 DistroWatch Weekly |
| DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 499, 18 March 2013 |
Welcome to this year's 11th issue of DistroWatch Weekly! It was a fascinating week, with the added excitement of the final release of openSUSE 12.3, as well as what has become a rather standard feature in the world of Ubuntu in recent months - much online bickering. But before we get to the news section, we'll take a little detour from Linux and focus on the MINIX project which recently released version 3.2.1 of their computer operating system based on a microkernel architecture. While MINIX might not be something that most of us would run on our laptops or desktop computers, it certainly is -- and has been for over two decades -- an excellent light, clean and reliable system to tinker with on a rainy day. Back to the news section, Kubuntu's Jonathan Riddell explains his recent spat with the Ubuntu leadership, Fedora's Robyn Bergeron presents an educated opinion on the state of Linux desktop market, and openSUSE provides a series of introductory articles about the just-released version 12.3. Also in this issue, a round-up of Linux distributions for musicians and an addition of three new operating systems to the DistroWatch database, including the ever exciting KolibriOS. Happy reading!
Content:
Listen to the Podcast edition of this week's DistroWatch Weekly in OGG (18MB) and MP3 (34MB) formats
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| Feature Story (by Jesse Smith) |
Quick looks aLinux 15.0 and MINIX 3.2.1
 Most of the mainstream Linux distributions available today are focused on bringing their users the latest and great open source technology. They are on the cutting edge of software development and refining the definition of what modern computers can do. Which is great, but not all of us are using new computers, many of us are using ageing computers which only continue to grow older. With that in mind this week I wanted to look at an operating system which is better suited to older computers. At the top of my list was aLinux, a distribution which supports i686 computers and ships with the classic KDE 3.5 interface. I'm uncertain as to whether aLinux uses the original KDE 3.5 packages or if the project uses Trinity, the continuation of KDE's 3.5 branch. The aLinux project's website, while colourful, is short on specifics and does not contain a great deal of documentation. The latest release of aLinux, version 15.0, is available as a 1.4GB download and is offered as a 32-bit build only.
Booting from the aLinux media brings up a menu letting us choose the resolution of our display. The system then attempts to boot into a live graphical environment. I tried aLinux on my laptop and in a virtual machine and found the system could not complete its boot process. Early on messages displayed on the screen indicating files under the /bin and /sbin directories could not be located. As it turns out others have had trouble booting the distribution and reported the same issue. A new build of aLinux is in the works which should fix this problem*. I may come back to aLinux later when new download images become available. Until then I needed another operating system with which to occupy my time this week and I decided to examine the latest release from the MINIX 3 project.
* Since beginning this review the aLinux developer has posted news that the aLinux ISO image has been fixed. At the time of writing the image file on the project's download mirror still appears to be the old version. If you are interested in trying aLinux please make sure to download the new installation ISO image, which is reported to have a MD5 checksum of aefca1c5a366e6ca923afe99536a77f0.
* * * * *
 The MINIX operating system has a long history in education. The project is small and the earlier versions of MINIX focused almost entirely on academic concerns. Recently the MINIX project has been the basis for new research and the MINIX website states, "MINIX 3 won a grant from the European Research Council for €2.5 million to further research in highly reliable operating systems. Due to its modular nature and fault tolerance, it is easy to use it as a basis for operating systems research or for a product." The MINIX 3 project continues the academic work of earlier generations of MINIX, but also gives some attention to more practical concerns. Modern MINIX, while still a small project, is expanding, always increasing its support for hardware and third-party software. One of the characteristics which sets MINIX apart from other, more popular open source operating systems is its microkernel design. This design helps to keep the MINIX kernel code modular and adds a level of reliability. Should part of the MINIX kernel crash it can usually be restarted, avoiding the need for a reboot.
The latest release of MINIX, version 3.2.1, comes with a number of important improvements. The MINIX operating system now supports dynamically linked libraries, system performance has been improved, new hardware drivers have been added to the project and the userland utilities have been updated. Perhaps the most promising feature available to MINIX users is a ports system which assists administrators in compiling and installing third-party software which might otherwise only be available to other operating systems such as NetBSD.
The MINIX operating system can be downloaded as a 256MB compressed image. Once this file has been downloaded it can be expanded to its full 680MB size, still small enough to fit on a CD. The big hurdle to using MINIX is hardware support. Despite the addition of new drivers being accepted into the project, getting the operating system running can be tricky. In addition, MINIX does not yet have 64-bit support for Intel machines nor does it feature ARM support, though both are being actively developed. I tried MINIX on physical hardware and in VirtualBox without any luck. I was able to get the small operating system running inside a QEMU virtual machine and there I found MINIX ran quite well.
Booting from the MINIX media brings up a text console where we can login as the root user without a password. When we login we are shown instructions letting us know we can continue to use the MINIX operating system in this live CD environment or we can choose to run the system's installer by running the command "setup". The installer has a very simple interface. Instructions and questions are printed to the text console and we type our responses. Most of the time we can simply press Enter at each prompt, taking the default option. The installer asks us to confirm our keyboard's layout and then we are walked through partitioning. The partitioning options are quite limited, basically we tell MINIX which partition on the hard drive is to be used and how much of the partition should be set aside for the home directories. We are not able to select from multiple file systems and we are not asked to create swap space. The installer then formats the given partition and copies files to the hard drive. We're then asked to select our network card from a list of supported cards (any detected cards are marked with an asterisk to help us find the right one) and we're asked if we would care to enable DHCP to aid us in getting on-line. From there we are told we can reboot the machine to test out our new installation or we can continue using the live media.
When we first boot into our fresh installation of MINIX there are no regular user accounts, just the root user is available to us. We can, should we wish to, create additional accounts. The system will automatically detect and try to enable a network connection, but otherwise the operating system is very minimalist. The system pretty much leaves us alone and requires we manually configure and enable any services we need. This means the operating system has a small footprint and MINIX only used about 60MB of RAM in my test environment. The operating system comes with the usual collection of UNIX command line tools, such as "top", "grep" and "find". Manual pages are included for most commands and functions. In the default installation we find the source code for MINIX in the /usr/src directory, a testament to the operating system's small size and the hands-on attitude of most of MINIX's userbase. Should we wish to build any of this source code (or any third-party software) MINIX ships with the Clang compiler.
When we login to MINIX a block of text appears letting us know we can add new software packages to the system by using the pkgin package manager. I found pkgin works in much the same way as APT does on Linux distributions. We can download repository information, search for available software, add new binary packages from the repository and remove old packages. The pkgin manager resolves software dependencies for us and I ran into no problems while using its simple command line interface. The pkgin software displays terse output and doesn't have some of the advanced features of some other package managers, but it performs installations, searches and removals quite well and it runs quickly. The default repository, which is set up for us at install time, is fairly small. I believe the MINIX repository holds approximately 250 packages in all. These packages include the Python scripting language, OpenSSH, X11, VIM and a few console games, along with a handful of other useful items.
Aside from the binary packages provided by the MINIX project there is another option for adding new software to the operating system. MINIX is able to make use of pkgsrc, a technology made popular by the NetBSD project. What pkgsrc does is it provides us with a collection of ports, essentially recipes for downloading and compiling software. The MINIX Wiki contains instructions for setting up pkgsrc and using it to automate the process of acquiring new software packages.
While experimenting with MINIX I was able to set up a simple file server and add secure shell support to the operating system. I found I was able to download files, explore the system and even get a few unsupported applications to build. Running MINIX feels very much like running other popular open source systems such as FreeBSD, NetBSD or one of the more minimal Linux distributions. While I was using it, MINIX remained stable the entire time and I encountered no problems. I haven't conducted any benchmarks, but I feel as though the current version of the operating system is faster than previous versions. Commands appeared to run faster, especially those related to installing packages or otherwise accessing the file system. Really, my lone complaint was with regards to hardware support as I was limited to running the little operating system in a virtual machine.
The MINIX project is still very much a research and educational tool, with its limited supply of software and file system support I don't think anyone is going to rush to install it on a workstation or laptop. However, that being said, what MINIX does is supply a very clean, small operating system which is reliable and unlikely to contain bugs. It's light, it's solid and all of the source code is readily available, making MINIX a great platform on which to tinker. I spent some time on the MINIX forums and I found the people there to be both friendly and knowledgeable, happy to help me port software or hunt down a piece of documentation. It makes for a healthy environment in which to learn. If you're curious as to how your operating system works then MINIX is a great starting point, I certainly plan to continue playing with it in my spare time.
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| Miscellaneous News (by Ladislav Bodnar) |
openSUSE presents 12.3 desktop, Ubuntu introduces GNOME and Kylin, interviews with Kubuntu's Jonathan Riddell and Fedora's Robyn Bergeron
 One of the historically most influential Linux distributions, the venerable openSUSE, has produced another stellar release, version 12.3. This was after a shorter-than-usual release cycle; yet the first reviews indicate that the project has outdone itself and is a worthwhile candidate as a replacement for whatever distribution currently occupies your hard drive. But if you are in doubt, the openSUSE developers have also produced an excellent series of introductions to openSUSE 12.3; here is the preview of openSUSE 12.3 for desktop users: "Let's start with the desktops. openSUSE is unique among the major Linux distributions in delivering all major free desktops on an equal footing: officially developed and supported. These include GNOME Shell, KDE Plasma, Xfce, LXDE and the brand new Enlightenment 0.17. Let's go over some features of these desktops. GNOME Shell 3.6. GNOME Shell, still a rather new and fresh project from the GNOME community, is in its fourth incarnation. Two years after its first introduction this desktop still stirs some controversy but for many users, GNOME Shell has become their day-to-day workhorse."
openSUSE 12.3 - the KDE desktop
(full image size: 1,596kB, screen resolution 1280x1024 pixels)
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 These days whatever happens in the world of Ubuntu, it gets into headlines of blogs from where it spreads like a wildfire. And often it's the founder of Canonical who has to do the hard work of fighting the flames and smoke. Whether it's misplaced criticism or defending the release model, Mark Shuttleworth is a powerful figure with powerful opinions. Last week it was the defence of cadence and Ubuntu's LTS releases that got the attention of the benevolent dictator: "It's been two weeks since Rick Spencer made the case for a rolling release approach in Ubuntu. Having a rolling release is one of the very top suggestions from the hardcore Ubuntu user community, and after years of it being mooted by all and sundry I thought it deserved the deep consideration that Rick and his team, who represent most of Canonical's direct contributions to Ubuntu, brought to the analysis. It's obviously not helpful to have mass hysteria break out when ideas like this get floated, so I would like to thank everyone who calmly provided feedback on the proposal, and blow a fat raspberry at those of you who felt obliged to mount soapboxes and opine on The End Of the World As We Know It."
In the meantime, the number of officially recognised Ubuntu flavours expanded substantially during the past week with the addition of Ubuntu GNOME, a distribution shipping with the standard GNOME Shell instead of Unity, and UbuntuKylin, a project whose goal is to create a highly customised build of Ubuntu for users in China and elsewhere using the Simplified Chinese character set. The H Open reports: "The Ubuntu Technical board has given the official designation to two Ubuntu flavours, Ubuntu GNOME and UbuntuKylin. The decision was made in an IRC meeting and announced by the projects this week. Ubuntu GNOME 3 sets out to deliver the GNOME 3 experience on Ubuntu, while UbuntuKylin aims to offer a fully customised Chinese user experience on Ubuntu 13.04. The official blessing gives the developers of each flavour access to Ubuntu's build infrastructure and allows them to be managed as part of the Ubuntu project rather than as an unsupported fork." The just-released first beta set of official Ubuntu subprojects has not yet included Ubuntu GNOME, but daily live image are already available from cdimage.ubuntu.com.
Ubuntu GNOME 13.04 "daily" - the default user interface with GNOME Shell
(full image size: 323kB, screen resolution 1280x1024 pixels)
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 Jonathan Riddell, the founder and lead developer of Kubuntu, has been rather vocal in voicing his discontent over some of the decision Canonical has taken in recent months and years. The Muktware website has taken the initiative to interview the project leader who has clarified many of his concerns: "There are a number of transitions in Ubuntu currently. Mir is in a question above. Dropping Ubuntu Developer Summits is another, that's a shame as it was a big part of what made Ubuntu a community or peers but they would have been very expensive for Canonical to run (although KDE manages to run conferences on a fraction of the budget). Another is a proposal to drop 6-monthly releases and encourage use of the development release (or as others would say dropping 'interim' releases and having a 'rolling-release'), this is still being discussed and Kubuntu developers have been very prominent in that discussion. Other changes that have happened in the last year include moving developers away from unprofitable projects like Kubuntu, Launchpad and Bazaar. Also the Ubuntu release manager was made redundant which was a shame as that was a role which helped flavours like Kubuntu a lot."
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 If the above interview was fascinating in many respects, the next one is even more so. Robyn Bergeron, the current Fedora Project Leader, explains why she thinks we aren't seeing more widespread adoptions of the Linux desktop, especially in business: "I think there are a couple of different reasons. In the enterprise server market there are pieces of that industry rooted in Microsoft Windows, and that goes back for a long, long time. Certainly people making the jump from UNIX to Linux in the server market was not that big of a deal. With regards to the desktop market, though, going back to the days when I was an analyst covering the desktop stuff, Windows has had a major stronghold there for as long as I can remember. While Apple's OS X has certainly made some headway here, I think part of that is the experience of owning the Mac product and opening the box and seeing how pretty it is all the way through it. ... The interesting thing is that a lot of software vendors are not necessarily targeting a particular kind of market or a particular platform. The idea of having the software in a service model or just pushing a lot of applications into the clouds may actually turn out better for the Linux desktop."
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| Questions and Answers (by Jesse Smith) |
Linux distributions for musicians
Music-to-my-ears asks: Could you do an overview of the available Linux distros for musicians?
DistroWatch answers: I will be happy to go over a list of available Linux distributions. Though not being a musician myself I can't say I am in a position to recommend one distribution over another or compare their features in any meaningful way. The following are ones I've had recommended to me by people who do record or edit multimedia.
The first distribution I've heard good things about with regards to multimedia creation is Dream Studio. The Dream Studio distribution is built upon Ubuntu and comes with a collection of multimedia apps including Cinelerra, Ardour, Blender, Inkscape, Darktable, the GNU Image Manipulation Program and Bombono. You can get further details from the Dream Studio website.
The Ubuntu Studio project is another popular multimedia distribution. This operating system is also based upon Ubuntu and uses the Xfce desktop environment. The project's website includes an excellent feature tour which showcases the distribution's software utilities for handling audio, graphics, video and publishing.
The AV Linux project is derived from a Debian base and is optimized for performance and low latency. The AV Linux distribution uses the low-resource LXDE interface for its desktop environment and comes with several multimedia tools. Included in the distribution's toolbox are Ardour, the Hydrogen Drum Machine, Rosegarden, Guitarix and the OpenShot video editor.
ArtistX is another distribution set up to cater directly to multimedia creators. ArtistX is based on the Ubuntu distribution and features a huge collection of media editing software out of the box. The project boasts over 2,000 packages geared toward 3-D engine development, modeling, audio editing, CAD software, DVD mastering applications, image manipulation and video editing software. A full list of features is available on the project's blog.
Most Linux distributions are very flexible and allow users to add and remove software packages as they are needed. For people who already have a distribution they like it may be easier to simply add multimedia software to the existing installation rather than trying a new, dedicated multimedia distribution. The Make Use Of website has a list of useful multimedia software which runs on Linux distributions. Most of the major distributions will have these packages in their software repositories.
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| Released Last Week |
Trisquel GNU/Linux 6.0
Rubén Rodríguez Pérez has announced the release of Trisquel GNU/Linux 6.0, an Ubuntu-based distribution that uses strictly free software only (as defined by Free Software Foundation's guidelines): "This long-awaited release is based on Ubuntu 'Precise', and as usual it comes full of free software goodness. We continue to provide an easy-to-use classic desktop experience complete with full-featured browsing, office, communications and social networking utilities. New features: Linux-Libre 3.2, Abrowser 19, GNOME 3.4, LibreOffice 3.5. Our web browser without a name (Abrowser, a Firefox derivative that does not recommend non-free software) now comes with shiny new features, like full HTML 5 video support (webm, h264 and other formats) that allow to use sites like YouTube without a flash plugin. This version can also show PDF files without a plugin." See the release announcement for further information and a screenshot.
Trisquel GNU/Linux 6.0 - a 100% "libre" distribution based on Ubuntu
(full image size: 2,131kB, screen resolution 1280x1024 pixels)
Webconverger 18.0
Kai Hendry has announced the release of Webconverger 18.0, a single-purpose Debian-based distribution designed for Internet-only web kiosks: "Webconverger 18.0 release. Webconverger is git signed and tagged '18.0' with the following new features: provisioned the proprietary Google talk plugin, which will make us more applicable in Internet cafes; with a Google account you can make voice and video calls; new fonts, you shouldn't see a missing Unicode glyph for your language, thanks to the newly integrated Droid font coverage; Arabic and Russian i18n support via the default key bind, through the boot Languages menu; Firefox 19; iptables= API described in filtering; showprintbutton API described in printing; 3.8.2 Linux kernel with better hardware support." Here is the brief release announcement with a screenshot.
ArtistX 1.4
Marco Ghirlanda has announced the release of ArtistX 1.4, an Ubuntu-based distribution containing a pre-configured collection of free audio, graphics, video software: "After nearly ten years of development and more than ten versions, the ArtistX 1.4 multimedia studio on a DVD is finally here. It's an Ubuntu 12.10-based live DVD that turns a common computer into a full multimedia production studio. ArtistX 1.4 includes the 3.5 Linux kernel, GNOME 3.4 and about 2,500 free multimedia software packages, nearly everything that exists for the GNU/Linux operating system organized in the menu. Main features: based on Ubuntu 12.10 without Unity and with all updates; most of GNU/Linux multimedia packages and the very easy Ubiquity installer. We have now a new forum and a new Software page with the top 100 free software available in ArtistX." Visit the project's home page to read the release announcement.
ArtistX 1.4 - an Ubuntu-based distribution with software for artists and creative users
(full image size: 414kB, screen resolution 1280x1024 pixels)
openSUSE 12.3
openSUSE 12.3, the latest version of the popular Linux distribution for desktops and servers, has been released: "Dear contributors, friends and fans: the latest release of the openSUSE distribution, version 12.3, is ready for you. After six months of hard work, we are happy to bring you the best mix that free and open-source software has to offer with our unique green sauce - stable, friendly and fun. As this was a shorter-than-normal release cycle, much attention went into the details so we can now give you a quality packed product. This release of world's most powerful and flexible Linux distribution puts the finishing touches on our boot infrastructure and package management, a bright polish to your desktop and a touch of cloud for your server." See the release announcement and release notes for more information.
Kali Linux 1.0
Offensive Security has announced the release of Kali Linux 1.0, a Debian-based distribution with a collection of security tools for forensic analysis and penetration testing. This is a major new update of the project's flagship distribution formerly known as BackTrack (based on Ubuntu). From the release announcement: "After a year of silent development, Offensive Security is proud to announce the release and public availability of 'Kali Linux', the most advanced, robust, and stable penetration-testing distribution to date. Kali is a more mature, secure, and enterprise-ready version of BackTrack. Trying to list all the new features and possibilities that are now available in Kali would be an impossible task on this single page. We therefore invite you to visit our new Kali Linux website and Kali Linux documentation site to experience the goodness of Kali for yourself."
Kali Linux 1.0 - a new name and base for the project focusing on forensic analysis and penetration testing
(full image size: 88kB, screen resolution 1280x1024 pixels)
Slax 7.0.6, 7.0.7, 7.0.8
Tomáš Matějíček has announced the release of Slax 7.0.6, an updated version of the Slackware-based live CD with a minimalist KDE desktop: "I'd like to announce an update of Slax live Linux, version 7.0.6. The main changes are the new Linux kernel 3.8.2 and updated KDE 4.10.1. It was a bit harder than I expected, mostly due to some really odd changes made by KDE developers, which I had to work around to get the same functionality as we are used to. Raw changelog: fixed missing notification when module is activated or deactivated; upgraded all packages to reflect changes in Slackware 'Current'; Updated Firefox to 19.0.2; show date on taskbar under current time; the device notifier in KDE is now hidden since it was showing on mad positions. The Slax size has increased by about 3 MB due to new stuff provided by KDE." Read the full release announcement for more information.
IPFire 2.13 Core 67
Michael Tremer has announced the release of IPFire 2.13 Core 67, an updated version of the hardened Linux-based appliance distribution designed for use as a firewall: "Today, the IPFire development team released the 67th core update for IPFire 2. This update comes within the usual 4-week schedule and brings various bug fixes. New wireless drivers. With IPFire 2.13 came a new kernel based on Linux 3.2. The wireless drivers were taken from Linux kernel 3.6 and subsequently, some users reported that their hardware did not work as well as it had previously. With this core update, the wireless drivers have been grabbed from Linux kernel 3.8, where numerous problems have been fixed and also new hardware support has been added. Please note that a reboot is required to make use of the new drivers. The driver for ASIX USB network adapters has also been updated to version 4.5." Read the full release announcement for further details.
Manjaro Linux 0.8.4 "Openbox-Lite"
Carl Duff has announced the release of Manjaro Linux 0.8.4 "Openbox-Lite" edition, a lightweight and minimalist distribution based on Arch Linux: "New Openbox-Lite flavour has been released. Only the hardcore need apply to this latest Manjaro flavour, which provides a minimalist yet highly configurable Openbox base for more experienced users and Openbox enthusiasts to build upon. The fastest, lightest, and most versatile flavour available, this is a completely different beast than the Openbox-Synapse release. Equally suitable for both older, less powerful computers as well as modern, high-specification systems, this powerhouse ensures that maximum resources are available to run tasks and applications at all times. Nothing is wasted." Here is the full release announcement with several screenshots.
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Development, unannounced and minor bug-fix releases
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| Upcoming Releases and Announcements |
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Summary of expected upcoming releases
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| DistroWatch.com News |
New distributions added to database
- KolibriOS. KolibriOS is a tiny open-source operating system with a monolithic preemptive kernel and video drivers for 32-bit x86 architecture computers. KolibriOS is a fork of MenuetOS, written entirely in FASM (assembly language). However, C, C++, Free Pascal, Forth, among other high-level languages and compilers, can also be used in application development. KolibriOS features a rich set of applications that include a word processor, image viewer, graphical editor, web browser, and over 30 games.
KolibriOS 0.7.7.0 - a tiny open-source operating system for desktop computers
(full image size: 481kB, screen resolution 1024x768 pixels)
- UbuntuKylin. UbuntuKylin is an official Ubuntu subproject whose goal is to create a variant of Ubuntu that is more suitable for Chinese users using the Simplified Chinese writing system. The project provides a delicate, thoughtful and fully customised Chinese user experience out-of-the-box by providing a desktop user interface localised into Simplified Chinese and with software generally preferred by many Chinese users.
UbuntuKylin 13.04 Beta 1 - a new Ubuntu subproject optimised for users of Simplified Chinese
(full image size: 358kB, screen resolution 1280x1024 pixels)
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New distributions added to waiting list
- alphaOS. alphaOS is a new distribution developed from scratch. It uses the spkg package management system.
- Navigatrix. Navigatrix is an Ubuntu-based distribution with a collection of specialist software for navigation, communication, information and security for use offshore, on shore, or at anchor. It is put together by people on boats for people on boats.
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DistroWatch database summary
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This concludes this week's issue of DistroWatch Weekly. The next instalment will be published on Monday, 25 March 2013. To contact the authors please send email to:
- Jesse Smith (feedback, questions and suggestions: distribution reviews, questions and answers, tips and tricks)
- Ladislav Bodnar (feedback, questions, suggestions and corrections: news, donations, distribution submissions, comments)
- Bruce Patterson (feedback and suggestions: podcast edition)
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| Archives |
| • 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 |
| • Issue 1051 (2024-01-01): Favourite distros of 2023, reloading shell settings, Asahi Linux releases Fedora remix, Gentoo offers binary packages, openSUSE provides full disk encryption |
| • Issue 1050 (2023-12-18): rlxos 2023.11, renaming files and opening terminal windows in specific directories, TrueNAS publishes ZFS fixes, Debian publishes delayed install media, Haiku polishes desktop experience |
| • Issue 1049 (2023-12-11): Lernstick 12, alternatives to WINE, openSUSE updates its branding, Mint unveils new features, Lubuntu team plans for 24.04 |
| • Issue 1048 (2023-12-04): openSUSE MicroOS, the transition from X11 to Wayland, Red Hat phasing out X11 packages, UBports making mobile development easier |
| • Issue 1047 (2023-11-27): GhostBSD 23.10.1, Why Linux uses swap when memory is free, Ubuntu Budgie may benefit from Wayland work in Xfce, early issues with FreeBSD 14.0 |
| • Issue 1046 (2023-11-20): Slackel 7.7 "Openbox", restricting CPU usage, Haiku improves font handling and software centre performance, Canonical launches MicroCloud |
| • Issue 1045 (2023-11-13): Fedora 39, how to trust software packages, ReactOS booting with UEFI, elementary OS plans to default to Wayland, Mir gaining ability to split work across video cards |
| • Issue 1044 (2023-11-06): Porteus 5.01, disabling IPv6, applications unique to a Linux distro, Linux merges bcachefs, OpenELA makes source packages available |
| • Full list of all issues |
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eZeY
eZeY (formerly Open Xange, before Xange and Vixta) was an easy-to-use, Fedora-based desktop Linux distribution featuring the KDE desktop.
Status: Discontinued
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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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