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See also: last week's Distributions page.

Distributions


Please note that security updates from the various distributions are covered in the security section.

ET-Linux 1.1.0 released. Prosa srl has announced the release of ET-Linux 1.1.0. ET-Linux is a very small distribution aimed at embedded systems.

The LibraNet Linux Desktop. LibraNet is a Debian-based distribution that focuses on providing "a first class Linux Desktop". It was created and is supported by Libra Computer Systems Ltd. out of Vancouver, BC, Canada. It was also mentioned on Wednesday, November 3rd, on Slashdot, for people interested in general comments on the distribution.

Best Linux

Best Linux beta programme. SOT has announced a beta programme for Best Linux, a distribution out of Finland that is now being made available for English-speakers as well. "We have the most popular Linux distribution in Finland and Sweden. Now it's time to share it with the international Linux community. Releasing a free-of-charge beta CD-ROM for international developers enables us to establish useful connections and get immediate feedback before releasing the final version."

Caldera OpenLinux

[New Caldera logo] Web site revamp. The Caldera Systems web page has been totally revamped, as has the corporate logo. It looks nice and certainly the site update has been long overdue.

LinuxWorld interviews Ransom Love. Nicholas Petreley interviews Caldera Systems CEO Ransom Love in this LinuxWorld article. "Linux isn't going to replace Windows, necessarily; the PC didn't replace the mainframe. But in this new paradigm, where the services are placed across the Internet, why pay exorbitant amounts of money on something that doesn't work?"

Evaluating OpenLinux 2.3 (Performance Computing). Performance Computing reviews OpenLinux 2.3. "If you are looking for an OS that is sturdy, easy to use, and easy to support, then Caldera's OpenLinux is an excellent choice. And if you are looking for an OS that offers the simplest installation and administration of all of them, then look no further. This version of OpenLinux is simple enough for a child to configure and robust enough to be used as a Web server."

Debian GNU/Linux

Debian Weekly News. This week's Debian Weekly News reports that the freeze of the distribution, in preparation for the next release, has been postponed until November 7th. Such postponements are not uncommon in the Debian release cycle. Meanwhile, 75 release-critical bugs were squashed at the bug-squashing party this past weekend.

License concerns with Corel continue. The DWN mentions that, although the problem with lib-apt has been resolved, there are other examples of Corel combining Qt code and GPL code. Ian Jackson pointed out a possible violation involving dpkg and is contacting Corel to discuss the issue. To keep the issue murky, not everyone agrees with Ian that this specific case is actually a violation, as witnessed by this note from Bruce Perens.

Corel has also had an opportunity to respond in the form of this note from Erich Forler, Product Development Manager for Corel Linux. "Richard Stallman has had some communication with one of our engineers and I've started a document outlining some of the areas that Corel's legal department was concerned with."

Green Frog Linux

Green Frog Linux 0.4a has been announced. It is a small Linux distribution intended as a good starting point for people who want to "roll their own" distribution. The new release has been restructured and new packages have been added.

Linux-Mandrake

MandrakeSoft at the Linux Business Expo. The Linux-Mandrake folks have announced that they will have a booth at the Linux Business Expo, being held alongside Comdex in Las Vegas, November 15-19.

Red Hat Linux

Red Hat to expand support offerings (ZDNet). Red Hat will be announcing commercial support for sendmail and apache, according to this ZDNet article. "The announcement will serve as a launching point as well. Eventually Red Hat intends to support all applications that are committed to the open-source development model."

Slackware Linux

Slackware 7.0 has been released. You can check out the news about it either via their official announcement or by going directly to the Slackware.com site.
Slackware Linux 7.0 is out of beta and ready to roll! Now based on glibc-2.1.2 and the 2.2.13 (final) kernel, 7.0 is another impressive upgrade. The new features include (but are not limited to) XFree86 3.3.5, KDE 1.1.2, October Gnome, and a ton of new setup coolness.

Curious about the jump from version 4.0 to 7.0? Patrick Volkerding contributed his comments on version number inflation. "I think it's clear that some other distributions inflated their version numbers for marketing purposes, and I've had to field (way too many times) the question "why isn't yours 6.x" or worse "when will you upgrade to Linux 6.0" which really drives home the effectiveness of this simple trick. " He did promise not to do it again as long as the other distributions avoided this tactic as well.

The main Slackware site has also had an overhaul:

www.slackware.com has just received its first official overhaul and reconstruction. Painstakingly handcrafted from authentic slack by webmasters trained in the art of PHP-fu at a Secret Ninja Training Room deep below the Slackware East Coast Headquarters, the new www.slackware.com now sports:
  • A FAQ database of doom
  • A stylin' new Forum
  • A site search feature
  • ...and new colors! (now black on white!)

SuSE Linux

SuSE Linux on DVD. SuSE announces that SuSE 6.3, "expected in late November," will be available on DVD as well as CDROM.

Linux Day in Bremen, Germany. Lenz Grimmer dropped us a note to mention that the local LUG in Bremen, Germany was sponsoring a Linux Day on November 28th. Alan Cox will be attending, Lenz (who was born there) will be giving an introduction to Samba and (of course) demonstrating the installation of SuSE 6.3 and there will be parallel tracks of talks as well. Sounds like fun!

Section Editor: Liz Coolbaugh


November 4, 1999

Please note that not every distribution will show up every week. Only distributions with recent news to report will be listed.

Lists of Distributions
Kernelnotes
Woven Goods
Known Distributions:
Alzza Linux
Apokalypse
Armed Linux
Bad Penguin Linux
Bastille Linux
Best Linux (Finnish/Swedish)
Bifrost
Black Cat Linux (Ukrainian/Russian)
Caldera OpenLinux
CCLinux
Chinese Linux Extension
Complete Linux
Conectiva Linux (Brazilian)
Debian GNU/Linux
Definite Linux
DemoLinux
DLD
DLite
DLX
DragonLinux
easyLinux
Enoch
Eridani Star System
Eonova Linux
e-smith server and gateway
ET-Linux
Eurielec Linux (Spanish)
eXecutive Linux
floppyfw
Floppix
Green Frog Linux
hal91
Hard Hat Linux
Immunix
Independence
Jurix
Kha0s Linux
KRUD
KSI-Linux
Laetos
LEM
LibraNet
Linux Cyrillic Edition
LinuxGT
Linux-Kheops (French)
Linux MLD (Japanese)
LinuxOne OS
LinuxPPC
LinuxPPP (Mexican)
Linux Pro Plus
Linux Router Project
Linux-SIS
LOAF
LSD
Mandrake
Mastodon
MicroLinux
MkLinux
muLinux
nanoLinux II
NoMad Linux
OpenClassroom
OS2000
Peanut Linux
Phat Linux
Plamo Linux
PLD
Project Ballantain
PROSA
QuadLinux
Red Hat
Rock Linux
RunOnCD
ShareTheNet
Skygate
Slackware
Small Linux
Stampede
Stataboware
Storm Linux
SuSE
Tomsrtbt
Trinux
TurboLinux
uClinux
Vine Linux
WinLinux 2000
Xdenu
XTeamLinux
Yellow Dog Linux

 

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