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Bruce Perens is an American computer programmer and advocate in the free software movement. He created The Open Source Definition and published the first formal announcement and manifesto of open source. He co-founded the Open Source Initiative (OSI) with Eric S. Raymond. Today, he is a partner at OSS Capital.
Debian, also known as Debian GNU/Linux, is a GNU/Linux distribution composed of free and open-source software, developed by the community-supported Debian Project, which was established by Ian Murdock on August 16, 1993. The first version of Debian (0.01) was released on September 15, 1993, and its first stable version (1.1) was released on June 17, 1996. The Debian Stable branch is the most popular edition for personal computers and servers. Debian is also the basis for many other distributions, most notably Ubuntu.
Free software is computer software distributed under terms that allow users to run the software for any purpose as well as to study, change, and distribute it and any adapted versions. Free software is a matter of liberty, not price; all users are legally free to do what they want with their copies of a free software regardless of how much is paid to obtain the program. Computer programs are deemed "free" if they give end-users ultimate control over the software and, subsequently, over their devices.
GNU is an extensive collection of free software, which can be used as an operating system or can be used in parts with other operating systems. The use of the completed GNU tools led to the family of operating systems popularly known as Linux. Most of GNU is licensed under the GNU Project's own General Public License (GPL).
A Linux distribution is an operating system made from a software collection that is based upon the Linux kernel and, often, a package management system. Linux users usually obtain their operating system by downloading one of the Linux distributions, which are available for a wide variety of systems ranging from embedded devices and personal computers to powerful supercomputers.
YaST is a Linux operating system setup and configuration tool.
Slax is a LiveCD Linux distribution developed by Tomáš Matějíček and based on Debian. Packages can be added by apt package manager or can be prepared as modules. The tagline for Slax refers to itself as "your pocket operating system".
Within the free software and the open-source software communities there is controversy over whether to refer to computer operating systems that use a combination of GNU software and the Linux kernel as "GNU/Linux" or "Linux" systems.
Arch Linux is a Linux distribution created for computers with x86-64 processors. Arch Linux adheres to the KISS principle. The project attempts to have minimal distribution-specific changes, and therefore minimal breakage with updates, and be pragmatic over ideological design choices and focus on customizability rather than user-friendliness.
Freespire is a community-driven Linux distribution currently owned by PC/Open Systems LLC. It is derived from Linspire and is composed mostly of free, open source software, while providing users the choice of including proprietary software including multimedia codecs, device drivers and application software.
A Debian Pure Blend is a project completely inside of Debian targeting a server or a desktop installation in very broad and general terms.
Linux is a family of open-source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991, by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution.
gNewSense is a Linux distribution that was active from 2006 to 2016. It was based on Debian, and developed with sponsorship from the Free Software Foundation. Its goal was user-friendliness, but with all proprietary and non-free software removed. The Free Software Foundation considered gNewSense to be composed entirely of free software.
Linux Mint is a community-driven Linux distribution based on Ubuntu, bundled with a variety of free and open-source applications. It can provide full out-of-the-box multimedia support for those who choose to include proprietary software such as multimedia codecs.
GNU variants are operating systems based upon the GNU operating system. According to the GNU project and others, these also include most operating systems using the Linux kernel and a few others using BSD-based kernels.
The DCC Alliance (DCCA) was an industry association designed to promote a common subset of the Debian Linux operating system that multiple companies within the consortium could distribute. It was founded by Ian Murdock in 2005 and was wound up in 2007.
Webconverger is a Linux-based operating system designed solely for accessing Web applications privately and securely. Based on the Debian distro, it is able to boot live from removable media like CD-ROM or USB flash drive but can also be installed to a local hard drive. Webconverger is pre-compiled to run on any x86 hardware. It does not have high system requirements and will also run on older machines.
HandyLinux is a Linux distribution originating in France and derived from the Debian stable branch. It is designed specifically with inexperienced computer users in mind. The distribution has low system requirements, allowing it to be used on a range of older hardware that is no longer supported by the latest versions of proprietary operating systems. It is particularly aimed at older people with dated hardware who do not need nor possess the skill to use many features afforded by state-of-the-art operating systems. It may also be useful for computer users with disabilities, such as visual impairment.
Linux Lite is a Linux distribution, based on Debian and Ubuntu and created by a team led by Jerry Bezencon. The distribution offers a lightweight desktop experience with a customized Xfce desktop environment. It includes a set of Lite applications to make things easier for a novice Linux user.
SparkyLinux is a desktop-oriented operating system based on the Debian operating system. The project offers a ready to use operating system with a set of various customised lightweight desktops to choose from. SparkyLinux is released 3-4 times per year to provide the latest versions of all applications.
References
- Whither UserLinux? (Linux Weekly News)
- UserLinux: Autopsy (Linux Weekly News)
