DistroWatch Weekly |
DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 1091, 7 October 2024 |
Welcome to this year's 41st issue of DistroWatch Weekly!
The open source community is a place of experimentation and innovation where anyone with an idea can craft it and share their vision with the world. Often times, this freedom leads to new approaches, faster components, new desktop environments, and better tools. Sometimes it can lead to entirely new operating systems. This week we begin with a look at Redox OS, a young operating system written in Rust and featuring a microkernel. Read on to learn more about what it is like to use the Redox operating system. Let us know what you think of Redox OS in our Opinion Poll. Then, in our News section, we share updates from the Redox project and discuss improvements coming to Linux Mint's desktop experience and the distribution's package managers. Plus we talk about the Qubes team certifying new laptop hardware for security-focused customers. Our Tips and Tricks article this week seeks to clear up the difference between portable universal packages and unified package management following some confusion about last week's poll. We are then happy to share the releases of the past week and list the torrents we are seeding. We wish you all a fantastic week and happy reading!
This week's DistroWatch Weekly is presented by TUXEDO Computers.
Content:
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Feature Story (By Jesse Smith) |
Redox OS 0.9.0
Redox OS is one of the more recent additions to the DistroWatch database. The project is one of just one of seven active projects in the database which is not a member of the Linux, BSD, or Solaris families. Redox is an independent project which explores modern operating system designs (unlike projects such as ReactOS and Haiku which seek to continue the lives of older designs).
Redox OS uses a microkernel approach, meaning the core, privileged part of the operating system is quite small, leaving drivers and services to run in userspace. This should make the underlying operating system more secure and more stable. Redox is written in Rust, a memory-safe language, meaning the core components should also be harder to exploit due to programming errors. Furthermore, the project introduces some interesting ideas, evolving the concept of "handle everything like a file" to handling every resource like a URL.
The Redox OS project recently announced the launch of Redox OS 0.9.0. This release features several applications imported from the COSMIC desktop (which I reviewed in September), including COSMIC Files, COSMIC Editor, and COSMIC Terminal. These utilities are also written in Rust.
The announcement mentions Redox ships with a desktop environment, a few games, the Nano text editor, and a web browser. There are three editions, available in i686 and x86_64 builds: Server, Desktop, and Demo. As I understand it, Demo is basically the Desktop edition meant to be run from live media and possibly with more applications installed.
At this time Redox still lacks USB device support which means it won't work with most physical hardware (keyboards, printers, and mouse devices), but it can run in some virtual machines which side-steps the USB limitation.
The 0.9.0 release does include a package manager, named pkg, which I'll touch upon later.
Earlier, I mentioned there are three editions of Redox. The ISO and IMG files for these editions are all compressed with the zst compression method (which some Linux distributions don't support out of the box). The zst package may need to be installed before you can unpack the ISO/IMG file. These download options range in size from 67MB for the Server edition, to 115MB for the Desktop edition, and 344MB for the Demo edition. When unpacked they expand quite a bit, with the largest (the Demo edition) reaching 1.5GB when unpacked.
Since I knew Redox wouldn't be able to work with my hardware since my keyboard and mouse pointers are connected via USB, I focused on trying to run Redox in a virtual machine. The project's handbook has a section on running the operating system in various virtual environments. I set up VirtualBox with the suggested line-by-line tweaks and tried running the Demo edition. It failed to boot. I also tried the Desktop edition and it also failed to boot.
Digging further into the handbook I found there are command line instructions for setting up VirtualBox with exactly the configuration required to run Redox. This results in some different settings when compared to the graphical approach and the command line instructions worked, allowing me to boot the Demo edition.
Early impressions
The Demo edition booted to a graphical login screen where I was prompted for the password to an account called "user". The correct answer is to leave the password field blank. This signs us into the project's desktop environment.
The desktop environment is fairly simple. A panel is placed across the bottom of the display with an application menu, a few quick-launch buttons, and a clock. The application menu presents us with a list of installed applications and one sub-group, called Games. Clicking the Games button erases the menu and replaces its contents with just a list of items in the Games category. We can then launch a game or exit back up to the top-level menu. The desktop, while it includes applications from COSMIC, appears to be a custom desktop specifically made for Redox rather than an existing desktop like LXQt or Xfce.
The desktop is responsive and has no flashy distractions or special effects. It's simple and clean. The interface isn't particularly attractive, but it's easy enough to navigate.
Redox OS 0.9.0 -- Using the COSMIC file manager and text editor
(full image size: 1.1MB, resolution: 1600x1200 pixels)
Included software
Redox ships with a handful of applications. The COSMIC file manager, text editor, and terminal are included. The first two of these worked well for me. The terminal application crashed frequently, usually before I'd managed to type more than one command. I think my record was managing to type four commands in a row before the terminal crashed. Sometimes I didn't even get to type one whole command before the terminal window would disappear. This prevented me from exploring much of the underlying operating system.
Redox OS 0.9.0 -- My longest session with the virtual terminal
(full image size: 1.8MB, resolution: 1600x1200 pixels)
A related problem I ran into was most instructions in the Redox handbook rely on the terminal, making it difficult to accomplish anything when the terminal isn't working. There didn't appear to be any other desktop terminal available, or any text console the way most Linux distributions supply a terminal when we press Ctrl+Alt+F2.
There were other applications. The most impressive of the group was a functional web browser which was able to navigate to various websites, displaying text and images. The web browser doesn't have many features, but it did make it possible to look up information about Redox.
Redox OS 0.9.0 -- Using the web browser to visit Redox's website
(full image size: 2.2MB, resolution: 1600x1200 pixels)
The DOSBox emulator for games is included and it worked for me. There were a few games, including Neverball and DOOM, installed. I tried to run these, but they just displayed blank windows and, in the case of Neverball, caused the desktop to stop responding, forcing a restart. There is also a calculator that works and an application which simply displays the periodic table of elements.
Redox OS 0.9.0 -- Displaying the periodic table of elements
(full image size: 2573kB, resolution: 1600x1200 pixels)
It's not a large collection of applications, or a particularly well functioning collection. At this stage it's more of a proof of concept that shows Redox can be used to run a range of applications, including a web browser and a file manager.
Package management
Redox OS does include a package manager, called pkg. According to the documentation this package manager can fetch, install, and upgrade software on the system. There are two key features missing at this time: removing packages which have been installed, and searching for packages in a repository. As far as I can tell there is no method to find out what packages are available.
When combined with the virtual terminal's habit of crashing, this lack of search feature kept me from properly exploring pkg's functions. As with many parts of Redox, this package manager appears to be in its early stages of evolution.
Conclusions
There are a lot of experimental operating systems in the world. Most of them are small, one-person projects. They often experiment with implementing a minimal POSIX environment, demonstrate a microkernel design, or show off a bare bones desktop environment running with minimal resources. While interesting to see, those small projects rarely develop further. Most one-person projects don't attract additional developers, add a package manager, or reach a point of being properly documented.
Redox OS 0.9.0 -- The application menu
(full image size: 3.0MB, resolution: 1600x1200 pixels)
Redox OS is unusual in that it has attracted more developers, people have fleshed out its documentation, and it has added new components such as a package manager and some modern desktop elements. It's not just an interesting collection of concepts (a microkernel, Rust-based, and using modern resource path names), it actually seems to be, well, going somewhere. The project looks polished, well thought out, and there is some practical collaboration happening between Redox and COSMIC.
Despite its strong efforts over the past few years, Redox (despite all of its achievements) hasn't reached a point yet where it is practical to use on a regular basis. The key sticking point is hardware support, which is almost always an issue for any non-Linux open source operating system. Driver support is tricky, on a technical level, and expensive, and there are thousands of devices in the world to support. As I discovered, there are also limitations when it comes to using the terminal, running games, and using the package manager.
I will say the existing web browser is impressive. It really showcases what Redox can accomplish. The working file manager and text editor are also running smoothly and show off Redox's capabilities as a desktop operating system. There is still a long way to go, especially with hardware/USB support, but there is also a lot here for the Redox team to be proud of.
Redox isn't ready yet to be a daily driver, but it is worth looking at. It has some neat design concepts which could, along with its source-compatibility with Linux, make it a capable project in a few years.
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Visitor supplied rating
Redox OS has a visitor supplied average rating of: 8.5/10 from 2 review(s).
Have you used Redox OS? You can leave your own review of the project on our ratings page.
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Miscellaneous News (by Jesse Smith) |
Redox begins RISC-V port, Linux Mint polishes the user interface, Qubes certifies NitroPad v56 laptop
The Redox OS project has published a news update for the month of September. The project's newsletter covers fixes and porting QEMU to Redox OS. The Redox team is also starting work on a port of their operating system to the RISC-V architecture. "Andrey Turkin started the RISC-V port and sent improvements to our toolchain. Jeremy updated the QEMU patches to the latest version and is working on the remaining bugs. The hope is that QEMU will be ported soon."
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The Linux Mint team has published their monthly newsletter for September. The newsletter covers two main points of interest. The first is a reworking of several Cinnamon elements, such as the Force Quit pop-up, volume control, and workspace switcher. These have been redesigned to look better, with a sleeker design and better contrast. The second set of changes involve upgrades to the package management tools, reducing complexity and dependencies on older utilities. "This allowed us to completely refactor the code in the Update Manager and greatly simplify its architecture. It worked well but it had been written decades ago and some of the techniques and components it relied on weren't future-proof. Its multithreading code was deprecated and hard to maintain. It depended on Synaptic and technology related to Gtk.Plug/Socket which couldn't work in Wayland. It also handled multi-processing calls and serialization itself. All of this was simplified. In the Software Sources tool, the downgrading of foreign packages was performed via a VTE (an embedded terminal). This is now handled by Aptkit directly, with a nice progress dialog."
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The Qubes project certifies some hardware to confirm it runs properly with Qubes OS. "Qubes-certified hardware is hardware that has been certified by the Qubes developers as compatible with a specific major release of Qubes OS. All Qubes-certified devices are available for purchase with Qubes OS preinstalled." A new laptop has been added to the list of certified devices, the NitroPad v56. The NitroPad is certified to work with Qubes OS 4.2.3 and newer. Details on the laptop can be found in this Qubes news post. The NitroPad is available for purchase from the NitroKey shop.
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These and other news stories can be found on our Headlines page.
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Tips and Tricks (by Jesse Smith) |
Unified package management vs universal package formats
Last week we ran an opinion poll in which we asked what our readers thought about unified package managers, such as the rhino-pkg utility found in Rhino Linux.
A few of the comments, and responses through other channels, revealed that there was confusion about what a unified package manager is, particularly how it is different from a universal package format. Here are a few of the replies we received:
A unified package manager is how a certain distro family switched Firefox from Deb packages to Snaps without the users being able to keep using Debs.
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Unified package manager is a recipe for disaster, used by lazy developers/maintainers to avoid having to repackage/support their native package format, update software and to address code review and security issues properly. I know Flatpaks/Snaps/AppImages have their own "good" sides, but it still comes down to my first conclusion.
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Unified package manager, well it eliminates a primary choice people have to make: choosing a distro based on packages available.
This seems like a good time to clear up the misunderstandings.
First, let's talk about what a universal package format is. A universal package format (also called a portable package format) is an archive which contains both an application and the dependencies needed to run the application. This allows the software embedded inside the archive to be run on most Linux distributions without the user needing to worry about external dependencies. The idea is we should be able to fetch a universal package and install it on almost any modern Linux distribution and the software will work because everything it needs to run is bundled with it.
On the positive side, a universal package is portable (it can be shared across multiple distributions) and it should run just about anywhere without rebuilding/repackaging. This means there is no requirement for each distribution to make their own build of the application, packaging it into RPM, Deb, or other formats. Users can use one central repository, or the upstream developer's website, to fetch and install the desired software. This saves maintainers from engaging in a lot of duplicated effort.
There are negative effects to using a universal format. Universal bundles are typically quite large, since all dependencies are packed into one archive. There are also security concerns as new builds of the universal package may need to be created whenever a bundled dependency is found to have a security flaw. This is in contrast to traditional Linux package management where libraries and dependencies are shared across the system, allowing distro maintainers to fix a security flaw in one spot and have it applied across all applications on the system.
Some commonly used universal package formats include Flatpak, Snap, and AppImage. Each one has slightly different approaches, slightly different pros and cons, but they all accomplish approximately the same thing - applications which can be installed from one file and run across multiple distributions.
Next, let's look at unified package management. Typically, every type of package in the world (whether it is an RPM file, Deb archive, Flatpak bundle, or another type of package) needs a corresponding package manager to handling installing, updating and removing the software. On RPM-based distributions we usually find a tool called rpm working behind the scenes and a friendly utility called dnf being run from the command line. On Deb-based distributions people usually use apt or apt-get to manage software. Distributions in the Arch Linux family use pacman as their package manager.
In recent years it has become more common for distributions to use more than just their usual, classic package manager. Now, instead of a distribution using just DNF, APT, or pacman they also tend to support universal package formats such as Flatpak or Snap. They might also support third-party repositories, like the AUR or Pacstall.
It is inconvenient for users of these distributions to run two or three different package managers to install and update their applications. Ideally, users shouldn't need to run two or three package managers just to apply all available security updates - it's tedious and easy to forget to run each package manager separately.
To fix this problem, some projects are introducing utilities which will streamline the process. This allows the user to run a command like "rhino-pkg update" once and the rhino-pkg command finds and runs the update command of each package manager on the system. In other words, instead of the user running "sudo apt update; sudo apt upgrade; flatpak update; sudo pacstall update" and babysitting each step, the user can run one command: "rhino-pkg update".
These commands, which act as wrappers around the lower-level package managers, are called unified package managers. A unified package manager typically runs low-level, classic package managers, universal package managers, and third-party repository managers in the background.
Now, to address some of the above comments, like this one: "A unified package manager is how a certain distro family switched Firefox from Deb packages to Snaps without the users being able to keep using Debs." What Canonical did had nothing to do with unified package managers. Canonical introduced a portable package manager, Snap, onto their system. They then replaced their old Deb package with a dummy package. This meant when the user tried to install the Firefox Deb package, the Deb package launched Snap and caused Firefox to be installed as a Snap. No unified package manager was involved. Canonical just changed what the Firefox Deb package did.
"Unified package manager is a recipe for disaster, used by lazy developers/maintainers to avoid having to repackage/support their native package format." This again mixes up unified package managers with universal package formats. Universal packages allow software to be run across multiple distributions, saving the maintainers of Linux distributions work and avoiding duplication of effort. Unified package managers are not involved in this process.
"Unified package manager, well it eliminates a primary choice people have to make: choosing a distro based on packages available." Unified package managers do not affect which packages or software are available. They streamline how the user interacts with multiple package managers. The underlying software, the packages available, remain the same. A unified package manager simply reduces the number of steps a user needs to perform when searching for new software and updating installed packages.
Hopefully, this clears up the differences between unified package managers (such as rhino-pkg, mintInstall, and MX Package Installer) and universal package formats (such as Snap, Flatpak, and AppImage).
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Additional tips can be found in our Tips and Tricks archive.
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Released Last Week |
Manjaro Linux 24.1.0
Philip Müller has announced the release of Manjaro Linux 24.1.0, an updated build of the project's rolling-release distribution with separate GNOME, KDE Plasma and Xfce editions. The new release comes with GNOME 46.5, KDE Plasma 6.1 and Linux kernel 6.10: "Since we released 'Wynsdey' in May 2024, we worked hard to get the next release of Manjaro out there. We call it Xahea. The GNOME edition has received several updates to GNOME 46 series. This includes a lot of fixes and polish when GNOME 46 originally was released in March 2024. The Plasma edition comes with the latest Plasma 6.1 series 1 and KDE Gear 24.08 1. It brings exciting new improvements to your desktop. Plasma 6 hits its stride with version 6.1. While Plasma 6.0 was all about getting the migration to the underlying Qt 6 frameworks correct, 6.1 is where developers start implementing the features that will take your desktop to a new level." See the release announcement for further information.
Manjaro Linux 24.1.0 -- Running the Xfce desktop
(full image size: 1.1MB, resolution: 1920x1080 pixels)
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Development, unannounced and minor bug-fix releases
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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: 3,083
- Total data uploaded: 45.4TB
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Upcoming Releases and Announcements |
Summary of expected upcoming releases
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Opinion Poll (by Jesse Smith) |
What do you think of Redox OS?
This week we began with a review of Redox OS, a modern operating system written in Rust. While Redox OS has a ways to go, especially in terms of hardware support, the project introduces some interesting concepts and useful design choices. Have you tried Redox? Let us know about your experiences in the comments.
You can see the results of our previous poll on unified package managers in our previous edition. All previous poll results can be found in our poll archives.
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Have you tried Redox OS?
I have tried Redox and liked it: | 53 (2%) |
I have tried Redox and did not like it: | 43 (2%) |
I am currently running Redox and like it: | 2 (0%) |
I am running Redox and do not like it: | 1 (0%) |
I plan to try Redox later: | 346 (13%) |
I have no plans to try Redox: | 2250 (83%) |
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Website News |
DistroWatch database summary
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This concludes this week's issue of DistroWatch Weekly. The next instalment will be published on Monday, 14 October 2024. 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)
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Archives |
• Issue 1095 (2024-11-04): Fedora 41 Kinoite, transferring applications between computers, openSUSE Tumbleweed receives multiple upgrades, Ubuntu testing compiler optimizations, Mint partners with Framework |
• Issue 1094 (2024-10-28): DebLight OS 1, backing up crontab, AlmaLinux introduces Litten branch, openSUSE unveils refreshed look, Ubuntu turns 20 |
• Issue 1093 (2024-10-21): Kubuntu 24.10, atomic vs immutable distributions, Debian upgrading Perl packages, UBports adding VoLTE support, Android to gain native GNU/Linux application support |
• Issue 1092 (2024-10-14): FunOS 24.04.1, a home directory inside a file, work starts of openSUSE Leap 16.0, improvements in Haiku, KDE neon upgrades its base |
• Issue 1091 (2024-10-07): Redox OS 0.9.0, Unified package management vs universal package formats, Redox begins RISC-V port, Mint polishes interface, Qubes certifies new laptop |
• Issue 1090 (2024-09-30): Rhino Linux 2024.2, commercial distros with alternative desktops, Valve seeks to improve Wayland performance, HardenedBSD parterns with Protectli, Tails merges with Tor Project, Quantum Leap partners with the FreeBSD Foundation |
• Issue 1089 (2024-09-23): Expirion 6.0, openKylin 2.0, managing configuration files, the future of Linux development, fixing bugs in Haiku, Slackware packages dracut |
• Issue 1088 (2024-09-16): PorteuX 1.6, migrating from Windows 10 to which Linux distro, making NetBSD immutable, AlmaLinux offers hardware certification, Mint updates old APT tools |
• Issue 1087 (2024-09-09): COSMIC desktop, running cron jobs at variable times, UBports highlights new apps, HardenedBSD offers work around for FreeBSD change, Debian considers how to cull old packages, systemd ported to musl |
• Issue 1086 (2024-09-02): Vanilla OS 2, command line tips for simple tasks, FreeBSD receives investment from STF, openSUSE Tumbleweed update can break network connections, Debian refreshes media |
• Issue 1085 (2024-08-26): Nobara 40, OpenMandriva 24.07 "ROME", distros which include source code, FreeBSD publishes quarterly report, Microsoft updates breaks Linux in dual-boot environments |
• Issue 1084 (2024-08-19): Liya 2.0, dual boot with encryption, Haiku introduces performance improvements, Gentoo dropping IA-64, Redcore merges major upgrade |
• Issue 1083 (2024-08-12): TrueNAS 24.04.2 "SCALE", Linux distros for smartphones, Redox OS introduces web server, PipeWire exposes battery drain on Linux, Canonical updates kernel version policy |
• Issue 1082 (2024-08-05): Linux Mint 22, taking snapshots of UFS on FreeBSD, openSUSE updates Tumbleweed and Aeon, Debian creates Tiny QA Tasks, Manjaro testing immutable images |
• Issue 1081 (2024-07-29): SysLinuxOS 12.4, OpenBSD gain hardware acceleration, Slackware changes kernel naming, Mint publishes upgrade instructions |
• Issue 1080 (2024-07-22): Running GNU/Linux on Android with Andronix, protecting network services, Solus dropping AppArmor and Snap, openSUSE Aeon Desktop gaining full disk encryption, SUSE asks openSUSE to change its branding |
• Issue 1079 (2024-07-15): Ubuntu Core 24, hiding files on Linux, Fedora dropping X11 packages on Workstation, Red Hat phasing out GRUB, new OpenSSH vulnerability, FreeBSD speeds up release cycle, UBports testing new first-run wizard |
• Issue 1078 (2024-07-08): Changing init software, server machines running desktop environments, OpenSSH vulnerability patched, Peppermint launches new edition, HardenedBSD updates ports |
• Issue 1077 (2024-07-01): The Unity and Lomiri interfaces, different distros for different tasks, Ubuntu plans to run Wayland on NVIDIA cards, openSUSE updates Leap Micro, Debian releases refreshed media, UBports gaining contact synchronisation, FreeDOS celebrates its 30th anniversary |
• Issue 1076 (2024-06-24): openSUSE 15.6, what makes Linux unique, SUSE Liberty Linux to support CentOS Linux 7, SLE receives 19 years of support, openSUSE testing Leap Micro edition |
• Issue 1075 (2024-06-17): Redox OS, X11 and Wayland on the BSDs, AlmaLinux releases Pi build, Canonical announces RISC-V laptop with Ubuntu, key changes in systemd |
• Issue 1074 (2024-06-10): Endless OS 6.0.0, distros with init diversity, Mint to filter unverified Flatpaks, Debian adds systemd-boot options, Redox adopts COSMIC desktop, OpenSSH gains new security features |
• Issue 1073 (2024-06-03): LXQt 2.0.0, an overview of Linux desktop environments, Canonical partners with Milk-V, openSUSE introduces new features in Aeon Desktop, Fedora mirrors see rise in traffic, Wayland adds OpenBSD support |
• Issue 1072 (2024-05-27): Manjaro 24.0, comparing init software, OpenBSD ports Plasma 6, Arch community debates mirror requirements, ThinOS to upgrade its FreeBSD core |
• Issue 1071 (2024-05-20): Archcraft 2024.04.06, common command line mistakes, ReactOS imports WINE improvements, Haiku makes adjusting themes easier, NetBSD takes a stand against code generated by chatbots |
• Issue 1070 (2024-05-13): Damn Small Linux 2024, hiding kernel messages during boot, Red Hat offers AI edition, new web browser for UBports, Fedora Asahi Remix 40 released, Qubes extends support for version 4.1 |
• Issue 1069 (2024-05-06): Ubuntu 24.04, installing packages in alternative locations, systemd creates sudo alternative, Mint encourages XApps collaboration, FreeBSD publishes quarterly update |
• Issue 1068 (2024-04-29): Fedora 40, transforming one distro into another, Debian elects new Project Leader, Red Hat extends support cycle, Emmabuntus adds accessibility features, Canonical's new security features |
• Issue 1067 (2024-04-22): LocalSend for transferring files, detecting supported CPU architecure levels, new visual design for APT, Fedora and openSUSE working on reproducible builds, LXQt released, AlmaLinux re-adds hardware support |
• Issue 1066 (2024-04-15): Fun projects to do with the Raspberry Pi and PinePhone, installing new software on fixed-release distributions, improving GNOME Terminal performance, Mint testing new repository mirrors, Gentoo becomes a Software In the Public Interest project |
• Issue 1065 (2024-04-08): Dr.Parted Live 24.03, answering questions about the xz exploit, Linux Mint to ship HWE kernel, AlmaLinux patches flaw ahead of upstream Red Hat, Calculate changes release model |
• Issue 1064 (2024-04-01): NixOS 23.11, the status of Hurd, liblzma compromised upstream, FreeBSD Foundation focuses on improving wireless networking, Ubuntu Pro offers 12 years of support |
• Issue 1063 (2024-03-25): Redcore Linux 2401, how slowly can a rolling release update, Debian starts new Project Leader election, Red Hat creating new NVIDIA driver, Snap store hit with more malware |
• Issue 1062 (2024-03-18): KDE neon 20240304, changing file permissions, Canonical turns 20, Pop!_OS creates new software centre, openSUSE packages Plasma 6 |
• Issue 1061 (2024-03-11): Using a PinePhone as a workstation, restarting background services on a schedule, NixBSD ports Nix to FreeBSD, Fedora packaging COSMIC, postmarketOS to adopt systemd, Linux Mint replacing HexChat |
• Issue 1060 (2024-03-04): AV Linux MX-23.1, bootstrapping a network connection, key OpenBSD features, Qubes certifies new hardware, LXQt and Plasma migrate to Qt 6 |
• Issue 1059 (2024-02-26): Warp Terminal, navigating manual pages, malware found in the Snap store, Red Hat considering CPU requirement update, UBports organizes ongoing work |
• Issue 1058 (2024-02-19): Drauger OS 7.6, how much disk space to allocate, System76 prepares to launch COSMIC desktop, UBports changes its version scheme, TrueNAS to offer faster deduplication |
• Issue 1057 (2024-02-12): Adelie Linux 1.0 Beta, rolling release vs fixed for a smoother experience, Debian working on 2038 bug, elementary OS to split applications from base system updates, Fedora announces Atomic Desktops |
• Issue 1056 (2024-02-05): wattOS R13, the various write speeds of ISO writing tools, DSL returns, Mint faces Wayland challenges, HardenedBSD blocks foreign USB devices, Gentoo publishes new repository, Linux distros patch glibc flaw |
• Issue 1055 (2024-01-29): CNIX OS 231204, distributions patching packages the most, Gentoo team presents ongoing work, UBports introduces connectivity and battery improvements, interview with Haiku developer |
• Issue 1054 (2024-01-22): Solus 4.5, comparing dd and cp when writing ISO files, openSUSE plans new major Leap version, XeroLinux shutting down, HardenedBSD changes its build schedule |
• Issue 1053 (2024-01-15): Linux AI voice assistants, some distributions running hotter than others, UBports talks about coming changes, Qubes certifies StarBook laptops, Asahi Linux improves energy savings |
• Issue 1052 (2024-01-08): OpenMandriva Lx 5.0, keeping shell commands running when theterminal closes, Mint upgrades Edge kernel, Vanilla OS plans big changes, Canonical working to make Snap more cross-platform |
• Issue 1051 (2024-01-01): Favourite distros of 2023, reloading shell settings, Asahi Linux releases Fedora remix, Gentoo offers binary packages, openSUSE provides full disk encryption |
• Issue 1050 (2023-12-18): rlxos 2023.11, renaming files and opening terminal windows in specific directories, TrueNAS publishes ZFS fixes, Debian publishes delayed install media, Haiku polishes desktop experience |
• Issue 1049 (2023-12-11): Lernstick 12, alternatives to WINE, openSUSE updates its branding, Mint unveils new features, Lubuntu team plans for 24.04 |
• Issue 1048 (2023-12-04): openSUSE MicroOS, the transition from X11 to Wayland, Red Hat phasing out X11 packages, UBports making mobile development easier |
• Issue 1047 (2023-11-27): GhostBSD 23.10.1, Why Linux uses swap when memory is free, Ubuntu Budgie may benefit from Wayland work in Xfce, early issues with FreeBSD 14.0 |
• Issue 1046 (2023-11-20): Slackel 7.7 "Openbox", restricting CPU usage, Haiku improves font handling and software centre performance, Canonical launches MicroCloud |
• Issue 1045 (2023-11-13): Fedora 39, how to trust software packages, ReactOS booting with UEFI, elementary OS plans to default to Wayland, Mir gaining ability to split work across video cards |
• Issue 1044 (2023-11-06): Porteus 5.01, disabling IPv6, applications unique to a Linux distro, Linux merges bcachefs, OpenELA makes source packages available |
• Issue 1043 (2023-10-30): Murena Two with privacy switches, where old files go when packages are updated, UBports on Volla phones, Mint testing Cinnamon on Wayland, Peppermint releases ARM build |
• Issue 1042 (2023-10-23): Ubuntu Cinnamon compared with Linux Mint, extending battery life on Linux, Debian resumes /usr merge, Canonical publishes fixed install media |
• 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 |
• 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 |
Linux Mangaka
Linux Mangaka was a desktop Linux distribution originally designed primarily for the fans of Japanese Manga and Anime, but eventually evolving into a complete, beginner-friendly operating system with complete multimedia support. Based on Ubuntu with GNOME and Google desktop, the distribution includes a large variety of programs for graphics design, many freely available Google applications, a number of games, and an innovative set of desktop themes.
Status: Discontinued
| Tips, Tricks, Q&As | Tips and tricks: Manipulating PDFs |
Tips and tricks: Play nicely, drop secure shell sessions cleanly, check init's name |
Questions and answers: Source based Linux distributions |
Questions and answers: How much disk space to allocate |
Questions and answers: Preventing applications from stealing window focus |
Tips and tricks: Basename, for loop, dirname, aliases, bash history, xsel clipboard |
Questions and answers: Counting Ubuntu installs |
Questions and answers: Hiding messages from the kernel while booting |
Questions and answers: Menu names versus command line names |
Tips and tricks: Command line tips - using ffmpeg, awk and renice |
More Tips & Tricks and Questions & Answers |
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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