Linux is one of the most cutting-edge distros available. If you thought ArchLinux was the ultimate geek-distro, try again. ;-) SourceMage is just as cutting-edge as Gentoo and ArchLinux -- and often more so. I admit that I personally deeply love this little-known distro. Please, give it a try if you find the ideas behind Source Mage GNU/Linux interesting.
Source Mage has recently integrated the latest modular xorg to their "test" grimoire. [2]
Another big step of advance in Source Mage GNU/Linux is thealso announcement of the new package manager ("sorcery") that has been developed for for the last two years. [3]
[1]
http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/sm-discuss/2008-September/018640.html
[2]
http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/sm-discuss/2008-August/018627.html
[3]
http://lists.ibiblio.org/pipermail/sm-discuss/2008-August/018618.html
I've been a user of Source Mage GNU/Linux for about two years and I really, *really* like this distro. I wouldn't recommend it to new Windows-converts but it's really a perfect system for any advanced users like myself, who want to build stuff from source and who like to get full control over their system. If you're like me, please give Source Mage GNU/Linux a try. :-)
PS. Ladislav, please watch out for Source Mage GNU/Linux. There's a new release coming out soon -- they're currently working on a brand new installer. [4]
[4]
http://dbg.download.sourcemage.org/iso/x86/0.10.0/
-- magus --
120 • #112: Thanks! (by Caitlyn on 2008-09-04 00:38:02 GMT from United States)
Thanks for your kind words. Wolvix 2.0 is another one I should have listed as most anticipated :) 1.1.0 was a great release but it is getting long in the tooth. Likewise, now that AliXe has the beginning of an installer it should be interesting to see what Alisou (Sylivie) does with the next release.
I have a review of Zenwalk 5.2 coming. Like all my reviews it will be mixed with good and bad points pointed out. Overall, though, Zenwalk is now closer than Vector to delivering a fast Slackware-based distro that offers the ease of use of Ubuntu without all the Ubuntu bugs. It's still not quite polished enough and has some issues but it is getting close.
Other distros I'll be looking at soon: Nonux-en and Linspire Lite. (Yep, a Fedora-based distro for a change...)
Thanks again!
121 • #116: No, Zonet isn't Atheros; #118: You've Got To Be Kidding Me (by Caitlyn on 2008-09-04 00:45:14 GMT from United States)
#116: Hi, Steve,
My bad. No, Zonet isn't at all related to Atheros. IME ndiswrapper works well but is always a pain to setup. That will be true with VL Light or with DSL.
#118: Ubuntu has easy WiFi? You've got to be kidding me! Network-manager is a buggy piece of junk, not to mention slow and bloated. My main reason for dumping Gutsy on the 64-bit laptop is that Network Manager kept hanging and taking my WiFi connection with it. It was absolutely unreliable. I've tried Hardy Heron as well and it was only slightly better.
You want easy WiFi? Look at Wolvix. Look at any distro that uses WiFi-Radar 1.9.9 with it's new capability to autodetect the interface. So long as the kernel recognizes the WiFi card it will work smoothly with minimal configuration. (Obviously, you'll always have to configure WPA/WEP connections.)
122 • @ 119 > The Maggi from Finlandia (by Thinning the trees on 2008-09-04 01:31:54 GMT from Canada)
One step forward - two too back ?
Some dancers may know that waltz
Source Mage (Forks of Sorcerer/Lunar?) are basicly just LFS without the pain
Please excuse me for mentioning - Users may " grimace" @ Pkge Mgt "imagery" portrayed
Modularised X-Org/KDE is not singular in sources-based offerings
Sabayon is arguably every bit as *cutting-edge* - also has Entropy
Beware - any implementation - may be called *bleeding -edge* for reason
Gentoo (core) > Portage / Paludis /Pkgecore (as well as binary repositories)
If cutting-edge is preferred - has masked E-builds
T2 (from bare-bones host)
Agpcc
http://autopackage.org/apbuild-apgcc.php
For ultimate *Full Control* build your own vs *remaster from *templates
Repositories then are - non-limited upstream sources
Two years of sources-based experience ?
It then may be wise to consider which has best Documentation/
fully formalised developer strategem
NTIM / IMNSHO, it is inadvisable to suggest any but very experienced die-hard Linux devotees
to plunge blindly into sources -based waters
Those currents run strong, & 'tho SM/Gentoo etal may be used
as general - purpose desktops
Pre-supplied binary variants wll be less problematic for average
user (if there is such a thing )
123 • Thank you, #80 (by #120 or so in the last 1 month on 2008-09-04 02:22:35 GMT from Finland)
Maybe it wasn't a total waste of time watching that movie.
Please people, if you're going to be vanity gobshites, at least put some effort into it. Anyone can click a few buttons, voilla, instant ISO, but it takes *commitment* to go through, design your own completely new build system, LiveCD code, X configuration tool, etc., and burn out several hundred dollars' worth of processors, just to see your name in lights. But don't just change Ubuntu's wallpaper.
One, it's a very poorly-built distribution, both in practice and practices (private source patches are a personal pet peeve) Two, it's cheating if you don't even built it from source code. And while I'm at it: Three, if my distro's name is clearly embedded into yours in spite of the projects having no relation, consider yourself sued. (You know who you are.)
In all seriousness, please do stop with the endless Ubuntu forks; you're not benefiting anyone. (And if you don't know how to code, please *don't* waste upstream's time like other posters have suggested. To said posters: Clicking 'Remaster' != coding ability.) As for the other projects, we'll sort 'em out one at a time. It can't be that difficult.
Personally, I'm working on one more release, then I'm heading over for a bit to Wolvix.
124 • @114 (by drizake on 2008-09-04 12:27:25 GMT from United States)
I feel for you. My name is Adam and I get called Andy, Aaron, Eric, and anything else you can think of...
125 • RE: #122 (by magus on 2008-09-04 17:38:53 GMT from Finland)
Hi there,
Thanks for your reply. I agree that Source Mage GNU/Linux is pretty much like Linux From Scratch. Source Mage only adds patches when the compiling from original sources fails. So, basically, you get in Source Mage applications pretty much like the original authors meant them to be. I've heard that Slackware has a similar policy. What Source Mage adds to LFS, is the cool package management system that they got from the historical distro called "Sorcerer GNU/Linux". Personally, I think that the demand of the GPL to make the sources always available is a good thing, and using a source-based distro fits well into that scheme.
Historically, Lunar Linux forked off from Sorcerer GNU/Linux, and then the main developer of Sorcerer GNU/Linux, Kyle Sallee, decided to re-write the package management system and to publish it under a more restrictive license that discouraged further forks of his distro. Luckily, the sources of the original Sorcerer GNU/Linux were available on the Web, and some of the original contributors decided to continue the Sorcerer GNU/Linux distro under the permissive GPL license. So the direct continuation of the original Sorcerer GNU/Linux distro re-appeared as "Source Mage GNU/Linux". Since then, a lot of improvements have been added to Source Mage GNU/Linux.
The Source Mage GNU/Linux installer installs just the base system. (A new version of the installer is currently under active development. You can expect a new version of Source Mage GNU/Linux to be announced at DistroWatch some time later this year.) After the initial installation, you can (optionally) rebuild everything with the compile flags you choose. Once you've installed this distro, you can write "sorcery" as root, and it brings up a menu where you can configure the package manager, and you can use the same menu to view the available packages, and also to install or remove packages. This "sorcery" package manager is really one of the most advanced package managers in the GNU/Linux world.
The package manager in Source Mage GNU/Linux is very intuitive and relatively easy to use, but it asks you a lot of questions about the optional dependencies. Experienced users are likely to enjoy the control that this advanced "sorcery" package manager gives them, but people who are new to GNU/Linux may get overwhelmed by all those choices.
Gentoo, CRUX, Lunar, and others seem pretty interesting, but as long as Source Mage GNU/Linux keeps on working perfectly for me, I don't see any reason to switch to another distro. ;-)
126 • @115 (by fdavid on 2008-09-04 20:47:25 GMT from Austria)
Thanks for the info!
127 • @ 115 (by Beaver's Tale on 2008-09-04 21:32:30 GMT from Canada)
It was a pleasure:
The same but different ?
I.E. Source Mage per Pkge *During install* vs global *use* flags
The policy of dependency on Upstream defaults vs developer consistent fine-tuning
Asking users to decipher what non-critical dependencies may be - or even what they are - is asking a lot
Upstream patches are *not aware* of (SM) users Cfg -
Nor is SM aware of user customizations
E.G. OTOH Gentoo pre-Cfg's E-builds - applies use flags, user may alter any & each compile via several means
Masks/overlays/slots etc etc
Takes much more than a few years (Esp. if not intensively interested) to appreciate (or not) the finer-grained distinctions
Not just time - dedication to personal effort "costs"
BTW, Cleanse - does it work flawlessly - or is it inherently dangerous (ala -c-p-uD)
Next - the in-depth (built-in "intelligence" - or not) query of database (I.E Portage & or installed dynamic libraries co-existing with static
or older (oft now unavailable) 3rd party binaries)
Admittedly, this is but a cursory summation based shakily on a glance @
http://www.sourcemage.org/FAQ/Gentoo/Philosophical
In my experience, "ease of use" invariably translates to the Distro's philosophy_of xx_n
Source Mage - is the Pkge Mgt Bash coded ?
There is a reason for complexity of (I.E.) Python -based Portage/Pkgecore (or C for Paludis)
Unfortunantely, we cannot have it both ways
Control predicates complexity along w/the inherent need to master to benefit thereby
If that doesn't give invetarate tire-kickers pause for doubt - > *Sources-based is not well-suited for casual users*
At very least, they might consider - addictive distro-hopping will never allow time needed to KNOW any one... to then be qualified to assess
Pardon the puns:
Wrapped sweet (GUI) Eye-candy is flavourful, but invites Byte decay
Meat (CLI) may stick in teeth, irritate to remove - yet promotes growth
MMV = In end, "Only the wearer of the shoe knows best how it pinches"
Best regards to all
128 • PClinuxOS 2008 is coming soon (by annon at 2008-09-04 22:59:34 GMT from United States)
According to the post at PCLinuxOS this popular Linux distribution is going to se its "2008" release.
Kdulcimer wrote :The PCLinuxOS repositories will be frozen in the next couple of days to stabilize them for the release of PCLinuxOS. Please understand that while you can still suggest packages and we can still working on packaging them, the packages will not be seen in the repos until after the freeze is over.
http://www.pclinuxos.com/index.php?option=com_smf&Itemid=26&topic=49447.0;topicseen
129 • Suse/MS Interoperability (by Troy on 2008-09-04 23:57:09 GMT from Australia)
What is wrong with people? Do people have to hate MS just because they use linux or an open source OS? Get over it. Both are going to be around forever like it or not. Interoperability is a good thing.
BTW I am not pro MS and use opensuse for my everyday needs.
130 • re 129 Suse/MS (by Anonymous on 2008-09-05 00:49:33 GMT from Canada)
You seem to not be able to understand why MS and Suse marriage is bad. Therefore I woun't even attempt to explain you this stuff. That's OK. Stay with Suse and be happy.
131 • 130 • re 129 Suse/MS (by Troy on 2008-09-05 00:56:33 GMT from Australia)
Please....do explain
132 • re 130 (by corneliu on 2008-09-05 01:07:11 GMT from Canada)
OK, see my name for my e-mail. Send me an e-mail and I'll answer. I don't want to speak against Suse again on this forum because I have been banned before from this forum for doing that.
133 • No subject (by Karay on 2008-09-05 07:43:45 GMT from Hungary)
Distro War: It's a silly thing. You don't like a distro? Don't use it. You like an other distro? Use it. Why fight linuxuser again linuxuser or M$user? If you fight, nobody follow your linux "know-how".
Ubuntu CE: I saw an earlier version (maybe 7.04) with one system tray. Does anybody know, how can I make it in my Ubuntu (standard with Gnome)?
134 • re 133 (by Karay on 2008-09-05 07:49:00 GMT from Hungary)
Distro War: If you don't like any distro? Make a new. Why are many distro? Because it is possible :)
135 • Ubuntu wifi (by forest on 2008-09-05 09:34:54 GMT from United Kingdom)
Ref 121. Certainly Ubuntu HH is excellent for wifi. Compared to a lot of others it's faultless. We have three networks at home and the wifi card finds then all in seconds from install. Type in PW and voila the Internet.
The wifi card in question is a cheepo Edimax PCI for £13 or whatever the exchange rate is. Ubuntu has drivers for the chip concerned.
Can suggest only you review your wifi kit arrangements. For what it's worth and sorry about the plug but I have used several Edimax units and ALL work perfectly with Ubuntu.
136 • Karay and his opinion. (by forest on 2008-09-05 14:32:38 GMT from United Kingdom)
Quite right Karay, if you don't like a distro simply don't use it or abuse it.
If you have the skills and can be arsed then you could make your own. Folk do this with Ubuntu (forking, say) and, I believe I'm correct in saying, the Linux community at large are encouraged to do this anyway.
Some folk like to mess around cobbling up distros as a hobby...what can possibly be wrong with that? It hurts nobody and may even be beneficial to the community at large, so why knock a person's efforts?
Personally I wanted to get away from MS...too many sad buggers ruin it with malware etc. I found Ubuntu answered the call and most importantly for me the wifi worked instantly. Certainly I have tried about 3 dozen distros, some good in respect of instant connection, some bad cos it meant I had to go into terminal mode to get connection.
I have not got the time or inclination to do that and I admit I get lost sometimes in the code so to speak, so I take the simple option.
Some folk like a certain desktop some don't, but you don't have to slag it or them of for doing so. I confess I believe the bit about "community".
Personally I'm just glad that somebody who has the skill to cobble up a distro is decent enough to share it for the good of everyone (well maybe not MS shareholders, LOL).
137 • SO MANY UBUNTU Clones Jesus (by LycanNyc on 2008-09-05 14:56:06 GMT from United States)
Why is everyone in the world keeps on creating more distro(S) more crap and more clones?
Why not just join the teams of those that are experienced..
Debian (Sidux)
Fedora / CentOS / RedHat
OpenSuse
Mandriva
Slackware
Gentoo
FreeBSD / PCBSD / OpenBSD / NetBSD
Can people stop creating more distro(S) .. It's sickning!
138 • re 137 (by corneliu on 2008-09-05 15:10:09 GMT from Canada)
I totally agree with you. See my post @23
139 • let the clones be (by Anonymous on 2008-09-05 15:21:16 GMT from France)
Joining the big team of an established project and making your own spin off are different hobbies. Yes, people have different hobbies.
Besides, do you think that the guy behind Ubuntu IsAllAboutTheWallpaper Edition would be an asset to any other Linux project (at his current level of skill)?
140 • 134 (by Dick Cheney on 2008-09-05 15:28:09 GMT from United States)
I agree. "Too many distros" is like "too many roads". I suppose I could ask why we waste money on roads in Oregon, which I never drive, but that would be stupid. Other people drive in Oregon so they have a use for roads there.
I've never seen anyone refuse to try Linux because of the existence of Yoper or Nexenta. If you're concerned about eliminating confusion, get to work writing high quality introductions to Linux. They'd be very welcome.
Oh, wait, it's easier to post a comment that someone else's work is hurting the cause than to actually do work.
141 • 140, 134, others (by Bob on 2008-09-05 15:42:05 GMT from United States)
I love you guys. You so just get what Open Source and community is all about.
Let's not help the community by adding anything useful, lets copy what was already done, take up space, and add absolutely nothing at all!!! Let's not help out any of the already struggling projects that actually need help.There we go. Yep THAT'S WHAT OPEN SOURCE IS. Right there.
@140, "Too many distros" is like "too many roads". I suppose I could ask why we waste money on roads in Oregon.
I take it you've never had to pay taxes? Or travel over under maintained roads before. Wonder why they are under maintained? Could it be that the resources are spread too thin by too many roads. Nah.... couldn't be.
142 • re 141 (by corneliu on 2008-09-05 16:03:34 GMT from Canada)
I agree.
If Linux had Windows' market share then diversity would be more welcome. But according to some statistics, Linux has 1% market share. I'll be more generous, I'll give Linux 5% market share. Don't you think that 500 distros sharing 5% of the market is too much? Why not focus the resources of the community on a few strong distros?
143 • No subject (by Anonymous on 2008-09-05 18:06:57 GMT from Canada)
Do you guys remember when forking a distro meant something?
Mandrake from Redhat, or Libranet from Debian. Just two examples of projects that had a clear purpose in mind and contributed something useful to the community.
Linux was evolving through these offshoots. Some stood out and became great and others died out. It was almost like natural selection at work
But the explosion of releases today can be likened more to intermarriage amoung the crowned heads of state. Eventually the gene pool gets pretty watered down and mediocrity ensues (to put it politely).
The problem is not that there are too many distributions. The point is there are too many *pointless* ones.
If you want to roll you own ubuntu with custom themes and packages, fine. But if it's not adding anything beyond a different look and tweaked application layout, then maybe it doesn't need to be promoted to the world.
I see so much potential in Linux going to nothing because this project does This, and that project does That, and none of them do both. If there is convergence, it is happening at a glacial pace to the point where it isn't even apparent.
The MeTooBuntu's are just an obvious symptom of how things have changed.
I'm just an ordinary user. I might not know the deep technical side of things, but I know a mess when I see one.
And pretending it does not exist doesn't encourage anyone to clean up their mess, or refrain from making one in the first place.
Abuse is not valid, but criticism cannot be stifled when it is warranted.
144 • Too many distros? (by anticapitalista on 2008-09-05 18:29:02 GMT from Greece)
Are there too many distros?
Who cares!
If someone wants to make their own spin-off from whatever distro base be that from Debian, Slackware, rpm-based distros, gentoo, Arch and others, then all power to the mind.
"Vive la/le (?) difference."
If you don't like it, don't use it, just like you can choose to buy a variety of computers or build your own. If you want to buy model X, fine. You want to buy model Y, fine. You want to put your own one (model z) together, fine.
You want to publish and make available all your hardwork in putting your box (model z) together for others to 'maybe' use, or get ideas from, fine.
Linux and OpenSource isn't or IMO shouldn't be about competing with M$ or Apple. Who cares about market share? Not me. Sure Novell does, but that is 'cos they're a multi-national business like Micro$oft.
Why focus on 'strong' distros? For what purpose? To make them better or more 'competitive'?
Linux, Unix and BSD are already much better than M$, lets say even the 'laziest' Ubuntu remaster is better than M$.
As some guy from Stratford-Upon-Avon, England wrote a long time ago 'Variety is the spice of life'
145 • No subject (by Anonymous on 2008-09-05 18:57:14 GMT from Canada)
My dear anticapitalista,
Your name states that you are against Microsoft and other corporations. If that's the case, are you fighting against these corporations? If yes, wouldn't it be nice that the enemy of these corporations is strong? Why fight these corporations separately? Why don't you join your forces with others?
146 • 145 continued (by Anonymous on 2008-09-05 18:59:25 GMT from Canada)
Take any Linux distro. It is very far from perfect. Why not make a strong distro better? That would fight against Microsoft more efficiently.
147 • #145 Fighting corporations (by anticapitalista on 2008-09-05 19:19:48 GMT from Greece)
[political rant on]
I think fighting and ultimately defeating corporate power and greed is not going to be through developing any strong linux distro(s) since (as you can guess by my name) the problem is rooted in capitalism. Competing and defeating MS will not be done by developing a stronger Debian for example, though I would love to see a strong Debian, but by the overthrow of existing capitalist relations of production. Sure alternatives to that in the here and now are welcome, but ultimately doomed to fail, unless they become capitalist models themselves eg Novell that will then compete on 'the capitalists' terms.
To put it bluntly, it will be the badly paid employees of the anti-uion M$, linux-Novell, the Ubuntu-Canonical foundation (based on a tax-haven) that will destroy corporate greed in its M$ version or linux version, by challenging the heart of the beast ie capitalism.
[Political rant over] ;)
148 • 141 (by Dick Cheney on 2008-09-05 20:41:48 GMT from United States)
"I take it you've never had to pay taxes? Or travel over under maintained roads before. Wonder why they are under maintained? Could it be that the resources are spread too thin by too many roads. Nah.... couldn't be."
If I'm not the one paying the taxes, why the heck would I care? Nobody's forcing _me_ to work on their distro.
I think that you are really criticizing Ladislav for including too many distros on his site. His site, his decision, doesn't make me a lot of difference.
The truth is that it is the existence of many open source projects that makes it work. The best become popular, the others die or get ignored. Check the top 10 in DW hits: Ubuntu, Mint, PCLinuxOS, Dreamlinux and Sabayon. All are forks of established distros, but they must be bringing something to the table.
Make an existing distro better? They did! They just made the existing distros better and then changed the name.
149 • RE: #127 (by magus on 2008-09-05 23:15:08 GMT from Finland)
Sorry, I'm currently rather busy and I don't have time for thorough explanations. Just some random points I'd like to add:
Yes, the "sorcery" package manager is written entirely in BASH. It doesn't have dependencies on other scripting languages, such as perl, python, etc.
One of the little known features of the "sorcery" package manager is that it supports creating binary archives of compiled packages which, in principle, would allow distributing ready-compiled binary packages, but I don't think the Source Mage developers are planning to make it an officially supported way of distributing packages. They seem to be happy keeping Source Mage GNU/Linux a strictly source-based distro. However, individual users can privately distribute binary packages between their Source Mage installations, provided that the packages have been built with conservative optimizations that suit most modern computers. For example, I think that the Source Mage x86 installer images are optimized for i486, which works on most modern computers with that type of CPU.
The default method of resolving dependencies in Source Mage is to satisfy all necessary dependencies automatically, but to ask about each *optional* dependency individually. The package manager will remember these choices the next time you install or upgrade the same package, although it may ask some of those questions again. If you don't want to answer the same questions over and over again, you can configure the package manager to only wait for something like 1 or 0 seconds before falling back to the default answer (which will be the one you selected the first time you installed the package.)
It is also possible to set in Source Mage "global flags" for optional dependencies, just like the "USE" flags in Gentoo. Suppose, you want some optional dependency to be automatically added to all the packages that support it. OK, then all you need to do is type as root:
sorcery default add "" my_preferred_optional_dependency on
(where my_preferred_optional_dependency is the optional dependency package you always want installed.) That command will add a new line to the file /var/state/sorcery/default_depends. Of course, you can also edit that file manually, if you want to.
But now I've already babbled more than enough. I've got other things to take care of. Anyway, use whatever distro suits your needs. Just remember that there's also Source Mage GNU/Linux, which is a pretty cool distro for experienced GNU/Linux users. ;-)
150 • Ref#149 Not enought time! Ref#144 (by Verndog on 2008-09-06 00:54:32 GMT from United States)
"Sorry, I'm currently rather busy and I don't have time for thorough explanations. Just some random points I'd like to add:"
I wonder how long your post would be if you really did have time to work on it :)
Ref#144. I agree, who cares. DWW will just report what's new. If it has been carefully created it will survive in the long run. Look at how many have tried and failed already. I don't know why people think this is so divisive in nature. Some folks obviouly has a lot of time on there hands so they create a new distro. So what.
It's more on how we treat our guest than anything else. If they feel welcomed and encourage to stay so much the better.
151 • @ 149 (by Anonymous on 2008-09-06 01:36:51 GMT from Canada)
Thnx for offerring limited time to expand (sorry I mis-typed prior responce- was supposed to be #125)
Two sides of same coin ? kinda
NTIM 'cept to devotees of either -(Gentoo uses simpler?
one-line USE flag file, parsed @ compile time)
Other aspects of finer-grained control are not apparent until extended use reveals.
Whether they appeal or not - each individual will then decide
Market share - HOW can it be determined ~ Not by point of sale (pre-installed)
Nor would that alter, the commercial driving force of computer technology
Think robotics in Mfg., CNC controls. databases of all vital statistics,. guidance systems - all of which they hope - cannot fail (infrequently do)
Home PC use is but a lucrative spin-off
However, markets are reaching saturation point
Margins are slim - prices dramatically lower than a mere few Yrs. ago
All which is to say -please hesitate prior to offering unsubstaniated figures
As to validation of numbers of variants - it is subjective biases, Let the natural forces weed out -
Respondents on forums are likely, just the more vocal minority
152 • Waiting for Mepis 8 (by fbt on 2008-09-06 14:57:30 GMT from United States)
I'm in no hurry to upgrade, but Mepis never disapoints. Actually I am eager to see a stable KDE 4.
153 • Market share (by Verndog on 2008-09-06 15:18:35 GMT from United States)
This thing regarding MS has 90+% of market share apple has 9% and Linux has <1% , how do they know?! Linux unlike MS/Apple doesn't have a point-of-sale. Any and everyone can download Linux/BSD and run it. I for one have done that and now Linux is my main OS. One one called or I didn't fill out any right-use clause, so it's has to be a guesstimate.
On the server side on the coin, that's a different matter. *nix have faired much better.
154 • @153 (by Eyes-Only on 2008-09-06 15:46:16 GMT from United States)
Excellent point Verndog! Who DOES determine this "Market Share" anyway? I'd like to know that myself. Is it some person sitting in a darkened backroom somewhere, calculator to hand, punching in some ethereal data received from a net polling system and then -boing!- out pops HIS data?
Like Verndog---almost---the only time out of the 3 stacks of CDs which have been installed and tested upon this computer (some for up to 6 months at a time) that I've been "polled" was on the Mandriva install. And then that was solely for hardware support.
I think if one rounded up all the Linux help forums on the net, in all the plethora of world languages out there, and did a tally (sounds impossible but someone must have a longer lifespan than I?), and entered THAT data into their little calculator I would think the tally would be more than <1%.
Sound good to you Verndog? Does to me anyway. ;)
Amicalement/Cheers!
Eyes-Only/L'Peau-Rouge
155 • Rise of Linux (by forest on 2008-09-06 17:01:07 GMT from United Kingdom)
For what it's worth, where I live (small Cornish county town) we have TWO computer shops! One is now selling laptops with Linux (Red Hat I believe) off the shelf and the other place will sell you a "bespoke" system built to your specs including Linux.
In other words Linux is slowly but surely seeping into the general public's "computing awareness". I like to imagine this is down to folk getting cheesed of with MS trying to "force" Vista onto the market combined with malware nasties. Doubtless that is a gross over simplification but it works for me!
I have been using Linux Ubuntu since February this year...mainly cos of SP3 buggering up my PC. Obviously a new OS takes time to learn, but I have to say it is a pleasure not to HAVE to run anti malware progs. That's not to say there are no probs of course. I would say also it is very very very worth buying a textbook on Linux.
Quantifying percentage of Linux users in the general way is impossible from simply reading forums. And, simply taking raw data of machines sold with whatever MS OS cannot take into account the folk who dual boot or just move onto Linux.
There is a notion that "Linux" is being replaced by "Ubuntu" but who can really say. At the risk of being accused of "tongue-in-cheek" comments, if MS software products come down in price followed by a continuing drop in share price....
156 • CD Burning Speed in Linux (by IMQ on 2008-09-06 17:13:47 GMT from United States)
I have noticed that the minimum speed for CD burning using K3b, Brasero, etc. is 8x for all of my PCs, each with different burner.
I haven't tried the command line way of burning the ISO yet, but I am curious why the K3b and other GUI do not allow burn speed lower than 8x for CD. I know in the part it was possible but not now with any popular GUI. In K3b, there is no option for anything lower than 8x. In other, burning speed lower than 8x would either fail to complete or wouldn't start at all.
Does anyone here know why?
157 • RE: 156 • CD Burning Speed in Linux (by IMQ on 2008-09-06 17:15:44 GMT from United States)
ooops, typo.
It should read "in the past it was possible but not now with any popular GUI..."
158 • @ 156 ~ Burn speeds (by Anonymous on 2008-09-06 22:49:50 GMT from Canada)
You are using a GUI "wrapper" to actual CLI utilites (cdrtools etc)
@ Initial use, most if not all - probe devices, ask for confirmation if all is correct
Then save settings
If a slower or faster speed is not available, it will not appear for a burn session
When burning, user may use auto settings or over-ride options offered
If you wish *finer* control - use the CLI
I.E. >
/usr/bin/cdrecord -v gracetime=2 dev=/dev/hdc speed=48 -dao driveropts=burnfree -eject -data /home/user_xx/ path_to_ sources_to burn
Please Note > K3b has "test" option
After completion of actual session - NOTICE the option to read summary of all events, save contents of report
Start end speeds used, total time up to fixation, buffer use
("but not now with any popular GUI...")
> How many varied burn utilities have you used ?
159 • RE: 158 (by IMQ on 2008-09-07 01:43:46 GMT from United States)
> How many varied burn utilities have you used ?
I have used GUI like K3b, Brasero, and Gnomebaker. There were others that I tried but these 3 are the most popularly included in the default install or live CD of many distro. Especially, Brasero seems to be the choice for non-KDE based distros. Both Brasero and Gnomebaker have speed options lower than 8X but neither will successfully complete the burn. So I have been using 8X as the lowest possible burning speed.
At first I thought it was the media or the burner, but I have different brands of burners as well as different brands of media. I also have an external USB burner that shows the lowest burn speed is 16X.
I am just curious of what the cause of this behavior.
Maybe I try the command line again next time to see if it works. I used to burn via command line until I got lazy and use K3b or Brasero.
160 • @ 159 (by Busy Beaver sez on 2008-09-07 02:59:53 GMT from Canada)
More than wanted -topic should really be on relevant specific sites
OTOH it may aid to clear up some mis-conceptions still *advised*
by some ill-informed "experienced" Linux users
CAUTION > If this of no interest to viewers -skip over this post
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There are *many* burn utilities, why your attempts failed - may not be an easy matter
to resolve if the tools used doesn't fully inform
However, why do you wish slower than allowed speeds ?
All devices for last several years have some form of buffering of
input data
(k3b session report shows how that was used)
Use of slower speeds arose from time when buffering was not a feature of much older devices
Then forums were full of questionable "advice" to use slow burn rates (when users complained of failed attempts ("coasters")
In every case I queried - the underlying cause was user error unrelated to burn rate chosen
Failure to start - indicates a bad CLI
A bad burn is most often bad input source (check md5sum etc) bad CLI path to source
Incorrect permissions (default Cfg permissions of cdrtools/access to folder where data stored etc etc)
CLI can be as simple as
cdrecord dev/hd_xx speed = (as desired) Path_to_stored _data
Cdrtools itself had a bug for a while (1-1/2yrs? ago)
Which was reported, corrected ( distros supplied newer versions)
If/when a user is familiar to debug utilities (executable event traces) tracking down underlying cause becomes less obtuse
Often, the GUI burn interface itself will offer clues
Or - try /var/log /tmp files for system use logs
If no cronned clean-up is scheduled for tmp files > many times, all events can be noted
That is when a system logger is invaluable
Finding a usable *work-around* makes all that redundant (except for casual curiosity/or determined users)
HTH
161 • RE: 160 (by IMQ on 2008-09-07 15:35:53 GMT from United States)
Sorry, I don't buy your explanation about "the underlying cause was user error unrelated to burn rate chosen".
The only difference between a fail burn and a successful one was the burn speed.
I know for a fact the same ISO image was successfully burn at a lower speed than 8X under Windows but failed in every distros I have installed on the same machine.
I know this because I was curious enough to test the lower burn speed under Windows when several attempts to burn at lower speed, 4x to be exact, failed in various distros. It answered my curiosity about the possible problem with either the media or the burner. Neither was the cause so the only thing left was the software used to burn the ISO.
The ISO is always checked whenever the md5sum or sha1sum is known. So the source is never a problem.
162 • @156 (by Anonymous on 2008-09-07 17:14:38 GMT from Italy)
I have k3b 0.12.17 and it is possible to burn a CD at speeds lower than 8x.
163 • No subject (by Anonymous on 2008-09-07 17:22:42 GMT from Canada)
The results noted -(as stated) was for others (several) when queried
You are stating - md5sum checked and OK
This is using CD-Rom (not DVD)
The failures were ISOs (not other types of input or disk to disc)
No buffer -input failures
No error Msgs from utility
K3b did not report errors
No error information in system logs
Always fails at slower speeds
Yet same input source is OK using a faster rate - both in Linux
This all using same media
You do not post CLI used (SAO/DAO /TAO )
OEM specs of devices
You then tested the same data source under Windows at lower speeds - successfullly
No other odd behaviours noticed:
I.E.
Occassional H/Drv read errors (how is it cabled to M/Brd jumpered)
Random hard drive data read/copy errors (bad sectors)
Random hangs/event repeats until success or aborting (failing memory)
That simply does not make sense - other than a misconfigured CLI
incompatible to device capability/method of burning
In effect - you are guessing, not trouble -shooting in PRL mode
(proveable repeatable logical )
Number of Comments: 163
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| • 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 |
| Star Labs |
Star Labs - Laptops built for Linux.
View our range including the highly anticipated StarFighter. Available with coreboot open-source firmware and a choice of Ubuntu, elementary, Manjaro and more. Visit Star Labs for information, to buy and get support.
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| Random Distribution | 
BackBox Linux
BackBox Linux is an Ubuntu-based distribution developed to perform penetration tests and security assessments. It is designed to be fast and easy to use. It provides a minimal yet complete desktop environment, thanks to its own software repositories, which are always updated to the latest stable versions of the most often used and best-known ethical hacking tools.
Status: Active
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| TUXEDO |
TUXEDO Computers - Linux Hardware in a tailor made suite
Choose from a wide range of laptops and PCs in various sizes and shapes at TUXEDOComputers.com. Every machine comes pre-installed and ready-to-run with Linux. Full 24 months of warranty and lifetime support included!
Learn more about our full service package and all benefits from buying at TUXEDO.
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| Star Labs |
Star Labs - Laptops built for Linux.
View our range including the highly anticipated StarFighter. Available with coreboot open-source firmware and a choice of Ubuntu, elementary, Manjaro and more. Visit Star Labs for information, to buy and get support.
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