 DistroWatch Weekly |
| DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 300, 27 April 2009 |
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Welcome to the 300th issue of DistroWatch Weekly! Naturally, the biggest news event of the week was the release of Ubuntu's latest version - 9.04 Jaunty Jackalope. Reviews have started pouring in and users are busy upgrading. How well will the latest version be received? And does the success of Ubuntu mean, as some are beginning to wonder, that Debian GNU/Linux is no longer relevant? This week's feature article provides some answers in an interesting comparison between Xubuntu 9.04 and Debian 5.0.1 with Xfce to see how well each performs. We also post links to an interview with Ubuntu founder Mark Shuttleworth, while Tux Radar takes a look at the last ten releases of the world's most popular desktop Linux distro. Of course that's not the only thing that happened this past week - Debian has announced the availability of Lenny kernels with no closed-source firmware, the Fedora community has received up-to-date images of version 10, and the openSUSE online build service looks set to receive support for a Git version control backend, thanks to a Google Summer of Code project. Happy reading!
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| Feature Story |
Xubuntu 9.04 vs Debian 5.0.1 Xfce
Yes, it's Ubuntu release week and yes, we'll be looking at Ubuntu for our feature article. Instead of a review of what everyone already knows, this week I thought we'd take a look at how the newly released Xubuntu 9.04 compares to Debian Lenny with an Xfce desktop. Xfce is a desktop environment built using the GTK+ graphical libraries, similar to GNOME. Unlike GNOME however, its focus is on being lightweight. Creator Olivier Fourdan writes: "Xfce is a lightweight desktop environment for various *NIX systems. Designed for productivity, it loads and executes applications fast, while conserving system resources." Xubuntu is based on Ubuntu, but instead of providing a GNOME desktop, they provide Xfce. They also include much of the functionality that its larger parent offers. Debian, on the other hand, is based on, well, itself and offers a multitude of desktop offerings, one of which is Xfce. How do the two compare?
I've played with most of the Xubuntu releases which have come out, but haven't found them as lightweight as I had hoped. Xubuntu tended to include much of the GNOME desktop applications and services to provide richer functionality, at the cost of system resources. I got my hands on an old Dell Dimension 4500 desktop machine, with an Intel 2 GHz processor and 384 MB of memory. Not the most powerful machine in the world these days, but it seemed suitable for this task.
Xubuntu
First comes Xubuntu. I downloaded the Xubuntu alternate install CD for i386 architecture and completed an installation using ext3 as the default file system. Some time later I had a full Xubuntu desktop installed and was ready to boot into it for the first time. The system looked really good. I know people hate it when reviewers discuss looks, but it really did look good. From the splash screen to the desktop, which was nicely arranged and used lovely looking icons, it felt like a classy desktop.
Xubuntu Xfce desktop
(full image size: 8.5kB, screen resolution: 471x258 pixels)
Using the system is very straightforward, with the layout being relatively close to Ubuntu's GNOME environment. Unfortunately, I ran into a few annoying issues. Firstly, I kept having issues with the package manager. For some reason it kept throwing errors about a problem in the package database and wanted me to run apt-get -f install, which I did several times. I did a re-install and this error went away. One bug that was not solved after a re-boot was HAL crashing when rebooting the computer from Xfce. It only happened when I was also logged into /dev/tty1, but it was consistent. The system would log me out successfully, but then throw an error about being unable to perform the shut-down. Another problem I experienced was the computer freezing. The kernel would print an error about CPU lock and not being responsive for 30 seconds. After another install, it didn't come back though. Also, sound didn't work out of the box, even though the card was detected properly. It turned to be a simple fix, the mixer didn't present any controls by default, I had to manually add them. Once I selected Master, PCM and Front, un-muted them and turned them all up, sound worked. Yay.
Xubuntu package manager error
(full image size: 8.5kB, screen resolution: 471x258 pixels)
Xubuntu would not play any files which required proprietary codecs. It did, however, prompt me to search for and download codecs through the package manager. When you try and play a file, the tool pops up and recommends a package to install, then it's as simple as selecting it and agreeing to install it. I noticed it seemed to do some files in two steps, first the audio and then when it still couldn't play, it popped up the dialogue and then searched for the video codec. All in all, this is nice and simple, and works well. The files I tested were MP3 and WMA audio files, as well as Flash, H.264/MPEG-4 AAC, WMV and DivX video files. When it came time to playing Flash in the browser, I was re-directed to the Adobe web site where I had to select and download the Flash plug-in. I selected the one for Ubuntu and told it to open with gdebi, the graphical DEB package installer. This pulled down one more dependencies and installed them without any hassles. After restarting Firefox, I was able to view Flash videos online.
Xubuntu codecs manager
(full image size: 8.5kB, screen resolution: 471x258 pixels)
After using Xubuntu for a while, just for browsing the Internet and installing a few packages, it became very slow and non-responsive. It took a long time to open small applications like Terminal and Mousepad, and drawing windows became slow. It was obvious I had already run out of RAM and was starting to use swap space. Considering I wasn't doing very much, this was rather disappointing.
Debian Lenny Xfce
For Debian, I downloaded the Debian 5.0.1 Xfce+LXDE CD image for i386 architectures. I performed an installation which was similar to Xubuntu, once again choosing ext3 as the default file system. Naturally, I chose to install Xfce so as to perform a reasonable comparison. It wasn't too long before I had a Debian environment booted and ready to go. It's fair to say that Debian's environment was not as nice looking as Xubuntu. Yes, I know you readers will argue that people keep the default for less than 5 seconds before changing it, but not everyone does and first impressions can count towards a lot. Frankly, I'd probably stay with the default Xubuntu desktop, but the Debian one is horrendous by comparison. Yes, I know it's the default Xfce icons and layout, but it's just not as pleasing to view and work with. If this is something Debian wants to be able to compete with the likes of Xubuntu, it needs improvement. What's wrong with having a xfce4-desktop-default-settings package that people can install to make it more pretty?
Debian 5.0.1 Xfce desktop
(full image size: 8.5kB, screen resolution: 471x258 pixels)
The one 'issue' I had was that Debian did not install the HAL service by default. This meant that removable media was not automatically mounted. Simply installing the hal package solved this problem. I assume it was not included due to its ability to consume extra resources. When it came to the codecs, Debian was the biggest surprise. Of all the test files I tried, Lenny played every one out of the box! It also streamed YouTube in Iceweasel using the open-source Swfdec plug-in, while Xfmedia played the Flash file on the desktop. Sound also worked out of the box. Using the system itself was much more responsive than Xubuntu and although I browsed the net, edited images in GIMP and ran commands on the Terminal all at the same time, I never ran out of memory. In fact, with two instances of Iceweasel open, Terminal, Mousepad, GIMP, Xfmedia, Thunar, Xsane, Orage and Settings Manager, the system was only using 146.72 MB of RAM!
Comparisons
So, how did the two installs compare? I tested both systems by timing how long they took to complete the boot process, and measured the amount of RAM used at each step. These included booting to single mode, booting to the desktop login manager (GDM), loading the Xfce desktop and loading the desktop and Firefox/Iceweasel. I also mapped the boot processes with Bootchart for both the Xubuntu and Debian installs (get the results here and here, respectively).
Here are the results of the tests I ran.
| Time Taken |
| Distribution |
Single Mode |
GDM |
Desktop |
Firefox |
Total |
| Xubuntu 9.04 |
18.60 sec |
11.45 sec |
25.48 sec |
12.09 sec |
67.62 sec |
| Debian 5.0 |
17.82 sec |
14.62 sec |
10.46 sec |
5.41 sec |
48.31 sec |
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| Memory Usage |
| Distribution |
Single Mode |
GDM |
Desktop |
Firefox |
Total |
| Xubuntu 9.04 |
13.03 MB |
39.41 MB |
63.34 MB |
24.82 MB |
140.60 MB |
| Debian 5.0 |
11.58 MB |
26.96 MB |
6.8 MB |
19.61 MB |
64.95 MB |
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Conclusion
Debian is certainly far from dead. The overall system feels much more stable than the Xubuntu 9.04 I installed, but the Xubuntu system provided more functionality for new users, like the ability to easily install proprietary drivers. Debian was also faster and more lightweight than Xubuntu and, as a result, ran much better on this older hardware. Compared to Debian, Xubuntu was slow and sluggish, even to the point of being frustrating. Debian, on the other hand, remained snappy and responsive. When it came to codecs, Debian played everything out of the box, while Xubuntu resorted to using their manager to install codecs as required. Debian is now superior to Xubuntu in this area. The one thing Debian didn't have is the automated tool for installing proprietary drivers. Everything is there at the command level, just not in the user interface. Part of the reason Xubuntu takes longer to load and uses more RAM is that it includes extra utilities, like the proprietary driver manager. The other thing to keep in mind is that Xubuntu 9.04 comes with a much newer kernel and includes numerous booting speed improvements, while Debian does not.
While some may be touting that Debian is obsolete now that Ubuntu rules the roost, I have to whole-heartedly disagree. Debian provides a solid, stable environment that you can really trust and rely on. Ubuntu, on the other hand, appears to have put more priority on a timely release over stability and, as a result, seem to rush out half-baked releases. There's nothing that Ubuntu can do that Debian can't - it's just a matter of how simple that task is. Certainly Debian takes a long time to release more up-to-date stable versions, but they are just that - stable. If you are looking for something more up-to-date, try Debian testing. It's still very stable, with the added benefit of being a rolling release. I can't help but feel that while Ubuntu is shouting their achievements from the rooftops, Debian is silently plugging away in the background making things work. Please Debian, don't go anywhere!
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| Miscellaneous News |
Ubuntu releases Jaunty, Debian Lenny gets free kernels, Fedora released re-spun images, openSUSE considers Git for its build service, interviews with Linus Torvalds and Mark Shuttleworth
 Ready or not, here it comes. The latest version of Ubuntu has arrived, 9.04, dubbed Jaunty Jackalope. This new release does improve upon previous versions but, more importantly, it includes a USB image for Low-Power Intel Architecture Mobile Internet Devices (MID) and an official netbook version. The netbook remix is essentially a modified version of Ubuntu with an alternate interface to make better use of small screen resolutions. The MID edition is based on Moblin and therefore optimised for Intel's Atom processor. It is also optimised for 7"+ screens and is much more lightweight than the netbook remix. Will Jaunty be the version that will start cropping up on commercial netbooks? Time will tell! Certainly Canonical has put a lot of effort into getting Linux running well in this space, as revealed in a recent interview. Tux Radar also has an article which looks back at almost 5 years of Ubuntu. If you're upgrading to Jaunty, or installing for the first time, take a look at the unofficial Installation guide and cheat sheet from Make Tech Easier.
* * * * *
 Debian GNU/Linux often gets overlooked in the Ubuntu release week, but without it, there would have been no Ubuntu. At least, that was then. Now, people are starting to ask whether Debian is irrelevant. Leigh Dyer writes: "The release last month of Debian 5.0, code-named Lenny, has certainly been a success, but Debian has always been seen as a distribution made by geeks, for geeks, and has had trouble attracting new users. In a world where Ubuntu combines Debian's package management technology, up-to-date software and a fixed six-month release cycle, is Debian still relevant as a distribution?" In a completely separate article, Sean Kerner writes: "The great 'failure' of Debian is also its great strength. Debian hasn't been able to put out releases in a regularly scheduled format in years - something developers will commonly attribute to not making a release until it's ready. While Debian has struggled on release dates (getting better lately), Ubuntu comes out with its releases like clockwork. Though Debian has made tremendous strides since Sarge with its desktop installation, Ubuntu has become one of the most popular Linux distribution for the desktop, period."
In other Debian-related news, developers voted last year to include proprietary and closed-source firmware with release 5.0. Now, Robert Millan has posted to the developer list that images, which contain only free software, are available for Lenny. He writes: "As you probably know, back in December last year it was decided that the Linux package shipped with Debian Lenny would include non-free code in it (so-called 'blobs' of binary-only firmware). While the majority of the project supported this decision, it is still true that many of us users and developers feel strongly committed to freedom, and would rather reject the practical benefit of that code than submit ourselves to the restrictions that come with it." Is the mentality to only include completely free code in Debian a strength or a weakness in relation to the popularity of Ubuntu? Is Debian truly just a distro for geeks and those crazy about freedom? The Jaunty release of Ubuntu comes with the option to install only free software, so it seems that, on some level, it can compete on both sides of the fence.
* * * * *
 It has been five months since the release of Fedora 10, known as Cambridge. Now, the Fedora Unity project has released re-spun images for i386, x86_64 and PPC architectures. Ben Williams posted this to the announce list: "The Fedora Unity Project is proud to announce the release of new ISO re-spins of Fedora 10. These re-spin ISOs are based on the officially released Fedora 10 installation media and include all updates released as of April 14th, 2009 (saving about 650 MB in updates on a default install)." He continues: "Fedora Unity has taken up the re-spin task to provide the community with the chance to install Fedora with recent updates already included. This is a community project, for and by the community. You can contribute to the community by joining our test process." The ability to install Fedora from secure, up-to-date images is a great service to the community.
* * * * *
 The online build service from openSUSE has gained a lot of attention recently with the ability to build packages for ARM processors and for the support gained from the Linux Foundation. Now, Peter Libic is developing support for the Git source code manager, as part of Google's Summer of Code. He writes: "Currently OBS (openSUSE Build Service) uses a custom MD5-based relational database called BSDB for storing project revisions. It works well for OBS but using a Git backend could improve the entire service. Git is one of the best revision control systems currently available. Present OBS makes extensive pressure on the backend when using basic revision control commands, like diff or log. Git can move these actions to the client which may lower the server load." The project will be mentored by openSUSE developer Pavol Rusnak. In other news, the latest openSUSE newsletter interviews community member Jan Engelhardt, who is responsible for making a real-time Linux kernel available to users.
* * * * *
Finally, here is a link to an interesting interview with Linus Torvalds, conducted by Linux Magazine: "Linus Torvalds has led the development of the Linux operating system since its inception nearly 20 years ago. In that time Torvalds has had the opportunity not only to witness the positive cultural and economic changes brought about by Linux but has also been a direct participant in making those changes a reality. And though many things have changed greatly since 1991, one thing remains constant: Linus is still at the helm. In this interview Torvalds looks back on the operating system he created, the impact of new hardware, and the ubiquitous OS on everything from cellphones to desktops to supercomputers."
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| Released Last Week |
Easy Peasy 1.1
Jon Ramvi has announced the release of Easy Peasy 1.1, an Ubuntu-based distribution optimised for the ASUS Eee PC and other netbooks: "We are proud to announce Easy Peasy 1.1! This is how the first Easy Peasy release really should be: No stupid bugs, no Ubuntu logos. You will be able to upgrade from tomorrow, but you can get the full ISO image today. A brand new look: new icon theme, a modified version of Victor Castillejos's GNOME Colors; new wallpaper which is part of the new visual profile (i.e. on Twitter); new splash screen and login screen. Fixed bugs: lots of bugs fixed; many upgrades, like Songbird and Flash." Here is the brief release announcement with a screenshot of the home desktop.
Ubuntu 9.04
Ubuntu 9.04 has been released: "The Ubuntu team is happy to bring you the latest and greatest software the Open Source community has to offer. This is their latest result, the Ubuntu 9.04 release, which brings a host of excellent new features. New features: Ubuntu 9.04 RC includes the latest GNOME 2.26 desktop environment with a number of great new features, including Brasero 2.26.0, an all-in-one CD burning application and the default disc burning utility in Nautilus, and improved handling of multiple monitors; X.Org server 1.6; Wacom tablet hotplugging; new style for notifications and notification preferences; significantly improved boot performance; Linux kernel 2.6.28; optional ext4 files system support...." Read the release announcement, release notes and feature overview for further information.
Ubuntu 9.04 - the project's 10th official release
(full image size: 587kB, screen resolution 1280x1024 pixels)
Kubuntu 9.04
Jonathan Riddell has announced the release of Kubuntu 9.04, an Ubuntu variant featuring the latest KDE 4 desktop environment: "The Kubuntu team is proud to announce the release of Kubuntu 9.04, the Jaunty Jackalope! Kubuntu 9.04 includes an upgraded desktop containing many bug fixes, new configuration options, as well as many new and updated applications: KDE 4.2, containing many new features, including significant refinements of Plasma and KWin, the KDE workspace, many new and updated Plasma widgets, new and improved desktop effects (enabled by default), the return of the optional 'Classic Desktop' motif as an option; new in System Settings are tools for managing software and printer configuration; Quassel, a new IRC client; Amarok 2.0.2, KTorrent 3.2, Digikam 0.10.0...." See the rest of the release announcement for a more detailed overview of the release.
Mythbuntu 9.04
Mythbuntu 9.04, a distribution designed for home theatre systems and featuring MythTV, has been released: "After a long and exciting development cycle the Mythbuntu team is proud to introduce Mythbuntu 9.04. Features: Mythbuntu Log Grabber - this application grabs specific log files into a single area and can upload them to pastebin for easy troubleshooting; auto-partitioner creates separate partitions for root, recordings, and swap (ext3 and XFS); Mythbuntu Control Centre - used to modify settings on a Mythbuntu system that are not necessarily MythTV specific; MythTV 0.21-fixes20403 included; MythNetTV 7 (and GUI) are now packaged and available in the official repositories." Read the release announcement and release notes for further information, system requirements and known issues.
Xubuntu 9.04
Next, it's the turn of Xubuntu 9.04, an Ubuntu variant featuring the Xfce desktop, which was also released today: "Xubuntu 9.04, code-named the 'Jaunty Jackalope', is the latest and greatest version of Xubuntu. It integrates the latest Xfce (4.6.0) desktop with the high-quality and feature-rich core of Ubuntu, resulting in a light-weight and easy-to-use Linux distribution. Highlights: faster boot times; a new Xfce Settings Manager dialog with better integration of each of the settings modules; a new configuration system - Xconf; a new desktop menu that follows the freedesktop.org menu standards; an upgraded notification-area; Gigolo, a new application to allow access to remote file systems; new Xubuntu artwork...." See the release announcement and release notes for upgrade instructions and other information.
Ubuntu Studio 9.04
Luis de Bethencourt has announced the release of Ubuntu Studio 9.04, a multimedia variant of Ubuntu built for the GNU/Linux audio, video, and graphics enthusiast: "The Ubuntu Studio team is proud to announce its fifth release - Ubuntu Studio 9.04. With this release, Ubuntu Studio offers a pre-made selection of packages, targeted at audio, video and graphics users. Ubuntu Studio greatly simplifies the creation of Linux-based multimedia workstations. For Ubuntu Studio 9.04 we have continued to update packages and fix critical bugs to improve the Ubuntu Studio user experience. Features, fixes and improvements: heavily-tested 2.6.28 real-time kernel for low-latency audio work; Jack Connection Kit upgraded to 0.116.1 (a major improvement); Ardour upgraded to 2.7.1; fresh Ubuntu Studio looks improvements; addition to Ubuntu Studio Controls to allow users to maintain Ctr+Alt+Backspace behavior." Read the rest of the release notes for additional details.
Ubuntu Studio 9.04 - a distribution for audio, video and graphics enthusiasts
(full image size: 823kB, screen resolution 1280x1024 pixels)
iMagic OS 2009.5
Carlos La Borde has announced the release of iMagic OS 2009.5, a commercial desktop Linux distribution based on Ubuntu: "The new iMagic OS has arrived. With a newly retouched interface, intuitive first-run wizard, multiple problems patched, much better integration with magicOnline (a new tool that allows you to install hundreds of programs with just one click) v2, included MP3 decoding, upgraded programs, enhanced multimedia programs including Exaile and Cinelerra, instant desktop search with Google Desktop, better Photo management with magicPhoto and Picasa, better Microsoft compatibility, magicEssentials (a suite of six desktop applications created by iMagic OS), and magicGuide (created with the beginning Linux user in mind), to give your computer the power it needs to do what you want it to do and a whole lot more." Read the complete release announcement for further details.
Webconverger 4.7
Kai Hendry has announced the release of Webconverger 4.7, a live, Debian-based web kiosk designed for deployments in places like offices or Internet cafés where only web applications are used. What's new? "Added iptables firewall; fixed UA string for Hotmail; file:/// disabled in the latest kiosk extension; removed previous wireless default to join any open network; Iceweasel 3.0.9; CUPS printing support re-instated with a firewall rule to allow for printer sharing broadcasts; Linux kernel 2.6.29 backport, which means even better hardware support; Xpdf dropped in favour of a working printing dialog with Acrobat Reader - there are some embedding issues when you first run it, [Ctrl+q] is needed to close the PDF viewer. Known issues: spelling language has to be manually chosen and doesn't respect chosen locale boot options; the Debian installer which only worked on the ISO version is temporarily disabled until the Debian installer uses 2.6.29 which supports Squashfs 4...." See the full release notes for more information.
SimplyMEPIS 8.0.06
Warren Woodford has announced the release of SimplyMEPIS 8.0.06, a minor update of the project's recently released version 8 "MEPIS LLC has released SimplyMEPIS 8.0.06, an update to the community edition of MEPIS 8.0. SimplyMEPIS 8.0 uses a Debian Lenny stable foundation enhanced with a long-term support kernel, key package upgrades, and the MEPIS Assistant applications to create an up-to-date, ready to use desktop computer system. The updated components on the SimplyMEPIS ISOs include recent updates from the Debian 'Lenny' pool and also Linux kernel 2.6.27.21, Firefox 3.0.9, JBidwatcher 2.0.1 and Gutenprint 5.2.3. In addition, some minor tweaks have been applied to the MEPIS installer and the MEPIS utilities. Recently, the MEPIS package pool has received new updates for Thunderbird 2.0.0.19, Shorewall 4.2.6, TightVNC 1.3.9, Openswan 2.6.20, QEMU 0.10.2 and Webmin 1.460." Read the brief release announcement for further details.
Tiny Core Linux 1.4
Robert Shingledecker has announced the release of Tiny Core Linux 1.4, a minimalist desktop Linux distribution in 10 MB: "Team Tiny Core is pleased to announce the release of Tiny Core Linux 1.4. Changelog: new virtual disk support; updated watcher, now supports no swap option; replaced Busybox losetup with GNU, for cryptohome support; moved start-up script processing to occur before restore; fl_picsee replaces imlib2_view; update .jwmrc screenshot menu option; update appbrowser loads .list and .dep upon demand; update .xsession for easier use of other X start-up utilities; update mousetool now makes output script executeable. Files that have changed and are likely in your backup or other persistent store: .jwmrc, .xsession." Visit the project's user forum to read the release announcement.
Toorox 04.2009
Joern Lindau has released a new version of Toorox, an i686-optimised, Gentoo-based live DVD which boots into a KDE desktop using KNOPPIX hardware auto-detection and auto-configuration technologies: "A new release of Toorox is done and available in the download section. Now you can simply make a live USB pen drive with it. The KDE was updated to 4.2.2 and OpenOffice.org speaks German and English. There are no significant changes to the prior version except package updates and small bug fixes. Changes: contains Iceweasel 3.0.9 web browser; the Windows emulator WINE was updated to 1.1.19; VLC media player 0.99a; Clam antivirus 0.95.1." Here is the brief release announcement.
Toorox 04.2009 - a Gentoo-based live DVD featuring the latest KDE 4.2.2
(full image size: 823kB, screen resolution 1280x1024 pixels)
* * * * *
Development, unannounced and minor bug-fix releases
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| Upcoming Releases and Announcements |
openSUSE 11.2
The openSUSE project has published a roadmap leading to the upcoming release of openSUSE 11.2. The development kicked off last week with the first "Milestone" release (previously these early snapshots were called "Alpha"), with regular development releases scheduled for the upcoming months. If everything goes according to the plan, there will be a total of eight milestones, followed by two release candidates and the final release on 12 November 2009. This means that more than 11 months will have passed between openSUSE 11.1 and 11.2. For further information and some development goals please consult the Roadmap/11.2 page on the openSUSE Wiki.
* * * * *
Summary of expected upcoming releases
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| DistroWatch.com News |
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New distributions added to waiting list
* * * * *
DistroWatch database summary
* * * * *
And this concludes the latest issue of DistroWatch Weekly. The next instalment will be published on Monday, 4 May 2009.
Chris Smart
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| Archives |
| • Issue 1104 (2025-01-13): DAT Linux 2.0, Silly things to do with a minimal computer, Budgie prepares Wayland only releases, SteamOS coming to third-party devices, Murena upgrades its base |
| • Issue 1103 (2025-01-06): elementary OS 8.0, filtering ads with Pi-hole, Debian testing its installer, Pop!_OS faces delays, Ubuntu Studio upgrades not working, Absolute discontinued |
| • Issue 1102 (2024-12-23): Best distros of 2024, changing a process name, Fedora to expand Btrfs support and releases Asahi Remix 41, openSUSE patches out security sandbox and donations from Bottles while ending support for Leap 15.5 |
| • Issue 1101 (2024-12-16): GhostBSD 24.10.1, sending attachments from the command line, openSUSE shows off GPU assignment tool, UBports publishes security update, Murena launches its first tablet, Xfce 4.20 released |
| • Issue 1100 (2024-12-09): Oreon 9.3, differences in speed, IPFire's new appliance, Fedora Asahi Remix gets new video drivers, openSUSE Leap Micro updated, Redox OS running Redox OS |
| • Issue 1099 (2024-12-02): AnduinOS 1.0.1, measuring RAM usage, SUSE continues rebranding efforts, UBports prepares for next major version, Murena offering non-NFC phone |
| • Issue 1098 (2024-11-25): Linux Lite 7.2, backing up specific folders, Murena and Fairphone partner in fair trade deal, Arch installer gets new text interface, Ubuntu security tool patched |
| • Issue 1097 (2024-11-18): Chimera Linux vs Chimera OS, choosing between AlmaLinux and Debian, Fedora elevates KDE spin to an edition, Fedora previews new installer, KDE testing its own distro, Qubes-style isolation coming to FreeBSD |
| • Issue 1096 (2024-11-11): Bazzite 40, Playtron OS Alpha 1, Tucana Linux 3.1, detecting Screen sessions, Redox imports COSMIC software centre, FreeBSD booting on the PinePhone Pro, LXQt supports Wayland window managers |
| • Issue 1095 (2024-11-04): Fedora 41 Kinoite, transferring applications between computers, openSUSE Tumbleweed receives multiple upgrades, Ubuntu testing compiler optimizations, Mint partners with Framework |
| • Issue 1094 (2024-10-28): DebLight OS 1, backing up crontab, AlmaLinux introduces Litten branch, openSUSE unveils refreshed look, Ubuntu turns 20
| | • Issue 1093 (2024-10-21): Kubuntu 24.10, atomic vs immutable distributions, Debian upgrading Perl packages, UBports adding VoLTE support, Android to gain native GNU/Linux application support |
| • Issue 1092 (2024-10-14): FunOS 24.04.1, a home directory inside a file, work starts of openSUSE Leap 16.0, improvements in Haiku, KDE neon upgrades its base |
| • Issue 1091 (2024-10-07): Redox OS 0.9.0, Unified package management vs universal package formats, Redox begins RISC-V port, Mint polishes interface, Qubes certifies new laptop |
| • Issue 1090 (2024-09-30): Rhino Linux 2024.2, commercial distros with alternative desktops, Valve seeks to improve Wayland performance, HardenedBSD parterns with Protectli, Tails merges with Tor Project, Quantum Leap partners with the FreeBSD Foundation |
| • Issue 1089 (2024-09-23): Expirion 6.0, openKylin 2.0, managing configuration files, the future of Linux development, fixing bugs in Haiku, Slackware packages dracut |
| • Issue 1088 (2024-09-16): PorteuX 1.6, migrating from Windows 10 to which Linux distro, making NetBSD immutable, AlmaLinux offers hardware certification, Mint updates old APT tools |
| • Issue 1087 (2024-09-09): COSMIC desktop, running cron jobs at variable times, UBports highlights new apps, HardenedBSD offers work around for FreeBSD change, Debian considers how to cull old packages, systemd ported to musl |
| • Issue 1086 (2024-09-02): Vanilla OS 2, command line tips for simple tasks, FreeBSD receives investment from STF, openSUSE Tumbleweed update can break network connections, Debian refreshes media |
| • Issue 1085 (2024-08-26): Nobara 40, OpenMandriva 24.07 "ROME", distros which include source code, FreeBSD publishes quarterly report, Microsoft updates breaks Linux in dual-boot environments |
| • Issue 1084 (2024-08-19): Liya 2.0, dual boot with encryption, Haiku introduces performance improvements, Gentoo dropping IA-64, Redcore merges major upgrade |
| • Issue 1083 (2024-08-12): TrueNAS 24.04.2 "SCALE", Linux distros for smartphones, Redox OS introduces web server, PipeWire exposes battery drain on Linux, Canonical updates kernel version policy |
| • Issue 1082 (2024-08-05): Linux Mint 22, taking snapshots of UFS on FreeBSD, openSUSE updates Tumbleweed and Aeon, Debian creates Tiny QA Tasks, Manjaro testing immutable images |
| • Issue 1081 (2024-07-29): SysLinuxOS 12.4, OpenBSD gain hardware acceleration, Slackware changes kernel naming, Mint publishes upgrade instructions |
| • Issue 1080 (2024-07-22): Running GNU/Linux on Android with Andronix, protecting network services, Solus dropping AppArmor and Snap, openSUSE Aeon Desktop gaining full disk encryption, SUSE asks openSUSE to change its branding |
| • Issue 1079 (2024-07-15): Ubuntu Core 24, hiding files on Linux, Fedora dropping X11 packages on Workstation, Red Hat phasing out GRUB, new OpenSSH vulnerability, FreeBSD speeds up release cycle, UBports testing new first-run wizard |
| • Issue 1078 (2024-07-08): Changing init software, server machines running desktop environments, OpenSSH vulnerability patched, Peppermint launches new edition, HardenedBSD updates ports |
| • Issue 1077 (2024-07-01): The Unity and Lomiri interfaces, different distros for different tasks, Ubuntu plans to run Wayland on NVIDIA cards, openSUSE updates Leap Micro, Debian releases refreshed media, UBports gaining contact synchronisation, FreeDOS celebrates its 30th anniversary |
| • Issue 1076 (2024-06-24): openSUSE 15.6, what makes Linux unique, SUSE Liberty Linux to support CentOS Linux 7, SLE receives 19 years of support, openSUSE testing Leap Micro edition |
| • Issue 1075 (2024-06-17): Redox OS, X11 and Wayland on the BSDs, AlmaLinux releases Pi build, Canonical announces RISC-V laptop with Ubuntu, key changes in systemd |
| • Issue 1074 (2024-06-10): Endless OS 6.0.0, distros with init diversity, Mint to filter unverified Flatpaks, Debian adds systemd-boot options, Redox adopts COSMIC desktop, OpenSSH gains new security features |
| • Issue 1073 (2024-06-03): LXQt 2.0.0, an overview of Linux desktop environments, Canonical partners with Milk-V, openSUSE introduces new features in Aeon Desktop, Fedora mirrors see rise in traffic, Wayland adds OpenBSD support |
| • Issue 1072 (2024-05-27): Manjaro 24.0, comparing init software, OpenBSD ports Plasma 6, Arch community debates mirror requirements, ThinOS to upgrade its FreeBSD core |
| • Issue 1071 (2024-05-20): Archcraft 2024.04.06, common command line mistakes, ReactOS imports WINE improvements, Haiku makes adjusting themes easier, NetBSD takes a stand against code generated by chatbots |
| • Issue 1070 (2024-05-13): Damn Small Linux 2024, hiding kernel messages during boot, Red Hat offers AI edition, new web browser for UBports, Fedora Asahi Remix 40 released, Qubes extends support for version 4.1 |
| • Issue 1069 (2024-05-06): Ubuntu 24.04, installing packages in alternative locations, systemd creates sudo alternative, Mint encourages XApps collaboration, FreeBSD publishes quarterly update |
| • Issue 1068 (2024-04-29): Fedora 40, transforming one distro into another, Debian elects new Project Leader, Red Hat extends support cycle, Emmabuntus adds accessibility features, Canonical's new security features |
| • Issue 1067 (2024-04-22): LocalSend for transferring files, detecting supported CPU architecure levels, new visual design for APT, Fedora and openSUSE working on reproducible builds, LXQt released, AlmaLinux re-adds hardware support |
| • Issue 1066 (2024-04-15): Fun projects to do with the Raspberry Pi and PinePhone, installing new software on fixed-release distributions, improving GNOME Terminal performance, Mint testing new repository mirrors, Gentoo becomes a Software In the Public Interest project |
| • Issue 1065 (2024-04-08): Dr.Parted Live 24.03, answering questions about the xz exploit, Linux Mint to ship HWE kernel, AlmaLinux patches flaw ahead of upstream Red Hat, Calculate changes release model |
| • Issue 1064 (2024-04-01): NixOS 23.11, the status of Hurd, liblzma compromised upstream, FreeBSD Foundation focuses on improving wireless networking, Ubuntu Pro offers 12 years of support |
| • Issue 1063 (2024-03-25): Redcore Linux 2401, how slowly can a rolling release update, Debian starts new Project Leader election, Red Hat creating new NVIDIA driver, Snap store hit with more malware |
| • Issue 1062 (2024-03-18): KDE neon 20240304, changing file permissions, Canonical turns 20, Pop!_OS creates new software centre, openSUSE packages Plasma 6 |
| • Issue 1061 (2024-03-11): Using a PinePhone as a workstation, restarting background services on a schedule, NixBSD ports Nix to FreeBSD, Fedora packaging COSMIC, postmarketOS to adopt systemd, Linux Mint replacing HexChat |
| • Issue 1060 (2024-03-04): AV Linux MX-23.1, bootstrapping a network connection, key OpenBSD features, Qubes certifies new hardware, LXQt and Plasma migrate to Qt 6 |
| • Issue 1059 (2024-02-26): Warp Terminal, navigating manual pages, malware found in the Snap store, Red Hat considering CPU requirement update, UBports organizes ongoing work |
| • Issue 1058 (2024-02-19): Drauger OS 7.6, how much disk space to allocate, System76 prepares to launch COSMIC desktop, UBports changes its version scheme, TrueNAS to offer faster deduplication |
| • Issue 1057 (2024-02-12): Adelie Linux 1.0 Beta, rolling release vs fixed for a smoother experience, Debian working on 2038 bug, elementary OS to split applications from base system updates, Fedora announces Atomic Desktops |
| • Issue 1056 (2024-02-05): wattOS R13, the various write speeds of ISO writing tools, DSL returns, Mint faces Wayland challenges, HardenedBSD blocks foreign USB devices, Gentoo publishes new repository, Linux distros patch glibc flaw |
| • Issue 1055 (2024-01-29): CNIX OS 231204, distributions patching packages the most, Gentoo team presents ongoing work, UBports introduces connectivity and battery improvements, interview with Haiku developer |
| • Issue 1054 (2024-01-22): Solus 4.5, comparing dd and cp when writing ISO files, openSUSE plans new major Leap version, XeroLinux shutting down, HardenedBSD changes its build schedule |
| • Issue 1053 (2024-01-15): Linux AI voice assistants, some distributions running hotter than others, UBports talks about coming changes, Qubes certifies StarBook laptops, Asahi Linux improves energy savings |
| • Issue 1052 (2024-01-08): OpenMandriva Lx 5.0, keeping shell commands running when theterminal closes, Mint upgrades Edge kernel, Vanilla OS plans big changes, Canonical working to make Snap more cross-platform |
| • Full list of all issues |
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