 DistroWatch Weekly |
| DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 1043, 30 October 2023 |
Welcome to this year's 44th issue of DistroWatch Weekly!
Most of us are familiar with the concept of updating software installed on our devices, whether they are workstations, laptops, or mobile phones. Fetching new versions of programs is a common, almost daily occurrence for some of us. However, few of us ponder what happens to the old versions of programs which are no longer needed. Are they erased, kept in archives, or overwritten? This week, in our Questions and Answers column, we talk about what happens to old versions of packages when updates are installed. A lot of desktop packages are assembled using software toolkits, libraries of code that help developers create applications more quickly. Different toolkits tend to result in slightly different styles of applications and different features. Does the toolkit used to build an application make it more or less appealing to you? Let us know what you think in the Opinion Poll.
We begin this week with a Feature Story about the new Murena Two, a smart phone which offers hardware switches for enabling privacy. The phone offers two switches to help users quickly disable phone features and we cover how these work below. We continue our discussion of mobile devices in our News section as UBports - an open source, GNU/Linux distribution for mobile platforms - is being offered as a pre-installed option on a range of Volla phones. We also talk about Peppermint OS building a new, ARM-powered edition based on Devuan while the Linux Foundation talks about versions of the Linux kernel which will receive ten years of support. The Linux Mint monthly newsletter provided some interesting updates for beta testers and we cover the highlights. Plus we are pleased to share the releases of the past week and list the torrents we are seeding. Finally, we would like to thank everyone who sent in donations this month, your support is always appreciated. We wish you all a wonderful week and happy reading!
This week's DistroWatch Weekly is presented by TUXEDO Computers.
Content:
|
| Feature Story (By Jesse Smith) |
The Murena Two with privacy switches
Murena is an organization which develops and distributes an open source operating system which takes Android and strips away the Google components, replacing them with privacy-focused alternatives. Open source applications and Nextcloud-based services are generally offered in place of Google's proprietary defaults.
Murena not only provides operating system images which can be installed on many Android phones, the organization also sells mobile devices with its /e/OS operating system pre-installed. I've shared my experiences with two of these custom devices in the recent past, writing about the Murena One and the repairable Fairphone 4.
The latest device in the growing Murena line-up is the Murena Two. This device appears to be an overall upgrade to the Murena One phone, with one intriguing new feature: hardware privacy switches. I received an early model of the new Murena Two and was intrigued to see how the switches would work in practise.
The hardware
The box my phone arrived in contained the Murena Two device, a pin for opening the dual-bay SIM slot, a phone case, and a USB-C to USB-C cable. When I took the phone out of the box I noticed the power button and the volume controls are both on the right side of the display.
There are two small hardware switches on the sides of the phone (one on each side of the screen), near the top of the device. One switch, the one to the left of the display, toggles the camera and microphone on/off. The second switch toggles airplane mode and do-not-disturb functions. I'll come back to talk about these switches later.
The phone sports an 8-core ARM CPU running at about 2.1GHz along with 8GB of RAM. The device has 128GB of internal storage and can gain more via a microSD card. The display is approximately 6.4-inches across (1080x2400 pixels) and weighs just 182g. There are two sets of cameras, a rear-facing 64 megapixel camera and a face-facing 25 megapixel camera.
The device supports many network types, including VoLTE, 4G, 3G, and 2G networks. This allows it to function with most North American networks and, I believe, a range of European networks as well. Additional information on the phone's hardware can be found in the device specifications.
Murena Two running /e/OS 1.15 -- The privacy switch on the right side of the phone
(full image size: 4.5MB, resolution: 3575x1199 pixels)
Initial impressions
I talked about the process of setting up and using key features of Murena's /e/OS in the past on the Murena One and the Fairphone 4, so I will skip over the features common across all three devices to focus on the key component of the Murena Two: hardware privacy switches.
Hardware privacy switches
There are, as I mentioned, two hardware switches on the Murena Two to help us protect our privacy. I am not aware of any official name for them and eventually came to think of these as the Input and Output privacy switches. The first switch (the one I mentally labelled Input) toggles the microphone and camera on/off. The Output switch silences the phone (electronically and audibly). The Output privacy switch places the phone in airplane mode, enables do-not-disturb, and silences audio output.
Something I appreciate about the Input switch is that it effectively mutes the microphone and blinds the camera, but doesn't cause applications using these bits of hardware to malfunction. For instance, if I click the Input switch while making a voice memo, the app continues to record, it just records silence. When operating the camera app, hitting the Input switch will prevent a photo or video from being taken, but it doesn't crash the app. I found toggling Input back on and then switching the camera view (between front/back) or switching between camera and video modes would cause the camera app to pick up where it left off.
In other words, the Input switch works and it doesn't cause any nasty behaviour in software utilities when we use it. From the software's perspective, the microphone and camera still exist, they just aren't providing any new data.
The second switch, the one I think of as Output, works a little differently. When the Input switch is toggled it physically blocks the use of the camera and microphone, there isn't anything the phone's software can do about it until the switch is toggled again. The Output switch takes a different approach and works with the software settings rather than overriding the software.
The Output switch basically causes airplane mode and do-not-disturb mode to be enabled while the audio is muted. These settings can be toggled in the Settings panel too, individually. The hardware switch acts as another way (a shortcut) to turn airplane and do-not-disturb modes on/off, but it doesn't override the software settings. This means I can turn on airplane mode with the hardware switch and turn it off in the settings panel. Alternatively, I can turn on do-not-disturb in the settings panel and later disable it with the hardware switch.
This approach of using the hardware switch to acting as a shortcut to toggling key features on/off alongside the software options rather than overriding the software settings is unusual and not how privacy switches typically work on other devices I've tried in the past, such as the PinePhone. I asked Murena about this and founder Gaël Duval replied with a response that the team plans to make it possible to use the Output switch for a variety of purposes. This may include an option for the user to customize its function. He wrote:
The other physical switch triggers software actions. In our case we have chosen to make it disable network and sound. This can be overridden by the user in /e/OS. We are still working to improve this, so that the state of airplane mode and sound in the OS will be strictly bound to the switch position. But it's not finished yet and we don't think it's a big problem: this button is set to a software action that, in all cases, is triggered by the user (button or on screen). We're also planning to offer customization options to the user for the second button, to let him chose to trigger other software actions.
Other privacy options
Along with the new hardware switches on the Murena Two, the device also features three software privacy switches. I've talked about these in the past, but I feel they are worth mentioning again in this context. On the phone's widget screen (to the left of the home screen) there is a widget which contains three toggle switches. These are labelled: Tracking, Location, and Real IP Address.
The first toggle is enabled by default and tries to prevent trackers in apps from reporting home. For example, after I used the web browser the security module reported there had been multiple attempts by the browser to send information to Google's tracking servers which were blocked.
Murena Two running /e/OS 1.15 -- The privacy widget
(full image size: 165kB, resolution: 1080x2400 pixels)
The second switch toggles spoofing our location. This causes applications and widgets which want to discover our location to be given a false position. This plays havoc with weather and GPS apps, but might be helpful if you want to mislead an application as to where you are.
The third switch toggles whether to route traffic through a virtual private network (VPN). This hides our IP address and makes it look like we're connected to the Internet from another location.
Other observations
The Murena Two model I was testing ships with /e/OS 1.15 which is based on Android 13. Its software centre connects to both the Google Play application store and the F-Droid open source software repository.
This device doesn't charge wirelessly, but does charge quickly when plugged into a power source or my workstation using a USB-C cable.
When the phone is powered off and plugged in a battery icon appears on the screen, along with a message which says "Your device has been unlocked and can't be trusted. Your device will boot in 5 seconds." Device does not boot though, unless we press power button. When I asked about this, a spokesperson for Murena said it was due to my device being an early demo model and this message will not appear in the final product:
This evaluation unit has an unlocked boot loader. This will be updated and corrected for launch. This translates to the Mediatek screen upon startup. It is called the Orange state. This will be addressed by launch. As the phone boot loader will be locked, this screen will not be there any longer.
Conclusions
The Murena Two device takes the existing platform offered by Murena and takes it one step further. The organization already provided a de-Googled, mobile operating system which is compatible with the rest of the Android ecosystem. Murena also already provided cloud-based services based on open source technology and it offers software widgets to improve privacy on its mobile devices. People running /e/OS also benefit from having direct access to the F-Droid repository and anonymous access to Google's Play store. All of these features make Murena devices appealing from a security and privacy perspective.
The new Murena Two moves us one step forward in the evolution with hardware switches. Now we can quickly kill audio-visual input to the camera and microphone. Now we can instantly kill outgoing audio and electronic transmissions using the second switch. If I want to bring sound, tracking, or GPS signals to a suddenly stop, it's a flick of a switch away.
Something I particularly like about the new Murena Two over some other devices, such as the PinePhone, is the Murena hardware switches are on the outside of the case. When I tested the PinePhone I had to take the cover off the back of the device and use a small tool to adjust the privacy switches. With the Two the switches can be flicked using my finger or thumb without interrupting what I'm doing and while the device is still running.
This is a small, though interesting step forward. It sounds as though there are plans to add more functionality and the ability to customize the behaviour of the phone's switches in future operating system updates. I think this is good because it's making privacy more accessible to non-technical users and doing so while leveraging the existing Android software ecosystem. This makes the Two more attractive and easier to switch to for most users compared to other privacy and security oriented efforts like Manjaro's mobile operating system or UBports.
* * * * *
Visitor supplied rating
Murena has a visitor supplied average rating of: 8.7/10 from 18 review(s).
Have you used Murena? You can leave your own review of the project on our ratings page.
|
| Miscellaneous News (by Jesse Smith) |
UBports shipping on Volla devices, Peppermint releases new ARM-powered build, Linux kernels with ten years of support offered, Mint tests Wayland support for Cinnamon
It is not always easy to find mobile devices with GNU/Linux distributions pre-installed on them, as opposed to a flavour of Android. This is especially true when people are hoping to find a device which ships with a GNU/Linux community project such as UBports. The UBports team has partnered with Volla Phone in order to offer the open source distribution pre-installed on some Volla devices. The UBports newsletter mentions this partnership briefly: "Volla Phone are one of our long time sponsors and they are offering a chance to win a Volla 22. In addition they are donating €10 to UBports for every phone sold with UT pre-installed." Volla phone models which ship with UBports can be found in the company's shop.
* * * * *
The Peppermint OS team have expanded their series of editions, this time publishing install media for ARM processors. The new edition is built upon the Devuan distribution and features the Xfce desktop. "Finally we have released our Devuan ARM, build for those in the in the community who wish to be systemd-free, with your ARM architecture." All Peppermint OS builds, including the new ARM-powered editions, can be found on the project's download page.
* * * * *
The Linux Foundation has announced that there is now a long-term support (LTS) branch of the Linux kernel for version 6.1. The Civil Infrastructure Platform (CIP) supports key versions of the Linux kernel for ten years (regular LTS versions of Linux receive two years of support). "While regular LTS kernels are moving back to 2 years maintenance, CIP kernels are set up for 10 years. In order to enable this extended lifetime, CIP kernels are scoped-down in actively supported kernel features and target architecture. At the same time, CIP kernels accept non-invasive backports from newer mainline kernels that enable new hardware."
* * * * *
The Linux Mint project published its monthly newsletter for October which introduced some new features along with channels for beta testers to try. The new features include easy access to beta packages (in a repository called Romeo) and marking channels in the Hypnotix video streaming application as favourites. The developers are also testing Wayland support for Cinnamon. "The work started on Wayland. As mentioned earlier this year, this was identified as one of the major challenges our project had to tackle in the mid to long term. Priority had been given to ISO tools and Secure Boot over new features for 21.3 already, we felt it was time to invest some resources into Wayland as well. We don't expect it to replace Xorg as default any time soon, not in 21.3, not in 22.x, but we want to be ready all the same. Cinnamon 6.0, planned for Mint 21.3 this year, will feature experimental Wayland support. You'll be able to select between Cinnamon (the default session, running on Xorg) and Cinnamon on Wayland from the login screen." Progress and known issues with the Wayland session will be tracked on the Cinnamon Wayland Trello page.
* * * * *
These and other news stories can be found on our Headlines page.
|
| Questions and Answers (by Jesse Smith) |
Where do files go once they have been updated?
Whither-the-files asks: How does Linux determine what file, or files, are installed during the download/update process? In other words, does Linux install files that are not in use immediately and then install those files that are in use during a reboot?
Also, what happens to the old files, are they saved in a hidden directory or removed from the system entirely? In the case of openSUSE Tumbleweed, I'm guessing that they are saved in a hidden directory for use later in the case of a rollback.
DistroWatch answers:
What you are describing - the fetching, updating, and replacement of files - is the behaviour of a package manager. The various package managers handle things slightly differently. However, what typically happens is new downloaded packages (which are archives - files which contains multiple files) are unpacked and the files inside the archives are installed on the system immediately, overwriting or replacing the old copies of the files.
Typically each package contains a manifest which tells the package manager where its files should be placed on our system. This allows the package manager to check to see if it needs to remove any old files, create new ones, or replace existing files.
Unless you're using an immutable filesystem, or Fedora Workstation, updates typically don't wait for a reboot before they are applied. The package manager usually overwrites the old copy of your software right away. This is okay because any open programs are running in your computer's memory and are not affected by their executable file being changed on the disk.
Typically, old versions of files are simply erased or overwritten during the update process. As far as I know, no package managers use hidden directories to store old copies of files or packages. So how do rollback operations happen?
openSUSE supplies rollbacks through Btr filesystem snapshots. The old versions of files are not kept in a separate directory, they're in another version of the filesystem. Put another way, the old file is still on the disk, it just isn't visible to the user without accessing the old snapshot. Old snapshots can be browsed using a special utility which knows how to explore Btrfs snapshots. On openSUSE the tool to do this is called Snapper while on Linux Mint it's typically Timeshift.
* * * * *
Additional answers can be found in our Questions and Answers archive.
|
| Released Last Week |
TrueNAS 23.10.0 "SCALE"
Pee Jay Latombo has announced the availability of TrueNAS SCALE 23.10, a major new update of iXsystems's specialist, Debian-based distribution providing NAS (network-attached storage) solutions. This release delivers Linux kernel 6.1 and the brand-new OpenZFS 2.2 file system, among many other improvements: "TrueNAS SCALE 23.10 'Cobia' is here. Now available for download, it is the third major release of TrueNAS SCALE. Each major release of TrueNAS SCALE has delivered improvements in quality, functionality, security, and performance. Along the way, TrueNAS SCALE has grown from 4,000 to more than 80,000 Linux-based systems in less than two years, an astronomical 400% annual growth rate. The TrueNAS SCALE 23.10.0 release version includes another 200 bug fixes and is feature-complete. The highlights of 23.10 include: Linux kernel 6.1 and improved hardware support; NVIDIA 535.54.03 driver updates; Netdata backend stats collection; scale up to 1,200 drives and 25 PB+ on a single system; improved apps UI; improved storage pool UI; simplified feedback and bug reporting; ZFS and performance improvements; OpenZFS 2.2 with many iXsystems contributions...." See the release announcement and the release notes for further details.
GhostBSD 23.10.1
GhostBSD is a FreeBSD-based operating system with a focus on desktop computing. The project's latest release introduces a kernel update and a number of networking improvements, along with minor changes. "This version might look odd from previous releases, but it is correct. After more thought into it, the base OS is not updated as much as the software packages. So, I decided to change the release version back to a static one instead of changing it on each software package update. Software packages will be updated as often as possible, like before, and if there are significant issues, changes, or security issues before 24.01.1, a 23.10.2 release will be created. See the roadmap for future releases. In this release, the FreeBSD base system and kernel have been updated to 1302508, and it contains software updates, some improvements to Update Station, and new features to NetworkMgr. Also, os-generic-userland-devtools has been removed from the default installation to downsize the live system image." The release announcement offers additional details.
* * * * *
Development, unannounced and minor bug-fix releases
|
| Torrent Corner |
Weekly Torrents
The table below provides a list of torrents DistroWatch is currently seeding. If you do not have a bittorrent client capable of handling the linked files, we suggest installing either the Transmission or KTorrent bittorrent clients.
Archives of our previously seeded torrents may be found in our Torrent Archive. We also maintain a Torrents RSS feed for people who wish to have open source torrents delivered to them. To share your own open source torrents of Linux and BSD projects, please visit our Upload Torrents page.
Torrent Corner statistics:
- Total torrents seeded: 2,920
- Total data uploaded: 43.7TB
|
| Upcoming Releases and Announcements |
|
Summary of expected upcoming releases
|
| Opinion Poll (by Jesse Smith) |
When selecting which applications to run, does the underlying toolkit matter?
Most graphical desktop applications are constructed with the help of a set of software libraries called toolkits. Typically Linux applications can constructed with either the GTK or Qt toolkits, though a handful of other options exist. The toolkit used to make an application will often affect the program's style and theme handling.
When you are selecting an application to perform a task, do you give any preference to which toolkit it was made with? Let us know why you prefer a specific toolkit in the comments.
You can see the results of our previous poll on laptop battery life in last week's edition. All previous poll results can be found in our poll archives.
|
Do you favour applications which use a specific toolkit?
| Yes - GTK: | 533 (35%) |
| Yes - Qt: | 362 (24%) |
| Yes - Other: | 29 (2%) |
| No: | 581 (39%) |
|
|
| Website News |
Donations and Sponsors
Each month we receive support and kindness from our readers in the form of donations. These donations help us keep the web server running, pay contributors, and keep infrastructure like our torrent seed box running. We'd like to thank our generous readers and acknowledge how much their contributions mean to us.
This month we're grateful for the $266 in contributions from the following kind souls:
| Donor |
Amount |
|---|
| Roland B | $100 |
| Alan M | $50 |
| J S | $50 |
| Peter R | $15 |
| Jonathon B | $10 |
| Sam C | $10 |
| Chung T | $5 |
| Darkeugene7896 | $5 |
| DuCakedHare | $5 |
| Skye F | $3 |
| Ross M | $3 |
| J.D. L | $2 |
| PB C | $2 |
| Peter M | $2 |
| c6WWldo9 | $1 |
| Stephen M | $1 |
| Shasheen E | $1 |
| William E | $1 |
* * * * *
New distributions added to waiting list
- Tux N Mix. Tux N Mix is a Manjaro-based Linux distribution which features the Cinnamon desktop. The distribution includes tools for graphic creation, music production and video editing. PipeWire and JACK sound systems are offered.
- Advanced DHCP Server Live CD. The Advanced DHCP Server Live CD distribution provides DHCP server services for multiple networks with advanced features. It uses Puppy and Ubuntu as its base.
* * * * *
DistroWatch database summary
* * * * *
This concludes this week's issue of DistroWatch Weekly. The next instalment will be published on Monday, 6 November 2023. Past articles and reviews can be found through our Weekly Archive and Article Search pages. To contact the authors please send e-mail to:
- Jesse Smith (feedback, questions and suggestions: distribution reviews/submissions, questions and answers, tips and tricks)
- Ladislav Bodnar (feedback, questions, donations, comments)
|
|
| Tip Jar |
If you've enjoyed this week's issue of DistroWatch Weekly, please consider sending us a tip.
(Tips this week: 2, value: US$29.30) |
|
|
|
 bc1qxes3k2wq3uqzr074tkwwjmwfe63z70gwzfu4lx  lnurl1dp68gurn8ghj7ampd3kx2ar0veekzar0wd5xjtnrdakj7tnhv4kxctttdehhwm30d3h82unvwqhhxarpw3jkc7tzw4ex6cfexyfua2nr  86fA3qPTeQtNb2k1vLwEQaAp3XxkvvvXt69gSG5LGunXXikK9koPWZaRQgfFPBPWhMgXjPjccy9LA9xRFchPWQAnPvxh5Le paypal.me/distrowatchweekly • patreon.com/distrowatch |
|
| Extended Lifecycle Support by TuxCare |
|
|
|
| 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.
|
| Archives |
| • Issue 1091 (2024-10-07): Redox OS 0.9.0, Unified package management vs universal package formats, Redox begins RISC-V port, Mint polishes interface, Qubes certifies new laptop |
| • Issue 1090 (2024-09-30): Rhino Linux 2024.2, commercial distros with alternative desktops, Valve seeks to improve Wayland performance, HardenedBSD parterns with Protectli, Tails merges with Tor Project, Quantum Leap partners with the FreeBSD Foundation |
| • Issue 1089 (2024-09-23): Expirion 6.0, openKylin 2.0, managing configuration files, the future of Linux development, fixing bugs in Haiku, Slackware packages dracut |
| • Issue 1088 (2024-09-16): PorteuX 1.6, migrating from Windows 10 to which Linux distro, making NetBSD immutable, AlmaLinux offers hardware certification, Mint updates old APT tools |
| • Issue 1087 (2024-09-09): COSMIC desktop, running cron jobs at variable times, UBports highlights new apps, HardenedBSD offers work around for FreeBSD change, Debian considers how to cull old packages, systemd ported to musl |
| • Issue 1086 (2024-09-02): Vanilla OS 2, command line tips for simple tasks, FreeBSD receives investment from STF, openSUSE Tumbleweed update can break network connections, Debian refreshes media |
| • Issue 1085 (2024-08-26): Nobara 40, OpenMandriva 24.07 "ROME", distros which include source code, FreeBSD publishes quarterly report, Microsoft updates breaks Linux in dual-boot environments |
| • Issue 1084 (2024-08-19): Liya 2.0, dual boot with encryption, Haiku introduces performance improvements, Gentoo dropping IA-64, Redcore merges major upgrade |
| • Issue 1083 (2024-08-12): TrueNAS 24.04.2 "SCALE", Linux distros for smartphones, Redox OS introduces web server, PipeWire exposes battery drain on Linux, Canonical updates kernel version policy |
| • Issue 1082 (2024-08-05): Linux Mint 22, taking snapshots of UFS on FreeBSD, openSUSE updates Tumbleweed and Aeon, Debian creates Tiny QA Tasks, Manjaro testing immutable images |
| • Issue 1081 (2024-07-29): SysLinuxOS 12.4, OpenBSD gain hardware acceleration, Slackware changes kernel naming, Mint publishes upgrade instructions |
| • Issue 1080 (2024-07-22): Running GNU/Linux on Android with Andronix, protecting network services, Solus dropping AppArmor and Snap, openSUSE Aeon Desktop gaining full disk encryption, SUSE asks openSUSE to change its branding |
| • Issue 1079 (2024-07-15): Ubuntu Core 24, hiding files on Linux, Fedora dropping X11 packages on Workstation, Red Hat phasing out GRUB, new OpenSSH vulnerability, FreeBSD speeds up release cycle, UBports testing new first-run wizard |
| • Issue 1078 (2024-07-08): Changing init software, server machines running desktop environments, OpenSSH vulnerability patched, Peppermint launches new edition, HardenedBSD updates ports |
| • Issue 1077 (2024-07-01): The Unity and Lomiri interfaces, different distros for different tasks, Ubuntu plans to run Wayland on NVIDIA cards, openSUSE updates Leap Micro, Debian releases refreshed media, UBports gaining contact synchronisation, FreeDOS celebrates its 30th anniversary |
| • Issue 1076 (2024-06-24): openSUSE 15.6, what makes Linux unique, SUSE Liberty Linux to support CentOS Linux 7, SLE receives 19 years of support, openSUSE testing Leap Micro edition |
| • Issue 1075 (2024-06-17): Redox OS, X11 and Wayland on the BSDs, AlmaLinux releases Pi build, Canonical announces RISC-V laptop with Ubuntu, key changes in systemd |
| • Issue 1074 (2024-06-10): Endless OS 6.0.0, distros with init diversity, Mint to filter unverified Flatpaks, Debian adds systemd-boot options, Redox adopts COSMIC desktop, OpenSSH gains new security features |
| • Issue 1073 (2024-06-03): LXQt 2.0.0, an overview of Linux desktop environments, Canonical partners with Milk-V, openSUSE introduces new features in Aeon Desktop, Fedora mirrors see rise in traffic, Wayland adds OpenBSD support |
| • Issue 1072 (2024-05-27): Manjaro 24.0, comparing init software, OpenBSD ports Plasma 6, Arch community debates mirror requirements, ThinOS to upgrade its FreeBSD core |
| • Issue 1071 (2024-05-20): Archcraft 2024.04.06, common command line mistakes, ReactOS imports WINE improvements, Haiku makes adjusting themes easier, NetBSD takes a stand against code generated by chatbots |
| • Issue 1070 (2024-05-13): Damn Small Linux 2024, hiding kernel messages during boot, Red Hat offers AI edition, new web browser for UBports, Fedora Asahi Remix 40 released, Qubes extends support for version 4.1 |
| • Issue 1069 (2024-05-06): Ubuntu 24.04, installing packages in alternative locations, systemd creates sudo alternative, Mint encourages XApps collaboration, FreeBSD publishes quarterly update |
| • Issue 1068 (2024-04-29): Fedora 40, transforming one distro into another, Debian elects new Project Leader, Red Hat extends support cycle, Emmabuntus adds accessibility features, Canonical's new security features |
| • Issue 1067 (2024-04-22): LocalSend for transferring files, detecting supported CPU architecure levels, new visual design for APT, Fedora and openSUSE working on reproducible builds, LXQt released, AlmaLinux re-adds hardware support |
| • Issue 1066 (2024-04-15): Fun projects to do with the Raspberry Pi and PinePhone, installing new software on fixed-release distributions, improving GNOME Terminal performance, Mint testing new repository mirrors, Gentoo becomes a Software In the Public Interest project |
| • Issue 1065 (2024-04-08): Dr.Parted Live 24.03, answering questions about the xz exploit, Linux Mint to ship HWE kernel, AlmaLinux patches flaw ahead of upstream Red Hat, Calculate changes release model |
| • Issue 1064 (2024-04-01): NixOS 23.11, the status of Hurd, liblzma compromised upstream, FreeBSD Foundation focuses on improving wireless networking, Ubuntu Pro offers 12 years of support |
| • Issue 1063 (2024-03-25): Redcore Linux 2401, how slowly can a rolling release update, Debian starts new Project Leader election, Red Hat creating new NVIDIA driver, Snap store hit with more malware |
| • Issue 1062 (2024-03-18): KDE neon 20240304, changing file permissions, Canonical turns 20, Pop!_OS creates new software centre, openSUSE packages Plasma 6 |
| • Issue 1061 (2024-03-11): Using a PinePhone as a workstation, restarting background services on a schedule, NixBSD ports Nix to FreeBSD, Fedora packaging COSMIC, postmarketOS to adopt systemd, Linux Mint replacing HexChat |
| • Issue 1060 (2024-03-04): AV Linux MX-23.1, bootstrapping a network connection, key OpenBSD features, Qubes certifies new hardware, LXQt and Plasma migrate to Qt 6 |
| • Issue 1059 (2024-02-26): Warp Terminal, navigating manual pages, malware found in the Snap store, Red Hat considering CPU requirement update, UBports organizes ongoing work |
| • Issue 1058 (2024-02-19): Drauger OS 7.6, how much disk space to allocate, System76 prepares to launch COSMIC desktop, UBports changes its version scheme, TrueNAS to offer faster deduplication |
| • Issue 1057 (2024-02-12): Adelie Linux 1.0 Beta, rolling release vs fixed for a smoother experience, Debian working on 2038 bug, elementary OS to split applications from base system updates, Fedora announces Atomic Desktops |
| • Issue 1056 (2024-02-05): wattOS R13, the various write speeds of ISO writing tools, DSL returns, Mint faces Wayland challenges, HardenedBSD blocks foreign USB devices, Gentoo publishes new repository, Linux distros patch glibc flaw |
| • Issue 1055 (2024-01-29): CNIX OS 231204, distributions patching packages the most, Gentoo team presents ongoing work, UBports introduces connectivity and battery improvements, interview with Haiku developer |
| • Issue 1054 (2024-01-22): Solus 4.5, comparing dd and cp when writing ISO files, openSUSE plans new major Leap version, XeroLinux shutting down, HardenedBSD changes its build schedule |
| • Issue 1053 (2024-01-15): Linux AI voice assistants, some distributions running hotter than others, UBports talks about coming changes, Qubes certifies StarBook laptops, Asahi Linux improves energy savings |
| • Issue 1052 (2024-01-08): OpenMandriva Lx 5.0, keeping shell commands running when theterminal closes, Mint upgrades Edge kernel, Vanilla OS plans big changes, Canonical working to make Snap more cross-platform |
| • Issue 1051 (2024-01-01): Favourite distros of 2023, reloading shell settings, Asahi Linux releases Fedora remix, Gentoo offers binary packages, openSUSE provides full disk encryption |
| • Issue 1050 (2023-12-18): rlxos 2023.11, renaming files and opening terminal windows in specific directories, TrueNAS publishes ZFS fixes, Debian publishes delayed install media, Haiku polishes desktop experience |
| • Issue 1049 (2023-12-11): Lernstick 12, alternatives to WINE, openSUSE updates its branding, Mint unveils new features, Lubuntu team plans for 24.04 |
| • Issue 1048 (2023-12-04): openSUSE MicroOS, the transition from X11 to Wayland, Red Hat phasing out X11 packages, UBports making mobile development easier |
| • Issue 1047 (2023-11-27): GhostBSD 23.10.1, Why Linux uses swap when memory is free, Ubuntu Budgie may benefit from Wayland work in Xfce, early issues with FreeBSD 14.0 |
| • Issue 1046 (2023-11-20): Slackel 7.7 "Openbox", restricting CPU usage, Haiku improves font handling and software centre performance, Canonical launches MicroCloud |
| • Issue 1045 (2023-11-13): Fedora 39, how to trust software packages, ReactOS booting with UEFI, elementary OS plans to default to Wayland, Mir gaining ability to split work across video cards |
| • Issue 1044 (2023-11-06): Porteus 5.01, disabling IPv6, applications unique to a Linux distro, Linux merges bcachefs, OpenELA makes source packages available |
| • Issue 1043 (2023-10-30): Murena Two with privacy switches, where old files go when packages are updated, UBports on Volla phones, Mint testing Cinnamon on Wayland, Peppermint releases ARM build |
| • Issue 1042 (2023-10-23): Ubuntu Cinnamon compared with Linux Mint, extending battery life on Linux, Debian resumes /usr merge, Canonical publishes fixed install media |
| • Issue 1041 (2023-10-16): FydeOS 17.0, Dr.Parted 23.09, changing UIDs, Fedora partners with Slimbook, GNOME phasing out X11 sessions, Ubuntu revokes 23.10 install media |
| • Issue 1040 (2023-10-09): CROWZ 5.0, changing the location of default directories, Linux Mint updates its Edge edition, Murena crowdfunding new privacy phone, Debian publishes new install media |
| • Issue 1039 (2023-10-02): Zenwalk Current, finding the duration of media files, Peppermint OS tries out new edition, COSMIC gains new features, Canonical reports on security incident in Snap store |
| • Issue 1038 (2023-09-25): Mageia 9, trouble-shooting launchers, running desktop Linux in the cloud, New documentation for Nix, Linux phasing out ReiserFS, GNU celebrates 40 years |
| • Issue 1037 (2023-09-18): Bodhi Linux 7.0.0, finding specific distros and unified package managemnt, Zevenet replaced by two new forks, openSUSE introduces Slowroll branch, Fedora considering dropping Plasma X11 session |
| • 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.
|
| Random Distribution | 
LliureX
LliureX is a project of the Council of Culture, Education and Sport at the Municipality of Valencia, Spain. The LliureX distribution is an Edubuntu-based live and installation DVD with support for the Valencian and Spanish languages. It is intended as an operating system for educational institutions in the Valencia region. LliureX uses exclusively free software and is distributed free of charge.
Status: Active
|
| 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.
|
| 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.
|
|
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
0x969CD4E778C7b6549A2B00e34114e0168c86A542 
