Comparison of netbook-oriented Linux distributions

Last updated

Netbooks are small laptops, with screen sizes between approximately 7 and 12 inches and low power consumption. They use either an SSD (solid state disk) or a HDD (hard disk drive) for storage, have up to 2 gigabytes of RAM (but often less), lack an optical disk drive, and usually have USB, Ethernet, WiFi and often Bluetooth connectivity. The name emphasizes their use as portable Internet appliances.

Contents

Netbook distributions

There are special Linux distributions, called netbook distributions, for these machines. All such distributions purport to be optimized for use with small, low-resolution displays. They tend to include a broad mix of VOIP and web-focused tools, including proprietary applications rarely seen installed by default by mainstream desktop distributions[ citation needed ]. For instance, Nokia Maemo and Asus' customized Xandros both ship with Skype and Adobe Flash installed, and Ubuntu's Netbook Edition offers the option to do the same for OEMs. [1]

Comparison

Features

DistributionWorking StateAimCreatorProducerBase DistributionInstalled Size (MB)Initial Release DateInterfaceLinux KernelDefault File SystemArchitecture SupportApproximate Number of Pre-compiled PackagesDefault Package Management ToolsDefault Installer
Aurora 2009

Last Release, development stopped

 Asus Eee PC optimizedEeebuntu community Ubuntu 2009-05-15 Gnome or Gnome + Netbook RemixArray kernel (modified kernel) [2] APT
CrunchBang Linux 11-201301192015-02-06

Development Stopped

Limited hardware machinesPhilip Newborough Debian 2013-01-19 Openbox 3.2.35x86 + x86_64 APT
Debian Eee PC Asus Eee PCDebian
Debian WheezyWritten from scratchi386, AMD64, PowerPC, SPARC, ARM, MIPS, S390, armhf, s390x. Loongson [3]
EasyPeasy 1.62012

Last Release, development stopped

All netbooksEasyPeasy Community Jon Ramvi Ubuntu 2010-04-24 Gnome + Netbook Remix2.6.32ext4x86 APT Ubiquity
Eeedora [4] Asus Eee PC 701Martin Andrews Fedora Xfce RPM
Firefly Linux 1.0 Beta 12009

Last Release, development stopped

Firefly Linux community Arch Linux LXDE 2.6.29.4x86 Pacman
Fuduntu 2013-04-14

Last Release, development stopped

All netbooks [5] Andrew Wyatt "Fewt"Fuduntu.org [5] None (Originally based on Fedora 14)2012-10-01 Gnome 3.6.9ext4x86 [6] + x86_64 [7] RPM + YUM
gNewSense Free software Brian Brazil and Paul O'MalleySam Geeraerts with sponsorship from the FSF Debian Linux-libre 2.6.32 Loongson, x86, x86-64 APT Ubiquity (software)
Joli OS 1.2
(formerly named Jolicloud)		2013-11-22 Last Release, development stoppedAll netbooks [8] Joli OS Joli OS Ubuntu 2011-03-09 HTML5 + Gnome 2.6.35.10ext4x86 APT
Kuki Linux 2.02009

Last Release, development stopped

 Aspire One optimizedKuki Linux community Ubuntu Xfce
Linux4One 1.5 Aspire One optimizedLinux4One community Ubuntu Gnome or LXDE
Leeenux Linux v102016 Last ReleaseAll netbooksAleksandar CiricUbuntu 16.04 LTSLXDE, XFCEext4x86, AMD64APT, Synaptic, Software centerUbiquity
Leeenux 2020Supported until April 2023All netbooksAleksandar CiricUbuntu 18.04 LTSLXDE, XFCEx86, AMD64APT, Synaptic, Software center
Lubuntu

15.10

2015-10-22

Active Development

Limited hardware machinesLubuntu Community and LXDE Foundation Ubuntu 2011-10-13 LXDE Synaptic
Manjaro Netbook Edition [9] 2015-07-25

Active Development

All netbooksRob McCathie Manjaro Linux Arch Linux Xfce Intel Atom-optimized Manjaro kernelext4x86, x86_64Pamac (graphical frontend for pacman)
Midinux All netbooks Red Flag Linux 2007ext3x86
MeeGo 1.22012

Last Release, development stopped

 Intel Atom processor netbooks, Nokia ARM smartphones Intel, Nokia, Maemo community Intel, Nokia, Linux Foundation None (it is a distribution developed out of Maemo and Moblin)2010-10-28"Netbook User Experience" (based on Clutter)2.6.35 btrfs x86 with SSSE3 support RPM
Moblin 2.12009-04

Last Release, development stopped

All Intel Atom processor netbooks and MID Intel Intel/Linux Foundation None (borrows components for various distributions [10] )2009-11-04 Clutter RPM (may change [10] )
OpenGeeeU 8.102012-08

Last Release, development stopped

Luca De Marini Easy Peasy [11] 2009-03-23 Enlightenment plus Gnome 2.6.27ext3x8626000 APT Ubiquity
Puppeee Linux 4.3XLinpus is 64-bit only Asus Eee PCs with Intel ChipsetsJemimah Ruhala Puppy Linux 4.3.1 200MBChoice of IceWM / OpenBox / Flwm with ROX-Filer / PcManFM / LxLauncher2.6.33AUFS + SquashFS + EXT2Atom / CeleronMPetPetGet
Trisquel Mini 2014-11

Last Release, development stopped

Limited hardware machines Trisquel 2010-09
Ubuntu Netbook Edition 10.102010-10

Last Release, development stopped

Intel Atom processor netbooks [12] Canonical Ltd. Canonical Ltd. Ubuntu 2010-10-10 Unity 2.6.32x8632000 APT
DistributionWorking StateAimCreatorProducerBase DistributionInstalled Size (MB)Initial Release DateInterfaceLinux KernelDefault File SystemArchitecture SupportApproximate Number of Pre-compiled PackagesDefault Package Management ToolsDefault Installer

Specific Features

DistributionTarget Boot TimeWhole OS Loads to RAM

(Default)

LIVE

Medium

Target UsersSSD Write Optimization

(SSD degradation, I/O optimization, etc.)

Specific Supported Hardware
Aurora 3.0
EasyPeasy 1.6LIVE MediumBeginner, highly mobile netbook users.
Eeedora [4]
Firefly Linux 1.0 Beta 1
Joli OS 1.2
Kuki Linux 2.0
Linux4One 1.540 seconds [13]
Manjaro Netbook Edition
Moblin 2.05 seconds [14] [15]
OpenGeeeU 8.10
Puppeee Linux 4.3X30sLoads to RAMLayered filesystem - caches writes in RAMLightweight kernel compiled for EeePCs only
Ubuntu Netbook Edition 10.10

While no public numbers measuring the install-base of these operating systems are available, Google Trends data on a handful of them indicate their relative popularity:

Netbook linux compared June 2010.jpg

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Linux distribution</span> Operating system based on the Linux kernel

A Linux distribution is an operating system made from a software collection that includes 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Knoppix</span> Linux distribution

KNOPPIX is an operating system based on Debian designed to be run directly from a CD / DVD or a USB flash drive, one of the first of its kind for any operating system. Knoppix was developed by, and named after, Linux consultant Klaus Knopper. When starting a program, it is loaded from the removable medium and decompressed into a RAM drive. The decompression is transparent and on-the-fly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Live CD</span> Complete, bootable computer installation that runs directly from a CD-ROM

A live CD is a complete bootable computer installation including operating system which runs directly from a CD-ROM or similar storage device into a computer's memory, rather than loading from a hard disk drive. A live CD allows users to run an operating system for any purpose without installing it or making any changes to the computer's configuration. Live CDs can run on a computer without secondary storage, such as a hard disk drive, or with a corrupted hard disk drive or file system, allowing data recovery.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ubuntu</span> Linux distribution developed by Canonical Ltd.

Ubuntu is a Linux distribution based on Debian and composed mostly of free and open-source software. Ubuntu is officially released in three editions: Desktop, Server, and Core for Internet of things devices and robots. All the editions can run on the computer alone, or in a virtual machine. Ubuntu is a popular operating system for cloud computing, with support for OpenStack. Ubuntu's default desktop has been GNOME since version 17.10.

Puppy Linux is an operating system and family of light-weight Linux distributions that focus on ease of use and minimal memory footprint. The entire system can be run from random-access memory (RAM) with current versions generally taking up about 600 MB (64-bit), 300 MB (32-bit), allowing the boot medium to be removed after the operating system has started. Applications such as AbiWord, Gnumeric and MPlayer are included, along with a choice of lightweight web browsers and a utility for downloading other packages. The distribution was originally developed by Barry Kauler and other members of the community, until Kauler retired in 2013. The tool Woof can build a Puppy Linux distribution from the binary packages of other Linux distributions.

In Linux systems, initrd is a scheme for loading a temporary root file system into memory, to be used as part of the Linux startup process. initrd and initramfs refer to two different methods of achieving this. Both are commonly used to make preparations before the real root file system can be mounted.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Live USB</span> USB drive with a full bootable operating system

A live USB is a portable USB-attached external data storage device containing a full operating system that can be booted from. The term is reminiscent of USB flash drives but may encompass an external hard disk drive or solid-state drive, though they may be referred to as "live HDD" and "live SSD" respectively. They are the evolutionary next step after live CDs, but with the added benefit of writable storage, allowing customizations to the booted operating system. Live USBs can be used in embedded systems for system administration, data recovery, or test driving, and can persistently save settings and install software packages on the USB device.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wubi (software)</span> Discontinued Ubuntu GNU/Linux installer for Windows

Wubi is a free software Ubuntu installer, that was the official Windows-based software, from 2008 until 2013, to install Ubuntu from within Windows, to a single file within an existing Windows partition.

gOS (operating system)

gOS or "good OS" was an Ubuntu-based Linux distribution created by Good OS LLC, a Los Angeles-based corporation. Its CIO David Liu described that after meeting Enlightenment and open source people, he realized that his dream to bring Web 2.0 applications into mainstream use could be achieved by creating a Linux distribution that made it easy for users to access Google and Web 2.0 applications. David Liu went on to create the Chinese Twitter clone called Wozai (我在), leaving gOS officially defunct.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Moblin</span>

Moblin, short for 'mobile Linux', is a discontinued open source operating system and application stack for Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs), netbooks, nettops and embedded devices.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ubuntu Netbook Edition</span>

Ubuntu Netbook Edition (UNE), known as Ubuntu Netbook Remix (UNR) prior to the release of Ubuntu 10.04, is a discontinued version of the Ubuntu operating system (OS) that had been optimized to enable it to work better on netbooks and other devices with small screens or with the Intel Atom CPU.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Acer Aspire One</span> Line of netbooks by Acer Inc.

Acer Aspire One is a line of netbooks first released in July 2008 by Acer Inc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">EasyPeasy</span>

EasyPeasy was a Linux-based operating system for netbooks. EasyPeasy was built upon Debian and Ubuntu, but was customized for low-powered computers and access to web applications. EasyPeasy is maintained as an open source project, though it primarily uses popular web applications or proprietary software over free and open source software alternatives when the functionality offered is deemed better by its users.

The Dell Inspiron Mini Series is a line of subnotebook/netbook computers designed by Dell. The series was introduced in September 2008 amidst the growing popularity of low-cost netbook computers introduced by competitors.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Feather Linux</span>

Feather Linux, created by Robert Sullivan, was a Knoppix-based operating system which fits in under 128 MB. It boots from either a CD or a USB flash drive, into a Fluxbox desktop environment. It has a wide range of desktop and rescue software, and can load entirely into RAM or be installed to a hard drive. Feather Linux contains GTK+ applications, such as AbiWord and Pidgin. Feather Linux has tried to include software that people would frequently be using on their desktop.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aurora OS (Eeebuntu)</span> Operating system for netbooks

Aurora was an operating system for netbooks. The latest version is based on Ubuntu, though newer versions were planned to be based on Debian Unstable. Eeebuntu was designed originally for the Asus Eee PC line of netbooks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">HandyLinux</span>

HandyLinux is a simplified Linux operating system developed in France, derived from the Debian stable branch. It was designed to be easily accessible and downloadable, so that it could be used by people with very little computer experience and on a range of older hardware that was no longer supported by the latest versions of proprietary operating systems. It was 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MX Linux</span> Operating system

MX Linux is a Linux distribution based on Debian stable and using core antiX components, with additional software created or packaged by the MX community. The development of MX Linux is a collaborative effort between the antiX and former MEPIS communities. The MX 'name' comes from the M for MEPIS and the X from antiX - an acknowledgment of their roots. The community's stated goal is to produce "a family of operating systems that are designed to combine elegant and efficient desktops with high stability and solid performance".

References

  1. ↑ Ubuntu 10.4 UNE
  2. ↑ "Array kernel site". Archived from the original on 2009-05-17. Retrieved 2009-05-15.
  3. ↑ "DebianYeeloong - Debian Wiki".
  4. 1 2 Eeedora project at Google Code
  5. 1 2 "Fuduntu Website". Archived from the original on 2011-03-17.
  6. ↑ "Fuduntu i386". Archived from the original on 2012-10-16. Retrieved 2012-12-18.
  7. ↑ "Fuduntu x86_64".[ permanent dead link ]
  8. ↑ "Jolicloud Compatible Devices". Archived from the original on 2011-01-12.
  9. ↑ Manjaro Netbook Edition at SourceForge
  10. 1 2 Moblin FAQ Archived May 28, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  11. ↑ Archived May 1, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  12. ↑ "Canonical | About the company". Archived from the original on 2009-02-14. Retrieved 2009-09-06.
  13. ↑ "Features of Light version of Linux4One". Archived from the original on 2009-11-25. Retrieved 2009-06-12.
  14. ↑ Fast boot in Moblin page Archived January 21, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  15. ↑ Youtube video showing Moblin 2.0 prerelease booting in 5 seconds.

See also

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.