 DistroWatch Weekly |
| DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 526, 23 September 2013 |
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Welcome to this year's 38th issue of DistroWatch Weekly! Technology is always changing and nowhere is that more apparent than in the realm of open source software. Open source projects and operating systems tend to be transparent, where anyone can read along on the mailing lists or observe the back-and-forth on bug trackers. This week we will be talking about software which is currently still in the development phase or on the cutting-edge, but should be making its way into mainstream distributions soon. In our news section we look at the upcoming release of GNOME 3.10 and one of its more interesting features. Plus, we discuss openSUSE's plans for adopting Btrfs as the distribution's default file system. We also touch upon a new resource for BSD users and talk about a report on Linux kernel development supplied by The Linux Foundation. We also talk about how the city of Munich is planning to use Ubuntu in an effort to protect its users from malware. In this edition of DistroWatch Weekly Jesse Smith takes a bleeding-edge distribution, called ArchBang, for a spin and reports on his first impressions. How does the project perform and is it a good solution for fans of Arch Linux? Read on to find out! We will also go over some tips for making the most out of the command-line, cover distributions released over the past week and look ahead to new developments. We wish you all a wonderful week and happy reading!
Content:
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| Feature Story (by Jesse Smith) |
First impressions of ArchBang Linux 2013.09.01
 The ArchBang Linux operating system is based on the Arch Linux distribution and maintains a rolling release upgrade model. ArchBang is designed to help users get up and running with an Arch-based system while taking most of the work out of the initial installation process. To this end the distribution provides live disc images that come with the Openbox graphical interface and a system installer which automates a good deal of the work which goes into installing Arch. ArchBang comes in 32-bit and 64-bit builds, the 32-bit ISO is approximately 400MB in size and the 64-bit image is about 440MB in size. Prior to downloading the live disc image I recommend reading the ArchBang guide for new users. It covers several important points with regards to performing the initial installation and setting up package management.
Booting from the ArchBang Linux CD brings up a boot menu which allows us to load the distribution in a variety of video modes. The operating system boots quickly, bringing us to the Openbox window manager. The background has a cloudy blue appearance and there is a widget in the upper-right corner which displays CPU and memory statistics. Down the right side of the screen we find a list of shortcut keys which can be used to manipulate application windows. At the bottom of the display we find a task switcher and system tray. The distribution's application menu may be accessed by right-clicking on the Openbox background. Looking through the application menu we find a couple of useful entries, including one for the system installer and another which opens the Firefox web browser and displays the on-line ArchBang documentation.
ArchBang Linux 2013.09.01 - the distribution's system installer
(full image size: 857kB, screen resolution 1280x1024 pixels)
The ArchBang Linux system installer is driven by a text-based menu system. It reminds me of Slackware and FreeBSD in its style, with the user being guided through menus where we can usually take the default offerings. The project's documentation recommends partitioning the local hard disk using the friendly GParted partition manager prior to running the installer. This is good advice, though not strictly required as the installer will launch the text-based cfdisk partitioning utility if we need it. The ArchBang installer lays out its steps in a hub arrangement rather than a linear path, allowing us easy navigation back to previous steps. We're walked through selecting our time zone and setting the system clock. Then we are asked if we need to partition the disk and, once that is done, we can assign one partition to be used for swap space and another to be used for the root file system. ArchBang offers a variety of supported file systems, including ext2/3/4, XFS, JFS and ReiserFS. Once we have formatted a partition we can instruct the installer to copy over its files to the drive. Once the files have been copied we set a password for the root account, create a regular user account and, optionally, install a boot loader. By default ArchBang installs the GRUB boot loader. I found the installer worked quite quickly, the entire process taking a little under 15 minutes.
Booting the local copy of ArchBang Linux brings us to a graphical login screen where the background resembles a cloudy sky. Signing in brings us back to the same Openbox graphical environment we experienced on the live disc. One of the first things I noticed about the distribution was that it is fast. The system loads in mere seconds from cold boot to login, the operating system also shuts down surprisingly fast. The graphical interface is extremely responsive. Another thing which stands out is that the operating system stays out of the way and takes the approach of only speaking when spoken to. There are no pop-ups, no software update notifications, no welcome screen. If we want the operating system to interact with us, we must first issue it commands. ArchBang does not do anything on its own, it is entirely passive. A third aspect I quickly noticed was that the graphical file manager does not, by default, recognize file extensions. This means that if we double click on a text file or an audio file, the file manager does not have any default actions and we will have to set up associations between file types and applications.
Speaking of applications, ArchBang Linux does not come with many. We're given the Firefox web browser (without Flash), the medit text editor, a virtual calculator, an image viewer and the SpaceFM file manager. We are also given a few configuration tools to help adjust the look and feel of the Openbox window manager. Network Manager is provided to help us get on-line. There is no compiler, no Java and no multimedia codecs on the system. In the background we find the Linux kernel, version 3.10. This means we are essentially tasked with building our operating system from a small foundation. It also means there isn't any clutter, nothing extra to get in the way or weigh us down.
ArchBang Linux 2013.09.01 - various applications and configuration utilities
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As ArchBang's default installation is not weighed down by unnecessary software it is natural to assume we will spend a good deal of time working with the distribution's package manager. There does not appear to be any graphical package manager, we instead manipulate packages by way of the Pacman command-line utility. By default Pacman does not recognize any software repositories. One of the first things we should do, post-installation, is edit Pacman's list of repository mirrors, enabling ones regionally close to us, and then synchronize our local package data with the remote servers. I found it was a good idea to enable multiple repositories in case one is slow or in the event one mirror is out of sync with other repositories. Once Pacman's list of mirrors has been updated and the manager synced, then we can get to upgrading and installing software.
ArchBang is based on Arch Linux and uses Arch Linux packages. The distribution also inherits its parent's rolling release style of upgrades. This means software is updated fairly frequently and the software on our system will be close to the latest upstream version. This means running ArchBang will keep us on the leading edge of open source software. It also means updates are more likely to break the system as they haven't had a lot of testing yet. The ArchBang documentation recommends caution (and research) when it comes to applying updates to avoid serious problems with the base system. I find Pacman has a rather cryptic syntax, but I also found it ran very quickly and I encountered no problems while using the command-line package manager.
I ran ArchBang Linux on a physical desktop machine (dual-core 2.8 GHz CPU, 6 GB of RAM, Radeon video card, Realtek network card) and in a virtual machine powered by VirtualBox. In both cases I found the distribution performed very well. The system booted (and powered off) very quickly, the Openbox interface was amazingly fast and all of my hardware worked out of the box. My screen was set to its maximum resolution, my network connection was enabled automatically and sound worked without any problems. I found ArchBang was quite light on resources. While running the distribution I found signing into Openbox only used approximately 75MB of RAM and my CPU was, more often than not, idle.
ArchBang Linux 2013.09.01 - end user documentation
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The ArchBang Linux developers are quite up front about the fact that their distribution is not designed with beginners in mind. It is a distribution that takes the approach of providing a simplified design which means, quite often, the user is expected to do things manually. Running ArchBang will require users to be comfortable with the command-line. Potential users should be familiar with editing configuration files in a text editor too. This means ArchBang is a bit of a niche distribution. It is hands-on and it takes some manual work, though not as much as plain Arch. The distribution maintains a cutting-edge rolling release so users should be aware things will break from time to time and blindly upgrading packages is not recommended. For the reasons listed above there aren't many people to whom I would recommend ArchBang, but at the same time I was quite pleased with what the developers have accomplished.
From a technical perspective, ArchBang Linux is blazingly fast, it has an uncluttered interface, super fast package management, a minimal installation footprint and takes up very little RAM. This is probably a good distribution for people who like to explore the nuts and bolts of an operating system, who like running the latest versions of software and who like the Arch philosophy of simple operating system design. I like that ArchBang has lowered the bar to trying an Arch-based system and that they have good documentation for people starting out. The project may not have mainstream appeal, but it is very good at what it does, providing an easy way to pop in a CD and simply enjoy Arch. My experience with ArchBang was, in a word, sparse, with few features and no bugs.
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| Miscellaneous News (by Jesse Smith) |
New BSD resource, Linux kernel statistics, Munich gives away Ubuntu discs, GNOME gains Wayland support
 BSD Now is a new resource for BSD users and administrators that covers news and developments in the BSD communities. Their latest podcast is full of useful information for users and fans of the BSD family of operating systems. Some of the highlights include thoughts on tackling the adoption of a time system which can be used beyond the year 2038, the FreeBSD project's move to drop the GNU compiler in exchange for Clang, creating package repositories and new developments in the BSD communities. The BSD Now podcasts are available in a variety of audio and video formats and worth a listen if you're curious about activities in the BSD communities.
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 The Linux kernel is at the heart of every GNU/Linux distribution, Android and any number of embedding devices. Linux is virtually everywhere, running desktops, laptops, servers, routers and phones. The kernel is made up of millions of lines of code (version 3.10 if the Linux kernel contains nearly 17 million lines of code) and thousands of changes are included in each new release. This raises the question of who writes all of this code and The Linux Foundation has some answers. According to their report, Red Hat contributes the lion's share of kernel code, with approximately 10% of changes coming from Red Hat employees. Intel, Texas Instruments, IBM, Google and Oracle are also big contributors. Linux developer Greg Kroah-Hartman made some comments with regards to the pace of Linux development, observing: "Rate of change, and number of patches accepted, keeps going up as our community size has increased," indicating the pace of development is continually growing. "Every year, since 2003 when I started keeping these numbers, I have said, 'Wow, we are going so fast, there's no way we can keep rate of change and number of developers and companies going,'" Kroah-Hartman said. "And, every year, that number has increased. So I'm a bad judge of these things."
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 Many people in technology circles have been looking ahead to April 2014 when the widely used Windows XP operating system will hit its end-of-life date. At that point the common desktop operating system will no longer receive security updates and many believe this will lead to millions of people being exposed to security vulnerabilities. The city of Munich is not going to sit idly by and wait to see what happens. Instead the government is handing out CDs with copies of Ubuntu 12.04 on them, offering citizens a chance to try the free operating system. The city government plans to make approximately 2,000 Ubuntu discs available through the Gasteig Library. It is hoped the freely available Ubuntu operating system will protect Munich citizens from falling prey to malware. It is also a great opportunity to introduce people to free software and the rights users of free software enjoy.
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 Later this week we should see the release of a new version of GNOME. Version 3.10 of the popular open source desktop is expected to come with several new features. Perhaps the most interesting of these new features, from a technological viewpoint, is the support for Wayland, a new display server that offers an alternative to X. While still a work in progress with several features left to implement, it is good to see GNOME offering support for Wayland. People interested in trying the new GNOME with Wayland may get their chance when Fedora 20 is released later this year. Fedora's planned feature list includes the new release of GNOME 3.10. It will be interesting to see how well the new display server works with a major desktop environment running on a mainstream Linux distribution and how Fedora's users react to the migration.
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 Btrfs is an advanced file system designed to provide rich features to Linux administrators. The file system, which is still considered experimental, will likely become the default file system in many distributions in the years to come. Up to this point, several Linux distributions have added initial support for the advanced file system, but Btrfs has yet to become the default in any mainstream distributions. The openSUSE team is considering a move to make Btrfs their default file system in the near future and are encouraging users who are taking part in beta testing to install openSUSE using Btrfs. The openSUSE News page states: "Of some special interest for this release is Btrfs. A discussion has been going on about making this future-oriented file system the default on the next openSUSE. That won't be, but Btrfs is still a prominent option during installation so any relevant testing and bug fixing will benefit many openSUSE 13.1 users. And, more importantly, we aim for having it default in the future."
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| Questions and Answers (by Jesse Smith) |
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Quick-n-easy command-line tips
Most weeks I get questions from people asking for quick bits of advice. Sometimes a person is looking for a helpful guide or a specific command or a command-line short-cut to performing a specific task. Here are three tasks people have approached me with recently and some easy ways to accomplish those tasks.
The first scenario we will look at is copying all of the files in a directory tree that have been modified in the past month from their current location to another directory. The exact solution in this case may depend on whether you want to maintain the structure of the directory tree or if you are dumping all of the files from one directory tree into a specific place. If we are dumping all of our files into one folder, perhaps for archiving purposes, then we might use the find command. Using find we can search for files based on when they were last modified and then copy the files we locate to a specific place. Such a command might look like this:
find Documents -mtime -30 -exec cp "{}" Backup \;
The above command locates files stored in the Documents folder that have been modified in the past 30 days. These files are then copied into another directory, called Backup. The find command performs the copy procedure using the copy (cp) command. We can search for files which have been modified more or less recently by changing the mtime parameter, which is set to the past 30 days in the above example.
More often, we will want to preserve the structure of the source and destination directories. Quite often people wish to synchronize the contents of one directory with another and run a script to keep the two directories in step with each other. For cases such as these we will probably want to use the rsync command. This utility copies new files, and files which have been modified, from one directory to another while maintaining the layout of the original directory:
rsync -a Documents/ Backup
The above example makes sure the files existing in Documents also exist in the Backup directory without copying any files unnecessarily.
A common task we may wish to perform is to locate a word in a text file and replace all instances of that word with another word. As an example, imagine I have a document in which I've referred to a person as "Becky", but I've decided it would be better to use the more formal sounding "Rebecca". The following command would be useful for making this simple correction throughout the file:
perl -pi -e 's/Becky/Rebecca/' mydocument.txt
This miniature Perl script executes a search for all instances of the text "Becky" in our document and changes the text to read "Rebecca". The text to be changed is read from (and saved back to) the mydocument.txt file.
One common concern is what to do with sensitive data on a hard drive prior to the drive being given to another person or thrown away. Some of us keep banking or tax information on our computers and it is good to be able to destroy that data before the drive is handed off to someone else. There are a few ways to do this and there are several tools available. One of my personal favourites, as it works on individual files as well as full devices, is the shred command. To overwrite the contents of a file we can run shred as follows:
shred mytaxes.odt
The above example removes the contents of the file, but does not delete the file itself from our hard drive. To also erase the file after the data has been destroyed we can run:
shred -u mytaxes.odt
It is important to note shred does not always work on all file systems, especially newer file systems which feature journal support. The shred manual page includes notes on which file system may not work well with the shred command. When dealing with sensitive information it may be best to erase the entire drive. The shred command can do this too. The following example removes all of our data from the first hard drive attached to the computer. Use this with extreme caution:
shred /dev/sda
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| Released Last Week |
ArtistX 1.5
Marco Ghirlanda has announced the release of ArtistX 1.5, a new version of the Ubuntu-based distribution and live DVD with a large collection of multimedia applications and graphics software: "After nearly ten years of development and more than ten versions, the ArtistX 1.5 multimedia studio on a DVD is finally here. It's an Ubuntu 13.04-based live DVD that turns a common computer into a full multimedia production studio. ArtistX 1.5 includes the 3.8 Linux kernel, GNOME 3.6 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 13.04 without Unity and with all updates (from April 2013); most of GNU/Linux multimedia packages and the very easy Ubiquity installer. A partial list of software included in the DVD is available at the software page. We have now a new forum and a new software page with the top 100 free software available in ArtistX!" The release announcement is on the distribution's home page.
ArtistX 1.5 - an Ubuntu-based distribution live DVD for artists
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Zorin OS 6.4 "Educational"
Artyom Zorin has announced the release of Zorin OS 6.4 "Educational" edition, an updated version of the project's Ubuntu-based distribution with a collection of educational software: "The Zorin OS team has released Zorin OS 6.4 Educational, the education-oriented version of our operating system designed for Windows users making the switch to Linux. Zorin OS 6.4 Educational includes newly updated software, a newer kernel out of the box and bug fixes. As Zorin OS 6.4 is based on Ubuntu 12.04 it is an LTS (long-term support) release, provided with 5 years of security updates. Users who already have installed earlier versions of the Zorin OS 6 Educational series of operating systems do not need to get Zorin OS 6.4 Educational as all the aforementioned updates and improvements in 6.4 can be applied by installing the latest updates from the Update Manager." Here is the short release announcement.
Untangle Gateway 10.0
Untangle has announced the release of Untangle Gateway 10.0, a Debian-based network gateway with modules for network applications like spam blocking, web filtering, anti-virus, anti-spyware, intrusion prevention, bandwidth control, captive portal, VPN and firewall: "Untangle, Inc., a network software and appliance company, today announced the release of Untangle 10.0, the latest version of its award-winning multi-function firewall software. Untangle 10.0 is the most significant update to the popular platform in more than five years; 10.0 includes a new application, HTTPS Inspector, as well as a complete refactoring of its networking architecture. More and more websites and popular application require users to connect via HTTPS (Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure), the protocol for secure communications on the Internet." Read the press release and the more technical changelog for further details.
Zentyal 3.2
José Antonio Calvo has announced the release of Zentyal 3.2, an Ubuntu-based distribution designed for small business servers: "The Zentyal development team is proud to announce the release of Zentyal 3.2, a major new release of the Zentyal Linux small business server. Zentyal Server is an open-source alternative to Windows Small Business Server, including a native replacement to Active Directory. Highlights: new base distribution - Ubuntu 12.04.03 featuring a new Linux 3.8 kernel and providing updates for all the packages and services managed by Zentyal; unified style and usability across the GUI featuring drag-and-drop support to move table rows, single-click support to enable modules and their dependencies; integration of the latest Samba 4.1 release; new mode that allows to authenticate against an external Active Directory server...." Read the official press release and check out the more technical release notes for further details.
Tails 0.20.1
An updated version of Tails, a Debian-based distribution with Tor integration designed for increased anonymity on the Internet, has been released: "Tails, The Amnesic Incognito Live System, version 0.20.1, is out. All users must upgrade as soon as possible - this release fixes numerous security issues. Notable user-visible changes include: install Tor 0.2.4.17-rc; install Linux kernel 3.10.11; remount persistence devices read-only at shutdown/reboot time; greeter - display a warning icon on admin password mismatch and on persistence unlocking failure; fix the I2P IRC account; allow installing 'Priority: standard' packages that we do not install by default; additional software - point to the system log on upgrade failure; many translation updates all over the place." See the release announcement and changelog for more information and a full list of changes and improvements.
Backbox 3.09
Raffaele Forte has announced the release of BackBox Linux 3.09, an Ubuntu-based distribution with a large number of software tools designed for penetration testing and security assessment: "The BackBox team is pleased to announce the updated release of BackBox Linux, version 3.09. This release includes features such as Linux kernel 3.8, EFI mode, anonymous mode and armhf Debian packages. What's new: pre-installed Linux kernel 3.8; system improvements; upstream components; bug corrections; performance boost; improved Update menu; improved Forensic menu; new Anonymous mode (Tor transparent proxy); removed pre-installed compat-wireless 3.8 with Aircrack-NG patch; predisposition to ARM architecture (armhf Debian packages); new and updated hacking tools (Armitage, BeEF, binwalk, Ettercap, Hashcat, Hydra, Hismet, MSF, Nmap, OpenVAS, Recon-ng, SE Toolkit....)" Here is the brief release announcement with system requirements.
Kwheezy 1.2
Euan Thoms has announced the release of Kwheezy 1.2, a Debian-based distribution with a pre-configured KDE desktop and a selection of software applications for everyday tasks: "Version 1.2 is now available from the download page. This release has three main focuses. Stabilizing the installer, Linux gaming and removing the deb-multimedia.org third-party repository. Changes in version 1.2: incorporates a couple of remaining installer bug fixes; Kwheezy Profiler, a new GUI tool to backup and restore user profiles; rekonq browser updated to 2.3.2; Steam client installed by default; PlayOnLinux installed by default; some open-source games (KDE Games, DreamChess) included; deb-multimedia.org packages replaced by official Debian packages, the necessary codecs / decoders included from Kwheezy repository instead; some minor tweaking here and there; version 1.1 installations can be upgraded to 1.2 via Apper or apt-get." The release announcement.
Pardus Linux 2.0 "Community"
Ortanca Samuray has announced the release of Pardus Linux 2.0 "Community" edition, a Debian-based distribution featuring a customised GNOME 3.8 desktop with usability extensions, pre-configured multimedia codecs and pre-installed device drivers: "Pardus Community 2.0 GNOME has been released. Linux kernel 3.10.11; 3D Ironvolt icon set; simplified installation; GNOME 3.8.4 (with GNOME Shell 3.4.2); pre-installed NVIDIA 304.108 and ATI 13.4 drivers; all multimedia codes and firmware; LibreOffice 4.1.1; Firefox 24.0; Thunderbird 24.0; Chromium 29.0.1547.57; Adobe Flash player 11.2.202.310; VLC media player 2.0.8; Skype 4.2.0.11; TeamViewer 7.0.9377; Wine 1.4.1; GIMP 2.8.6, Scribus 1.4.3, Inkscape 0.48." Here is the brief release announcement.
Pardus Linux 2.0 "Community" - a Debian-based distribution with GNOME 3.8
(full image size: 183kB, screen resolution 1280x1024 pixels)
SalentOS 12.04.3
Gabriele Martina has announced the release of SalentOS 12.04.3, an updated build of the project's Ubuntu-based set of DVD images offering a choice of Openbox or Razor-qt desktops user interfaces: "With great pleasure I announce the release of SalentOS 12.04.3, UbuBox and Razor-qt editions. After months of work on the 12.04.2 version here are the new ISO images with these main features: new Plymouth theme; replaced ADeskBar 0.4.3 stable with tint2 panel (UbuBox); Openbox main menu integrated into tint2 panel; Oblogout theme chooser to change the icon theme in Oblogout (UbuBox); latest Razor-qt stable Desktop (Razor-qt); updated all core packages and applications to their latest versions; all Ubuntu LTS updates; minor bug fixes and security updates." Here is the brief release announcement in Italian and in English.
Chakra GNU/Linux 2013.09
Neophytos Kolokotronis has announced the release of Chakra GNU/Linux 2013.09, a major new update of the Linux distribution that always features the latest KDE desktop: "The Chakra project team is delighted to announce the first release of Chakra Fritz. 'Fritz' is the name of a series of Chakra releases that follow the KDE Software Compilation 4.11 series and is dedicated to the memory of Fritz_Van_Tom. With this ISO image we offer KDE SC 4.11.1. In this release, many areas have received a number of improvements that affect multiple applications; most notably a speed boost on Akonadi. The Plasma Workspaces 4.11 will receive long-term support as the KDE team focuses on the technical transition to Frameworks 5. You may have noticed that there is no new artwork with this new series as it is usually the case, since it wasn't ready by the time of the release. Hopefully work on the artwork will be completed soon so we can include it in a future release." Continue to the release announcement to find out more.
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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 waiting list
- WebXperience OS. WebXperience OS is a live operating system designed for personal secure Internet browsing purposes.
- Inventare OS. Inventare OS is a general-purpose operating system based on openSUSE. The project's website is in Italian.
- NodeZero Linux. NodeZero Linux is a GNU/Linux distribution based on Ubuntu which focuses on penetration testing and security auditing.
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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, 30 September 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 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 |
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OpenLab GNU/Linux
OpenLab GNU/Linux was an easy-to-use Slackware-based distribution featuring innovative and user-oriented design. Developed in South Africa since 2001, the product takes shape in the form of an installable live CD. It also includes OLAD (OpenLab ADministration tool) and many other innovations ranging from backend systems, such as the hyperdrive suite which simplifies the handling of removable media, to user-level enhancements, such as the highly integrated desktop theme complemented by the award-winning Nuvola icon set.
Status: Discontinued
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