Apple has made famous the phrase “There is an app for that“. In the open source Linux world, you can apply the same saying too: “There is an distro for that“. Indeed, for whatever functions you want your OS to perform, there is a distro for that. Need a media center? Mythbuntu. Need a multimedia creation tool? UbuntuStudio. Need a distro for kids? DouDouLinux. Need a lightweight OS that runs in old computer? Lubuntu. Need a super lightweight distro that can fit into your USB drive? DamnSmallLinux. Need a distro for browsing the web? BrowserLinux.
[Read more...]
BrowserLinux: A Linux Distro For The Sole Purpose Of Browsing The Web
By | January 10, 2012 | 5 Comments
Linux Mint 12 “Lisa” Review
By | November 21, 2011 | 8 Comments
Linux Mint has always been known as the great alternative to Ubuntu. In fact, after Ubuntu implemented the Unity desktop, many people switched ship and flocked to Linux Mint as their next “easy-to-use and user-friendly” distro. According to DistroWatch, Linux Mint has even overtaken Ubuntu as the most popular distro. Well, that was Linux Mint 11, which is still based on Gnome 2, the desktop that most people are familiar with. What about Linux Mint 12?
[Read more...]
A Week with Pinguy – The Slick Ubuntu Remix
By | February 3, 2011 |
These days, Linux distros are a dime a dozen, especially in the field of the Ubuntu remix. Just about anyone thinks they can create a usable spinoff (they’re probably right) and that it’ll be wildly successful (they’re probably wrong). For this reason, we don’t often give a full writeup to an Ubuntu remix on MTE unless it offers something really unique or interesting. Pinguy isn’t exactly revolutionary, but it is among a rare breed: an Ubuntu spinoff that might actually have some real improvements over the original.
[Read more...]
Getting Enlightened with Bodhi Linux
By | January 20, 2011 |
In our recent discussion about Ubuntu Remixes, there were a few names that kept popping up in the comments. One of them was a distro mostly unknown to MTE but immediately of interest, and that’s Bodhi Linux. With an Ubuntu base it’s got a solid core behind it, but the real kicker is the Enlightenment (E17) desktop. Over the last few years many distros have tried to base their desktops around the notoriously unwieldy Enlightenment, and the success rate has been somewhat limited (though Elive is certainly worth a look). Bodhi seems to not only include a usable Enlightenment desktop, but a few extra options when it comes to choosing just how that desktop will look and act.
[Read more...]
Ubuntu Remixes: 4 Of The Best Alternatives to Ubuntu
By | December 30, 2010 |
Our recent article entitled Ubuntu As Intended drew in a fair amount of discussion about the base software and configuration in the default Ubuntu install. Some readers pointed out a few alternatives that aim to take the standard Ubuntu desktop and give it more polish than the original. Some of these projects just include a few extra packages, some replace the standard software suite, and others are complete makeovers. Today we aim to sift through a few of the more popular Ubuntu variants to find the best ones of the bunch, and see what they can offer.
[Read more...]
DoudouLinux: A Fun Linux Distro For Kids
By | November 26, 2010 |
Linux is really a versatile piece of software. You can use it as your daily working OS, a server that runs most of the website in the world, as a multimedia center or even as a way to promote your religion. A more creative use of Linux is to turn it into an educational piece of software for kids. We have gone through several ways of configuring Linux for kids. DoudouLinux is yet another Linux distro that you will want to check out.
[Read more...]
Review of Qimo: Linux for Kids
By | August 26, 2010 |
We’ve talked about Linux software for kids a few times here at MakeTechEasier, but so far we’ve never actually sat down to take a closer look at whole distributions intended for children. Many people are familiar with Edubuntu, the Ubuntu spinoff intended for school and other educational institutions, but you may not know much about Qimo. Unlike Edubuntu, which is designed for a client-server network model, Qimo is intended for a sole desktop user – in this case children 3 years old and up. It uses a customized version of the XFCE desktop, with large icons and simple menus, to make it easy to navigate. Included are many of the top titles in kids software for Linux, such as GCompris and TuxPaint. Today we’ll take a look at what Qimo has to offer, and submit it to the ultimate test: a real live toddler.
[Read more...]
Testdrive Let You Test Ubuntu With A Single Click
By | August 17, 2010 |
If you want to test drive a Linux distro, what will you usually do? Download the ISO file, burn it into a CD/USB drive and boot it up in your PC. Alternatively, you can also run the ISO file in virtual machine such as Virtualbox or VMWare. What if you are not a geek and have no ideas how to carry out the above stuff? What if there is a 1-click solution that allows you to test drive a Linux distro without having to go through the above steps?
Test Drive is a package for Ubuntu that allows you to test drive the daily build of Ubuntu with little effort on the user side. With a single click (Well, to be exact, there are several clicks on the first run), you can get the application to download the ISO from the web and run it in your virtual machine. While it is meant for non-technical Ubuntu users to test and provide feedback on the current Ubuntu release under development, it can also be used for any Linux distro as long as you provide it with the ISO URL.
[Read more...]
Build Your Own Ubuntu-based Distro With Novo Builder
By | July 2, 2010 |
There are many reasons why people want to create their own linux distro. It could be that they are not satisfied with all the existing distros out there and wanted to build one that can fulfill their needs, or they just want to try out something new and show off their “geekiness”.
Whatever the reasons, we all now that it is not an easy task to build your own Linux distro, unless you deem yourself an expert in the field. Well, with Novo Builder, things starting to become a whole lot easier. And I seriously mean it when I said easier.
Novo Builder is a Debian GNU/Linux tool for creating your own up to date Ubuntu variants (only Ubuntu variant for the time being) customised to include the programs, themes and customised settings that you want. You don’t have to learn all the codes or any of the technical process. With a few mouse clicks and a long waiting time, you can quickly create your very own OS (and probably boost it to your friend).
[Read more...]
5 Best Linux Software Packages for Kids
By | June 15, 2010 |
Even when computers were first being introduced, engineers realized how useful they could be to teach children. There have been multiple games and even entire programming languages developed specifically for kids. Linux’s developer-friendly tendencies have made it an obvious choice as a platform to create software for children, and its security and stability leave little chance for them to break anything while learning. Today we’ve gathered together some of the best Linux software applications for kids, from simple games for toddlers to programming puzzles for the older kids.
[Read more...]
