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1 • Peppermint - not really all that minimal (by Andy Prough on 2022-04-25 00:28:11 GMT from Switzerland)
>"For sake of comparison, Peppermint OS 2022-02-02 uses 400MB of RAM and 5GB of disk space while its previous release (Peppermint 10) used 300MB of RAM and 6.5GB of disk space. "
For me, these are not minimal specs. I'm much more used to starting up in a window manager in 64-bit antiX with less than 140mb of memory used, or with 32-bit antiX where I routinely start with less than 80mb. My experience with XFCE is that 300-400mb is pretty average, so I don't personally see this as really minimal at all.
2 • Peppermint (by V on 2022-04-25 01:46:57 GMT from United States)
Peppermint OS Debian seems to use less disk space than RAM. A 100MB increase in RAM usage is probably not that bad on the hardware that is being used for this distro. The Debian base definitely helps with decreasing the storage footprint.
If Peppermint was based on something like Alpine the storage footprint would go down even further, probably to something like 3-4 GB.
3 • Peppermint. Lite. Mint LXDE. Lubuntu or Debian? (by Greg Zeng on 2022-04-25 02:40:25 GMT from Australia)
So much confusion on "lightweight" Linux operating systems. A few years ago, it seemed simple. Debian, LXDE, XFCE used to be considered light if any desktop environment was required.
These "light" versions have inbuilt limits. The more flexible alternatives have improved to now reach the lightness of the previous offerings. The application containers appimage, Snap and Flatpak are large, limited and "heavy".
Ubuntu-base offers the PPA updates not available to Debian-based systems, but with possible security risks. The Nemo file manager is a lightweight version of Dolphin, which is preferred by power users.
Linux kernels are released, ready to run, compiled, by Ubuntu, every few days. The official Debian kernels are less loaded with closed source binaries, but not very regularly released. Ubuntu-based systems try to have the latest updates officially. Other Ubuntu based operating systems are less cautious than the upstream Ubuntu.
The many other Linux operating systems are less lively with updates of all kinds. Ubuntu's main system, like Fedora, is daringly experimenting, at high risk with Wayland. Unlike Fedora, the Ubuntu systems still are shy about BTRFS.
There are other lightweight Linux systems, such as PCLOS and the Puppy based family, but these do not offer the full range of applications nor hardware.
4 • Ubuntu 22.04 and variants (by denflen on 2022-04-25 04:33:00 GMT from United States)
I have been a user of Lubuntu for a long time. I didn't like the switch from LXDE to LXQT from several year ago. But I have finally got used to it, and continue to use it. But now, after hearing about the switch of Firefox (my favorite and comfortable browser) to a Snap package, I am having doubts again. It is slow to start? WTF! I don't use any Snap packages at all and don't want to. I am old and slow to accept changes, sure, but this should be unacceptable to most. Is this just a unique feature of Lubuntu, or is it across all Ubuntu variants? Specifically, does this also apply to Xubuntu? It might be time for me to move on....
5 • Peppermint (by Hank on 2022-04-25 05:08:05 GMT from Germany)
Peppermint, I welcome the move to debian, just wish they had been brave enough to make a bigger jump. Get rid of poetterings lunacy. Promoting snap and other huge packages, nothing light about that.
Middelweight, both disk space required and RAM requirements middle of the road performance compared to antiX with ICEWM. antiX does come complete so size installed brings all needed for daily usage. And a highly advanced toolset on top. It also was one of the first distros to offer the easy adblock setup option.
6 • Ubuntu variants (by Jeff on 2022-04-25 06:41:11 GMT from Switzerland)
@5 All official Ubuntu variants use the Firefox Snap package. For Ubuntu based OS with no Snaps use Linux Mint or Trisquel.
7 • Lightweight systems (by Magda on 2022-04-25 07:27:38 GMT from Germany)
@3 Perhaps this might be because devs, that already are getting sloppier in terms of developing efficient programs, don't really know, or tend to ignore for various reasons, what the de-facto low-level standard regarding hardware is, and some vocal Linux users online aren't helping, either. In practice, the most common type of hardware you'll encounter outside of tech sites online encompasses low-end machines capable of 4 and 8 GB RAM max, yet RAM doesn't determine the performance of an OS as much as CPU and GPU do – vendor-specific configuration among low-end hardware can be quite odd, if not even bad on purpose (planned obsolescence), in some cases and this issue appears to become more prevalent. This becomes pretty noticeable the older your current hardware is, given you keep track of CPU/GPU performance and compare specs. This might explain why advanced distributions like Puppy provide extra GUI tools to adjust the OS to low-end and outdated components with a little less hassle, though, of course, this really shouldn't be something the "average end-user" should have to deal with, and likely never will, anyway.
Distros such as Ubuntu, on the other hand, pretty much are "forced" to follow the "latest trends" due to their popularity and some vocal users pretty much demanding big distros to be "more like Windows". And although switching from Windows 10/11 to Ubuntu still provides significant relief to aging or poorly-configured hardware, and devs mostly ignoring people like Artem S. Tashkinov, the biggest distributions – and the dozens, if not hundreds of projects shaping said distros – are (more or less) doomed to follow a similar path in terms of "bloat", especially if they desire to *appear* to be suited for non-Linux users, as well, and increase their user base in the process. The underlying issues are not exclusive to Linux and more part of a general trend within software development: Appearance over technical efficiency.
8 • @7 (by James on 2022-04-25 10:43:31 GMT from United States)
Distros such as Ubuntu, on the other hand, pretty much are "forced" to follow the "latest trends" due to their popularity and some vocal users pretty much demanding big distros to be "more like Windows".
I switched from Windows for a reason. The last thing I want is Linux to be more Windows like.
9 • Linux SHOULD be unique. (by Bob on 2022-04-25 11:08:02 GMT from United States)
@8 "The last thing I want is Linux to be more Windows like."
I agree with you 100%.
10 • peppermint Article (by pat on 2022-04-25 12:40:02 GMT from United States)
Hi. It might be helpful if you could post a chart showing by memory usage each distro's classification as a light, low medium, high medium or the various shades of heavy. Thanks. Like those Twains too!
11 • Windows like... (by Friar Tux on 2022-04-25 14:00:02 GMT from Canada)
@8 &@9... "Windows like..." If you mean the placement of a task bar/panel then Windows like is a good thing. When I switched from Windows to Linux, "Windows like" is what I went for as it allowed me, and The Wife, to carry on with our work without much interruption. Muscle memory plays a big part in working on a computer, so Windows like is a huge benefit when switching. I tried the recent iteration of Gnome but found it unworkable. I chose Cinnamon because it IS Windows like. You are not going to get a lot of Windows converts if Linux is too radically different. In fact, those who WANT to switch will feel trapped in Windows because Linux is TOO different. This, to a point already happens, now. By the way, early on, ALL GUI OS's looked like Windows - or rather looked like each other. It was, sort of, "The Trend", though not really a trend. Windows 95/98, Motif, CDE, early KDE, even early Gnome, all had similar element, and placement of those elements, on screen. There are still themes for most DE's out there that have a "nostalgic" design to them. I have a couple just for fun. @10 (pat) I love those Twain quotes, too. (Especially since The Wife is a Twain aficionado.)
12 • peppermint (by winr5 on 2022-04-25 15:15:14 GMT from Germany)
relatively small collection of software makes for a small footprint. Peppermint consumes about 5GB of disk space.
No browser, No Libreoffice, Claiming 5GB installed is lightweight is a sad joke To do anything useful with the system requires installing a lot of heavy software on top for even general usage.
13 • Windows vs. Linux (by Magda on 2022-04-25 15:31:44 GMT from Germany)
@11 If I remember correctly, GUI played no role in the failure of LiMux, a project initiated and later killed by the city of Munich. And end-users can differ vastly from each other, depending on who you ask. While an employee from my health insurance gets a mental BSOD when explaining "software versions" to her, my mother (mid-50s, home user) is capable, though a little out of practice, of using a computer with just TTY and can navigate herself through my Arch machine quite well, despite only providing a minimal WM that looks like it's straight outta a certain subreddit for "nice rices".
Depending on the distro, Linux doesn't differ much from Windows in terms of end-user experience. Anyone can get adjusted to a different DE, as long as they got the motivation to sincerely revise their routines. I mean, we got used to smartphones, too, and they didn't (and often still don't) resemble Desktops in many aspects.
14 • Windows-like...uh, no thanks (by Liam on 2022-04-25 16:45:47 GMT from United States)
I dislike the Windows interface—even Windows 11 is still mired in 1990s UI design. It's the main reason I don't like Mint in general and Cinnamon in particular. It's a blatant Windows clone, and the Mate and Xfce versions are configured the same way. It always astounds me how many Linux users talk about how bad and unusable Windows is, then complain if someone takes away their Start menu sitting in a tray on the bottom of the screen and their min-max-close window buttons in the opposite corner.
15 • @11 Friar Tux: (by dragonmouth on 2022-04-25 17:21:29 GMT from United States)
"Windows converts" want Linux to run Windows programs natively, have the exact look & feel and the exact same functionality as Windows but not be from Redmond and come at no cost. I don't see/hear anybody complaining that OS/X must be made "more Windows-like".
Linux IS NOT Windows and never will be (hopefully). Get used to it.
I have not used Windows in about 15 years. When I have to use it, I need my kids to interpret for me. Windows is no easier to re-learn that Linux was to learn.
16 • Ubuntu - Firefox, snapped or not (by TheTKS on 2022-04-25 17:47:02 GMT from Canada)
@4 @6
Ubuntu and Xubuntu LTS 22.04 and later will have Firefox as a Snap by default. I presume all other flavours will as well.
There is apparently a way around that: remove the Snap package and install the Firefox .deb package. I intend to try that on Xubuntu after upgrading to 22.04. I assume that would have to be done each LTS version upgrade
Do an internet search for instructions.
TKS
17 • Ooops... (by Friar Tux on 2022-04-25 18:09:14 GMT from Canada)
Hmmm... seems folks have misunderstood my post, here. The thing I was trying to say is that the "Windows like" tag is a misnomer. Windows did not invent the "Windows like" look and feel. They just went along with what was going at the time. Turns out it worked quite well for everyone AT THE TIME. Even Linux originally used it, and, thankfully still does. Muscle memory is a good thing. It helps us humans work more efficiently. Martial arts, construction, in fact, pretty well everything we do depends to some degree on muscle memory. On computers, it's no different. If you have been used to the task bar/Start Menu/etc., in a certain place, it will be harder to be productive if they suddenly move, or the screen is rearranged. I chose Linux Mint/Cinnamon BECAUSE they had a more TRADITIONAL - not Windows like - layout. And again, the traditional layout was originally universal. Even Apple used it originally. Most of us are used to it and it is quite efficient. By the way, I DO play with other setups. Two of my favourite are the desktop environment that Haiku uses (BeOS, I think), and the Window Maker window manager. I would never use those for production, though, as both require a lot of menu chasing to find anything.
18 • Peppermint (by marty on 2022-04-25 21:09:06 GMT from United States)
I tried the Debian version, but did not keep it long. I do not plan to try this newer distro. I use Mint on my machines and Raspbian on the Pi 3 and that is taking care of all that I need right now.
19 • Peppermint (by Marti on 2022-04-25 23:50:31 GMT from United States)
The latest Peppermint is on my current laptop. I have had a Peppermint on my laptops since Peppermint Ice distro, about 2010. Installing is always easy, but I also found the fact that NO web browser was automatically installed a bit odd, too. My laptop is just for e-mail, and sometimes word processing on the go. Latest LibreOffice runs fine.
Synaptic works flawlessly, as it has for me since Ubuntu 07.10. I was a bit apprehensive about the change to Debian base, especially for my wi-fi: it worked OOTB.
20 • Ubuntu Windows (by Dr. Hu on 2022-04-26 01:19:07 GMT from Philippines)
@17, Windows-like Ubuntu indeed! Funny thing is Gnome and its devs get a lot of flak for not being Windows-like enough out of the box. With respect to the memory of Gilda Radner: It's always something.
I bought an iMac just after OS X was released and immediately liked the desktop layout, minus perhaps the global menu. The iMac is long-gone, but any Linux DE I install ends up with panel at top and dock at bottom. If I can't do that properly, the DE is canned. So, Mac-like, if you wish. On Windows XP and 7 I would do the same. Now Microsoft in their abundant wisdom have locked the taskbar at the bottom and there are no docks worth having. So now when and if I use Windows, I resurrect the old creaky "muscle memory'. :) On Windows 11, in a wild fit of creativity, Microsoft decided to move the start menu to the bottom middle. I move it to the left, where God intended. If the future changes in that department and I'm still using Windows here and there, I'll go back to being a full-time Mac-worshiper.
21 • Desnapping *buntu (by silent on 2022-04-26 02:20:54 GMT from Hungary)
*buntu is no longer Linux. Creating a snap backdoor in apt is not only a security problem, it is against the FOSS KISS philosophy, Complete desnapping took me only a couple of minutes, but later on I will remove any *buntu branding, and from now on I will proudly use my own Noname Linux distribution. Please list it in Distrowatch :D
22 • *Buntu KISS @21 (by Justme on 2022-04-26 04:34:09 GMT from United States)
271 active distros and 177 waiting on DW's list, Multiple incompatible package managers, multiple "universal" packaging, lots of desktops and window managers, and you still think Linux is about keeping it simple? If you say so. . .
23 • Debian and non-free firmware (by penguinx86 on 2022-04-26 10:15:32 GMT from United States)
I like Debian, but it's incompatible with the Wifi adapter in my laptop. I tried LMDE and it has the same Wifi incompatibility problems too. I have an Intel Wifi adapter, so it's not some cheap obscure Chinese knock off. By omitting non-free drivers on the install media, Debian is useless to me. How is my laptop supposed to download missing drivers with no Wifi? But Debian isn't alone. Ubuntu doesn't include drivers for my Intel Wifi adapter, as well as many other distros. But Linux Mint works great with my Intel Wifi adapter with no driver hassles. Why can't more distros be like Linux Mint?
24 • Vista (by Bob on 2022-04-26 10:52:36 GMT from United States)
@15 "I don't see/hear anybody complaining that OS/X must be made more Windows-like."
Funny you should mention that. All those many years ago, the first time I saw Vista, I asked the owner "Is this a Mac?"
25 • non-free drivers (by Barry on 2022-04-26 11:06:50 GMT from United Kingdom)
I agree with what penguinx86 is getting at. Though personally I find that PClinxOS does all I need.
And this could be said nearly every week here on the comments section: Most people use their computer as a tool. They aren't bothered about the 'chin stroking' and philosophizing about how a distro should be all free and open source and that in an ideal world that should be fine, despite the fact that it's not an ideal world and it won't get the job done without including such things for a lot of people. I don't thing is thought of as an ethical problem to the average person.
26 • @23 • Debian and non-free firmware (by penguinx86 (by zcatav on 2022-04-26 12:03:50 GMT from Turkey)
You can try, Unofficial installers with non-free firmware, helpful for some network and video adapters, can be downloaded from Unofficial non-free images including firmware packages.
https://cdimage.debian.org/cdimage/unofficial/non-free/cd-including-firmware/
27 • @20 by Dr. Hu (by AdamFirst on 2022-04-26 14:23:49 GMT from United States)
"any Linux DE I install ends up with panel at top and dock at bottom. If I can't do that properly, the DE is canned" AMEN!
Y'all are free to worship where you will.
28 • Snappery etc (by Cheker on 2022-04-26 15:35:13 GMT from Portugal)
Sad state of affairs in the Ubuntu ecosystem. I swear the spinoffs didn't have snap this ingrained in them, but maybe I just hadn't noticed. The twists and turns to install a browser the true way are a little pathetic. I'm glad Trisquel got a shoutout a couple of comments above, it's marginally related to the other topic of this week (whether firmware being libre is important or not.)
Of all of the FSF approved distros that I have tried, Trisquel is the only one that feels mature and had no gaga whatsoever upon installing. I tried it a while back in my old desktop, and it just worked. Can't say the same for PureOS, Dragora, Guix... I'm sure those distros all have their purposes, but Trisquel is the only one I would consider putting in front of an inexperienced user.
29 • unfree Debian (by Tad Strange on 2022-04-26 16:08:14 GMT from Canada)
Got to agree with the blurb about Debian.
I mean, I get it - the whole purity business, but they certainly don't make it easy or obvious where to get a full featured installer: Just a link dumping you unceremoniously at the root of the server directory to let you puzzle out just what you might need, whereas the download link from the main page helpfully initiates a download of an appropriate libre-ISO the moment that the link is clicked.
The disdain for the ordinary pragmatic user is palpable.
And it has always been that way.
30 • Linux: Great server OS.... (by CS on 2022-04-26 17:22:11 GMT from United States)
@23
"I like Debian, but it's incompatible with the Wifi adapter in my laptop" - this is by far the biggest gripe I have about Linux distros and why I would never recommend using Linux on a laptop to anyone, lest I turn into the help desk.
"But Linux Mint works great with my Intel Wifi adapter with no driver hassles. Why can't more distros be like Linux Mint?"
Various flavors of Linux have various flavors of extremists who think various kinds of firmware need to be kept out for ideological reasons. Has this led to an upsurge of open firmware? Not that I can tell, in truth it just shifts the burden to users, who must find workarounds, and reinforces the perception that Linux is unusable for most people.
31 • @30 (by kc1di on 2022-04-26 17:55:41 GMT from United States)
Hi, Debian indeed errs on the side of caution when it come to wifi drivers. It will not ship with an propriety drivers. And thus your problem with your intel wireless on Debian Then to make a non-free version that ships with the needed drivers and firmware. But it's not obvious from the web page that you need to down load it. Mint is a fine Distro and I've used it on a variety of boxes and it has always worked well. But if you don't mind chasing down the firmware and drives Debian is also a good Distro. If it were not then the likes of Ubuntu/Mint would not be based upon it. Along with may others. Some distros just have a ideological aversion to any non free software.
32 • #22 *buntu KISS (by silent on 2022-04-26 18:13:58 GMT from Hungary)
The freedom of choice is really important, so it is good that there are many package managers and lots of free applications and there are several distributions as well for different use cases, for example for experimenting. The problem is - as described in the Linux Mint documentation: "Some APT packages in the Ubuntu repositories not only install snap as a dependency but also run snap commands as root without your knowledge or consent and connect your computer to the remote proprietary store operated by Canonical". Therefore it is more secure to remove snapd and put it on hold in apt - and by that remove any installed snapped APT meta packages. But then it makes much more sense to use another Debian based distro without snapped APT meta packages than using APT packages from PPA's with an unclear level of security.
33 • Debian and non-free firmware (by JeffC on 2022-04-26 22:25:53 GMT from United States)
For so long they have all but hidden the images with the firmware many (most?) users need to make their hardware work down the website equivalent of a sketchy alley into the ghetto.
Due to that I have come to view Debian as not so much a distro but a parts kit for other people to build a distro on.
The Amish make nice furniture, but most people would not want to live like them to have it.
34 • @32 Ubuntu and FOSS, @23 Debian firmware (by Justme on 2022-04-27 01:08:02 GMT from United States)
"The freedom of choice is really important" -Now you're talking, and that's one thing FOSS is about, not some "KISS" principle. In fact, with everyone pulling in their own disparate directions, things can get just a tad complicated. There are people who think it would be better with everyone pulling in the same direction, but that would require some kind on dictator (or at least a competent cat herder), and there goes the "Free" in FOSS; and since it's also "Open Source" anyone can tell the 'leaders' where they can put their directions. What is or is not a secure way of downloading software needs more than just an assertion, but that is for another day and another place. For the record, I have Ubuntu and Kubuntu 22.04 on two PCs with nary a snap to the cartload. Snaps annoy me, but I'm not religious about it.
@23, "non-free firmware" -I've read the same complaint from you before here. I have now and in the past run Ubuntu and variants, Debian, Devuan, PCLinuxOS, MX, and many others on PCs with Intel WiFi with not a single problem. I am running Kubuntu, Ubuntu and PCLinuxOS right now. Debian can be tricky, but they offer the firmware, or "unofficial" installers and Live ISOs with the Intel firmware. Your problem seems to me to be quite local. Examine your hardware, or your methods, or both.
35 • Debian letter (by Toran on 2022-04-27 18:45:28 GMT from Belgium)
It just does not make any sense to make iso's which can not be used. No matter what ideology is followed. Devuan has understood this, as well as Ubuntu. In a rational world a distro is only valid when usable.
36 • Workarounds... (by Friar Tux on 2022-04-28 13:46:13 GMT from Canada)
@30 (CS) "... it just shifts the burden to users, who must find workarounds..." Nope. At least not with me. When I test a distro, the final criteria to my accepting it and using it, is that it works out-of-box. If I can install the distro, and then go right to work, I deem it a good workable distro. If it need ANY post-install messing about, or "workarounds" then it's a bust and I move on. Believe me, there are very few distros that I find good and workable. Most of the ones I've tested require some form of post-install fiddling. BUT, while those distros are not for me, they do fill a niche with people that enjoy fiddling with their distros. To me, distros are a tool to get work done. If they're missing parts, or don't work as advertised, then I move on and find one that does work.
37 • Peppermint OS having Debian Stable and Unstable repos (by Bear Dogg on 2022-04-28 16:05:27 GMT from United States)
Only issue I have with Peppermint OS is it has the Debian Bullseye and Unstable repos active at the same time. I ran a sudo apt update and the update failed. I told Roberto Dohnent from PC/OpenSystems about this, and he agreed with me that they should have one or the other, not both at the same time.
38 • Peppermint ~ Thunar ~ Nemo (by dave on 2022-04-29 14:48:35 GMT from United States)
Sorta funny that they shifted to Xfce and then proceeded to not use Thunar. I wonder if Nemo uses more, less or the same amount of resources. I get that some people don't like Thunar, but it's a strange choice imo; seems like an unnecessary amount of work for the maintainer(s) of the distribution.
39 • Non-Free Firmware (by Justin on 2022-04-29 16:34:05 GMT from United States)
I really, really hope that Debian takes up that proposal to have a non-free-firmware repository. Firmware for hardware and application software are two very different things. The "philosophy", development cycle, even the personalities are vastly different.
If you can't solve everything at once, divide and conquer. I can live with non-free-firmware given the current industry state. I love the notification proposal to let me know what hardware is a problem. Then I can choose to avoid it in the future. I tried Trisquel on a laptop. Wifi and everything worked except for backlight control. That is a big deal for me (eye issues), so I had to stop using. I wasn't going to ditch the laptop, but I also don't have more knowledge of even what _would_ be supported as free/libre so that I could make a more informed choice. It will still be a nightmare for prebuilt laptops since you don't have much control, but Linux reviewers could show the results of some scan or that message to, again, help inform users that care and want that knowledge.
Currently hardware vendors have little reason to care--they make hardware not software. Proprietary or libre firmware makes them no more money. Unless they see value in it, it won't happen. At least educating users who could be advocates or care enough to point it out (maybe in a review how the following laptop has X non-free components) can move the situation forward.
I really like the idea of a scanner tool. Does one exist already? Maybe even one that uploads to a database a la something like CPU benchmark scores?
40 • LCD backlight control (by Just a little boy on 2022-04-29 21:14:21 GMT from Brazil)
"I tried Trisquel on a laptop. Wifi and everything worked except for backlight control. That is a big deal for me (eye issues), so I had to stop using."
If Trisquel (or any other Linux distro) is unable to adjust the luminous intensity of your laptop's LCD backlight, then try to make it by means of setting up the BIOS/UEFI.
Number of Comments: 40
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Archives |
• Issue 1108 (2025-02-10): Serpent OS 0.24.6, Aurora, sharing swap between distros, Peppermint tries Void base, GTK removinglegacy technologies, Red Hat plans more AI tools for Fedora, TrueNAS merges its editions |
• Issue 1107 (2025-02-03): siduction 2024.1.0, timing tasks, Lomiri ported to postmarketOS, Alpine joins Open Collective, a new desktop for Linux called Orbitiny |
• Issue 1106 (2025-01-27): Adelie Linux 1.0 Beta 6, Pop!_OS 24.04 Alpha 5, detecting whether a process is inside a virtual machine, drawing graphics to NetBSD terminal, Nix ported to FreeBSD, GhostBSD hosting desktop conference |
• Issue 1105 (2025-01-20): CentOS 10 Stream, old Flatpak bundles in software centres, Haiku ports Iceweasel, Oracle shows off debugging tools, rsync vulnerability patched |
• Issue 1104 (2025-01-13): DAT Linux 2.0, Silly things to do with a minimal computer, Budgie prepares Wayland only releases, SteamOS coming to third-party devices, Murena upgrades its base |
• Issue 1103 (2025-01-06): elementary OS 8.0, filtering ads with Pi-hole, Debian testing its installer, Pop!_OS faces delays, Ubuntu Studio upgrades not working, Absolute discontinued |
• Issue 1102 (2024-12-23): Best distros of 2024, changing a process name, Fedora to expand Btrfs support and releases Asahi Remix 41, openSUSE patches out security sandbox and donations from Bottles while ending support for Leap 15.5 |
• Issue 1101 (2024-12-16): GhostBSD 24.10.1, sending attachments from the command line, openSUSE shows off GPU assignment tool, UBports publishes security update, Murena launches its first tablet, Xfce 4.20 released |
• Issue 1100 (2024-12-09): Oreon 9.3, differences in speed, IPFire's new appliance, Fedora Asahi Remix gets new video drivers, openSUSE Leap Micro updated, Redox OS running Redox OS |
• Issue 1099 (2024-12-02): AnduinOS 1.0.1, measuring RAM usage, SUSE continues rebranding efforts, UBports prepares for next major version, Murena offering non-NFC phone |
• Issue 1098 (2024-11-25): Linux Lite 7.2, backing up specific folders, Murena and Fairphone partner in fair trade deal, Arch installer gets new text interface, Ubuntu security tool patched |
• Issue 1097 (2024-11-18): Chimera Linux vs Chimera OS, choosing between AlmaLinux and Debian, Fedora elevates KDE spin to an edition, Fedora previews new installer, KDE testing its own distro, Qubes-style isolation coming to FreeBSD |
• Issue 1096 (2024-11-11): Bazzite 40, Playtron OS Alpha 1, Tucana Linux 3.1, detecting Screen sessions, Redox imports COSMIC software centre, FreeBSD booting on the PinePhone Pro, LXQt supports Wayland window managers |
• Issue 1095 (2024-11-04): Fedora 41 Kinoite, transferring applications between computers, openSUSE Tumbleweed receives multiple upgrades, Ubuntu testing compiler optimizations, Mint partners with Framework |
• Issue 1094 (2024-10-28): DebLight OS 1, backing up crontab, AlmaLinux introduces Litten branch, openSUSE unveils refreshed look, Ubuntu turns 20 |
• Issue 1093 (2024-10-21): Kubuntu 24.10, atomic vs immutable distributions, Debian upgrading Perl packages, UBports adding VoLTE support, Android to gain native GNU/Linux application support |
• Issue 1092 (2024-10-14): FunOS 24.04.1, a home directory inside a file, work starts of openSUSE Leap 16.0, improvements in Haiku, KDE neon upgrades its base |
• Issue 1091 (2024-10-07): Redox OS 0.9.0, Unified package management vs universal package formats, Redox begins RISC-V port, Mint polishes interface, Qubes certifies new laptop |
• Issue 1090 (2024-09-30): Rhino Linux 2024.2, commercial distros with alternative desktops, Valve seeks to improve Wayland performance, HardenedBSD parterns with Protectli, Tails merges with Tor Project, Quantum Leap partners with the FreeBSD Foundation |
• Issue 1089 (2024-09-23): Expirion 6.0, openKylin 2.0, managing configuration files, the future of Linux development, fixing bugs in Haiku, Slackware packages dracut |
• Issue 1088 (2024-09-16): PorteuX 1.6, migrating from Windows 10 to which Linux distro, making NetBSD immutable, AlmaLinux offers hardware certification, Mint updates old APT tools |
• Issue 1087 (2024-09-09): COSMIC desktop, running cron jobs at variable times, UBports highlights new apps, HardenedBSD offers work around for FreeBSD change, Debian considers how to cull old packages, systemd ported to musl |
• Issue 1086 (2024-09-02): Vanilla OS 2, command line tips for simple tasks, FreeBSD receives investment from STF, openSUSE Tumbleweed update can break network connections, Debian refreshes media |
• Issue 1085 (2024-08-26): Nobara 40, OpenMandriva 24.07 "ROME", distros which include source code, FreeBSD publishes quarterly report, Microsoft updates breaks Linux in dual-boot environments |
• Issue 1084 (2024-08-19): Liya 2.0, dual boot with encryption, Haiku introduces performance improvements, Gentoo dropping IA-64, Redcore merges major upgrade |
• Issue 1083 (2024-08-12): TrueNAS 24.04.2 "SCALE", Linux distros for smartphones, Redox OS introduces web server, PipeWire exposes battery drain on Linux, Canonical updates kernel version policy |
• Issue 1082 (2024-08-05): Linux Mint 22, taking snapshots of UFS on FreeBSD, openSUSE updates Tumbleweed and Aeon, Debian creates Tiny QA Tasks, Manjaro testing immutable images |
• Issue 1081 (2024-07-29): SysLinuxOS 12.4, OpenBSD gain hardware acceleration, Slackware changes kernel naming, Mint publishes upgrade instructions |
• Issue 1080 (2024-07-22): Running GNU/Linux on Android with Andronix, protecting network services, Solus dropping AppArmor and Snap, openSUSE Aeon Desktop gaining full disk encryption, SUSE asks openSUSE to change its branding |
• Issue 1079 (2024-07-15): Ubuntu Core 24, hiding files on Linux, Fedora dropping X11 packages on Workstation, Red Hat phasing out GRUB, new OpenSSH vulnerability, FreeBSD speeds up release cycle, UBports testing new first-run wizard |
• Issue 1078 (2024-07-08): Changing init software, server machines running desktop environments, OpenSSH vulnerability patched, Peppermint launches new edition, HardenedBSD updates ports |
• Issue 1077 (2024-07-01): The Unity and Lomiri interfaces, different distros for different tasks, Ubuntu plans to run Wayland on NVIDIA cards, openSUSE updates Leap Micro, Debian releases refreshed media, UBports gaining contact synchronisation, FreeDOS celebrates its 30th anniversary |
• Issue 1076 (2024-06-24): openSUSE 15.6, what makes Linux unique, SUSE Liberty Linux to support CentOS Linux 7, SLE receives 19 years of support, openSUSE testing Leap Micro edition |
• Issue 1075 (2024-06-17): Redox OS, X11 and Wayland on the BSDs, AlmaLinux releases Pi build, Canonical announces RISC-V laptop with Ubuntu, key changes in systemd |
• Issue 1074 (2024-06-10): Endless OS 6.0.0, distros with init diversity, Mint to filter unverified Flatpaks, Debian adds systemd-boot options, Redox adopts COSMIC desktop, OpenSSH gains new security features |
• Issue 1073 (2024-06-03): LXQt 2.0.0, an overview of Linux desktop environments, Canonical partners with Milk-V, openSUSE introduces new features in Aeon Desktop, Fedora mirrors see rise in traffic, Wayland adds OpenBSD support |
• Issue 1072 (2024-05-27): Manjaro 24.0, comparing init software, OpenBSD ports Plasma 6, Arch community debates mirror requirements, ThinOS to upgrade its FreeBSD core |
• Issue 1071 (2024-05-20): Archcraft 2024.04.06, common command line mistakes, ReactOS imports WINE improvements, Haiku makes adjusting themes easier, NetBSD takes a stand against code generated by chatbots |
• Issue 1070 (2024-05-13): Damn Small Linux 2024, hiding kernel messages during boot, Red Hat offers AI edition, new web browser for UBports, Fedora Asahi Remix 40 released, Qubes extends support for version 4.1 |
• Issue 1069 (2024-05-06): Ubuntu 24.04, installing packages in alternative locations, systemd creates sudo alternative, Mint encourages XApps collaboration, FreeBSD publishes quarterly update |
• Issue 1068 (2024-04-29): Fedora 40, transforming one distro into another, Debian elects new Project Leader, Red Hat extends support cycle, Emmabuntus adds accessibility features, Canonical's new security features |
• Issue 1067 (2024-04-22): LocalSend for transferring files, detecting supported CPU architecure levels, new visual design for APT, Fedora and openSUSE working on reproducible builds, LXQt released, AlmaLinux re-adds hardware support |
• Issue 1066 (2024-04-15): Fun projects to do with the Raspberry Pi and PinePhone, installing new software on fixed-release distributions, improving GNOME Terminal performance, Mint testing new repository mirrors, Gentoo becomes a Software In the Public Interest project |
• Issue 1065 (2024-04-08): Dr.Parted Live 24.03, answering questions about the xz exploit, Linux Mint to ship HWE kernel, AlmaLinux patches flaw ahead of upstream Red Hat, Calculate changes release model |
• Issue 1064 (2024-04-01): NixOS 23.11, the status of Hurd, liblzma compromised upstream, FreeBSD Foundation focuses on improving wireless networking, Ubuntu Pro offers 12 years of support |
• Issue 1063 (2024-03-25): Redcore Linux 2401, how slowly can a rolling release update, Debian starts new Project Leader election, Red Hat creating new NVIDIA driver, Snap store hit with more malware |
• Issue 1062 (2024-03-18): KDE neon 20240304, changing file permissions, Canonical turns 20, Pop!_OS creates new software centre, openSUSE packages Plasma 6 |
• Issue 1061 (2024-03-11): Using a PinePhone as a workstation, restarting background services on a schedule, NixBSD ports Nix to FreeBSD, Fedora packaging COSMIC, postmarketOS to adopt systemd, Linux Mint replacing HexChat |
• Issue 1060 (2024-03-04): AV Linux MX-23.1, bootstrapping a network connection, key OpenBSD features, Qubes certifies new hardware, LXQt and Plasma migrate to Qt 6 |
• Issue 1059 (2024-02-26): Warp Terminal, navigating manual pages, malware found in the Snap store, Red Hat considering CPU requirement update, UBports organizes ongoing work |
• Issue 1058 (2024-02-19): Drauger OS 7.6, how much disk space to allocate, System76 prepares to launch COSMIC desktop, UBports changes its version scheme, TrueNAS to offer faster deduplication |
• Issue 1057 (2024-02-12): Adelie Linux 1.0 Beta, rolling release vs fixed for a smoother experience, Debian working on 2038 bug, elementary OS to split applications from base system updates, Fedora announces Atomic Desktops |
• Issue 1056 (2024-02-05): wattOS R13, the various write speeds of ISO writing tools, DSL returns, Mint faces Wayland challenges, HardenedBSD blocks foreign USB devices, Gentoo publishes new repository, Linux distros patch glibc flaw |
• Full list of all issues |
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Random Distribution | 
STUX GNU/Linux
STUX GNU/Linux was a Linux system that runs from a CD-ROM; STUX can automatically load and save main configuration and personal files on a writable partition. It was based on Slackware Linux.
Status: Discontinued
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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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