 DistroWatch Weekly |
| DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 1131, 21 July 2025 |
|
Welcome to this year's 29th issue of DistroWatch Weekly!
Moving from one Linux distribution to another can be fun, entertaining, and educational. Each project presents a view of what the developers think an ideal operating system should be and it is interesting to see the variety of approaches. Eventually, after browsing the options, many of us want to settle on one distribution and stick with it, but which one? In our Questions and Answers column we talk about picking the right distribution for long-term use when faced with so many good options. Before that, our Feature Story this week takes a look at a project in the AlmaLinux family. HeliumOS is an atomic distribution based on AlmaLinux OS and running the KDE Plasma desktop. Read on to learn more about HeliumOS and what it is like running this desktop distribution. In our News section we talk about Linux Mint's upcoming releases which are planned for later this year. Are you more excited for the Linux Mint Ubuntu-based flavour or the project's Debian Edition? Let us know which one interests you in the Opinion Poll. Plus we share a new service management feature coming to Parabola and celebrate the return of the Plasma Bigscreen project as Intel's Clear Linux is shut down. We wrap up this week by sharing the releases of the past week and listing the torrents we are seeding. 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) |
HeliumOS 10.0
The HeliumOS distribution offers, as the project's website says, "An atomic desktop operating system for your devices." More specifically, HeliumOS is a desktop distribution built on top of AlmaLinux OS and using the KDE Plasma desktop environment. HeliumOS offers atomic updates and mostly uses Flatpak bundles to provide additional desktop applications. Though the project is quite young, the developers are aiming to supply ten years of support, thanks to the distribution's AlmaLinux base.
There is just one edition of HeliumOS and it run on one architecture: x86_64. The ISO file for HeliumOS is 3.4GB in size.
Installing
Booting from the HeliumOS ISO brings up a menu where we are given the option of having the system perform a self-check on itself or jumping straight into the install process. HeliumOS uses the Anaconda system installer (which it shares with Red Hat Enterprise Linux and AlmaLinux OS). The experience is virtually identical to setting up AlmaLinux, except we do not select a "role" (server or workstation) for our system. The package selection is automatic and sets us up with Plasma desktop packages. While we can use manual disk partitioning, there is an automated option which sets up an ext4 root filesystem and a swap partition.
The install proceeded very quickly and, once I had made my selections, the Helium image was copied to my hard drive in about two minutes.
Early impressions
Helium boots to a graphical login screen where we can sign into a user account. There are no session options, Helium provides Plasma running on a Wayland session only. Signing into Plasma brings up the desktop with a thick panel floating just above the bottom of the screen. This panel holds (from left to right) the application menu, quick-launch buttons, the task switcher, and the system tray. There are no icons on the desktop.
HeliumOS 10.0 -- Exploring the Plasma application menu
(full image size: 2.6MB, resolution: 1920x1080 pixels)
The first time I signed in a welcome window appeared. This window explains the elements on the desktop panel and provides a quick overview of some of the desktop's key features. The welcome window then offers to launch the Discover software centre so we can install additional applications. The final page of the welcome window asks how much data we want to send to the KDE project with the default setting indicating no telemetry is to be sent to the developers.
The Plasma desktop is set up with a plain, light grey theme. The Wayland session was responsive in my test environments, and the desktop mostly stayed out of the way while I got to work.
HeliumOS 10.0 -- The desktop settings panel
(full image size: 2.1MB, resolution: 1920x1080 pixels)
Hardware
The Helium distribution worked well in VirtualBox, performing quickly and without serious problems. When Helium is running as a guest the mouse pointer does not automatically integrate with the virtual machine, but otherwise the experience was good. The distribution also ran well on my laptop, handling wireless networking, audio, and my touchpad without any problems.
The distribution is on the heavy side, using 1.3GB of memory when signed into the Plasma desktop. A fresh install takes up 6.1GB of disk space (not including swap space) which is about average for a mainstream Linux distribution.
Included software
While Helium takes up an average amount of disk space the distribution does not ship with many applications. The distribution's style is to provide a small base and have us add Flatpak packages on top of it. We start with some common KDE programs such as the Dolphin file manager, KDE Connect, the Okular document viewer, and the System Settings panel for customizing the environment. There are a few small games, a system monitor, and a text editor.
For a web browser we are given the minimal Angelfish browser. Angelfish is not typically used much on desktop machines, in fact I've only observed it installed by default on mobile devices. However, Angelfish does work fairly well. It displays pages, performs searches, can use bookmarks, and it can stream video. For basic web usage it's actually pleasantly straight forward and "out of the way".
In the background we find the distribution ships with manual pages, GNU command line utilities, and the GNU Compiler Collection. The system runs the systemd suite of programs and features version 6.12 of the Linux kernel.
Atomic, immutable or both?
The HeliumOS website refers to the distribution as atomic, but parts of the website make it sound like the distribution's focus is immutable. Since these terms tend to get used interchangeably and incorrectly, I was curious to see what Helium was doing under the hood. As it turns out, the distribution is both immutable (its root filesystem and /usr directory are read-only) and it uses atomic updates to the base system. This means we can write to only specific parts of the filesystem, such as /var and our home directory. It also means upgrades to the base system happen off-line and either complete entirely or not at all, making sure our system is always in a complete state.
HeliumOS 10.0 -- Adjusting the position of the desktop panel
(full image size: 1.5MB, resolution: 1920x1080 pixels)
Software management
There are a few ways to handle software management on HeliumOS. The easiest approach is to use the Discover software centre. Discover is a modern software centre which, in this case, automatically connects to the Flathub repository to provide us with a wide range of Flatpak packages. We can browse categories, search for specific packages, and install new items with a mouse click. It's all pretty straight forward and Discover worked well for me.
HeliumOS 10.0 -- Finding new applications with Discover
(full image size: 2.0MB, resolution: 1920x1080 pixels)
Another approach we can take is to use the built-in Distrobox container manager. Using distrobox allows us to create containers and install other distributions inside these containers. We can then install whatever packages (from those other distribution repositories) we want and run programs from inside the container. Distrobox allows us to share our home directory with containers, giving the applications we install from other distributions access to our documents.
For people unfamiliar with Distrobox and how it works, there is a friendly front-end application available through Discover called BoxBuddy. BoxBuddy makes it super easy to create new containers and access them with a couple of clicks. I set up BoxBuddy and used it to install Debian to provide some low-level programs I was missing in Helium and the whole process worked flawlessly.
HeliumOS 10.0 -- Using BoxBuddy to manage containers
(full image size: 2.3MB, resolution: 1920x1080 pixels)
Technically, the DNF command line package manager is installed and it connects to the AlmaLinux software repositories. However, under normal usage, we cannot use DNF to install or upgrade any packages on the system. Helium's immutable nature blocks us from installing any RPM package from AlmaLinux. We could work around this, using an filesystem overlay to install software over top of the existing filesystem, however I do not think this is recommended or necessary given the other options we already have available.
Speaking of the underlying operating system, I was wondering how to approach upgrading the core of HeliumOS. Working with Flatpak packages is fairly obviously and mentioned in the welcome window. Likewise, the project advertises its ability to work with containers. However, there does not appear to be any application for managing system updates. I also could not find any documentation on the HeliumOS website on how to upgrade the core system image. I found a How-To page, but it simply says "coming soon" on it. I clicked on a link to the HeliumOS support page, but it goes to an HTTP 404 error page. None of the project's blog posts seem to talk about upgrading the base system.
HeliumOS 10.0 -- Checking for system upgrades
(full image size: 2.1MB, resolution: 1920x1080 pixels)
Without guidance, I decided to try the approach used on the Fedora Silverblue atomic distribution and ran "rpm-ostree upgrade --check" to see if any core updates were available. This command told me it was checking for new Helium images and reported none were available. However, the Fedora documentation warns the "--check" flag is not reliable. When I then tried running "rpm-ostree upgrade" the utility found 24 image updates, downloaded them, and applied them during my next reboot. We can rollback recently applied upgrades from the boot menu if any of the changes break functionality.
Conclusions
I had some mixed feelings while running HeliumOS. My main concerns were not technical, but rather about the project's infrastructure and longevity. One of the main selling points of HeliumOS is the distribution claims to offer ten years of support (thanks to its AlmaLinux base). However, the project is quite young and, as far as I can tell, the team is very small. This makes me sceptical as to whether the project can hold on and deliver on its promised decade of updated images.
HeliumOS 10.0 -- Using the Angelfish web browser
(full image size: 1.8MB, resolution: 1920x1080 pixels)
My other complaint was the lack of documentation. While still a fairly young project in the grand scheme, HeliumOS has been around for over a year and a half. In that time, no one has provided any documentation, how-to tutorials, or introduced a support page. The project has not even provided a link to Fedora's documentation which would be applicable most of the time.
In short, after a year and a half Helium has almost no documentation, community, or support options. There is a Matrix chat channel, but nothing we can browse or search if we want to get help with common tasks or trade ideas with other community members and this gives me concerns about the life-span of this distribution.
I think the technical side of HeliumOS is quite good. It combines the stable (potentially long-term support) base of AlmaLinux with the flexible desktop of Plasma, and the large repository of software provided by Flathub. This is a pretty solid combination and one which worked well on my laptop and in a virtual machine. The distribution was quick, stable, offered rollbacks for upgrades, and I liked how easy it was to use Distrobox to fill in gaps in the command line tools.
On a technical level HeliumOS is doing very well and looks promising. It is the sort of distribution which could appeal to both fans of Red Hat Enterprise Linux who like Plasma and novice users who want to install-and-forget their operating system with ten years of updates available. I hope the project can attract more maintainers and fill in the gaps in its infrastructure because the technical pieces are great, it's just the human side of things that needs work.
* * * * *
Hardware used in this review
My physical test equipment for this review was an HP DY2048CA laptop with the following
specifications:
- Processor: 11th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-1135G7 @ 2.40GHz
- Display: Intel integrated video
- Storage: Western Digital 512GB solid state drive
- Memory: 8GB of RAM
- Wireless network device: Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201 + BT Wireless network card
* * * * *
Visitor supplied rating
HeliumOS has a visitor supplied average rating of: N/A from 0 review(s).
Have you used HeliumOS? You can leave your own review of the project on our ratings page.
|
| Miscellaneous News (by Jesse Smith) |
Mint plans new releases, Arch finds malware in AUR, Parabola rolls out new OpenRC features, Plasma Bigscreen returns, Clear Linux discontinued
The Linux Mint team have published their monthly newsletter for July. The project gives an overview of the upcoming releases of Linux Mint and Linux Mint Debian Edition: "The team is working on a beta release for Linux Mint 22.2. This new version introduces an HWE kernel, fingerprint authentication, theme updates, accent colour support and improved libAdwaita compatibility. Work also continues in the Cinnamon edition, to make input methods and keyboard layouts compatible with Wayland.
Packages and projects are being finalized. Pull requests are being merged. There is no set date for the release but we're hoping to get the beta out by the end of July or the beginning of August.
After Linux Mint 22.2 gets its stable release, the focus is likely to switch in September to LMDE 7, codenamed Gigi. Gigi will come with all the improvements featured in Linux Mint 22.2 but on top of a Debian 13 package base instead of Ubuntu 24.04. Another key improvement in LMDE 7 compared to LMDE 6 will be that it will support OEM installations."
* * * * *
The Arch Linux team have reported the discovery of malware in the project's community repository, the Arch User Repository. "On the 16th of July, at around 8pm UTC+2, a malicious AUR package was uploaded to the AUR. Two other malicious packages were uploaded by the same user a few hours later. These packages were installing a script coming from the same GitHub repository that was identified as a Remote Access Trojan (RAT). The affected malicious packages are: librewolf-fix-bin, firefox-patch-bin, zen-browser-patched-bin" Anyone who has installed these compromised packages should remove them and be aware their systems were potentially open to malicious, remote access.
* * * * *
The Parabola GNU/Linux-libre distribution is a free software branch of the Arch Linux family. The project has announced that a new feature in the OpenRC service manager will require manual intervention on the part of system administrators. The new feature is user services which allows regular user accounts to set up and manage their own account-specific services in their home directories. Additional information on this feature is provided in the Parabola wiki.
* * * * *
Plasma Bigscreen is the name of a KDE project which is designed to be used in situations where a computer will be connected to a television or a projector. When KDE launched Plasma 6 the Bigscreen project was left behind and appeared to be discontinued. Neowin reports Plasma Bigscreen is being worked on again: "The project was left behind during the big transition to Plasma 6 last year because no one had ported it in time for the mega-release. After a friend of his started poking at the code, Devin stepped in to tackle the much-needed work. He started by cleaning up the repository and then jumped into redesigning the interface, drawing inspiration from older Breeze mockups. The home screen has been flattened, removing panel backgrounds." The article highlights some changes and shares screenshots of Plasma Bigscreen running a few applications.
* * * * *
Clear Linux is a rolling release, highly optimized distribution developed by Intel. Or, it is now more accurate to say it "was", since Intel has decided to abruptly discontinue the project. Just one day after the project's latest snapshot, the following announcement was published on the distribution's forum: "Effective immediately, Intel will no longer provide security patches, updates, or maintenance for Clear Linux OS, and the Clear Linux OS GitHub repository will be archived in read-only mode. So, if you're currently using Clear Linux OS, we strongly recommend planning your migration to another actively maintained Linux distribution as soon as possible to ensure ongoing security and stability."
* * * * *
These and other news stories can be found on our Headlines page.
|
| Questions and Answers (by Jesse Smith) |
Settling down with one distro
Stop-the-ride asks: I've been distro hopping for a while now, tried multiple distros like Mint, Manjaro, Ubuntu, and Fedora. Now I can't choose which one I want to stay on. If you were me, how would you pick one to stick with?
DistroWatch answers: It sounds like you have tried some of the big name distributions and, since you're having trouble choosing to stick with just one, I'm guessing the experiences were at least "acceptable" across each of them. (If the experience wasn't somewhat good, then it would be easy to discard the offending distribution from the list of options.)
Assuming the distributions you have been trying all work with your hardware and, for the most part, allow you to accomplish the tasks (work, gaming, multimedia, developing) you want, then I think the deciding factor is probably a matter of philosophy.
Perhaps "philosophy" is a bit too abstract a term, it might be better to think of the choice as a matter of "style". Do you want to be always on the exciting, cutting edge of technology, enjoying the updates and learning from changes? Then you probably want to stick with a rolling release. Do you want something that is reliable and predictable, only changing rarely? Then you will likely prefer a long-term support release as your "forever" distribution. Do you want a distribution with lots of features or one which is minimal and fast? Which is more important to you, software freedom ideals or access to closed source applications and hardware?
I find a big part of finding the right distribution for me is finding a project where the developers have a similar outlook and mindset to my own. Then the experience they create will likely feel more natural and familiar to me and match my own patterns of interacting with the operating system. While almost any distribution can work for me in the short-term, a project which matches my views and preferences (my philosophy) will suit me best in the long-term.
My suggestion is to try to answer the above questions for yourself (cutting edge vs fixed system, freedom vs closed, minimal vs features, convenient vs secure) and then pick the distribution which most closely matches your answers. We have filters to help you find the distribution best suited for you on our search page. You might also want to visit the Distro Chooser website which helps recommend distributions based on your preferences.
* * * * *
Additional answers can be found in our Questions and Answers archive.
|
| Released Last Week |
SparkyLinux 7.8
The SparkyLinux project has published an update to its Stable branch which also fixes a package conflict when working with some multimedia packages. "The 8th update of Sparky 7 - 7.8 is out. It is a quarterly updated point release of Sparky 7 'Orion Belt' of the stable line. Sparky 7 is based on and fully compatible with Debian 12 'Bookworm'. Changes: all packages updated from Debian and Sparky Stable repos as of July 14, 2025. Linux kernel PC: 6.1.140-LTS (6.15.6, 6.12.38-LTS, 6.6.98-LTS in Sparky repos). LibreOffice 7.4.7 (25.2.3 in Debian Backports repos). KDE Plasma 5.27.5; LXQt 1.2.0; MATE 1.26; Xfce 4.18; Openbox 3.6.1; Firefox 128.12.0esr (140.0.4 in Sparky repos); Thunderbird 128.12.0esr. Fixed problem with conflicted libs installed previously from debian-multimedia repos; it blocked installation of some packages, such as GIMP; to fix it manually, uninstall libavutil57 (v10:5.1.3) and its deps, and install it back (v7:5.1.6). Anyway, GIMP is preinstalled now in live media." Additional details can be found in the project's release announcement.
RELIANOID 7.7.0
RELIANOID is a Debian-based Linux distribution for load balancing. The project's latest release, version 7.7, introduces integration with more cloud services and introduces VPN support. "RELIANOID 7.7 marks a major step forward in hybrid and multi-cloud readiness. With full integration for AWS, Azure, and GCP, users can now seamlessly deploy and manage RELIANOID instances across major cloud platforms, unlocking powerful scalability and redundancy options. In addition, the introduction of VPN support significantly extends the platform's capabilities for secure remote access, site-to-site communication, and private cloud extension. The new noid-support utility replaces the legacy supportsave, offering a more modern and comprehensive support data collection tool for faster issue resolution. The system backend has been upgraded to Debian 12.11, ensuring a secure and up-to-date operating environment. The GUI also gets a major refresh, with a full upgrade of Angular libraries and deprecated components removed, resulting in a smoother and more responsive user interface." Additional details can be found in the project's release announcement.
Rescuezilla 2.6.1
The Rescuezilla project has pubilshed updated media for its 2.6.x series. The new release fixes a bug with swap partitions remaining mounted during operations and updates the distribution's hardware support. "If you have a blank screen, try 'Graphical Fallback Mode' from the Rescuezilla boot menu (after selecting a language). If that doesn't work, try the alternative ISO image. Each variant has slightly different video drivers and Linux kernel versions, so often have slightly different graphics support. Adds release based on Ubuntu 25.04 (Plucky) for best support of new hardware. Fixed regression where swap partitions stayed unintendedly mounted causing restore and clone operations to destination disks containing Linux swap partitions to fail. Impacted Ubuntu 23.10 (Mantic) and newer variants of Ubuntu 24.04 (Noble) and Ubuntu 24.10 (Oracular) so on the newer variants since Rescuezilla v2.5 (2024-05-12). Fixed related (very minor) issue where the operating system time on these specific variants were not being initialized as intended due to 'hwclock' not being installed. Renabled Image Explorer (beta) after it was temporarily disabled in v2.6.0. Switched packaging the underlying "partclone-nbd" executable from the 'checkinstall' wrapper to a more canonical packaging strategy using CMake's CPack (to avoid bug in 'checkinstall' script)." Additional information can be found in the project's release announcement.
* * * * *
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: 3,245
- Total data uploaded: 47.9TB
|
| Upcoming Releases and Announcements |
|
Summary of expected upcoming releases
|
| Opinion Poll (by Jesse Smith) |
Linux Mint or Linux Mint Debian Edition?
In our News section we shared highlights from the upcoming release of Linux Mint (an Ubuntu-based distribution) and Linux Mint Debian Edition (as the name implies, the second branch is based on Debian). We plan to review one of these releases later in the year. Which one do you think we should cover?
You can see the results of our previous poll on how many shell command aliases people have in our previous edition. All previous poll results can be found in our poll archives.
|
Review Linux Mint or LMDE?
| Linux Mint: | 595 (26%) |
| Linux Mint Debian Edition: | 1733 (74%) |
|
|
| Website News |
New distributions added to database
StormOS
StormOS is a desktop-oriented Linux distribution based on Arch Linux. The project's goal is to build an operating system which is easy-to-install, beginner-friendly and usable out of the box in order to attract new users over to the world of Arch Linux.
StormOS 07-19-2025 -- Running the Xfce desktop
(full image size: 403kB, resolution: 2560x1600 pixels)
* * * * *
New distributions added to waiting list
- HydraPWK GNU/Linux. HydraPWK GNU/Linux is a Debian-based distribution for use in a variety of industries, including penetration testing, reverse engineering, forensics, and embedded devices.
- Shanios. Shanios is an Arch-based Linux distribution with an immutable filesystem. The distribution uses Btrfs to manage atomic updates and rollbacks. The project offers two editions: Plasma and GNOME.
* * * * *
DistroWatch database summary
* * * * *
This concludes this week's issue of DistroWatch Weekly. The next instalment will be published on Monday, 28 July 2025. 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: 0, value: US$0.00) |
|
|
|
 bc1qxes3k2wq3uqzr074tkwwjmwfe63z70gwzfu4lx  lnurl1dp68gurn8ghj7ampd3kx2ar0veekzar0wd5xjtnrdakj7tnhv4kxctttdehhwm30d3h82unvwqhhxarpw3jkc7tzw4ex6cfexyfua2nr  86fA3qPTeQtNb2k1vLwEQaAp3XxkvvvXt69gSG5LGunXXikK9koPWZaRQgfFPBPWhMgXjPjccy9LA9xRFchPWQAnPvxh5Le paypal.me/distrowatchweekly • patreon.com/distrowatch |
|
| Extended Lifecycle Support by TuxCare |
|
|
| Reader Comments • Jump to last comment |
1 • One distro to rule them all. (by yeahyesno on 2025-07-21 00:33:27 GMT from United States)
Debian. Been using Linux for like 30 years, I never liked forks but I still test the main ones and the main independent, while Slackware is still in my heart, Debian is the one I pick for all I need (not gonna lie, if Canonical drops the snaps I will strongly reconsider mostly because of the free Pro but can't now). I like Devuan and Alpine too but Debian is my N1.
2 • distro chooser (by John on 2025-07-21 01:26:20 GMT from Canada)
I went through this
https://distrochooser.de/
and one question is too restrictive. On GUI, it only allows you to choose "Windows Like" or "MAC Like" interface. I dislike both, there should be 2 more options, "very lite interface" and "no GUI interface".
Plus I very much doubt it considers Slackware as a viable option.
3 • Settling Down with One Distro (by Jupiter on 2025-07-21 02:00:05 GMT from United States)
I've been through that distro hopping madness myself! In the end though I think Debian with a bit of Configuration works just fine, although Trixie I hear is fixing to have a proper release soon, so I'd wait to move to that for a while, assuming you dont do what I did and go to Debian Testing.
Ubuntu I would prob use instead if it weren't for snaps and the corporate aspect, LMDE is great though.
Cant make myself use Arch. Fedora is nice at least, but overall I just like Debian, just do it myself.
4 • StormOS (by twodogs on 2025-07-21 02:12:10 GMT from United States)
I just tried it like an hour ago. Upon booting to the desktop I was presented with just white, no background image. It was easy to fix. In the background box that pops up where you can choose an image, the developer doesn't have it pointing to the right folder. Change /usr/share/backgrounds to /usr/share/backgrounds/stormos. This should have not passed QC.
5 • Settling down with one distro (by Craig on 2025-07-21 02:45:30 GMT from United States)
I came to GNU//Linux just over 4 years ago after a 40-year run with CP/M, DOS, and Windows. During the pandemic and being home a lot gave me a chance to experiment. I got a cheap NUC and tried a bunch of distros. I even tried Intel Clear Linux; with it being discontinued, am very glad I didn’t choose it. After all my testing, I decided to be in the “deb” realm and not rpm or others. I started with Ubuntu and Mint using a dual boot. Eventually I got rid of the dual boot (just Ubuntu) and put Mint another machine. I tried using Debian on my TV computer, liked it, and then put it on my daily driver. Last year I put Debian on all 4 of my work machines (I use a KVM switch). I like stability and at this point will likely make Debian my forever distribution. It’s just my style.
6 • Settling down with one distro (by user on 2025-07-21 03:40:39 GMT from Bulgaria)
Just one distro is not possible for me. I have a clear use case definition - Ubuntu Dev desktop and the taste of future technologies now, Debian for server and the carefree stable conservatism long term
7 • Longevity of distribution... and new iso file (by Bobbie Sellers on 2025-07-21 04:34:49 GMT from United States)
Well too sad about the Intel decision to drop Clear Linux.
As for sticking with a distribution and I am strictly a user I am very happy after trying
in my role as a newcomer to Linux 20 years ago and as librarian for the SF-LUG
many different distribution to settle with PCLinuxOS which is not everyone's cup
of tea. Oh and we have a new iso file out for KDE 6. I am not using it yet myself
but maybe soon. Best way to find out more is to come to the PCLInuxOS Users
Forum now back online after the building housing the computer caught fire.
bliss- Dell Precision 7730- PCLOS 2025.07- Linux 6.12.39- Plasma 5.27.11
8 • Longevity of distribution... and new iso file (by Bobbie Sellers on 2025-07-21 04:35:44 GMT from United States)
Well too sad about the Intel decision to drop Clear Linux.
As for sticking with a distribution and I am strictly a user I am very happy after trying
in my role as a newcomer to Linux 20 years ago and as librarian for the SF-LUG
many different distributions to settle with PCLinuxOS which is not everyone's cup
of tea. Oh and we have a new iso file out for KDE 6. I am not using it yet myself
but maybe soon. Best way to find out more is to come to the PCLInuxOS Users
Forum now back online after the building housing the computer caught fire.
bliss- Dell Precision 7730- PCLOS 2025.07- Linux 6.12.39- Plasma 5.27.11
9 • DistroHoppig (by Myst Ified on 2025-07-21 05:27:43 GMT from The Netherlands)
I'm not technical, No PC while studying.
Started experimenting with Linux from about 2010. Never coded. Yet comfortable with a terminal.
I like to tinker & learn. For me I always look for a Rolling release, but no-systemD distros. It's not politics, in my opinion, systemD is not as stable as other Inits. I have a preference for Plasma.
My daily worker is Redcore Linux. (Gentoo binary,open-RC and it so easy to use with the Sysiphus package manager) never use emerge, unless stated in News section of the website. Most stable Distro I've used.
Other distro I use are Mx-linux, SysV init, I prefer this to Debian/Ubuntu as the packages are current. As packages with Debian maybe 6-12months behind the current releases.
Artix & Void linux, are installed on my multi boot laptop, with Windows, that never sees the light of day !
Why multiple distros ?
So I have my contingencies in place as Linux OS's come and go, especially if they are a 1 - 2 person operation.
As stated I like to tinker, especially if I'm excited about a new distro.
Last week I installed a new impressive VoidLinux flavour,
https://distrowatch.com/langitketujuh, with Plasma, as there no native plasma iso available.
I hope this was helpful, certainly more confusion from my part.
10 • Helium (by Hank on 2025-07-21 05:58:15 GMT from Germany)
Helium
Named after the second lightest element but weighs in like a ton of bricks.
A clone of a clone based on Alma which is based on IBM RHEL.
1.3 GB when signed in to an empty desktop.
Installed size with very few applications a whopping 6.1 GB
Uses Fatpacks to ensure your disk is full fast.
The OS I stick with, have done so for some years. Debian based but no systemd suite of applications.
Choice of SysV or Runit, both work fine.
antiX running live from USB no persist could be considered Immutable, reboot any changes are gone.
The OS can also be run fully in RAM and the USB boot stick removed, that works on any reasonably modern computer, like from the last 12 years or so.
Again Immutable plus, switch off. Next boot your system is fresh.
Logged in to a fully customized ICEWM desktop 355MB, yes that is Megabytes...
antiX full needs a minimum disk size of about 4 GB. It comes with a lot of packages ! including LibreOffice.
11 • Distrohopping (by pugo27 on 2025-07-21 06:05:34 GMT from New Zealand)
Been distrohopping recently as i prepare my win10 LT for inevitable migration to Linux. I tried few of major distributions but the one that i liked and probably will stick to is MX Linux (XFCE). All apps I needed were 99% UI installable.
12 • Distro Hopping (by Pumpino on 2025-07-21 06:36:56 GMT from Australia)
Debian is a fine distro, but I've never found it to offer anything special. I've found Xubuntu and Manjaro (testing branch) to be just as stable. I could use flatpaks for more recent versions of apps in Debian, but what if a new version of Xfce is released? I don't want to have to wait up to two years to try it. With Manjaro, I'd receive it within several days, and with Xubuntu, within six months (or sooner with the Xubuntu staging PPA).
Running two year-old software is fine on a server, but why use it on a desktop machine when other distros are just as stable?
13 • Distro chose (by jura321 on 2025-07-21 06:37:05 GMT from Austria)
Hello,
MX linux - very polish distro, no systemd, Xorg, alsa plus the latest KDE 5 with support for next 3 years or around it, good documentation, stable and for new HW new kernel could be easily installed.
Void linux - super speedy, super think, no systemd, you got what you really need and require.
There are more distros, which could be consider, but only those with personal experieces(good ones) were written.
Best regards
jura321
14 • Settling down with one distro (by tomas on 2025-07-21 07:58:15 GMT from Czechia)
As already said in the answer, it is a matter of philosophy.
But what is the point of choosing just one distro?
The only advantage I see is that it saves the expense of updating.
On all of my PCs I run more than one distro and would recommend this.
I have visited the distro chooser and ended with a long list, not even going to the end of it.
Is the list ordered from the most recommended to the least recommended?
I run both the first two and have already rejected some of the following.
Running more distros on one PC has a great advantage of longevity.
If some of your distros leaves the scene, you are not affected.
If something breaks and the distro becomes unusable or disliked, you just wipe it.
15 • Distrochooser (by luvr on 2025-07-21 08:21:25 GMT from Belgium)
@2 - I went looking through the distrochooser code on GitHub, and, as expected, they don't consider Slackware as an option. In fact, the distros that they know of, are the following:
arch
artix
cruxlinux
debian
deepin
devuan
elementaryos
fedora
gentoo
knoppix
kubuntu
lubuntu
manjaro
mint
mxlinux
nixos
opensuse
pclinuxos
popos
qubesos
rhel
rocky
solus
tails
ubuntu
ubuntumate
void
xubuntu
zorinos
As I understand it, they do invite contributions, though. If anyone knows how to fit Slackware into their scheme, it could be added.
Having said that, I ran the distrochooser myself, and I arrived at Devuan - which is exactly what I am currently using as my daily driver, with Slackware as my second choice.
16 • Distro Hopping (by Serge Terryn on 2025-07-21 08:24:46 GMT from Belgium)
Linux user since 1995. My personal opinion: stay with the mainstream distro's. Remember, a distro that look nice is not a reason to switch. What one distro do, you can achive that with every other distro. For me, a distro don't need to be nice looking. I'm a gnome user and I realy don't care how my desktop looks. Dash to dock, AppIndicator and Workspace Indicator is al I need. I even stick with the default background. Most appilications are running in max expanded size and a background don't matter, because you don't see it. With a mainstream distro you don't need to be worry that the distro will left behind.
17 • Mint or LMDE (by Pete on 2025-07-21 08:31:13 GMT from United Kingdom)
LMDE here it's so good, it's boring! It just gets the job done. No tinkering required.
18 • StormOS (by Babu on 2025-07-21 09:01:24 GMT from Belgium)
24 • StormOS
"Upon booting to the desktop I was presented with just white, no background image." You are right. Small but stupid error...
However for me it isn't easy to solve. Maybe I am too stupid... "In the background box that pops up where you can choose an image" : I don't see any box propping up . Any help please? Can I correct the error via the command line?
The distro looks interesting!
19 • Distro choice (by grraf on 2025-07-21 09:20:43 GMT from Romania)
Somewhat controversial opinion to have but id say you are better of with a rolling distro(install it once and never again till you buy a new rig) but don't be on its experimental branch stick with its stable(no surprises to be had... but the latest stuff tends to lag several weeks/months) or testing branch(may be prone to the occasional exotic config bug that can slip trough(as in you have niche hardware that isn't tested/accounted for and can act up at times) but is otherwise stable enough and rarely lagging more then a few weeks behind in adopting the cutting tech)
For smb that has a gaming hobby/is somewhat tech savvy going with a rolling distro is a no brainer... but if you find yourself on the opposite end of the spectrum then just get a plain no rolling distro/heck even an immutable one and have a tech savy friend pop around whenever an EoL occurs for your chosen distro version(don't expect your pal to be exactly thrilled to do it(its a hassle and it can often fail spectacularly and a clean install may be the only option left(say goodbye to your stuff if you didn't do/ask him to make a back up for your data(or at least use distinct partitions to store it on)
Its the whole 'serenity now insanity later' approach with non rolling distros(all is fine and dandy till you need to update/install a new version and shit hits the fan hard) while the rolling ones will 'pester' you with frequent small updates that are easy to keep track of and reverse if anything goes sideways every once in a blue moon but on the upside you never have to reinstall again nor will you find yourself kept away from new kernel/driver/software features that can ad a fair bit to your overall quality of life as linux user.
20 • Which distro? (by Maarten on 2025-07-21 09:25:33 GMT from Belgium)
I have distro-hopped before but settling on Fedora for a while now and happy with decent gaming support and easy configuration. I don't like the fact I need to upgrade every (half) year and the amount of updates each weeks and reboots needed but I'm pretty satisfied. Beats windows for most stuff.
21 • setting down with one distro (by me on 2025-07-21 10:46:12 GMT from Poland)
About 20 yesrs ago (and a year or two more), I managed to install Mandrake, that stopped at Mandrake 10 CE, moved to Slackware, have used Slackware since then. True I test out others, ebery now-and-then, but always come back home to Slackware.
22 • Which distro (by Nik on 2025-07-21 11:09:25 GMT from United Kingdom)
Few quick comments. Totally agree on the philosophy comments, and for me, the best fit is and has always been Arch with Hyprland or Sway. I like to mess and don’t really need stability, though it is handy. I have a new Tuxedo laptop on order (lucky me, though I have been waiting for 3 months and am starting to get a bit jumpy now). When it arrives, my plan is to leave the OS alone, install Virt-manager and VirtualBox and then install a few VMs and have a jolly good play. I was intending on trying Slackware and Gentoo, both as projects, and possibly also installing my preferred setup of Arch / Hyprland, and using this in VM as my daily driver, assuming the machine is powerful enough to allow me to do this inside Tuxedo OS as the base OS. Also will install SteamOS, purely for gaming, again in VM. And if all of this is too crazy or doesn’t work as planned, maybe try QubesOS on bare metal and then compartmentalise all my work flows. So Arch as daily, as I like messing and fixing things, and compartmentalisation for added security. But for me, this is a hobby. Unfortunately my work PC is Windows and so locked down I can’t even change the screensaver. Until I retire, I am afraid I am stuck with it. When I retire (next 5 years or so) I plan on doing a full LFS setup on an old laptop, again purely for interest, but for this one i need plenty of time! I have also installed Mint on the kids laptops, and Debian / Gnome on a touchscreen laptop for my dad, and both work very well as stable, simple setups for non-techies. Honestly, if you just want it to work and be stable, you could do a lot worse than Debian stable.
23 • Settling on one Distro (by kc1di on 2025-07-21 11:21:57 GMT from United States)
I've been using Linux since 1996 or so ditched windows about win 7 and never looked back. I've tried many distros over the years and have use most of the big names. But two distros have always stuck with me Debian stable and PCLinuxOS. Both are quite stable and offer good experience. I use PCLinuxOS most ot the time Just like their forum I guess. It's what I would call a semi rolling release. Newer apps are updated quickly while the base stay close to the same. Just upgrade it to KDE/plasma 6 and I like it very much. But as I almost always tell new users try several Distro live (most have Live version now) and see which one fits you need, tastes and Hardware.
most of all Enjoy the Journey!
24 • PikaOS (by John on 2025-07-21 11:26:42 GMT from Canada)
Recently discovered PikaOS and so glad I did! Based on Debian but focused on gaming it has all the Debian goodness and up-to-date kernel and MESA drivers so best of both worlds! :-)
I installed the Gnome edition and it has been working flawlessly. If you like Debian systems, but still want to game, get PikaOS.
25 • Mint or LMDE (by Jim4444 on 2025-07-21 11:40:02 GMT from United States)
Maybe a comparison of Mint and LMDE? Who may want to choose LMDE over the more polished Mint? I'm a low tech user. If I remember correctly, LMDE was started as a backup in case Canonical ever ceased Ubuntu. Is there a reason to use LMDE other than to help develop the alternative system?
26 • Distro-stopped-hopping, mostly (by crayola-eater on 2025-07-21 11:52:45 GMT from United States)
To be honest, and maybe I should be grateful, systemd ended my distro-hopping. One of the main drivers of my mergeing into Linux was KISS. Windows was just getting too maddeningly obtuse, full of useless bling, and closed. And so once in Linux, I again enjoyed being able to tweek (and break) to my heart's content.
Migrated eventually to antiX core, where I can build to my own wants and desires on anticapitalista's fine base (I bounce between sysV and runit on installs).
But I still 'Hop', if that is what you call looking at the new and less common distros to find new and exiting ideas and KISS programs.
27 • Trisquel (by Dave on 2025-07-21 12:25:37 GMT from The Netherlands)
I've been using Trisquel since late 2010 without issues. It does everything I need it to do and is free as in freedom.
28 • Clear Linux (by Devlin7 on 2025-07-21 05:31:05 GMT from New Zealand)
I fired up Clear Linux on a spare laptop last week. Ran like a rocket and seemed to work just fine, 1 week later the project is dead. I would like to say this is the first time a distro has been terminated on me but that would be a lie.
29 • LMDE (by Mario on 2025-07-21 12:40:49 GMT from Italy)
@25
Is there a reason to use LMDE other than to help develop the alternative system? Yes there is: Debian base.
30 • Distrohopping (by ~hellfire103 on 2025-07-21 13:09:14 GMT from Sweden)
I have, for much of the last six years, been distrohopping avidly. However, I have more-or-less settled now on a few reliable and dependable operating systems:
* Arch Linux
* CachyOS
* Artix Linux
* Devuan GNU+Linux
* FreeBSD
31 • THE distro to settle on.. (by Slappy McGee on 2025-07-21 13:22:05 GMT from United States)
Jesse, being the Jesse that he is, sez: "I find a big part of finding the right distribution for me is finding a project where the developers have a similar outlook and mindset to my own."
Too damned practical of an approach, too intelligent, and no danged fun at all. Well, maybe a little.
I'm a hopper/settler. That's a guy who raves about the one that's working okay, and calling it the venerable, "Just Works." Then destroying it to try another. I haven't taken names, but I do get the feeling that many who comment here are of the same ilk.
Right now it's Arch derivative Manjaro. Yay for Manjaro. Last week it was Fedora and Nobara (a tie). I'm typing this on Windows 11. Oy vey!
32 • SystemD (by Friar Tux on 2025-07-21 13:41:29 GMT from Canada)
@26 (crayola-eater) I would have to agree. In my distro hopping days I found the distros with the least post-install need for fussing about were those with Systemd. They were also the most stable. Per poll, I'm using Linux Mint/Cinnamon. I haven't had any lost-time issues in a decade of running Mint - neither has The Wife. (Both of us switched to Linux a day apart, a decade ago.) For all the griping and groaning about SystemD, it has never given me grief.
33 • CachyOS review (by Hank on 2025-07-21 14:09:31 GMT from United States)
New toy of the influencers, flashy, memory cpu and gpu hog.
Fashionable but not very usable, for performance you need very potent hardware,
aka. it is very inefficient and expensive to run. My power consumption check proved that fast.
Deleted.
34 • Distro curious (by Mr B on 2025-07-21 14:56:42 GMT from United Kingdom)
@31 - I like your style. Lately, I've been really impressed by Manjaro (KDE), RegataOS and TuxedoOS. RegataOS is a Brazilian distro' with the best app store I've ever seen on Linux - talk about slick. TuxedoOS is sort of Kubuntu without snaps but better still.
@32 - always a pleasure. My wife and I both use Mint too but the MATE version. If Mint was a KDE rolling-release, that would be my idea of Linux nirvana.
35 • Distro settlement and poll (by Jagdish Deshpande on 2025-07-21 15:21:35 GMT from India)
Settled on Solydk which is Debian made still easier without much deviation from Debian base Getting root actions in dolphins right click menu and few more apps in solidxk repository.
Regarding poll, my choice is comparison of these 2 i.e. mint ubuntu and lmde, after lmde 7 is released.
36 • Distrochooser (by RetiredIT on 2025-07-21 15:20:02 GMT from United States)
I ran it and answered all the questions. To my shock it gave me a HUGE list of possibilities. Way too many which I consider "overkill".
I currently have 8 distros installed on my Dell Latitude 2 TB production SSD:
Mint, Mint Debian, Manjaro, Fedora, Nobara, Ubuntu 24.04 with Pro, openSUSE Tumbleweed and Tumbleweed Slow Roll. Some I installed for testing and others I use in production.
With WinDoze people have NO CHOICE! Maybe one day more WIN adherents will start to wake up!
37 • Settling down with one distro. (by eb on 2025-07-21 15:37:25 GMT from France)
@15 : Slackware since 2005, faithfully, but if ever Slackware abandons us, I would shift to Devuan.
38 • Can you see the funny side of what you wrote? (by Mr B on 2025-07-21 15:43:28 GMT from United Kingdom)
@36
To my shock it gave me a HUGE list of possibilities. Way too many which I consider "overkill".
I currently have 8 distros installed on my Dell Latitude 2 TB production SSD:
39 • Distro choice (by David on 2025-07-21 16:26:39 GMT from United Kingdom)
One thing to remember is that when you update a long-term support distro which you have kept to the end of its life, several programs will have changed — it may be like when the supermarket re-arranges the shelves. On the other hand, a fast-moving distro may move to fast to get reliably checked. Fedora has enough volunteers to usually update successfully. Ubuntu, with a small staff, checks the stuff in the default distribution but just copies the rest of the repository from Debian Unstable — sometimes things conflict. I'd recommend avoiding those two problems by using either a distro with a two-year cycle (e.g. Mint) and replacing the moment the new version is released or a very cautious rolling release (e.g. PCLinuxOS).
There's also the problem of un-checked material. The report above on malware getting into Arch's AUR repository shows the risk of just trusting the community. Get a distro where they are responsible for all their programs (e.g. not Arch or Ubuntu).
40 • Settling Down with One Distro-Kubuntu LTS (by Samuel on 2025-07-21 16:59:47 GMT from South Africa)
I have settled on Kubuntu LTS. When developers make Linux versions of (proprietary) software and tutorials they seem do do them first for Ubuntu so Using Ubuntu makes life easier.
41 • Distro Choice (by John Torelli on 2025-07-21 17:46:34 GMT from United States)
Mint Mate, since 2012. Mint Cinnamon on a separate drive that I game with occasionally and Solus Plasma on another drive I play with once in a while. Used Ghost BSD for a long time on a separate computer until the CPU fan died while I was away. Liked Peppermint Linux and used it on a netbook I took with me while traveling years ago. For day to day use it's Mint Mate. The wife uses it on her computer, it's on my current ASUS laptop, on my triple monitor main setup and my business computer. Easy to configure, reliable and does everything I need it to do.
42 • Choice of Distro (by Debbie K on 2025-07-21 19:24:02 GMT from United Kingdom)
> "Summary of expected upcoming releases:"
> "2025-08-09: Debian 13 (see announcement)"
> "(see announcement = https://lists.debian.org/debian-devel-announce/2025/07/msg00003.html)"
So it's finally (nearly) official.
Praise Be! And a big "Thank You" to the team.
Been choosing and using Debian + KDE for years already.
Counting down to August 9th...
Debz.
43 • Longevity of distribution.. (by Bof on 2025-07-21 20:12:14 GMT from United Kingdom)
Pclinux........ 20 years and as fresh today as it was back then !
As Bobbie ... 7 ... says..... it's not everyone's cup of tea !
Tried 100's of distro's on other machines, but my main one has Pclinux and always will have !.
44 • MALWARE ON ARCH Parabola news (by rhtoras on 2025-07-21 20:16:51 GMT from Greece)
Malware on arch linux ? Lennart Poettering i love you so much. You will destroy linux BUT you will teach us a big lesson. Against systemD.
AS for parabola... great news for openrc... Parabola is an underrated operating system.
PcLinuxos is a nice operating system too...
As for Linux MInt no usecase for Ubuntu Flavor. Relase a systemD free Version and this would be thew #1. But you need great developers. Can they do this ? I am waiting...
45 • Settling down with ten distros (by needless on 2025-07-21 20:40:07 GMT from United States)
I built a desktop with a hot swap tray system and currently use 10 different distros. There is no dual booting, every OS has it's own drive. For general usage and because I'm lazy, MX seems to be a fine all a rounder. I set up my Ubuntu and OpenSUSE to do the same general purpose work, in fact I'm on OpenSUSE right now. Other Debian based OS's I use are Sparky, Modicia, Parrot and Emmabuntus. For Arch based I use Cachy and EndeavourOS. I also use Fedora. I used Mint (mostly) on my prior desktop for 13 years before replacing it.) Keep in mind that I am just a retired guy in his 70's who worked in manufacturing where we used Windows and terminals prior to that. I am not creating videos or playing games on my desktop. I think, among these systems, that Emmabuntus and the 2 Arch based systems are worth considering.
46 • No distrohopping (by bones on 2025-07-21 23:22:41 GMT from United States)
I have Slackware and MX in VMs. FreeBSD only (not a distro/not Linux) on bare metal.
47 • Choosing a Long Term Distro (by RHoagland on 2025-07-22 00:03:49 GMT from United States)
This is a great subject for discussion with probably as many opinions as there are people you ask. I love to distrohop, and mostly satisfy that curiosity using virtualization, but have a few guidelines for picking out a distribution for a daily driver.
1) What's the use case? My elderly parents need stability, while I like using the latest software and can fix problems if they arise.
2) What's the development model/philosopy? Rolling, fixed release, LTS? Is development governed by a community, (hopefully) benevolent dictator, or corporation? Will it continue if something happens to one developer?
3) Can I easily install the software/drivers I need? How hard is it if the package isn't offered in official repositories?
4) Community and support
48 • Software Management for Helium (by David on 2025-07-22 03:20:09 GMT from United States)
Software Management:
Did you try "download the source code and compile?"
Installing debian in a container and running software from that sounds like about the most convaluted thing I've ever heard of. Also, resource intensive.
Also for this week's poll; there should have been a "none of the above" or "other" choice.
49 • 2 • distro chooser (by Jake on 2025-07-22 09:46:25 GMT from United States)
I agree with you I don't want a windows or mac interface so I chose 'skip question'. What I prefer is a gnome2 style interface, which is why I use the Mate desktop.
50 • Slackware (by luvr on 2025-07-22 09:50:43 GMT from Belgium)
@37 Slackware was actually my first encounter with Linux, way back in 1995. I have been running Slackware ever since, sometimes as my daily driver, sometimes (like now) as an alternative option.
51 • Choice criteria (by Slappy McGee on 2025-07-22 12:10:29 GMT from United States)
@47:
1) What's the use case? My elderly parents need stability, while I like using the latest software and can fix problems if they arise.
2) What's the development model/philosopy? Rolling, fixed release, LTS? Is development governed by a community, (hopefully) benevolent dictator, or corporation? Will it continue if something happens to one developer?
3) Can I easily install the software/drivers I need? How hard is it if the package isn't offered in official repositories?
4) Community and support
With the exception of #1 there, are you sure you do all that when you decide to download a distro?
Once in a while I might consider the rolling vs stable thing.. but still go ahead an download the iso no matter. And the "philosophy" of a distro? Well... as long as it's not something way out there in Specialized Land, heck I'll try anything. That about drivers for your hardware, well yeah, but how do you find out unless you try it at least live? Do you go to their forums etc and ask? The community thing seems usefull.. but really, you can still look stuff up; info is everywhere, not just in a forum for the distro.
52 • @44 Malware on Arch (by GT on 2025-07-22 14:55:44 GMT from United States)
The recent malware found in the AUR had nothing to do with systemd, and it had absolutely nothing to do with Lennart Poettering. Painting an individual a as villain because you don't like the software they write is ridiculous at best and dangerous at worst.
53 • LMDE (by krokus on 2025-07-22 18:13:15 GMT from France)
I think it's a better idea to review LMDE, because everyone is trying Mint. The Debian edition deserve some light too !
54 • systemD and arch (by rhtoras on 2025-07-22 18:55:17 GMT from Greece)
@52 The problem with arch has nothing to do with systemD. OK but when did i say it has somethiong to do with systemD ? I JUST SAID that problems make it's appearance in distros where systemD is a priority and arch is no exception. Lennart Poettering destroyed linux... He is resposnible for a majority of bad incidents happening in the linux ecosystem. But to be honest it's supporters are something dangerous for the community. Making the hell looking as paradise is extremely dangerous. And this is a topic i am not willing to discuss rightnow. sysdfree.wordpress has all things covered and i am happy with void linux in the end of the day...
55 • Chrome OS Flex (by MattE on 2025-07-23 00:14:43 GMT from United States)
Chrome OS Flex is easier than any distro on the Distrowatch list. I install Chome OS for a client and they NEVER have a problem. Not true for any other OS or distro. It is a rolling release, prompts the user to reboot as needed. On the other hand, it's part of the big Google machine and mostly open source at best. With the Debian dev VM running, I can install anything Debian including GUI apps.
56 • distro chooser (by grindstone on 2025-07-23 01:10:59 GMT from United States)
Did the chooser test...came-up Void. Expected Spiral, maybe. Daily runner for (?) 6 years has been a homebrew minimal Xub-ish thing neutered where possible, but keep antiX core homebrew w/ fluxbox & DSL on Ventoy sticks for "in case". If someone gets busy per @15's insight, it needs Slackware and DSL as waypoints on the path. I use my machines hard--for actual number crunching-intensive stuff. Keeping things thin, and stability wins. Sometimes, it takes months to recall/rediscover all the things required for daily usage because, by the time I have to upgrade, the freaking Linux ecosystem has radically altered basic subsystems. PCL was once a friendly entry in the '90's for me and will always have respect. And almost nothing taught me as much as Slackware when life had time to read all those comments and keep-up on deps and build things. When life intervened and the machine had to be tool and not hobby, there could only be the Debian tree...
57 • Settling on a distro (by fenglengshun on 2025-07-23 01:49:47 GMT from Indonesia)
I used to just distrohop. I outright find it to be a relaxing activity, sometimes. What made me settle down was eventually finding something comfortable enough that it's a hassle to switch to something else. That was Bazzite. I've since find some things dislikable about it, but I still find it a hassle to find something else, especially on my ROG Ally and with the shared housing's congested wifi.
Honestly, just keep trying something new until you find something really agreeable with you.
58 • LMDE (by Keith S on 2025-07-23 02:29:09 GMT from The Netherlands)
I would like a review of Mint LMDE. I have used Mint in the distant past, and tried it briefly a few months ago, but I frankly dislike the Ubuntu feel it has. (I used Ubuntu Studio for a while years ago, but as I recall it was very brittle and broke easily. Haven't tried it since because audio is good enough on almost any vanilla distro these days.)
Daily Linux driver has been MX Linux for a few years now, and antiX as a backup. Great tools, mostly stable, everything I need. OpenBSD is the awesome bestest of course but I couldn't recommend it to anyone who is afraid of learning the command line or how to download packages.
59 • distro hopping like a frog (by forest kiwi on 2025-07-23 04:33:11 GMT from New Zealand)
Since moving to Linux, starting with "just looking" circa 1998 to full adoption and not looking back around 2008... I have tended to find a distro and stick with that, while furiously testing dozen upon dozen ISOs as other distros got released.
In the early days that was Mint and Cinnamon, now more Manjaro and KDE Plasma. I strongly agree with one poster above who said total bliss would be Mint KDE rolling (and based on Debian, not 'buntu).
60 • lmde vs mint (by Dave on 2025-07-23 05:25:09 GMT from Australia)
I guess a review of LMDE would be good, because Mint is popular enough for many many other reviews, so good to test something different.
In some ways I like of idea of LMDE becoming the actual version of Mint, the only thing I don't like is old Debian packages. Now if it were a rolling release, or slow roll based on Debian, that would be something.
61 • @60 Debian, rolling: Debian-testing (by Jan on 2025-07-23 07:54:25 GMT from The Netherlands)
@60 Mint Debian, but in a rolling version.
That is already available by Debian-Testing?
There is a weekly update of several Debian-Testing (rolling) versions of Debian-13, I have tested a few in Live-Ventoy-USB, Look pretty well to me.
https://www.linuxcompatible.org/story/debian-gnu-linux-13-trixie-testing-20250721-live-images/
62 • debian testing (by Dave on 2025-07-23 08:56:07 GMT from Australia)
@61 I know what you mean, unfortunately I've found debian testing is not very stable. I realise exactly how that sounds :-D but for comparison I found Arch quite stable, it's rolling nature is the intended use case. Debian testing is intended for, well testing, same with Fedora Rawhide - I found both to be quite buggy.
I was thinking more of a "supported" rolling, like Arch of Opensuse Tumbleweed. I've always wanted a Debian like this, but a Linux Mint like this based off Debian would be cool too.
63 • Debian (by Slappy McGee on 2025-07-23 11:56:23 GMT from United States)
I installed Debian yesterday, for the first time in years (can't remember the last time I tried.. probably 10 years ago or so). I've had Debian derivatives, but this is plain old Debian this time.
It's changed. The whole process of installation and set up has changed from a struggle to just plain easy and satisfying. It's Debian 12.11, "stable."
I highly recommend it, as it's pure Debian and not messed with (for the good or not so good) by distro makers who want to make it easier etc; that's no longer needed.
64 • @62 Rolling distro (by Jan on 2025-07-23 13:58:07 GMT from The Netherlands)
Thanks for this informative remark (about Debian-Testing as a rolling distro).
In the recent past I tried Suse TW, both in KDE and Gnome. I had no positive experience.
In the KDE version I installed some KDE-apps, they seemed to disappear in a bottom-less pit, they were detected as installed but nowhere to be found for starting up.
In the Gnome-version I installed some extensions, to enhance the Gnome UI. After a Gnome update some extensions were broken (unusable).
Both problems had some (old) internet reports, so it was not my own exclusive experience.
Concerning Arch I read several messages about breaking because of bleeding edge, so for my knowledge-level not a good idea to use.
As I prefer distros with a more-persons/big/stable management and community, not so much rolling distros remain.
65 • Rolling Release model (by picamanic on 2025-07-23 18:07:03 GMT from United Kingdom)
@62,@62: Rolling versus Rolling. Some [many?] here have found that Arch-based distros are among the most unstable and insecure, and have attributed this to the Rolling Release model, amongst other things. However, I have found that Void Linux, that also uses a Rolling Release model, is by far the most stable that I have used, over many years. It must come down to the care that is employed in adding packages and versions to the repositories.
There aren't many distros that use the Rolling Release model, perhaps because it is difficult to get right.
66 • Settling down with one distro (by Jeffry on 2025-07-23 23:59:34 GMT from United States)
I like distro hopping. however, I have specific use based distros. My recording studio runs Ubuntu Studio not the LTS version. My laptop varies, durrently it's Tuxedo OS, but I have a love for Fedora based distros like Nobara, and Arch distros like Artix and Catchy. My first love was Mandrake so I also find myself rotating Open Mandriva, Magiea, and Rosa.
67 • Rolling releases (by Dave on 2025-07-24 00:50:44 GMT from Australia)
@65 The experiences of many are probably correct. A lot can come down to hardware and use case. I avoided the AUR altogether, which I think avoids many issues. My needs were pretty standard (if there is such a thing) but that isn't everyone's circumstance.
I've heard positive things around Void, and you're probably right, it's more down to care taken which will vary from distro to distro. I imagine it would be hard to get right.
More than being bleeding edge, what I like more about rolling releases is there aren't "versions" (and codenames, I hate codenames) there's just the latest. I do like recent packages at least, especially for desktops.
68 • Debian Testing (by Hank on 2025-07-24 08:49:06 GMT from Germany)
Yes, Debian Testing is not very stable.
For anyone wanting latest versions on Debian sid is the better option.
It is not a rolling release, not really for inexperienced users.
From a long term antiX siddite.
Update it daily where possible. Update problems usually clear in a couple of days.
Keep a backup, that should be a standard no matter which operating system is used.
Is generally more stable than some distributions, buntu comes to mind, it was not a positive experience for me.
69 • LMDE: the best Mint (not counting Peppermint OS) but the worst Debian (by Linux Musk (flavour, not Elon) on 2025-07-24 09:07:50 GMT from The Netherlands)
If you don't want to deal with the hassle of installing Debian, just let Spiral Linux do it for you.
And if you really want de-Snapped Ubuntu, why? But also, just use Pop OS.
Other honorable mentions, if for some reason the above don't do it for you:
Neptune OS (Debian)
Sparky Linux (Debian)
Astra Linux (Debian)
Pardus (Debian)
Tuxedo OS (Ubuntu)
Robo Linux (Ubuntu)
Bodhi Linux (Ubuntu)
Linux Lite (Ubuntu)
There is really never any reason to touch either LMDE, MX Linux, AntiX or Q4OS, or Linux Mint, Feren OS, Zorin OS or Elementary OS.
70 • Debian installing (by Slappy McGee on 2025-07-24 12:34:23 GMT from United States)
"If you don't want to deal with the hassle of installing Debian..."
@69 As pointed out in @63 Debian is not a "hassle" to install now. They've changed it dramatically. Calameres (sp?) does the job same as with other "user friendly" distros.
I installed Debian 12.11 with Mate. Straightforward and easy, unlike the old days with Debian.
71 • Debian Delay or Arch Adventure (by forest kiwi on 2025-07-24 20:41:52 GMT from New Zealand)
Good that Debian themselves have made installation more human-friendly. On my journey I came to a point where the delays for new versions of software in Mint, which was waiting for Ubuntu, which was waiting for Debian to 'arrive', got to the point of Windows users getting newer software for originally Linux apps that got ported over! Mint itself is exemplary, superb, brilliant; but running 2 major versions behind on software?
So I went over to the rolling adventure country called Arch. Not pure Arch, as that requires a double PhD in Computer Science, 40 years Unix basement experience and four sainthoods for patience, but I settled on Manjaro. I think that in 4 years I have had three minor package anomalies, easily fixed, so no big "stability issues".
One of the big papercuts is printer management - Manjaro struggles and fights, Mint instantly finds and correctly configures. I had a rather dramatic example a few months back where I went to a site and Manjaro was groping around blind even when being led, but Mint found 80 printers in 2 minutes - all by itself.
Plasma 6.3 is better than the first KDE Plasma (4), but there are still some things you cannot easily customise. Cinnnamon is mature, XFCE now works, MATE is very dated, and for me Gnome is an unusable interface disaster. I use KDE Plasma, Cinnamon and XFCE across several machines. I keep at least one Mint for printer circus situations like the one I mentioned.
The diversity in Linux distros is cool as each one of us can find a journey that suits out needs.
72 • Settling down with one distro (by ned on 2025-07-24 21:10:35 GMT from Austria)
For me it's Devuan - have it running hassle-free on my computers ever since it split off from Debian.
73 • Linux distro developers should join forces (by Debian is good for me, too on 2025-07-25 10:08:09 GMT from Italy)
As for me, while I've been a Debian enthusiast for years, I appreciate the fact there's still plenty of choice. However, very minor distros should face the need for a more sensible approach to Linux as a whole. Wasting time in creating "a Debian, plus two themes minus a WM and a bunch of wallpapers", while they could work to simply optimize some very long unmaintained but useful tools, is not a good move nowadays.
Please, create new distros if you actually know they're needed, otherwise make something different.
74 • distros (by qwerty1234 on 2025-07-25 16:03:20 GMT from United Kingdom)
Nothing on Openindiana/Solaris?
75 • One distro (by Roger on 2025-07-25 18:32:42 GMT from France)
I am using Linux Mint Mate for years, started in 2006 with Barbara and never left it.
Yes ones and a while test others but stay with them and support them.
I have one copy of Ubuntu Mate just to keep an eye on Mate so when Mint ever dropped Mate I can switch.
Never liked Cinnamon, I simply don't want it.
76 • Choosing a Long Term Distro (by RHoagland on 2025-07-25 21:32:43 GMT from United States)
@51 "With the exception of #1 there, are you sure you do all that when you decide to download a distro?"
You entirely ignored the first part of my post. The question wasn't about downloading, but how would you pick one to stick with?
77 • Debian distros (by Keith S on 2025-07-26 00:03:16 GMT from United States)
Frankly the only one of the many distros listed in @69 that I've tried is Sparky. I might try some of them at some point, but I'm very content with what I've been using for several years now. I don't understand the reason for the hate of those listed at the end. Too popular maybe? In any event, MX Linux and antiX have great tools that are easy to use and not found in many other distros. That alone makes them worth considering for people looking for a long-term home.
As for knocking smaller distros as is done in @73, again, why do some feel the need to regulate what others do with their time? Should all Linux developers just give up and start working on Fedora or Debian or Ubuntu? (Which one, by the way? Who decides that?) Is the goal total Linux domination of personal computers? Hate to break the news, but that's never going to happen. Be happy that it's available at all, and for free, so you don't have a binary choice between bad and worse.
Number of Comments: 77
Display mode: DWW Only • Comments Only • Both DWW and Comments
| | |
| 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 1162 (2026-03-02): AerynOS 2026.01, anti-virus and firewall tools, Manjaro fixes website certificate, Ubuntu splits firmware package, jails for NetBSD, extended support for some Linux kernel releases, Murena creating a map app |
| • Issue 1161 (2026-02-23): The Guix package manager, quick Q&As, Gentoo migrating its mirrors, Fedora considers more informative kernel panic screens, GhostBSD testing alternative X11 implementation, Asahi makes progress with Apple M3, NetBSD userland ported, FreeBSD improves web-based system management |
| • Issue 1160 (2026-02-16): Noid and AgarimOS, command line tips, KDE Linux introduces delta updates, Redox OS hits development milestone, Linux Mint develops a desktop-neutral account manager, sudo developer seeks sponsorship |
| • Issue 1159 (2026-02-09): Sharing files on a network, isolating processes on Linux, LFS to focus on systemd, openSUSE polishes atomic updates, NetBSD not likely to adopt Rust code, COSMIC roadmap |
| • Issue 1158 (2026-02-02): Manjaro 26.0, fastest filesystem, postmarketOS progress report, Xfce begins developing its own Wayland window manager, Bazzite founder interviewed |
| • Issue 1157 (2026-01-26): Setting up a home server, what happened to convergence, malicious software entering the Snap store, postmarketOS automates hardware tests, KDE's login manager works with systemd only |
| • Issue 1156 (2026-01-19): Chimera Linux's new installer, using the DistroWatch Torrent Corner, new package tools for Arch, Haiku improves EFI support, Redcore streamlines branches, Synex introduces install-time ZFS options |
| • Issue 1155 (2026-01-12): MenuetOS, CDE on Sparky, iDeal OS 2025.12.07, recommended flavour of BSD, Debian seeks new Data Protection Team, Ubuntu 25.04 nears its end of life, Google limits Android source code releases, Fedora plans to replace SDDM, Budgie migrates to Wayland |
| • Issue 1154 (2026-01-05): postmarketOS 25.06/25.12, switching to Linux and educational resources, FreeBSD improving laptop support, Unix v4 available for download, new X11 server in development, CachyOS team plans server edtion |
| • Issue 1153 (2025-12-22): Best projects of 2025, is software ever truly finished?, Firefox to adopt AI components, Asahi works on improving the install experience, Mageia presents plans for version 10 |
| • Issue 1152 (2025-12-15): OpenBSD 7.8, filtering websites, Jolla working on a Linux phone, Germany saves money with Linux, Ubuntu to package AMD tools, Fedora demonstrates AI troubleshooting, Haiku packages Go language |
| • Issue 1151 (2025-12-08): FreeBSD 15.0, fun command line tricks, Canonical presents plans for Ubutnu 26.04, SparkyLinux updates CDE packages, Redox OS gets modesetting driver |
| • Issue 1150 (2025-12-01): Gnoppix 25_10, exploring if distributions matter, openSUSE updates tumbleweed's boot loader, Fedora plans better handling of broken packages, Plasma to become Wayland-only, FreeBSD publishes status report |
| • Issue 1149 (2025-11-24): MX Linux 25, why are video drivers special, systemd experiments with musl, Debian Libre Live publishes new media, Xubuntu reviews website hack |
| • Issue 1148 (2025-11-17): Zorin OS 18, deleting a file with an unusual name, NetBSD experiments with sandboxing, postmarketOS unifies its documentation, OpenBSD refines upgrades, Canonical offers 15 years of support for Ubuntu |
| • Issue 1147 (2025-11-10): Fedora 43, the size and stability of the Linux kernel, Debian introducing Rust to APT, Redox ports web engine, Kubuntu website off-line, Mint creates new troubleshooting tools, FreeBSD improves reproducible builds, Flatpak development resumes |
| • Issue 1146 (2025-11-03): StartOS 0.4.0, testing piped commands, Ubuntu Unity seeks help, Canonical offers Ubuntu credentials, Red Hat partners with NVIDIA, SUSE to bundle AI agent with SLE 16 |
| • Issue 1145 (2025-10-27): Linux Mint 7 "LMDE", advice for new Linux users, AlmaLinux to offer Btrfs, KDE launches Plasma 6.5, Fedora accepts contributions written by AI, Ubuntu 25.10 fails to install automatic updates |
| • Issue 1144 (2025-10-20): Kubuntu 25.10, creating and restoring encrypted backups, Fedora team debates AI, FSF plans free software for phones, ReactOS addresses newer drivers, Xubuntu reacts to website attack |
| • Issue 1143 (2025-10-13): openSUSE 16.0 Leap, safest source for new applications, Redox introduces performance improvements, TrueNAS Connect available for testing, Flatpaks do not work on Ubuntu 25.10, Kamarada plans to switch its base, Solus enters new epoch, Frugalware discontinued |
| • Issue 1142 (2025-10-06): Linux Kamarada 15.6, managing ZIP files with SQLite, F-Droid warns of impact of Android lockdown, Alpine moves ahead with merged /usr, Cinnamon gets a redesigned application menu |
| • Issue 1141 (2025-09-29): KDE Linux and GNOME OS, finding mobile flavours of Linux, Murena to offer phones with kill switches, Redox OS running on a smartphone, Artix drops GNOME |
| • Issue 1140 (2025-09-22): NetBSD 10.1, avoiding AI services, AlmaLinux enables CRB repository, Haiku improves disk access performance, Mageia addresses service outage, GNOME 49 released, Linux introduces multikernel support |
| • Issue 1139 (2025-09-15): EasyOS 7.0, Linux and central authority, FreeBSD running Plasma 6 on Wayland, GNOME restores X11 support temporarily, openSUSE dropping BCacheFS in new kernels |
| • Issue 1138 (2025-09-08): Shebang 25.8, LibreELEC 12.2.0, Debian GNU/Hurd 2025, the importance of software updates, AerynOS introduces package sets, postmarketOS encourages patching upstream, openSUSE extends Leap support, Debian refreshes Trixie media |
| • Issue 1137 (2025-09-01): Tribblix 0m37, malware scanners flagging Linux ISO files, KDE introduces first-run setup wizard, CalyxOS plans update prior to infrastructure overhaul, FreeBSD publishes status report |
| • Issue 1136 (2025-08-25): CalyxOS 6.8.20, distros for running containers, Arch Linux website under attack,illumos Cafe launched, CachyOS creates web dashboard for repositories |
| • Issue 1135 (2025-08-18): Debian 13, Proton, WINE, Wayland, and Wayback, Debian GNU/Hurd 2025, KDE gets advanced Liquid Glass, Haiku improves authentication tools |
| • Issue 1134 (2025-08-11): Rhino Linux 2025.3, thoughts on malware in the AUR, Fedora brings hammered websites back on-line, NetBSD reveals features for version 11, Ubuntu swaps some command line tools for 25.10, AlmaLinux improves NVIDIA support |
| • Issue 1133 (2025-08-04): Expirion Linux 6.0, running Plasma on Linux Mint, finding distros which support X11, Debian addresses 22 year old bug, FreeBSD discusses potential issues with pkgbase, CDE ported to OpenBSD, Btrfs corruption bug hitting Fedora users, more malware found in Arch User Repository |
| • Issue 1132 (2025-07-28): deepin 25, wars in the open source community, proposal to have Fedora enable Flathub repository, FreeBSD plans desktop install option, Wayback gets its first release |
| • Issue 1131 (2025-07-21): HeliumOS 10.0, settling on one distro, Mint plans new releases, Arch discovers malware in AUR, Plasma Bigscreen returns, Clear Linux discontinued |
| • Issue 1130 (2025-07-14): openSUSE MicroOS and RefreshOS, sharing aliases between computers, Bazzite makes Bazaar its default Flatpak store, Alpine plans Wayback release, Wayland and X11 benchmarked, Red Hat offers additional developer licenses, openSUSE seeks feedback from ARM users, Ubuntu 24.10 reaches the end of its life |
| • Issue 1129 (2025-07-07): GLF OS Omnislash, the worst Linux distro, Alpine introduces Wayback, Fedora drops plans to stop i686 support, AlmaLinux builds EPEL repository for older CPUs, Ubuntu dropping existing RISC-V device support, Rhino partners with UBports, PCLinuxOS recovering from website outage |
| • Issue 1128 (2025-06-30): AxOS 25.06, AlmaLinux OS 10.0, transferring Flaptak bundles to off-line computers, Ubuntu to boost Intel graphics performance, Fedora considers dropping i686 packages, SDesk switches from SELinux to AppArmor |
| • Issue 1127 (2025-06-23): LastOSLinux 2025-05-25, most unique Linux distro, Haiku stabilises, KDE publishes Plasma 6.4, Arch splits Plasma packages, Slackware infrastructure migrating |
| • Issue 1126 (2025-06-16): SDesk 2025.05.06, renewed interest in Ubuntu Touch, a BASIC device running NetBSD, Ubuntu dropping X11 GNOME session, GNOME increases dependency on systemd, Google holding back Pixel source code, Nitrux changing its desktop, EFF turns 35 |
| • Issue 1125 (2025-06-09): RHEL 10, distributions likely to survive a decade, Murena partners with more hardware makers, GNOME tests its own distro on real hardware, Redox ports GTK and X11, Mint provides fingerprint authentication |
| • Issue 1124 (2025-06-02): Picking up a Pico, tips for protecting privacy, Rhino tests Plasma desktop, Arch installer supports snapshots, new features from UBports, Ubuntu tests monthly snapshots |
| • Issue 1123 (2025-05-26): CRUX 3.8, preventing a laptop from sleeping, FreeBSD improves laptop support, Fedora confirms GNOME X11 session being dropped, HardenedBSD introduces Rust in userland build, KDE developing a virtual machine manager |
| • Issue 1122 (2025-05-19): GoboLinux 017.01, RHEL 10.0 and Debian 12 updates, openSUSE retires YaST, running X11 apps on Wayland |
| • Issue 1121 (2025-05-12): Bluefin 41, custom file manager actions, openSUSE joins End of 10 while dropping Deepin desktop, Fedora offers tips for building atomic distros, Ubuntu considers replacing sudo with sudo-rs |
| • Issue 1120 (2025-05-05): CachyOS 250330, what it means when a distro breaks, Kali updates repository key, Trinity receives an update, UBports tests directory encryption, Gentoo faces losing key infrastructure |
| • Issue 1119 (2025-04-28): Ubuntu MATE 25.04, what is missing from Linux, CachyOS ships OCCT, Debian enters soft freeze, Fedora discusses removing X11 session from GNOME, Murena plans business services, NetBSD on a Wii |
| • Issue 1118 (2025-04-21): Fedora 42, strange characters in Vim, Nitrux introduces new package tools, Fedora extends reproducibility efforts, PINE64 updates multiple devices running Debian |
| • Issue 1117 (2025-04-14): Shebang 25.0, EndeavourOS 2025.03.19, running applications from other distros on the desktop, Debian gets APT upgrade, Mint introduces OEM options for LMDE, postmarketOS packages GNOME 48 and COSMIC, Redox testing USB support |
| • Issue 1116 (2025-04-07): The Sense HAT, Android and mobile operating systems, FreeBSD improves on laptops, openSUSE publishes many new updates, Fedora appoints new Project Leader, UBports testing VoLTE |
| • Issue 1115 (2025-03-31): GrapheneOS 2025, the rise of portable package formats, MidnightBSD and openSUSE experiment with new package management features, Plank dock reborn, key infrastructure projects lose funding, postmarketOS to focus on reliability |
| • Issue 1114 (2025-03-24): Bazzite 41, checking which processes are writing to disk, Rocky unveils new Hardened branch, GNOME 48 released, generating images for the Raspberry Pi |
| • Issue 1113 (2025-03-17): MocaccinoOS 1.8.1, how to contribute to open source, Murena extends on-line installer, Garuda tests COSMIC edition, Ubuntu to replace coreutils with Rust alternatives, Chimera Linux drops RISC-V builds |
| • Issue 1112 (2025-03-10): Solus 4.7, distros which work with Secure Boot, UBports publishes bug fix, postmarketOS considers a new name, Debian running on Android |
| • Issue 1111 (2025-03-03): Orbitiny 0.01, the effect of Ubuntu Core Desktop, Gentoo offers disk images, elementary OS invites feature ideas, FreeBSD starts PinePhone Pro port, Mint warns of upcoming Firefox issue |
| • 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 | 
BlackRhino GNU/Linux
BlackRhino GNU/Linux was a free Debian-based GNU/Linux software distribution for the Sony PlayStation 2. It contains over 1,200 software packages to aid in using and creating programs for the Sony PlayStation 2 Linux kit. The programs range in functionality from simple games, to text editors, compilers, web servers, windowing systems, database systems, graphics packages, mail servers and a variety of other tools and utilities. The software distribution was created by xRhino for a commercial Sony PlayStation 2 title. It was released in the hopes that the distribution will help hobbyists create their own games and applications that utilize the advanced programmable hardware of the PS2.
Status: Discontinued
|
| 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.
|
|
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
