 DistroWatch Weekly |
| DistroWatch Weekly, Issue 1181, 13 July 2026 |
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Welcome to this year's 28th issue of DistroWatch Weekly!
It has been a busy week in the open source world, with a lot of changes and events happening. We dive right into the key stories of past week in our News section. There, we report on Google's countdown to locking down Android, TUXEDO's plan to migrate away from Ubuntu to Debian for the foundation of TUXEDO OS, and Mint's efforts to polish its Cinnamon Wayland session. We also talk about new device support coming to Redox OS while the OpenMandriva team scrambles to restore repositories deleted by a former contributor. We also share a review with an unusual perspective: a Linux user trying the latest version of Windows to see how it works. It will probably not surprise our readers that the Linux-to-Windows adventure did not go smoothly and, with this in mind, we share tips in our Questions and Answers section for making the migration to Linux easier. We begin this week with a look at Artix, an Arch-based distribution which offers a wide selection of editions using different combinations of init and desktop software. Read on to learn more about this flexible distribution. Plus we share a summary of last week's releases and provide links to the torrents we are seeding. Finally, we welcome reader feedback on the Android situation. Are you affected by Google blocking the installation of third-party software? Let us know in the Opinion Poll. We wish you all a wonderful week and happy reading!
This week's DistroWatch Weekly is presented by TUXEDO Computers.
Content:
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| Feature Story (By Jesse Smith) |
Artix 20260419
The Artix distribution is a member of the Arch Linux family. The project provides a rolling release approach and runs on x86_64 machines. There are a few details which set Artix apart form its Arch parent. First, Artix provides a variety of pre-configured desktop editions which can be installed using the graphical Calamares installer. The second big feature Artix provides is a range of init implementations. While Arch Linux runs the systemd init software (and its associated services), Artix provides several different init options: Dinit, OpenRC, runit, and s6.
With all of these options, it means one of the biggest challenges of running Artix is figuring out which ISO file to download. There are four init systems and six desktop editions (plus a desktop-free Base edition), resulting in twenty-eight possible download options. For the purposes of this test, I grabbed the Cinnamon edition with the runit init software, hoping for a combination of a beginner-friendly desktop and lightning fast boot times. The ISO file I fetched was 2.1GB in size.
Live system
Artix's live mode boots almost instantly to a Cinnamon desktop session. A panel is placed across the bottom of the display. From the panel we can open the application menu (on the left) and see a system tray to the right. The default wallpaper is dark, with a black & white image of DNA molecules. Icons on the desktop can open the file manager and launch the Calamares system installer. There are also a few icons for opening document files. These document icons are labelled: README, Configuration, Runit, and Troubleshooting.
Artix 20260419 -- The Cinnamon application menu
(full image size: 627kB, resolution: 1920x1080 pixels)
The README file simply states the location of the live session's log file, which shares information about the session's settings. The Configuration document is a quick reference for locations and commands we can use to manage user permissions, the ALSA sound system, and OpenRC options. The Troubleshooting PDF is probably the most useful document. It contains a long list of common errors and problems along with written instructions which offer solutions. The Runit file contains an overview of how the runit init software is designed and how it works.
Installing
Clicking the icon to launch the system installer causes a window to pop-up and ask if we want to run the installer in on-line or off-line mode. This window contains a hint telling us we want to use off-line mode as the on-line installer is still experimental. I took the pop-up's advice and settled for the off-line option.
The off-line install process is handled by the Calamares graphical installer. On the first page of the installer are buttons which offer to connect us with Artix Support options, an Issues page, and Release Notes. The Support button opened a web browser and displayed a blank page. The Issues button opened a page to display information about Calamares on the installer's website. The Release Notes button did the same. In short, none of these buttons seem to provide information on the Artix project and it leads me to suspect their default values were never reset by the developers.
After the initial screen, the experience with Calamares was quick and pleasant. The installer walks the user through picking a keyboard layout, selecting a timezone, and creating a username/password combination. The partitioning section provides easy manual partitioning and a guided option. The guided partitioning screen offers to set up a root partition with the ext4 filesystem and create a swap partition. We have the option of switching to a swap file and also of switching to alternative root filesystems, with F2FS, Btrfs, and XFS offered.
The system installer copied its files to my drive in under five minutes and offered to restart the computer. The whole experience was fast and pleasantly straightforward.
Early impressions
My new copy of Artix booted quickly and presented me with a graphical login screen. The login page has a dark background and offers three session options: Cinnamon running on X11; Cinnamon on Wayland; and Cinnamon on X11 with software rendering, for machines where suitable graphical hardware or drivers might not be available. The login page also has accessibility options, including large text and high contrast visuals. High contrast might be redundant since most of the distribution uses white text on black backgrounds.
I tried the various session options. The X11 session loaded and worked well. Selecting the Wayland session caused the display to go blank for a second and then returned me to the login page.
When I signed into the Cinnamon desktop I noticed the file manager icons were still present, as they had been in the live environment, however the documentation icons had disappeared. The Cinnamon desktop was highly responsive, with menus and elements responding right away. The desktop uses large icons, but pairs them with small text, which makes for a mobile-like experience. Font sizes can be changed in the settings panel.
Hardware
I began by testing Artix in a VirtualBox instance. The distribution ran quickly in VirtualBox, the desktop was set to a reasonable resolution (and easily adjusted). The distribution muted audio every time the user signed in, which meant I had to open the audio widget and unmute audio output every time I logged into my account.
When I was running Artix on a laptop computer, the screen started out quite dim, at about 20% brightness. This, combined with the overall dark theme made it difficult to see anything on the screen. Fortunately, my laptop's shortcut keys for screen brightness worked. Networking functioned perfectly and my touchpad worked well, detecting taps as clicks. By default, Cinnamon was set up to use inverse scrolling when using the touchpad, and I was able to change this feature in the settings panel.
Artix 20260419 -- The Cinnamon settings panel
(full image size: 518kB, resolution: 1920x1080 pixels)
When running on the physical laptop audio was not only muted by default, the distribution also failed to produce sound when the volume was not muted. Even with the volume turned up to 100%, I was unable to get sound from websites, media players, or the system's speaker test tool. I went through the usual troubleshooting steps to make sure no lower level audio components were muted, but ultimately did not get sound working in the time I had in which to play with Artix.
Artix was unusually light on resources. When logged into the Cinnamon desktop the distribution consumed about 660MB of RAM, which is about half what most mainstream distributions require when running the Plasma, GNOME, or Cinnamon desktops. The distribution similarly used a small amount of disk space, about 4.8GB for the root partition. Additional space can be set aside for swap at install time.
Included software
In keeping with the distribution's small footprint, not many desktop applications are included. Looking through the application menu, there is some inconsistency with the look of the menu. Most icons are black and white, but a few are colourful. Browsing the menu it also becomes clear quickly which tools originate with the GNOME project as they have descriptive names, such as Terminal and Web. Meanwhile, applications from other sources provide the (usually abstract) names of the projects, such as mpv or Atril.
Artix 20260419 -- The GNOME Web browser
(full image size: 670kB, resolution: 1920x1080 pixels)
Looking through the menu we find the GNOME Web browser, which opens six tabs immediately. These tabs present us with the Artix website, the project's wiki page, and the project's forum. There is also a tab which opens the Artix DistroWatch information page. (In case anyone is wondering: no, this does not affect the project's PHR score).
The distribution ships with a document viewer, the mpv media player and multimedia codecs, and an image viewer. The Nemo file manager is included along with a text editor, and a printer manager.
In the background we find manual pages and the GNU core command line utilities. Version 6.19 of the Linux kernel was provided along with the runit init software. For performing administrator tasks, the sudo command is included and works with the first user account created.
Package management
Artix does not ship with a graphical package manager. The distribution also does not provide Flatpak support by default. (Snap support is not available since the distribution does not run systemd.) We can install a package manager and Flatpak support if we wish.
Working with packages is handled by the pacman command line utility. The pacman tool works quickly, though it has a somewhat unusual syntax. I also found that it sometimes stopped to double-check we want to overwrite or replace old packages. Once I had to manually untangle a dependency issue while performing and update. In short, the package manager works, but it doesn't have a friendly interface and, since Artix is a rapid rolling release distribution, some work is required to stay on top of changes.
Artix 20260419 -- Updating packages
(full image size: 605kB, resolution: 1920x1080 pixels)
Other observations
While using Artix, the distribution tended to work quickly, use few resources, and remain stable. The Cinnamon desktop did fail once during my trial. On the second day of my experiment, Cinnamon stopped responding to keyboard and mouse input. With the desktop frozen, I was able to switch to a command line terminal and restart the system. That was my sole stability issue during the week.
At the end of the week I ran into another issue. The Cinnamon desktop, which had been performing quickly all week, suddenly slowed after an update. Performance was visibly slower, with a delay after any mouse or keyboard input which had not been there the day before. It seems a change in the package or a change in its configuration during a recent update had a severe performance impact.
Artix provides a range of init software and, for my experiment, I used runit. The runit init software is unusually light and has a simple design. This results in a system which boots and shuts down at record speed while using fewer resources. The trade is that runit is bare bones and users should be comfortable using the command line to find out which services are available. Enabling a service is accomplished by creating a symbolic link to it in the appropriate directory. From there on, managing a service is handled through the sv command which uses a syntax similar to service and systemctl.
Artix 20260419 -- Managing services with runit
(full image size: 509kB, resolution: 1920x1080 pixels)
While runit works in a way which requires some comfort with the command line, once the user is familiar with runit, it is a surprisingly clean, simple design and its speed is unparalleled.
Something I'd like to mention about the project's infrastructure is that not all the mirrors are kept up to date, or even active. For instance, if we look at the Berkeley mirror, the latest ISO files are from April 2025. The Princeton mirror has ISO files from April 2026. The LUDD mirror is, at the time of writing, entirely off-line. In short, when downloading Artix check more than one mirror on the project's Download page to make sure you're getting the latest snapshot of the distribution.
Conclusions
When I began using Artix, I had high hopes for the project. The combination of multiple desktops, multiple init implementations, a friendly system installer, and a lightning quick boot process seemed like an excellent combination. At first, it was; I greatly enjoyed the live desktop environment, the low resource usage, and the easy system installer. It is not often I run the Cinnamon desktop outside of the Linux Mint family, and I enjoyed how easy it was to use and configure. The Cinnamon settings panel is unusually well organized and flexible.
Gradually, little problems seeped into the experience. I ran into a dependency conflict with pacman, the Web application would open to a blank, white page if its tabs had been closed the previous time the browser was used (which was both jarring and unhelpful in terms of navigation), and audio failed to work on my laptop. The default Artix platform is quite light, but the trade off is that it doesn't do much either, there aren't many applications included, which means we need to install several packages. This is a lengthy process when the distribution does not include a software centre. Though it happened only the once, it is never a fun time when the desktop stops responding and this tends to be rare in the Linux world.
On the whole, I think the audience for a project like Artix is probably small. It is geared to people who like Arch Linux and who are not afraid of using the command line, and who also would like to try different init systems. It seems to be for people who prefer efficiency of design over point-and-click conveniences and who like to build their systems from the foundation up, but who also want a graphical installer.
In short, I like the general design and idea of Artix. I like its lightweight nature and clean design. I like its flexibility. However, I am also aware that it may be more work and more focused on low-level technical details than some users (probably many users) are likely to want. It's worth a look, especially if you are curious about non-systemd init software, but prepared for the occasional bump in the road.
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Hardware used in this review
My physical test equipment for this review was an HP DY2048CA laptop with the following
specifications:
- Processor: 11th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-1135G7 @ 2.40GHz
- Display: Intel integrated video
- Storage: Western Digital 512GB solid state drive
- Memory: 8GB of RAM
- Wireless network device: Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201 + BT Wireless network card
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Visitor supplied rating
Artix has a visitor supplied average rating of: 9.2/10 from 247 review(s).
Have you used Artix? You can leave your own review of the project on our ratings page.
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| Miscellaneous News (by Jesse Smith) |
Google locks down Android, TUXEDO OS moves to a Debian foundation, Mint updates Cinnamon on Wayland, Redox OS gets USB gamepad support, OpenMandriva recovers from repository deletion, OSNews author compares Windows and Linux
For the past several months open source and privacy advocates have been warning that Google is about to lock down an important feature of Android, the ability to install software from third-party developers. In approximately 80 days, Google will disable the option to install software on Android that has not be provided by verified developers. The Keep Android Open website states: "Starting September 2026, a silent update, nonconsensually pushed by Google, will block every Android app whose developer hasn't registered with Google, signed their contract, paid up, and handed over government ID. Every app and every device, worldwide, with no opt-out. In August 2025, Google announced a new requirement: starting September 2026, every Android app developer must register centrally with Google before their software can be installed on any device. Not just Play Store apps: all apps. This includes apps shared between friends, distributed through F-Droid, built by hobbyists for personal use. Independent developers, church and community groups, and hobbyists alike will all be frozen out of being able to develop and distribute their software."
This move is a significant step in locking down the Android platform. Though, as the LineageOS team explains, the change does not affect de-Googled mobile operating systems, such as iodeOS, Murena's /e/OS, and CalyxOS. The LineageOS website has a post which points out this change will not impact people running de-Googled flavours of Android: "We have not ever, nor do we intend to ever, ship GMS. That means we're not subject to the Google Test Suite (GTS) certification Google apps are required to pass. Therefore we have no obligation to install 'AndroidDeveloperVerification' or point the aforementioned configurations (overlays) at it. If you sideload GApps packages, be aware that a GApps package could choose to bundle 'AndroidDeveloperVerification' and enable it. We're not aware of any reason an aftermarket GApps package would opt into that, since doing so would restrict what its own users can sideload. If your GApps provider ever does, you can simply switch to a different package."
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TUXEDO OS is a desktop distribution based on Ubuntu. The TUXEDO team is currently planning a move off of the Ubuntu foundation to Debian's Testing branch. There are several reasons for this migration, which are covered in the team's announcement. "As an LTS release ages, backporting modern software becomes increasingly difficult. Newer dependencies are often unavailable or only provided in outdated versions, making it significantly more complex to integrate current software reliably into an older package base. Updating central libraries such as Qt, on which KDE is built, can also cause software from the Ubuntu repositories to stop working correctly. This is not a challenge unique to TUXEDO OS - KDE neon regularly faces the same issue. Additional reasons relate to Canonical's strategic direction. It is becoming increasingly difficult to keep the Snap packaging system out of the operating system, as Canonical is distributing more and more applications exclusively as Snap packages while gradually pushing traditional Deb packages into the background." The announcement also mentions issues with Canonical's approach to AI components and delays in getting security updates.
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The Linux Mint project has published a newsletter detailing progress and new developments made in the month of June. One of the key features discussed in the newsletter is the improvement of Cinnamon's Wayland session. While Wayland has been an option for Cinnamon desktop users for some time, the team is ready to drop the 'experimental' label from the Wayland session. "We worked really hard on Wayland and we got to the point where it feels solid and the experience is almost on par with X11. Wayland support will no longer be considered 'experimental'. In the next version of Cinnamon, both X11 and Wayland will be fully supported."
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The Redox project has published a news post which shares details on work going on inside the project. One of the more visible changes to happen in Redox last month was the introduction of gamepad support: "Jeremy Soller implemented USB gamepad support with generic and Xbox layouts, he tested on Mednafen, Neverball, Neverputt, and sm64ex. Currently it can only be used in emulators and games using SDL2 for input. He also fixed xHCI endpoint handling using Rust newtypes, which increased general compatibility." A complete list of changes can be found in the project's newsletter.
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OpenMandriva, one of the Linux distributions that continue the legacy of Mandrake Linux and Mandriva Linux, has published a statement about an attempt to sabotage the distribution's infrastructure by project member Davide Beatrici. It included partial removal of OpenMandriva's repository on GitHub: "No longer seeing any point in maintaining a mirror to Davide's private infrastructure, I decided to sever the connection (at least some of the mirrors that were in the packages of which I am maintainer). This infuriated Davide so much that, abusing of the administrative privileges he still had, he sabotaged the distribution today in the early morning hours. He deleted part of our repository from GitHub - things we'd been working on for many years, and I myself had been working on for a decade (specifying that the decade will end in September 2026). Davide also decided to publish an empty package in the Cooker repository, which obsoleted all GNOME and COSMIC packages, which could have damaged the systems of people using GNOME or COSMIC." The full statement, published by OpenMandriva Association member Damian Marcin Szymański, is available here.
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Thom Holwerda, the maintainer and writer for OSNews, recently ran a fundraiser to help keep the technology-focused website running. One of the fundraising goal rewards was to get Thom to run Window 11 for a month and write a review of the experience.
Often times people write Linux reviews from the point of view of a person migrating to Linux from Windows. Thom has been using Linux primarily for years and ended up writing a review from the reverse perspective - a Linux user trying out a new release of Windows for the first time. Thom writes: "Whether I use a KDE or GNOME desktop, things look, feel, and behave consistently. There are no ads for services I don't want, no online accounts forced down my throat, no dark patterns to trick me into subscriptions I don't want. Managing and updating applications and the operating system are so effortless you barely even notice it's happening, and whether I'm using an older machine or something brand new, performance is going to be good, and consistent. Desktop Linux is also going to respect my privacy, and I don't have to worry about data harvesting. Windows 11 just cannot compete with any of that, and my month with Windows 11 proved that to me beyond a shadow of a doubt." The complete review can be found on OSNews.
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These and other news stories can be found on our Headlines page.
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| Questions and Answers (by Jesse Smith) |
Making migration to Linux easier
Making-the-move asks: Can you offer any tips for making the migration to Linux easier? I have no experience and don't know where to start.
DistroWatch answers: I have a few suggestions for making the transition from one operating system to another easier. The main one is to experiment and move in stages rather than taking an all-or-nothing approach. One of the more common complaints I hear from people trying to shift from Windows (or macOS) to Linux is that they wiped their computer's drive, installed Linux, and then discovered one or two things were not working as they expected, so they switched back to their previous operating system.
There are always going to be issues when making a switch from one operating system to another. Settings are in different places, connecting to external devices will work differently, and there are different applications to learn. Not everything is going to work exactly the way you hope it will from Day One. Luckily, most issues can be solved, given a little time and a little help from the on-line community, so give yourself that time to explore by making the migration in small steps.
The first stage I recommend is testing out Linux in a virtual machine. More specifically, test out a few different flavours of Linux in a virtual machine. A virtual environment is isolated from your main operating system, a virtual machine can be deleted without effecting your main system, and you can test drive different distributions and desktops in the virtual environment without interfering with your normal daily operations. This gives you time to explore, to find out what Linux does differently, and gives you a chance to get comfortable with it.
The next step I would suggest is taking note of any application differences between your existing operating system and the Linux distribution you have selected. A lot of software which runs on Windows and macOS will also run on Linux, but not everything does. There are usually alternatives though, or ways to get the Windows software you use to run on Linux through a compatibility layer.
Most of the people I've assisted in making the jump to Linux transitioned in stages. We started by moving them from one Windows application to the Linux equivalent, one program at a time. We installed Thunderbird alongside Outlook, LibreOffice alongside Microsoft Office, Krita alongside Paint, Rhythmbox next to Winamp, etc. This allowed the user to remain in a familiar environment while getting accustomed to running open source alternatives to their usual applications. Once they were proficient with the new applications, we moved to the next step.
The third phase I recommend is using a live environment to test your distribution of choice. Most desktop distributions offer a live environment (one that runs from a thumb drive). This gives you a chance to boot your computer from the thumb drive, set up a printer, confirm your wireless connection can be enabled, see if your Bluetooth headset works, and make sure videos stream without any lag in your web browser.
The benefit of using a live system on a thumb drive is that it will give you a chance to find any hardware-related problems and find solutions before committing to a full install on your local drive. When you unplug the thumb drive and reboot, you're back to using your original operating system.
The fourth phase is what I like to call the "What if everything goes wrong?" step. Less dramatically, it might be called "Plan B". Usually migrations to Linux go as planned, especially if we've successfully completed the above three steps. However, sometimes computers seem to have minds of their own, and it is always good to have a fallback plan if things don't work the way we had hoped they would.
I recommend making backups of everything. Your documents, photos, videos, e-mails, browser bookmarks - your user's entire home directory. Make sure you have copies of everything. I also recommend making a list of applications you use and making sure you have a thumb drive or DVD from which you can install your original operating system. Again, installing Linux usually goes smoothly, but making copies of everything and having install media for your original operating system means that even in a worst-case scenario, you can be back up and running with your previous operating system in short order.
Finally, take the plunge! Install Linux, either letting it take over your entire system or dual-booting it alongside the previous operating system. Welcome to the community!
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Additional answers can be found in our Questions and Answers archive.
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| Released Last Week |
deepin 25.2.0
The deepin project has published a new release of its Debian-based distribution. The new version, deepin 25.2.0, includes several desktop improvements and security updates: "Treeland desktop environment upgrade - Treeland stability and usability have been significantly improved, with over 20 fixes for stability and high-frequency interaction issues; file management and search capabilities upgrade - added file indexing configuration, allowing users to control indexing independently and flexibly balance search speed and resource usage; DDE desktop experience enhancements - taskbar icon split mode now supports displaying icons per window, improving identification efficiency in multi-window scenarios; kernel and security updates - updated 6.6 and 6.18 kernel branches, enhancing underlying system stability, security, and compatibility with new hardware, while improving overall performance; synchronized integration of system updates, Qt6, PipeWire, initramfs, virtualization, and other base component updates, along with multiple security fixes, to improve system stability, security, and long-term maintainability." The release announcements (Chinese, English) have additional details.
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Development, unannounced and minor bug-fix releases
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| Torrent Corner |
Weekly Torrents
The table below provides a list of torrents DistroWatch is currently seeding. If you do not have a
bittorrent client capable of handling the linked files, we suggest installing either the Transmission or KTorrent bittorrent clients.
Archives of our previously seeded torrents may be found in our Torrent Archive. We also maintain a Torrents RSS feed for people who wish to have open source torrents delivered to them. To share your own open source torrents of Linux and BSD projects, please visit our Upload Torrents page.
Torrent Corner statistics:
- Total torrents seeded: 3,461
- Total data uploaded: 50.2TB
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| Upcoming Releases and Announcements |
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Summary of expected upcoming releases
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| Opinion Poll (by Jesse Smith) |
Google blocking side-loaded apps on Android
In our News section we talked about Google blocking the installation of apps on Android from any unverified developers. Does Google's decision to block the installation of third-party affect you? Are you running stock Android or are you running de-Google Android, iOS, or another mobile operating system? Let us know your thoughts on Google's decision in the comments.
You can see the results of our previous poll on tools to run admin commands in our previous edition. All previous poll results can be found in our poll archives.
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| Website News (by Jesse Smith) |
DistroWatch database summary
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This concludes this week's issue of DistroWatch Weekly. The next instalment will be published on Monday, 20 July 2026. Past articles and reviews can be found through our Weekly Archive and Article Search pages. To contact the authors please send e-mail to:
- Jesse Smith (feedback, questions and suggestions: distribution reviews/submissions, questions and answers, tips and tricks)
- Ladislav Bodnar (feedback, questions, donations, comments)
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| Reader Comments • Jump to last comment |
1 • Google locking down Android (by bsduck on 2026-07-13 00:32:18 GMT from Switzerland)
This unfriendly move by Google could actually prove positive to the free software community because it is likely to make quite a few users switch away from stock Android to "degoogled" variants. A larger user base could then lead to better support from phone manufacturers and we could see new partnerships like this one emerge: https://lwn.net/Articles/1060913/
2 • GoLineage DeGoogle LocalOfflineFirst (by GoLineageDeGoogleProgressively on 2026-07-13 03:11:37 GMT from Morocco)
The biggest OEMs shouldve banded together behind a unified vendor-neutral android that leaves "google android" crippled by Pixel exclusivity.
Especially since its google itself that essentially forked android into a proprietary monstruosity stacked with vendor lock-in replacing the vendor-neutral opensource code and apps that existed originally and worked fully natively and offline.
Big AI money would be far better spent building an escape path from walled gardens this hostile where google strangles opportunity in its craddle.
3 • Degoogling pipedreams (by Rainy on 2026-07-13 03:21:45 GMT from Germany)
Unfortunately, Google locking down everything is going to be a major pain. Simply due to the fact that it's extremely difficult to degoogle phones. If OEMs would do that voluntarily or at least not lock disk their devices, it might be one thing. In reality, this isn't going to happen, since there is no incentive for the manufacturer.
4 • Making migration to Linux easier (by Terry on 2026-07-13 03:37:55 GMT from United States)
Well said Jesse Smith. By doing migration in stages. Thats the very best way to switch over. You nailed it!
5 • Google locking down software on Android. Really, locking down android itself (by Dan on 2026-07-13 03:38:10 GMT from United States)
Unfortunately, people don't seem to understand the huge sums of money Google pays the carriers and manufacturers, and the telecoms realized 20 years ago that it would eventually end up here. That's why they started locking down their phones. Now, 95 percent of all phones are only leased or on payment plans, with upgrades every year or two...so most phones are locked to the carriers. Yes you can buy unlocked, but most people aren't going to spend 1000.00 to do it out of their pockets. I love the idea of de-googled phones, but until a telecom starts adopting a non-google android fork, or linux finally makes one that totally works on all phones, and starts allowing financing...well...
6 • Artix (by bowlerman on 2026-07-13 03:39:10 GMT from Finland)
I have Artix with Plasma desktop installed on my Lenovo laptop and it has been a pleasure to use it so far. That's why I was surprised to hear all those little problems Jesse had with it. Is it because of Cinnamon or the init system he used? I'm using plasma with dinit and everything works perfectly. No sound problems or weird freezes.
7 • Lack of bundled software in Artix (by Dave on 2026-07-13 04:38:14 GMT from Japan)
Artix developers offer 2 "community" ISOs, based around GTK and Qt which come with a lot of software for a more satisfactory user experience. I'm also glad to have it confirmed that the DistroWatch tab doesn't affect PHR since I'm tired of scumminess accusations I sometimes see pointed at the team for including it.
8 • Android lockdown (by Keith S on 2026-07-13 04:40:47 GMT from United States)
I have been using GrapheneOS for six years. I have two Pixel 9As (two different carriers) that I got for $300 and $350. It is very easy to load GrapheneOS with a laptop following the instructions on their website. I'm not really concerned about being able to continue to sideload the many apps that I get outside of the Play Store.
Apparently, GrapheneOS has partnered with Motorola to make it available on their phones as well but I have heard that will not happen until 2027 at the earliest. My recent experiences with Motorola hardware have not been great either.
9 • Artix, Manjaro... (by Any on 2026-07-13 05:36:47 GMT from Spain)
Some years ago I tried to use Manjaro as my daily driver. It took one month until an update broke it. Then I moved to Artix. It lasted longer - six months. Then I moved to Debian Stable. No issues so far. Rolling release is not for me.
10 • Why a VM as a start? (by "Mandy or Bob?" on 2026-07-13 06:03:14 GMT from Italy)
I, too, agree on a step-by-step approach for migration to Linux, but why don't use a live distro just in the beginning? Having a VM on a Windows PC is not really footprintless, and it may be heavy for some machines which would work fine on Linux but not so well on Windows.
11 • @10 (by Any on 2026-07-13 06:11:57 GMT from Spain)
From a live session there is a real danger of messing the things on the physical machine. A VM is less dangerous.
12 • @11 (by "Mandy or Bob?" on 2026-07-13 06:18:36 GMT from Italy)
It never happened to me. If you don't mount any partition, why should you mess anything? A live distro is made for that.
13 • TUXEDO (by K on 2026-07-13 06:38:15 GMT from Taiwan)
The TUXEDO OS announcement mentioned that they will be migrating to Debian testing. If they can manage to maintain their original stability while eliminating the risks associated with major version upgrades, it would be a fantastic thing—but is it actually doable?
###
How will I update the apps I have already installed, such as Fennec and Cromite? Considering that many scam tactics involve asking people to install third-party apps, this might be somewhat helpful in combating fraud. However, this is essentially sacrificing the freedom of some individuals for the sake of those who lack common sense—is it really worth it?
Furthermore, considering the harm caused by Google's own scam ads, it makes Google seem incredibly hypocritical.
###
I truly respect Artix for packaging different versions of their packages for four different init systems.
14 • Artix (by Dr.J on 2026-07-13 06:52:50 GMT from Germany)
We have two Artix systems running, both with OpenRC and Openbox. I much prefer OpenRC to runit; it works more reliably and with fewer bugs. In any case, both Artix systems have been running flawlessly and without any problems—right from the start. Audio, video, virtual machines, Wine (including USB support), networks (including VPN, Whonix Gateway, etc.), printers—just everything. No matter what I wanted to do, it worked right from the start and out of the box.
Of course, Artix isn’t for Linux beginners, but that goes for the entire Arch family. However, if you’re looking for a systemd-free Arch, Artix is a great choice. The people there are doing a great job.
15 • Gurgle apps (by gumb on 2026-07-13 08:17:24 GMT from France)
Google's motivations with Android looked suspicious from the early days, when they forked the Linux kernel and started throwing code over the wall. They've built up their entire Android empire to the point of creating a worldwide duopoly, where their increasingly strict policies leave billions of citizens with effectively no choice but to be beholden to them, and they've effectively spat in the face of the Linux and open source developers and community upon whose shoulders they hoisted themselves.
If there were ever a moment for a movement to rise up and gain political backing to create an alternative, the current friction between Europe and the US and the increasingly obvious necessity for the former to start developing homegrown solutions might seem like it, but if even superpowers like China with their own political desires for technological control have not wholeheartedly ploughed their own furrow in this market then it looks doubtful that Europe could cobble together the clout and might needed to do so.
There are valid reasons for each of the main deGoogled OS to do their own thing, though I'd hope to see more unified efforts amongst those teams for lobbying, even if that isn't their strong suit. I've seen too many dismissive comments about the forthcoming changes along the lines of 'won't affect us, you can still sideload apps on a deGoogled OS', but with things like the Play integrity checks becoming evermore widespread and forcing people to use either iOS or Android for everyday activities (notably banking and payments), there's a real danger that deGoogled alternatives are further sidelined to becoming an extreme niche for hobbyists. Currently, many 'regular' users are attracted to propositions like e/OS but those numbers might dwindle drastically once those users find they can no longer carry out day-to-day functions and can only use such devices as a second phone.
As an iodéOS user based in France, where it is developed, I feel lucky that I'm still able to get by with such an alternative in a country that always feels a little behind the curve (quite possibly in a good way) compared to neighbours where popular choice has brought about much faster dependence on apps for everyday activities. For example, payments for all kinds of goods and services in Sweden, parking in many towns in the UK, WhatsApp as a requirement for government-mandated services in Spain and more general messaging amongst the populace. Once more and more of these things require Play integrity checks, what use is a deGoogled phone except as a secondary device or for hacking on?
I've read that an open source alternative to these integrity checks is being developed with the backing of teams of the likes of Volla, Murena and iodé, but will they have enough combined lobbying power to enact change and force companies to adopt it, or governments to authorise and mandate its use? As far as I know, iodé only has a small team and they rightfully probably want to focus on technical development rather than political change. But being based in France, with all the pronouncements from the French government about developing European-native technologies, you might hope they would receive some funding and a leg-up to get a better foothold in the market.
16 • Artix (by Gee on 2026-07-13 08:26:57 GMT from Belgium)
Been using Artix cinnamon as main for a couple of years now, and what Jesse experienced i can relate to. I don't mind the occasional tinkering once in a while, it's been quite solid for years, a lot more so than Manjaro ever was.
The people behind Artix are adults, compared to a lot of the censoring drama queens we see lately in soo many projects. The team is also very responsive. Before updating, never a bad idea to check their home page first.
17 • Migrating to Linux, and Artix (by tomas on 2026-07-13 08:43:03 GMT from Czechia)
I missed just one info in the article on migration.
For any newcomer I would recommend installing Linux preferably to a separate disk, or at least individual partition alongside the existing system.
This was my case and proved to be the correct way.
It is a little hidden in the article so I would also recommend to choose a (mainstream) distribution that offers several desktop environments - trying them on one distro is always easier for the decision.
Artix with KDE Plasma DE is my preferred Arch based distro.
To me it seems that making the system work without Systemd requires some extra work, giving it more stability over the rest of the family.
The main problem with it seems to me the changing opinion of the devs on the settings in ISOs.
The first time I installed it I was not sure which init system to choose so having enough space on my HD I installed all of them to separate partitions.
In relatively short time only Runit survived, the rest was broken during updates.
One or two years later I tried to install it on another PC and had problems.
The installer ran from a live session on X11 and the newly installed system booted to Wayland session with mouse cursors vanishing at window edges.
Only switching to X11 solved the problem.
The absence of graphical software manager surprises me because I had Pamac out of the box.
18 • Google upcoming Illegal Lockdown of my device- (by Hank on 2026-07-13 09:20:02 GMT from Germany)
Google locking down Android (by bsduck on 2026-07-13 00:32:18 GMT from Switzerland)
This unfriendly move by google.
I hope to see a lot of million dollar lawsuits in USA.
Hopefully there are enough people who purchased their devices and are willing to fight for ownership.
In Germany it would be nice to see lawsuits for Computer Sabotage, the phones are mostly user owned.
I have been looking at possibilitys, maybe Murena will be my next choice.
Presently I have a realme device with google integration being an absolute pain in the ass
More than anything I wish EU would get off its ass and forbid the damaging lockdown of user devices by law.
19 • Artix (by Gee on 2026-07-13 08:26:57 GMT from Belgium)
Been using Artix cinnamon as main for a couple of years now, and what Jesse experienced i can relate to. I don't mind the occasional tinkering once in a while, it's been quite solid for years, a lot more so than Manjaro ever was.
The people behind Artix are adults, compared to a lot of the censoring drama queens we see lately in soo many projects. The team is also very responsive. Before updating, never a bad idea to check their home page first.
20 • Google side-load (by Dave on 2026-07-13 11:17:39 GMT from Australia)
Didn't Google criticise Apple for exactly this? And wasn't Apple forced, at least in the EU, to allow side-loading? Looks like another legal case upcoming.
21 • Google (by Cheker on 2026-07-13 11:44:19 GMT from Portugal)
The Pure Android projects and phone sellers would like to thank the technofascists at Google for getting more eyes on them and helping them grow further.
22 • Sound in Artix (by Arch_sound on 2026-07-13 11:58:56 GMT from United States)
I wonder if your sound issue is a similar issue I've been experiencing recently with EndeavourOS/Cachy with pipewire/alsa. Upon boot, there's no sound in headphones (or incredibly low from speakers). I have to go into alsamixer, change output (F6) to the soundcard, unmute and raise levels all the way to get any sound out of the system. I then save settings as 'sudo alsactl store'. After that, normal DE volume control works as expected.
Upon any reboot, I have to do a 'sudo alsactl restore'. This broke about a month and a half ago. I'm sure I can set a startup script to do a restore each time, but I don't want to miss when it is fixed.
23 • Migrating to Linux (by Huckleberry Hiroshima on 2026-07-13 12:51:16 GMT from United States)
The first time I became aware of VM and the testing ground it could be I had already taken the plunge wholesale, like most I'm guessing, and simply over-wrote Windows with RedHat.. many moons ago.
I never did change that way of doing things, with the notable exception of dual booting a few times. I have wondered about other first-timers with Linux distros and how they were going about it. From appearances in forums there has always seemed to be a lot of users keeping Windows on the same hard drive and learning about dual booting, keeping that special partition provided by Microsoft.
Some of us began our journey hating Microsoft and everything it stood for, and thus were willing to wrestle with the issues of destroying it completely by covering it with a Linux distribution.
Then came the hard drive swapping days after purchasing a new machine. ;o)
24 • Android alternative (by Google alternative on 2026-07-13 13:44:11 GMT from Canada)
@15 - China does have an alternative. HarmonyOS. They sell it on computers and cell phones.
25 • Android (by Robert on 2026-07-13 14:04:54 GMT from United States)
The change doesn't actually affect me in any way. I hate doing anything on my phone. Anything I do that requires a phone can and is done from apps on the Play store.
But still, I hate this change. Maybe I don't sideload apps on my phone, but it is very important that I *can*. This situation has me wanting to switch to another OS, but I'm really not familiar with anything outside Android. I used Meego or whatever it was called at the time way back on the Nokio N900, but that's all I know. Do banking and brokerage apps work on anything but official Android? That would be the most important thing to me.
26 • @20 Google and newspeak (by Gee on 2026-07-13 12:10:33 GMT from Belgium)
Remeber google's original moto : "Don't be evil" And yes, Apple did get called back in the EU.
I'd wish people would stop using the term "sideloading", this plays into the hands of those that pushed this term in the first place, it's newspeak and makes it sound niche, aberrant, a technical workaround rather than what it actually is : just installing software.
A word deliberately created to psychologically frame normal user freedom as something niche, technical, or slightly deviant, marketing language that redefines the baseline.
As if they're graciously granting permission for something exceptional, rather than restoring a basic right that used to be universal. It's the same rhetorical move as calling unrestricted software installation "open" and curated-only installation "secure"
Underneath the euphemism the reality is simple : some companies want the ability to prevent you from running any software you choose, and they needed a word that didn't sound like what it actually is.
27 • Migration to Linux (by vw72 on 2026-07-13 14:47:27 GMT from United States)
I think in the near future,migration to linux will become simpler with immutable distros, like Fedora Silverblue and Kinoite and their downstreams. Currently, they are geared towards developers, but they are rock stable and if an update fails, they are easy to roll back.
Users coming from other operating systems are already used to their systems' os store, so using flatpaks through gnome-software or discover will be pretty easy.
Gaming is handled pretty well with Bazzite. It wouldn't take much to turn it into a general purpose os for non-gamers.
The advantage to these atomic distros for new users is that they are shielded from much of the underlying complexity of linux. For most users, if the distro is configured towards regular desktop users versus developers, they would rarely have to drop to the command line.
Silverblue, Kinoite and their downstreams are about 90% there. It wouldn't take much additional configuration to make them complete for the average user transitioning from Microsoft or Apple.
28 • Android (by AndyVGR on 2026-07-13 14:52:18 GMT from United States)
Well since they are doing this and I prefer using a mac laptop at home I might as well just switch to an iphone what's the difference right? sure I could go around and degoogle stuff or get a linux phone but at the end of the day after fixing other peoples stuff I just want mine to work.
29 • @20 Google and newspeak (by Gee on 2026-07-13 12:10:33 GMT from Belgium)
Remeber google's original moto : "Don't be evil" And yes, Apple did get called back in the EU.
I'd wish people would stop using the term "sideloading", this plays into the hands of those that pushed this term in the first place, it's newspeak and makes it sound niche, aberrant, a technical workaround rather than what it actually is : just installing software.
A word deliberately created to psychologically frame normal user freedom as something niche, technical, or slightly deviant, marketing language that redefines the baseline.
As if they're graciously granting permission for something exceptional, rather than restoring a basic right that used to be universal. It's the same rhetorical move as calling unrestricted software installation "open" and curated-only installation "secure"
Underneath the euphemism the reality is simple : some companies want the ability to prevent you from running any software you choose, and they needed a word that didn't sound like what it actually is.
30 • Linux Beginners and Android (by GT on 2026-07-13 15:38:45 GMT from United States)
I think given the frequency of weekly reviews at Distrowatch where we read about basic things not working out of the box, like sound this week, beginners are going to be more turned off by those issues than using LibreOffice instead of MS Office. Other weeks, a distro won't even boot after installation. These are major hurdles for a new user that could cause them to give up. They are less common with the major distros, but they are issues that don't exist after a fresh install of Windows. Customizing a Windows installation to disable telemetry, use a local account, and clear the visual clutter is going to be in the wheelhouse of a Windows user moreso than trying to figure why there is no sound or why the system won't boot after the installation is complete for an OS they have never used before. Even as a Linux enthusiast, I never recommend it. I refresh my friends' and family's computers with clean Windows installations instead because I don't want to continue to be tech support after I get the OS installed and optimized.
I use Google Android on a Pixel phone and have never installed anything besides verified apps from the Play Store, so the change doesn't affect me, but I hope this leads to more phone manufacturers supporting de-Googled Android OSes for those who want to remain outside Google or Apple ecosystems. Choice is good and keeps the competition more in check than having no alternatives.
31 • Making migration to Linux easier (by redbike on 2026-07-13 15:46:00 GMT from United States)
I've lurked on Distrowatch for a while. This is my first comment. I'll try to be brief so I don't wear out my welcome.
Not mentioned: dual-booting. My experience with dual-booting dates back to IBM's OS/2 and Windows 95. This is the wrong place (and time) to discuss the merits and shortcomings of OS/2, but one of its strengths was actively promoting dual-booting and providing guidance and hand-holding to implement it. One result: no need to commit to EITHER OS/2 or W-95: both could co-exist in the same installation.
Fast-forward many years: for folks (like me) running old hardware, the reality of BIOS (4 primary partitions) probably imposes a real-world limit to installing no more than 2 operating systems; on newer hardware with UEFI, more than 2 operating systems is a plausible alternative though it may be imprudent.
This leads to: actually making a leap from one operating system to a version of linux needn't be a leap — it can be a transition — with the old operating system and data continuing to be available to both old and new operating systems.
Implementing this gibberish in the real world: for scores of years, I've kept my data in a partition that's separate from my operating system(s), programs, and software. The result: whether I boot to an old(er) version of Windows or a current version of linux, from either operating system I have access to my data. IMHO, the right tool for this job is GParted which — coincidentally — is an implementation of linux: it has its own Distrowatch page. Adding: some versions of linux bundle GParted with the installation package. My own experience: if I'm going to do work on my partitioning arrangements (not merely view the current status), that work is best done with a stand-alone current version of GParted loaded from a USB drive separate from installing an operating system.
Partitioning / re-partitioning involves making irreversible changes to a storage device. It's not a way to avoid good back-up practices. Also, if your storage capacity is already under stress, partitioning / re-partitioning won't change that. But thoughtful partitioning of storage is a good way to ease moving from one operating system to another.
32 • Android sideload restriction (by JKL on 2026-07-13 15:56:16 GMT from United States)
Looking at the specifics at the design, sideloading unverified apps will still be possible, but it requires going through a 24-hour locking mechanism. However, it looks like that it is possible to prevent the locking mechanism again for 7 days or perpetually. If they have a way to override the locking mechanism again while still preventing a way for normies to get scammed by calls to install malware (which there are increasing number of malicious clone apps outside the store), I am fine with this.
33 • This is What's Wrong with Most Experience Linux Users (by MattE on 2026-07-13 16:31:45 GMT from United States)
The first stage I recommend is testing out Linux in a virtual machine. Seriously? The person said they have no experience. It is hubristic advice like this that turns new users away.
34 • Google's attack on Android (by qiki on 2026-07-13 17:20:02 GMT from Canada)
Don't forget the GrapheneOS project - it does everything Android does and it does it more securely (because noGoogle!) and one can always run a Google app in a Work Profile (for isolation) and wash thoroughly afterwards.
JFTR: Last I knew, Android ran a stock Linux kernel, so I regard Android as a proprietary Linux variant (just as macOS is 'BSD inside'); the rest is just (as Doctorow likes to call it) "enshitification".
35 • Apps on GrapheneOS and Google hypocrisy (by Keith S on 2026-07-13 18:00:44 GMT from United States)
@25 "Do banking and brokerage apps work on anything but official Android? That would be the most important thing to me."
All of my banking and credit card apps work on GrapheneOS. It has a sandboxed Google Play available There are plenty of blogs about the various ways that you can set up your phone with different profiles depending on your security needs. I've tried most of them and found that they're usually a little more complicated than it's worth for my threat model so I just run one profile and use Google Play when I have to.
I'm not sure about brokerage apps since I don't use any. It is much more secure than stock Android and excludes all of the AI bunk that is included with Google's version.
@13 and @26 Yes, Google is hypocritical, as are most big companies and many FOSS projects. As far as the newspeak of calling it sideloading, at this point it is tilting at windmills to try to change it. Consider the newspeak of "Daylight Savings Time" which is one of the biggest frauds. It doesn't save any daylight, it just forces people to change their schedules twice a year. Even the people who are opposed to it don't really look at it this way. It's very unpopular, yet since it was forced by legislation, it has been nearly impossible to change it. There are many, many more examples of this of course.
36 • RE: OpenMandriva Sabotage (by Normal Linux-User on 2026-07-13 19:33:46 GMT from Canada)
I have been a personal computer user ever since the days of C-P/M and MS-DOS. As a personal computer user, all I have ever cared about is that my personal computer functions properly and does it's job well. I neither wanted nor asked for political activism to be inserted onto my personal computer. The same can be said in regards to AI, Telemetry, SystemD, Wayland, RUST and Age Verification. I don't want any of that drek on my personal computer! Let me put it in simple terms and I'll use small words so that the lobotomized woke idiots in the Linux community can understand me loud and clear:
I!
Don't!
Care!
All I am interested in is my personal computer having an operating system does only what I want when I want and nothing else. This is why I left Microslop Winblows 11. This is why initially I switched to Linux. But sadly, it would appear that the Linux community is completely out of control now and has been successfully hijacked by the corporate-sponsored sabotage from woke activists like Davide Beatrici. What can I say?
I'm suffering from Woke-Linux fatigue. Stick a fork in me. I'm done.
I!
Don't!
Care!
Oh, but wait! What is this?!
LundukeOS...
Downloaded it. Burnt it. Installed it.
Goodbye woke Linux! Goodbye OpenMandriva!
Hello to my new personal computer that is truly *my* personal computer once again.
(I'm not sorry.)
37 • @36 LundukeOS (by picamanic on 2026-07-13 20:39:48 GMT from United Kingdom)
@36 LundukeOS: I cannot see how to download this. Or do I need to register to gain access?
38 • sideloading (by Dave on 2026-07-13 21:48:05 GMT from Australia)
I think sideloading as a term is more historical than belligerently invented because of evil deeds. Back in the day on the early smartphones, it was a bit of a process to get something not from the official store installed on IOS, and yes even Android. Windows mobile, no problem.
It's not like that now, you have Fdroid for example. But words often stick even after things change over time. Call it what you want, the intended meaning in this context is obvious.
39 • Installing non-developer-verified software (by Biruni on 2026-07-13 22:18:43 GMT from Canada)
It continues to concern me how readily so many are to make incorrect statements about installing non-developer-verified software on Android.
This statement...
"In approximately 80 days, Google will disable the option to install software on Android that has not be provided by verified developers. "
... is false.
The option will not be disabled. It will require jumping through more hoops, but the option will still be there, on all Android phones.
Although I dislike the change that Google is making, I remain perplexed that this continues to be misrepresented even though it is so easy to verify that these statements (like the one quoted above) keep getting made, even by otherwise reputable sources like this website.
It really does a disservice to the (otherwise) valid criticism of Google. It makes it much to easy to dismiss the entire admonishment of Google (human nature being what it is), by using falsehoods.
Not that this phenomena is unusual. Examples can be seen on all sides of all issues.
40 • @37 - LundukeOS download (by Uncle Slacky on 2026-07-13 22:50:06 GMT from France)
It's here:
https://github.com/BryanLunduke/LCOS/releases/download/0.1/lcos-0.1.iso
It seems to just be Devuan with the Brave browser as default and Lunduke wallpaper.
Brave is not recommended, however:
https://www.spacebar.news/stop-using-brave-browser/
https://thelibre.news/no-really-dont-use-brave/
41 • Artix Audio and Browser Wars (by Carl Commenter on 2026-07-14 02:46:54 GMT from United States)
Artix switched from PulseAudio to WirePlumber in the ISO batch tested here. There may yet be kinks, but we've had 3 months since the switchover, so system updates may fix some. I switched audio manually from an older ISO batch for a client on XFCE runit. WirePlumber worked like a song.
Hardware, Linux kernel version, or other factors may contribute to such issues. One guy recently had no sound because "my speakers, they enter standby after some time of inactivity."
https://forum.artixlinux.org/index.php/topic,9537.msg57035.html
A missing element to DW reviews is forum assistance. Asking help from a forum or chat room is a common installation step. Please incorporate forum/chat activity in reviews.
DW reviews also focus too much on installation over usage. Most read as install reviews, not distro reviews. Saying something broke during installation is fine. What's missing is the effort taken to fix it, and the results afterward. Even gurus hit snags, it's common during installs, not much indicative of distro quality; perhaps installer quality. Reviewing a distro is more than reviewing an installer.
Artix properly separates a packaged app from its init service package. One installs "appX" plus "appX-runit" or "appX-dinit" or "appX-openrc" as the case may be. A new repo holds contributed init scripts beyond official ones.
https://forum.artixlinux.org/index.php/topic,9697.0.html
Find an article, "Brave Browser Built Its Own Surveillance Machine." Brave Origin extorts to remove that cruft. Helium is free. And Helium is now in Artix!
https://forum.artixlinux.org/index.php/topic,10042.0.html
You don't actually need a package. I download Helium from GitHub with a cron script checking for updates.
42 • #37, Loonduke download (by El Pingo on 2026-07-14 06:09:38 GMT from United States)
Loonduke can be downloaded from GitHub, or you can download Devuan and add Brave browser; or better yet Peppermint OS which comes with Librewolf. Only difference is Loonduke uses xlibre, maybe for political reasons, I suppose.
43 • @36 Lunduke OS without providing sourcecode (by Henry on 2026-07-14 08:15:17 GMT from Belgium)
LundukeOS does not provide the source code. It also does not provide a link to the source code. That's not according to the GNU license under which it was released.
Now in practice this is a modified Devuan, with Xorg replaced with XLibre, and maybe some default package selections chnaged, and some theming.
I have nothing against Bryan Lunduke, and he provides value with his work. But releasing a modified distro, under the GNU license, and then not providing tthe source code, or a link to the source code, was a silly mistake.
44 • @36 LunndukeOS: WoS (by picamanic on 2026-07-14 10:52:01 GMT from United Kingdom)
@36 LunndukeOS: you can get all of the "unique" advantages of this with Vendefoul Wolf [Devuan] or Neko-Void [Void]. Why go closed source?
45 • I degoogled my life (by Claude LaFrenière on 2026-07-14 11:54:35 GMT from Canada)
I'm running /e/os with a murena phone and transfer my email and all the stuff "normally" runned under Google to Proton ecosystem. Combined with Linux (Mint Cinnamon) I leave almost every interaction with Google. and stopped the give my data and money to Google and every things work fine. Living without Google is possible and easy to to do. :-)
46 • Artix Review (by Osgood Fopp on 2026-07-14 13:10:41 GMT from United States)
Well.... a year ago I was in here singing the praises of Artix Linux. Then an update came along and there I was searching the forums and the interwebs in general trying to work my way out of a scrambled up mess. I hate even thinking about it now. The aforementioned sound issues and "browser wars" were not relevant; it was about THE SYSTEM.
I had not seen that widespread cluster of issues via update since the early SuSe days. The dependency angst Jesse reports was there off and on, and that seemed frustrating because I was loving the speed of that distro; It's a great concept how it's put together.. but it breaks.
I recommend Q4OS if you're okay with systemD.. it is not just fast and reliable, it is hassle-free when updates come around.
47 • Migrating, ... and the big-brother creeps (by David on 2026-07-14 15:46:44 GMT from United States)
Jesse what a great little summary of migrating to Linux. And I found it interesting to see comments on that, esp @10, 11, 17, 23, 27, 31, and 33.
While the complications from multi-booting or using VMs, multiple partitions or even separate disks seems onerous, they are all ways to make the most use of one computer. Heck, I even used those "drive trays" to swap around separate disks (ATA) a long time ago, before I discovered the joys (and relative ease) of VMs.
I thought @33 was interesting, saying that suggesting the use of VMs would "turn new users away". Seems to me it would simply select for those willing to do a little minor experimentation! The other option of running a "live" distro from USB stick would seem to demand about the same level of complexity (download and burn USB stick, maybe need to adjust BIOS settings, etc).
Google lock down? Governments and big business are always, little by little (usually), seeking to gain more control over people and limit their freedoms. We must be wary, ... and fight back!
48 • Android function locking (by pwplant on 2026-07-14 16:48:59 GMT from Bulgaria)
I don't think the pool have all right vote options. As I use iPhone, voted for "No - I run iOS".
But I think this is very bad decision. Probably will affect everybody, as more companies will lock software. And it is very irritating, also!
49 • @36,37,42,43,44 - Lunduke: Good guy, dubious advice (by Haaland's taxidermy raccoon on 2026-07-14 17:44:14 GMT from Norway)
I like Lunduke a lot. I've been following him with great interest for many years now. Usually I agree with him, on occasion I do not. But he is always ready both to hear out differing opinions, and to substantiate his own views further. A true modern gentleman.
However, I have been rather disappointed with his recommendations of, what he calls, "non-woke software", which he does not seem willing to reconsider:
+OS:
-GhostBSD: Fine, I guess. But certainly not the easiest to use. So not everyone's cup of tea.
-Omarchy: I have no sense of it. But it's both Arch and Hyprland, and I personally wouldn't touch either with a ten foot pole.
-OpenMandriva: Terrible! They've put out buggy ISOs before. Their website is a broken mess. So is their package management. Their wiki is often outdated and/or inaccurate. And the community are the rudest, most toxic, unhelpful gatekeepers in all Linux-land. Worse than Mint, Q4OS, AntiX and Hyperbola put together, never mind much-maligned Arch, Gentoo, Kali or Nixos.
-Devuan: It's just Debian minus systemd plus a slight delay in patches, innit. Easily the best of Lunduke's OS recommendations. But personally I don't see why it would be worth it, compared to Debian.
+Browsers:
-Brave: Terrible! And rapidly getting worse, as they push more features people don't want, and remove more and more possibilities to opt-out of them, when these should be opt-in, at most, in the first place. Then they turn around and try and sell you a version that is less "enshitified" and more similar to the old merely bad version of Brave people used to get for free.
-Ladybird: Given that they banned me on Github for reporting a bug, and deleted my bug report without any acknowledgement, I can't trust them, their intentions or their browser anymore.
+ E-mail clients:
-Betterbird: Don't know it. Don't use it. Can't comment.
+Other:
-Hyprland: Again, I personally wouldn't touch it. But if you don't mind Wayland and like tiling window managers, then you might quite enjoy this.
-XLibre: This is actually a good recommendation. I would currently recommend XLibre over X11 now that the Xorg Foundation has started actively sabotaging good old X11 to try and force people onto Wayland.
-SQLite: No opinion. Never ran into an issue with it. Never heard of anyone who did. But I don't interact with it actively/consciously, so I also haven't much of a sense of it. For me, it's just a dependency that seems to do its job.
-Redot: Don't know it. Don't use it. Can't comment.
So that's 1 good recommendation, 3 bad recommendations, 4 recommendations that might not be bad for everyone out there but which I'd never see myself recommending, and 3 other neutral recommendations.
That's not the tally which I'd expect to see, much less would like to, from someone as thoughtful and knowledgeable as Lunduke. He can do better, and therefore he should.
50 • Artix and Ladybird (by RhtoraS on 2026-07-14 18:26:44 GMT from Greece)
Artix used to be great, but lately some of their developers feel “meh.” I prefer Artix-based options, and even better alternatives like ObaRun. There are also non–systemD distros that use the Pacman package manager, such as KaOS Linux. Meanwhile, “Mere Linux” also used Pacman, but they moved away because it was better to create something even better.
My main issue with Arch-based distros is—ultimately—the Arch ecosystem itself. Arch has become a pretty bad choice for many people when picking a distro. Also, the AUR can be a bit of a mess: there are bugs, inconsistent quality, and so on. Artix tries hard to improve things, but I’m not sure that’s an easy task.
In my opinion, Void is a better option. If I wanted something fresh, I’d look at something like FiraOS, or FiraOS/KuroOS—whatever you can find that feels solid. (Awesome new project suggestions on Distrowatch are welcome.) And yes, Mere Linux is a nice one too.
@49 What happened with Ladybird—that mentioned by you is serious. Right now, Iridium on OpenBSD feels like the best bet for browsers, or at least ungoogled Chromium for the rest of the oses available. I’m skeptical about Ladybird, largely because of its sponsors.
51 • Artix Over Void (by Carl Commenter on 2026-07-14 19:23:00 GMT from United States)
@46 When you shout "THE SYSTEM" I hear "THE KERNEL." Arch and Artix often take blame for kernel glitches. With such distros always run LTS kernels.
How seldom Linux users blame Linus and crew for problems. It's always the distro! If you lurk the madhouse of LKML, you know whereof I speak. I ran Arch before systemd days. I had all the glitches you can imagine, but 75% were kernel issues. I stopped installing Linus-latest.
@50 I'm now running Void, but frustration with outdated packages is killing me. Void repos are a shoddy mess. Some packages are ~3+ years stale. I await gawk 5.4 half a year since release. Void disallows software authors to package their own stuff. I've lost count of "orphaned" packages. PRs to adopt get rejected because the filer hasn't "proven" himself to Void yet. Ready volunteers are turned away on subjective feeling. It's all petty nonsense. You don't get mismanagement in Arch or Artix. Packages ship.
Where Void shines is kernel management. Roughly similar behavior is possible in Artix. Run LTS kernels or otherwise hold back updates to some degree. Everything else let roll. Artix can employ runit like Void, or (unlike Void) other inits. So Artix gives maintained repos and official init choice (Void only unofficially). Yes, Artix has a big job, and is doing it. The devs are not meh; they are heroes, and listen to users.
Obarun is another good choice, if one wants s6 init. Obarun also does a wonderful job. It has good community like Artix, unlike Arch or Void.
52 • OpenMandriva (by Donnie on 2026-07-14 21:18:25 GMT from United States)
Definitely bad news about the OpenMandriva hack. I mean, it's not like they don't have enough problems with their abysmal quality control.
53 • LundukeOS (by El Pingo on 2026-07-15 02:11:49 GMT from United States)
@36, @49 et al.- LundukeOS is nothing but Devuan with xlibre installed using extrepo, refracta installer and a couple of apps like VLC and Abiword, along with Brave. Maybe a couple of hours worth of work at most. I'm no developer by any stretch, but I can get that done.
I have Peppermint OS Devuan on a VM. Peppermint is just a minimal Devuan with a pretty face and easy installer. Using extrepo, I installed xlibre, rebooted, and that was it. Librewolf is included, which I prefer to Brave for privacy, but I could easily do Brave and install a few apps like VLC with a few clicks. Maybe I should install Refracta and release my own distro!
There are many "distros" like this, and that's fine. The more the merrier! But when personalities and politics are raised, and words like "woke" start being bandied about, it irks me. Makes me wonder if this distro and its journal are just a place for rugged "individualists" to go and find a leader to tell them what to do. Which has little or nothing to do with Linux.
54 • Recommended Software (by GT on 2026-07-15 02:37:12 GMT from United States)
"I would currently recommend XLibre over X11 now that the Xorg Foundation has started actively sabotaging good old X11 to try and force people onto Wayland."
After reading all the x-server git discussions I could find between the XLibre developer and Xorg devs leading up to his privileges being revoked and his account being deleted, it is a bit of a head scratcher for me why I hear so many people parroting what the XLibre developer thought about the situation without ever mentioning it arose from his lack of basic testing prior to submitting poorly coded contributions, followed by emails from him to other devs that violated their code of conduct. I guess because his is the only take in circulation, people assume it os the truth? The Xorg devs took the high road and said nothing after he made a media splash about his firing. Had he just moved on with business like a gentleman, no one would be making statements today about "sabotage" from Xorg.
55 • Void over Artix (by RhtoraS on 2026-07-15 10:32:38 GMT from Greece)
@51 If a package isn’t included, Void Linux has community recipes so you can build it yourself. I do mostly basic things, and all my packages are available and reliable. The community is ok, though nothing fancy.
56 • Stale Does Not Mean Missing (by Carl Commenter on 2026-07-15 17:30:37 GMT from United States)
@55 Void's problem isn't what's missing but what's there. I referenced "stale" packages like gawk and worse.
Myself, I already use boatloads of unofficial, "missing" software via pixi/uv/npm plus binaries from GitHub/GitLab/CodeBerg. In some cases I download *Debian* packages because they are better updated!
What you mean by community recipes escapes me? Void adamantly opposes community repos, templates, forums, etc. You can't even get a decent PR through Void. Void wants "one source of truth" in its source tree. That strategy works if managed properly, with new contributors on-boarded with dispatch. Note also VoidForums dot com unofficially. If you want things done in Void, you must go it alone, not deal with its core team.
If you mean using xbps-source to update official packages, then there's less point in using Void. If Void doesn't roll packages, other distros do. Why Void can't automate most updates is a mystery. It put a lot of work into a good CI setup. Use it, Void! An AI agent could updates hash sums and URLs in the majority of cases, then feed CI.
57 • @41, Artix Audio, reviews (by Tasio on 2026-07-16 01:04:38 GMT from Philippines)
"A missing element to DW reviews is forum assistance. Asking help from a forum or chat room is a common installation step. Please incorporate forum/chat activity in reviews." If I need forum assistance to install a distro, that's the time I say: "Next!" In fact, I stopped using forums altogether years ago; found them mostly a waste of time.
58 • How happy for you (by Carl Commenter on 2026-07-16 05:42:17 GMT from United States)
@57 The rest of the world likes technical support. Quality depends on the distro. That's why it belongs in DW reviews. Stumbles could find answers on IRC channels in minutes. DW articles detail guessing around solo. Whatever your distro-hopping philosophy, DW reviews can improve. Problems can vanish with community help. DW's solo bias makes Linux look too hard.
59 • @58, Happiness is an easy install. (by Tasio on 2026-07-16 07:56:20 GMT from Philippines)
"DW's solo bias makes Linux look too hard." Having to go on forums and chat rooms to get a distro running properly makes Linux look too hard. You're in the middle of an install, do you have to have another PC and OS available so you can access the "technical support"? Then ask a question which may be answered by someone with no clue, and/or who may berate you because you didn't ask the question properly or provide the proper information? Over time, I've found I get better answers by using search engines, many times after spending fruitless time on forums. These days, chatbots like Gemini do even better.
It's a review of a particular distro, not Linux as a whole. It's a quick review, a test drive, not an extended quality control check which should have been done by the developers in many cases. How much time per week is the DW reviewer supposed to spend getting recalcitrant distros to behave and chatting on IRC channels to get things fixed? I repeat: Unless I have some special overwhelming reason to get a given distro running, if the installer is a pain, or if I run into functional problems that I need to go chatting to try and solve, I move on. It's not about the difficulty of Linux, just about that particular distro.
60 • Alternatives (by stan reichardt on 2026-07-16 11:23:07 GMT from United States)
A good place to find alternitives is https://alternativeto.net/
61 • Artix review (by Tasio on 2026-07-17 07:10:21 GMT from Philippines)
To be clear, I'm not disparaging Artix. It's a very nice distro for those who value its differences. Not for newomers, though. Just for kicks, I installed the same as in the review on a QEMU VM. Installed and ran fine. No sound problems. Not my favorite theme. but to each their own.
To address some points made by @61:
"Install problems are common to Windows and macOS too" Not in my experience. I ran a PC shop for long years and have installed Windows many times. It's now on my Intel NUC, VBox and KVM. I even have an XP VM for nostalgia. Never needed assistance, except for a YouTube video from a kind soul who showed the best settings for virt-manager and Win 11. Can't speak to MACs since I only installed a couple of times long ago.
"Most people have smartphones for internet" I fail to see the relevance.
""someone with no clue, and/or who may berate you" is exactly what DW reviews should document" To what purpose? To embarrass whomever replies in the forum? To entertain the readers? I fail to see that as an improvement.
62 • Windows installation (by Dve Postles on 2026-07-17 09:54:17 GMT from United Kingdom)
It may be easy of you have an OEM licence already. Many years ago, I bought an OEM copy of Win XP. There were so many hurdles before even starting the installation - several requests for licence codes etc and then no response at all. I wasted quite a bit of money. My partner depends on me to manage her Windows PCs. She has constant trouble because she doesn't understand the basics. I imagine many Windows users out there have the same problems.
63 • de-googled android (by hulondalo on 2026-07-17 11:30:01 GMT from Japan)
unfortunately de-googled androids are for high-end devices only, so good luck if you are using cheap phones. been meaning to try de-googled android myself, but none supports my samsung a-series phones :(
Number of Comments: 63
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| Archives |
| • Issue 1181 (2026-07-13): Artix 20260419, making migrating to Linux easier, Google locking down Android, TUXEDO switches to Debian base, Mint improves Cinnamon on Wayland, OpenMandriva recovers from repository deletion, OSNews compares Windows and Linux |
| • Issue 1180 (2026-07-06): FreeBSD 15.1 and rumours of its installer capabilities, tools for running admin commands, Asahi fixes boot issue, reasons to run Gentoo, Ubuntu reverts Rust-based copy command, Astral gets WINE port |
| • Issue 1179 (2026-06-29): PCLinuxOS 2026.05, tips for switching distros, COSMIC gets a new system monitor, Xfce tests new Wayland compositor, FreeBSD developers invite questions |
| • Issue 1178 (2026-06-22): TBLock reviewed, the AUR compromised, Fedora's growing community, reasons to avoid immutable desktop distributions, Ubuntu to get speech-to-text, Canonical updates its beta policy, highlights in Plasma 6.7 |
| • Issue 1177 (2026-06-15): TROMjaro 2026.05.08, Ubuntu MATE updates, Asahi fixes dual-boot issue with macOS 27, AUR infected with malware, setting variables across shells |
| • Issue 1176 (2026-06-08): Redcore Linux 2601, the problem with minimal system requirements, Red Hat account linked to compromised npm repositories, COSMIC to get frosted glass effect, openSUSE shows off system extension manager, Origami merges with RakuOS |
| • Issue 1175 (2026-06-01): PineTab2 with various distros, less common words of wisdom, Canonical shutting down Ubuntu's Pastebin, Murena nears 100k users, DistroWatch turns 25 |
| • Issue 1174 (2026-05-25): Solus 4.9, Linux tablets, Haiku boots on Apple M1 machines, Fedora drops Deepin packages, Mint improves Nemo performance |
| • Issue 1173 (2026-05-18): Sylve on FreeBSD, the benefit of BleachBit, Debian commits to reproducible builds, Debian publishes updated install media, Haiku introduces SMP support on ARM64 processors, Rocky Linux creates opt-in security repository, Fedora reconsiders AI tools, KDE receives generous donation |
| • Issue 1172 (2026-05-11): Fedora 44, dealing with extra fonts, Fedora plans to provide AI tools, problems with Ubuntu's new coreutils, TrueNAS extends its development cycle, postmarktetOS improves the boot splash screen, Redox ports tmux |
| • Issue 1171 (2026-05-04): Xubuntu 26.04, extending memory with VRAM, Ubuntu plans AI features, Devuan developer forks GTK2, Mint introduces hardware enablement builds, Linux running on a PlayStation 5, local kernel exploit found in Linux |
| • Issue 1170 (2026-04-27): ENux 5.2.1, picking a second distro, AlmaLinux expands CPU support, FreeBSD publishes Status Report, Ubuntu MATE skips 26.04 release |
| • Issue 1169 (2026-04-20): Lakka 6.1, free software and source-based distributions, FreeBSD Foundation publishes compatible laptop list, Debian holds Project Leader election, Haiku progresses ARM64 port, Mint to extend development cycle, Linux 7.0 released |
| • Issue 1168 (2026-04-13): pearOS 2026.03, EndeavourOS 2026.03.06, which distros are adopting age verification, Arch adjusts its firewall packages, Linux dropping i486 support, Red Hat extends its release cycle, Debian's APT introduces rollbacks, Redox improves its scheduler |
| • Issue 1167 (2026-04-06): Origami Linux 2026.03, answering questions for Linux newcomers, Ubuntu MATE seeking new contributors, Ubuntu software centre is expanding Deb support, FreeBSD fixes forum exploit, openSUSE 15 Leap nears its end of life |
| • Issue 1166 (2026-03-30): NetBSD jails, publishing software for Linux, Ubuntu joins Rust Foundation, Canonical plans to trim GRUB features, Peppermint works on new utilities, PINE64 shows off open hardware capabilities |
| • Issue 1165 (2026-03-23): Argent Linux 1.5.3, disk space required by Linux, Manjaro team goes on strike, AlmaLinux improves NVIDIA driver support and builds RISC-V packages, systemd introduces age tracking |
| • Issue 1164 (2026-03-16): d77void, age verification laws and Linux, SUSE may be for sale, TrueNAS takes its build system private, Debian publishes updated Trixie media, MidnightBSD and System76 respond to age verification laws |
| • Issue 1163 (2026-03-09): KaOS 2026.02, TinyCore 17.0, NuTyX 26.02.2, Would one big collection of packages help?, Guix offers 64-bit Hurd options, Linux communities discuss age delcaration laws, Mint unveils new screensaver for Cinnamon, Redox ports new COSMIC features |
| • Issue 1162 (2026-03-02): AerynOS 2026.01, anti-virus and firewall tools, Manjaro fixes website certificate, Ubuntu splits firmware package, jails for NetBSD, extended support for some Linux kernel releases, Murena creating a map app |
| • Issue 1161 (2026-02-23): The Guix package manager, quick Q&As, Gentoo migrating its mirrors, Fedora considers more informative kernel panic screens, GhostBSD testing alternative X11 implementation, Asahi makes progress with Apple M3, NetBSD userland ported, FreeBSD improves web-based system management |
| • Issue 1160 (2026-02-16): Noid and AgarimOS, command line tips, KDE Linux introduces delta updates, Redox OS hits development milestone, Linux Mint develops a desktop-neutral account manager, sudo developer seeks sponsorship |
| • Issue 1159 (2026-02-09): Sharing files on a network, isolating processes on Linux, LFS to focus on systemd, openSUSE polishes atomic updates, NetBSD not likely to adopt Rust code, COSMIC roadmap |
| • Issue 1158 (2026-02-02): Manjaro 26.0, fastest filesystem, postmarketOS progress report, Xfce begins developing its own Wayland window manager, Bazzite founder interviewed |
| • Issue 1157 (2026-01-26): Setting up a home server, what happened to convergence, malicious software entering the Snap store, postmarketOS automates hardware tests, KDE's login manager works with systemd only |
| • Issue 1156 (2026-01-19): Chimera Linux's new installer, using the DistroWatch Torrent Corner, new package tools for Arch, Haiku improves EFI support, Redcore streamlines branches, Synex introduces install-time ZFS options |
| • Issue 1155 (2026-01-12): MenuetOS, CDE on Sparky, iDeal OS 2025.12.07, recommended flavour of BSD, Debian seeks new Data Protection Team, Ubuntu 25.04 nears its end of life, Google limits Android source code releases, Fedora plans to replace SDDM, Budgie migrates to Wayland |
| • Issue 1154 (2026-01-05): postmarketOS 25.06/25.12, switching to Linux and educational resources, FreeBSD improving laptop support, Unix v4 available for download, new X11 server in development, CachyOS team plans server edtion |
| • Issue 1153 (2025-12-22): Best projects of 2025, is software ever truly finished?, Firefox to adopt AI components, Asahi works on improving the install experience, Mageia presents plans for version 10 |
| • Issue 1152 (2025-12-15): OpenBSD 7.8, filtering websites, Jolla working on a Linux phone, Germany saves money with Linux, Ubuntu to package AMD tools, Fedora demonstrates AI troubleshooting, Haiku packages Go language |
| • Issue 1151 (2025-12-08): FreeBSD 15.0, fun command line tricks, Canonical presents plans for Ubutnu 26.04, SparkyLinux updates CDE packages, Redox OS gets modesetting driver |
| • Issue 1150 (2025-12-01): Gnoppix 25_10, exploring if distributions matter, openSUSE updates tumbleweed's boot loader, Fedora plans better handling of broken packages, Plasma to become Wayland-only, FreeBSD publishes status report |
| • Issue 1149 (2025-11-24): MX Linux 25, why are video drivers special, systemd experiments with musl, Debian Libre Live publishes new media, Xubuntu reviews website hack |
| • Issue 1148 (2025-11-17): Zorin OS 18, deleting a file with an unusual name, NetBSD experiments with sandboxing, postmarketOS unifies its documentation, OpenBSD refines upgrades, Canonical offers 15 years of support for Ubuntu |
| • Issue 1147 (2025-11-10): Fedora 43, the size and stability of the Linux kernel, Debian introducing Rust to APT, Redox ports web engine, Kubuntu website off-line, Mint creates new troubleshooting tools, FreeBSD improves reproducible builds, Flatpak development resumes |
| • Issue 1146 (2025-11-03): StartOS 0.4.0, testing piped commands, Ubuntu Unity seeks help, Canonical offers Ubuntu credentials, Red Hat partners with NVIDIA, SUSE to bundle AI agent with SLE 16 |
| • Issue 1145 (2025-10-27): Linux Mint 7 "LMDE", advice for new Linux users, AlmaLinux to offer Btrfs, KDE launches Plasma 6.5, Fedora accepts contributions written by AI, Ubuntu 25.10 fails to install automatic updates |
| • Issue 1144 (2025-10-20): Kubuntu 25.10, creating and restoring encrypted backups, Fedora team debates AI, FSF plans free software for phones, ReactOS addresses newer drivers, Xubuntu reacts to website attack |
| • Issue 1143 (2025-10-13): openSUSE 16.0 Leap, safest source for new applications, Redox introduces performance improvements, TrueNAS Connect available for testing, Flatpaks do not work on Ubuntu 25.10, Kamarada plans to switch its base, Solus enters new epoch, Frugalware discontinued |
| • Issue 1142 (2025-10-06): Linux Kamarada 15.6, managing ZIP files with SQLite, F-Droid warns of impact of Android lockdown, Alpine moves ahead with merged /usr, Cinnamon gets a redesigned application menu |
| • Issue 1141 (2025-09-29): KDE Linux and GNOME OS, finding mobile flavours of Linux, Murena to offer phones with kill switches, Redox OS running on a smartphone, Artix drops GNOME |
| • Issue 1140 (2025-09-22): NetBSD 10.1, avoiding AI services, AlmaLinux enables CRB repository, Haiku improves disk access performance, Mageia addresses service outage, GNOME 49 released, Linux introduces multikernel support |
| • Issue 1139 (2025-09-15): EasyOS 7.0, Linux and central authority, FreeBSD running Plasma 6 on Wayland, GNOME restores X11 support temporarily, openSUSE dropping BCacheFS in new kernels |
| • Issue 1138 (2025-09-08): Shebang 25.8, LibreELEC 12.2.0, Debian GNU/Hurd 2025, the importance of software updates, AerynOS introduces package sets, postmarketOS encourages patching upstream, openSUSE extends Leap support, Debian refreshes Trixie media |
| • Issue 1137 (2025-09-01): Tribblix 0m37, malware scanners flagging Linux ISO files, KDE introduces first-run setup wizard, CalyxOS plans update prior to infrastructure overhaul, FreeBSD publishes status report |
| • Issue 1136 (2025-08-25): CalyxOS 6.8.20, distros for running containers, Arch Linux website under attack,illumos Cafe launched, CachyOS creates web dashboard for repositories |
| • Issue 1135 (2025-08-18): Debian 13, Proton, WINE, Wayland, and Wayback, Debian GNU/Hurd 2025, KDE gets advanced Liquid Glass, Haiku improves authentication tools |
| • Issue 1134 (2025-08-11): Rhino Linux 2025.3, thoughts on malware in the AUR, Fedora brings hammered websites back on-line, NetBSD reveals features for version 11, Ubuntu swaps some command line tools for 25.10, AlmaLinux improves NVIDIA support |
| • Issue 1133 (2025-08-04): Expirion Linux 6.0, running Plasma on Linux Mint, finding distros which support X11, Debian addresses 22 year old bug, FreeBSD discusses potential issues with pkgbase, CDE ported to OpenBSD, Btrfs corruption bug hitting Fedora users, more malware found in Arch User Repository |
| • Issue 1132 (2025-07-28): deepin 25, wars in the open source community, proposal to have Fedora enable Flathub repository, FreeBSD plans desktop install option, Wayback gets its first release |
| • Issue 1131 (2025-07-21): HeliumOS 10.0, settling on one distro, Mint plans new releases, Arch discovers malware in AUR, Plasma Bigscreen returns, Clear Linux discontinued |
| • Issue 1130 (2025-07-14): openSUSE MicroOS and RefreshOS, sharing aliases between computers, Bazzite makes Bazaar its default Flatpak store, Alpine plans Wayback release, Wayland and X11 benchmarked, Red Hat offers additional developer licenses, openSUSE seeks feedback from ARM users, Ubuntu 24.10 reaches the end of its life |
| • Full list of all issues |
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