 DistroWatch Weekly |
| DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 74, 8 November 2004 |
Welcome to this year's 44th edition of DistroWatch Weekly. With FreeBSD 5.3 finally out of the door and Fedora Core 3 just around the corner, there is plenty to keep all BSD and Linux fans occupied for weeks to come. Besides covering the above two releases, we'll also bring you an interesting comparison of the existing RHEL 3 derivatives, news about a Knoppix live CD for gamers, and the usual roundup of distribution news. Happy reading!
Content:
New stable releases by FreeBSD, Fedora Project
 FreeBSD 5.3-RELEASE is finally out of the door. The intense development cycle was concluded last weekend when the ISO images started to appear on FreeBSD mirrors with the official announcement following shortly afterwards. Of course, work on FreeBSD never stops and the developers are already busy implementing new features in the current (FreeBSD-6) tree, all in the elusive quest to bring you a truly perfect operating system. This is from an email message by Scott Long, sent to FreeBSD-current last week:
"5.x was a tremendous undertaking. SMPng, KSE, UFS2, background fsck, ULE, ACPI, etc, etc, etc were all incredible tasks. Given that many of these things were developed and managed by unpaid volunteers, the fact that we made it to 5-STABLE at all is quite impressive and says a lot about the quality and determination of all of our developers and users. However, 4 years was quite a long time to work on it. While 4.x remained a good work-horse, it suffered from not having needed features and hardware support. 5.x suffered at the same time from having too much ambition but not enough developers to efficiently carry it through."
The same email message also discusses the project's future plans:
"The current plan is to branch RELENG_6 (aka 6-STABLE) sometime around May or June 2005. That will begin a 1-3 month freeze and stabilization process for the 6.0 release. After that is released, we will do 6.1, 6.2 and onwards at likely 4 month intervals. In May/June 2006 we'll look at doing RELENG_7, or we might wait until Nov/Dec 2006 (12 months vs 18 months). The 5.4 release will likely be in Feb/March 2005, with a 5.5 release possibly in June/July, depending on where 6.0 is. There may be 5.x releases after 6.0 if 6.0 turns out to not be as stable as needed (as is often the case with a .0 release)."
With FreeBSD 5.3 out of the door and Fedora Core 3 just around the corner, there is only one major release to wait for this year - Debian 3.1 "Sarge". Will it arrive before Christmas? Or is it still months away? Your guess is as good as ours.
* * * * *
 Shortly after Red Hat Linux was discontinued and replaced with a more community oriented Fedora Project, many developers went on to take advantage of the source RPMs used to build the official Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL) distribution. Soon, RHEL clones began appearing on the Internet, starting with the best-known White Box Enterprise Linux, developed by a public library in DeRidder, USA, to a more recent product by StartCom, a Linux company from Eilat, Israel. So which one to choose? If you haven't decided yet, this white paper published by Lineox might be of help. Although it presents several controversial opinions that many will disagree with, it highlights an important problem with some of the existing RHEL clones - e.g. very slow response to security updates by White Box Enterprise Linux, or lack of commitment by some of the volunteer development efforts, such as the cAos project. All in all, a good read, especially if you are in the market looking for a RHEL-like distribution without the 3-digit price tag.
* * * * *
 The developers of the Knoppix project have built a new specialist live CD catering to gamers: "In the current German PCH Hardware magazine, you can find a Knoppix PCGH-Edition of Knoppix, which is graphics-accelerated and preconfigured for over 30 games." Although the CD is only released as part of the magazine and not available for download (not yet, anyway), it is nice to see that a mainstream gaming magazine is giving exposure to Linux as a gaming platform. Hopefully, it will also bring in a few new converts.
* * * * *
 Having suffered from bad press recently, it seems that Lycoris is taking serious steps to mend the situation. In the announcement entitled Changes in Lycoris as a company, the Lycoris CEO Joseph Cheek gives an honest analysis of the current situation and outlines some radical changes. The company will no longer outsource the distribution of boxed products to customers - this has caused quite a few grievances to some users who paid for the product in June, but still haven't received what they ordered. Some of the Lycoris products will be discontinued, with only its flagship ones -- Lycoris Desktop/LX, as well as the recently acquired SME Server -- receiving serious attention and more frequent updates. Some personnel changes were also mentioned in the announcement. Overall these look like positive moves, but we'll wait for their implementation before giving the company a resounding applause.
* * * * *
 Is Ark Linux dead? That's what some of the users have been asking recently, given the lack of news and updates from the project: "Absolutely not - it's actually more active than ever," replied Bernhard Rosenkraenzer, the lead developer of Ark Linux. "We haven't made a new release for a while because we've been making many changes to the core system (kernel 2.4.x -> 2.6.x, gcc 3.3.x -> 3.4.3, linuxthreads -> NPTL, XFree86 -> X.Org, KDE 3.2 -> 3.3.1, ...) that required finishing and stabilizing before making a new release. You can still check out the current progress by upgrading an existing system to the dockyard-devel branch - or, if you don't want to try the new stuff yourself, by subscribing to the build-watch at arklinux.org mailing list, which receives mail every time something is changed." Now, if only someone could fix the Ark Linux Support Forum at arklinux.info, that would be even better news!
* * * * *
 Would you be interested in running Linux from within Windows? While the concept is not new, now it has become easier than ever thanks to a new Damn Small Embedded Linux release that runs under any recent version of Microsoft Windows. Tuxs.org has published a simple tutorial with download links to get you started. Don't expect neck-breaking speed running Damn Small Linux like this, but it is fun nevertheless.
Damn Small Linux 0.8.3 running from within Microsoft Windows 2000.
(full image size: 106kB)
On boycotting LinuxToday.com
As many of our regular readers know, last week we issued a call to boycott LinuxToday.com. This was in response to the web site carrying large anti-Linux advertisements sponsored by Microsoft Corporation. The decision to call for a boycott was not taken lightly and, as always, any such drastic action is bound to create some controversy. Some readers emailed us to express disagreement with the action, citing various arguments why our call was wrong.
Some of the arguments went along the line saying that these Microsoft advertisements are harmless, simply because we know better than believing the content of their messages. Yes, you can certainly look at it that way. But we don't see them as just "advertisements" - we see them as a targetted anti-Linux FUD (fear, uncertainty, doubt) campaign directed against our favourite operating system. This is carried out by an extremely resourceful company which has a long history of eliminating many a competitor that stood in its way, a powerful monopoly which is hell-bent to use all necessary measures to discredit Linux at every opportunity. Do you still see it as "just advertisements"? Yes, their messages will have no effect on you and me, but would you send your less technically inclined boss to LinuxToday.com to collect information about Linux?
But this is not really about Microsoft (we wouldn't mind Microsoft sponsoring LinuxToday.com if they simply chose to advertise one of their products). It is about a Linux web site that accepts money to disseminate somebody's anti-Linux agenda. Some people argue that LinuxToday.com needs the cash to stay in business and therefore there is nothing wrong with their displaying any advertisements they can get. Wrong. LinuxToday.com doesn't need Microsoft's money to keep alive. LinuxToday.com is the largest Linux news site on the Internet, with a substantial percentage of their pages devoted to advertising. Compare that to DistroWatch, which is a comparatively small site with a much more narrow focus, but we still manage to bring home two to three thousands of dollars every months, just from advertising. Based on current advertising prices and the amount of sponsored content on LinuxToday, I'd venture a conservative guess that LinuxToday.com earns in excess of US$10,000 per month. I wouldn't be surprised if Microsoft's sponsorship of the site amounted to several thousands of dollars per months.
Where does this money go? How do we, the Linux community, benefit from this? Does LinuxToday.com sponsor any open source projects? No, the money probably goes straight into the back pockets of the corporate decision makers at Jupitermedia Corporation, the company running LinuxToday.com. They couldn't care less about being responsible and happily display blatantly anti-Linux content on a Linux news and advocacy site! This is nothing if not pure greed!
At the end of the day, this is a moral issue. In a way, it is not unlike having an affair - some people wouldn't think twice about having one, while others would find such action completely unacceptable. The former will no doubt have plenty of reasons and arguments why there is nothing wrong with their actions. Who is right and who is wrong? If you are one of those who find it reasonable that a Linux news and advocacy web site helps spreading anti-Linux propaganda, then by all means feel free to disregard our call for boycotting LinuxToday.com.
As for the rest of us (and if you are still reading then you probably agree with most of the above points), here is an excellent link that you can use to replace your LinuxToday.com bookmark - LXer.com. In fact, LXer is maintained by the original founder of LinuxToday.com - Dave Whitinger (Dave was actually the first person to call for a boycott of LinuxToday.com in June this year). LXer is a great site - it doesn't carry much advertising, it is much faster than LinuxToday.com in publishing up-to-date news, and it doesn't force you to click on the second page just to get to linked URLs. It even has original content on occasions.
In short, don't visit LinuxToday.com or any other so-called "Linux" site that helps with spreading anti-Linux propaganda (no, Slashdot is not considered a Linux web site). LinuxToday.com needs to be expunged from the Linux community until it starts behaving in a responsible manner and until it stops disseminating anti-Linux FUD on its pages.
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| Featured project of the week: FreeBSD |
FreeBSD
Although this section featured another BSD product just last week, it is hard not pick FreeBSD as the featured project of this week's DistroWatch Weekly. Why? The first stable release of FreeBSD 4.x series was version 4.0, which came out in March 2000. Some four and a half years later, the first production release of FreeBSD 5.x -- version 5.3 -- was finally released last weekend.
As many BSD fans know, this operating system has a long and turbulent history, tainted by a copyright infringement law suite that ultimately led to the creation of FreeBSD from freely available source codes back in 1993. It has a reputation for being an extremely stable and reliable operating system, especially suitable for web hosting and other server intensive tasks. In fact, FreeBSD is frequently ranked as the top operating system in Netcraft's web server uptime survey. Of course, it can be used as a desktop or workstation system just as well (even some commercial applications, such as NVIDIA graphics driver, Opera browser or Acrobat Reader are available for FreeBSD). Although it requires a no small amount of technical expertise and command line tweeking before it can be turned into a pleasant-looking, graphical desktop system, it is worth the effort.
What's new in FreeBSD 5.3? If you need technical details, you can read this recent LWN article or this comprehensive migration guide. But very briefly, some of the more interesting changes include SMPng (an improved support for SMP systems), Kernel Scheduled Entities (a kernel-supported threading system), support for new architectures (AMD64, IA64, PC98 and SPARC64 are now also supported in addition to i386 and Alpha), UFS2 file system (with extended file attributes and support for larger file sizes), new compiler toolchain (GCC 3.4.2), support for Mandatory Access Control, support for Bluetooth and wireless networking, switch to X.Org as the default X window system, inclusion of OpenBSD's excellent "pf" firewall application, and many other improvements.
Even if most of the world nowadays seems to prefer Linux over BSD, there is little doubt that FreeBSD has its rightful place among the UNIX and UNIX-like operating systems. It is fast, reliable and strangely addictive. Try it - you'll like it.
The much awaited FreeBSD 5.3-RELEASE is finally available.
(full image size: 744kB)
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| Released Last Week |
Buffalo Linux 1.5.0
Buffalo Linux 1.5.0 has been released: "The new Buffalo 1.5.0 is a 2-CD release. The main reason for going to 2 CDs is to provide both kernel 2.6.8.1 and 2.6.9. The new 2.6.9 kernel has known issues with some video drivers (24-bit color problems with i810 for example). The GNOME bundle containing 85 packages was moved to the second CD. Since there was additional space on the second CD, over 250 packages were added (basically the rest of Slackware current as of 30 October). These additional packages provide other desktops such as KDE 3.3.1, Blackbox, FluxBox, WindowMaker 0.80.2, ... and other useful utilities. To load packages from the second CD simply run 'Buffalo Software' on the System menu. Added to CD1 were Firefox 1.0PR and Thunderbird 0.8 with over 80 package upgrades." Visit the distribution's home page to read the rest of the announcement.
Frugalware Linux 0.1
This is from the announcement about the release of Frugalware Linux 0.1, a new distribution only recently included in DistroWatch: "The Frugalware Developer Team is pleased to announce the immediate availability of Frugalware 0.1, our first stable release. A short list of improvements and fixed bugs since rc2: added support for using a separate /boot partition; moved all removable media entries from /mnt to /media; updated KDE to 3.3.1. Setup: fixed cleaning up cache when only the first CD used; added support for displaying detailed information about MS partitions; now short descriptions are available for packages; support for USB keyboards." Read the release announcement and changelog for more details.
Tao Linux 3.0 Update 3
An updated ISO image set of Tao Linux is now available: "OK, the fall semester at AU has been a bear, but I've finally managed to get the u3+ respin out. This includes all updates current to 11-2-2004. While GFS is available via yum install, it wasn't integrated because it caused odd kernel dependencies (this would need more hacking, and may not be worth it). I've split the DVD into separate binary & source DVDs - I hope that eventually the source ISOs are common for all platforms. Due to an issue with 'yum update' breaking, update 3 for non-i386 is not currently available, but may be available later." The release announcement.
Red Flag Linux 4.1
After a lengthy beta testing period, the final release of Red Flag Linux 4.1 Desktop Edition is out and available for free download. This is the first Red Flag release based on the recently formed Asianux, a common development platform maintained by China's Red Flag Linux, Japan's Miracle Linux and South Korea's Hansoft. Red Flag Linux 4.1 brings many improvements over its earlier release, including easier installation, better hardware support, improved kernel performance, and more intuitive desktop configuration options. It is designed for use in government offices, schools and on home computers. Here is the full announcement (in simplified Chinese), inclusive of download links.
FreeBSD 5.3-RELEASE
Four and a half years after 4-STABLE, the first production release of FreeBSD 5 is now available for your downloading pleasure: "It is my great pleasure and privilege to announce the availability of FreeBSD 5.3-RELEASE. This release marks a milestone in the FreeBSD 5.x series and the beginning of the 5-STABLE branch of releases. Some of the many changes since 5.2.1 include: a binary compatibility interface has been introduced for the i386 platform that allows running Microsoft Windows NDIS network drivers natively in the kernel; the network and socket subsystems are now multi-threaded and reentrant; the development environment has been updated to GCC 3.4.2, Binutils; 2.15, and GDB 6.1; the choices for graphical environments have been updated to include X.org 6.7, GNOME 2.6.2 and KDE 3.3.0." The announcement, release notes, hardware notes and installation instructions.
Novell Linux Desktop 9
The new SUSE-based Novel Linux Desktop has arrived: "Novell today announced the availability of its next-generation Linux desktop for enterprise customers: Novell Linux Desktop 9, Powered by SUSE LINUX. Backed by Novell's extensive enterprise-level support, training and consulting services, Novell Linux Desktop 9 provides an end-user desktop platform designed specifically to help businesses leverage Linux* and open source software with confidence. ... Novell Linux Desktop 9, Powered by SUSE LINUX, will be available Nov. 12 through Novell channel partners for a suggested price of US$50 per system, which includes upgrades and updates for one year." Find more details in the press release, on Novell Linux product pages, and in this NewsForge report. A 30-day trial edition is available for free download (3 ISO images), after registration.
Development and unannounced releases
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| Upcoming Releases and Announcements |
Fedora Core 3 and Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Beta2
A brand new version of Fedora Core -- version 3 and code name "Heidelberg" -- will be out later today. Rumour has it that the release will be officially announced at 8pm GMT, so keep an eye on a mirror near you to grab the 4-CD image set or the DVD. Also expected this week is the second beta release of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4, code name "Nahant".
The all new Fedora Core 3 final will be released later today.
(full image size: 153kB)
Yellow Dog Linux 4.0 ISO images
The boxed sets of Yellow Dog Linux are now shipping, while downloadable ISO images will be made available later this month: "Yellow Dog Linux v4.0 is now shipping from the Terra Soft Solutions on-line store and will be available to our domestic and international resellers soon. The box set includes: 4 install and 4 source CDs; revised Guide to Installation; 290 page 'Getting Started with Yellow Dog Linux'; a sticker and flexible flier. v4.0 ISOs will be made available via public mirrors in roughly two weeks." Here is the full announcement and the obligatory link to the Terra Soft Online Store.
* * * * *
Summary of expected upcoming releases
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| Web Site News |
A DoS attack by Impi fans?
Some of you might have noticed a severe slow-down of the DistroWatch.com server over the weekend. This was due to a Denial of Service (DoS) attack, presumably by fans of Impi Linux who were attempting to retrieve the Impi Linux page at a rate of about 10 requests per second. The attacks were coming from the following IP addresses, all located in South Africa:
• 209.212.102.245 - garm.mip.co.za
• 209.212.106.45 - gateway.mip.co.za
• 209.212.106.46 - revolution.co.za
Our apologies for any inconvenience caused. Unfortunately, Internet vandalism seems to be alive and well.
New distribution additions
New on the waiting list
- X/OS Linux. X/OS Linux is a GNU/Linux distribution for business and enterprise users, featuring: a rock solid enterprise-grade operating system for reliable, high-performance computing; enterprise compatibility for easy migration of third-party applications; long-term availability of security updates and software enhancements. The distribution is compiled from source RPMs for Red Hat Enterprise Linux.
DistroWatch database summary
- Number of Linux distributions in the database: 356
- Number of BSD distributions in the database: 9
- Number of discontinued distributions: 42
- Number of distributions on the waiting list: 73
That's all for today; see you again next Monday!
Ladislav Bodnar
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| Archives |
| • 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 |
| • Issue 1110 (2025-02-24): iodeOS 6.0, learning to program, Arch retiring old repositories, openSUSE makes progress on reproducible builds, Fedora is getting more serious about open hardware, Tails changes its install instructions to offer better privacy, Murena's de-Googled tablet goes on sale |
| • Issue 1109 (2025-02-17): Rhino Linux 2025.1, MX Linux 23.5 with Xfce 4.20, replacing X.Org tools with Wayland tools, GhostBSD moving its base to FreeBSD -RELEASE, Redox stabilizes its ABI, UBports testing 24.04, Asahi changing its leadership, OBS in dispute with Fedora |
| • Issue 1108 (2025-02-10): Serpent OS 0.24.6, Aurora, sharing swap between distros, Peppermint tries Void base, GTK removinglegacy technologies, Red Hat plans more AI tools for Fedora, TrueNAS merges its editions |
| • Issue 1107 (2025-02-03): siduction 2024.1.0, timing tasks, Lomiri ported to postmarketOS, Alpine joins Open Collective, a new desktop for Linux called Orbitiny |
| • Issue 1106 (2025-01-27): Adelie Linux 1.0 Beta 6, Pop!_OS 24.04 Alpha 5, detecting whether a process is inside a virtual machine, drawing graphics to NetBSD terminal, Nix ported to FreeBSD, GhostBSD hosting desktop conference |
| • Issue 1105 (2025-01-20): CentOS 10 Stream, old Flatpak bundles in software centres, Haiku ports Iceweasel, Oracle shows off debugging tools, rsync vulnerability patched |
| • Issue 1104 (2025-01-13): DAT Linux 2.0, Silly things to do with a minimal computer, Budgie prepares Wayland only releases, SteamOS coming to third-party devices, Murena upgrades its base |
| • 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 | 
Centrych OS
Centrych OS was an Ubuntu-based Linux distribution that provides a unified look & feel, as well as support for both KDE/Qt and GNOME/GTK+ applications. It uses the Xfce desktop environment with two distinct profiles - one that has the Oxygen/Qt look of KDE, while the other provides the Greybird/GTK+ look of Xubuntu. Some other interesting features of the distribution include the ability to do a simplified sign on and quasi two-factor authentication for systems with full-disk encryption, and the availability of the latest versions of certain high-profile applications, such as GIMP or LibreOffice.
Status: Discontinued
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| TUXEDO |
TUXEDO Computers - Linux Hardware in a tailor made suite
Choose from a wide range of laptops and PCs in various sizes and shapes at TUXEDOComputers.com. Every machine comes pre-installed and ready-to-run with Linux. Full 24 months of warranty and lifetime support included!
Learn more about our full service package and all benefits from buying at TUXEDO.
|
| 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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