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There is already ubuntu lite, which uses icewm as its wm.
http://www.ubuntulite.org/
from what I read, this isn't going to be "Ubuntu with Flux and as the Default Environment" that would be ubsurd in my book.
I can see a reason behind Ubuntu/Kubuntu, as KDE/Gnome are IMO the leaders in Linux desktops, with the lesser/lighter DE's available via apt.
If this becomes something along the lines of like, DSLinux or Puppy, in it does away with the heavyness and gives a sharp fast system, then that would be cool. but if its Ubuntu booting into Fluxbox, then that is just a waste, IMO.
and I dig flux, I'm not a hater, I triple boot DSLinux, Fedora Core 5 and Ubuntu.
Does this Fluxbuntu have any advantage over DSL-N? http://damnsmalllinux.org/dsl-n/
IMO, they should use another gtk2-engine -- the default gtk2 theme doesn't look very attractive in the screenshots.
I'm still waiting for someone to build a Debian- or Ubuntu-based live-cd with Ion as the default WM. (Yeah, I already know about grml and I like it. Still, Ion is not the default in grml. http://wiki.grml.org/doku.php ) And, of course, I'd like this Ion live-cd to use my own special customized keybindings. :-P
I want EvilUbuntu.
http://www.6809.org.uk/evilwm/
I think ROXbuntu would make more sense than Fluxbuntu. Flux is just a windowmanager. ROX is actually a lot closer to a desktop environment. There are applications for it and an overall cohesive way of doing things. Maybe someone should just package a large array of windowmanagers and all non KDE/GNOME dependant applications with it.
There was a ROX-OS distribution project that started:
http://roxos.sunsite.dk/dev-contrib/guido/Blog/
This was due to build a whole distribution around ROX, with a complete new appdir based file system hierarchy (somewhat similar to Gobolinux). But it appears to have stalled due to lack of contributors and developer time.
ROX already has a mature and advanced application packaging and delivery mechanism with zero-install:
http://zero-install.sourceforge.net/
All both projects need are more enthusiastic developers with Linux hacking skills and enough free time. Zero install particularly just needs willing volunteers to package applications and make them available.
There seems to be another Ubuntu-based distro, nUbuntu, that also uses fluxbox but specializes in security testing.
http://nubuntu.org/
http://shots.osdir.com/slideshows/slideshow.php?release=691&slide=3...
Seriously, this is getting silly.
It is quite ridicolous that everyone packages his own distro just by switching *buntu desktop environments.
Ubuntu, Kubuntu and Xubuntu make sense because they are consistently different - Ubuntu is geared towards GNOME tools, Kubuntu towards KDE tools etc., and they try to do this consistently, creating a smooth experience for the end user. But, AFAIK, while there are KDE and GNOME/Gtk apps, there are no "fluxboxish", nor "icewm-ish" apps.
So, where's the point?
I don't think that fluxbox's popularity has so much to do with its speed but, rather, with its balance of providing features many users like and still staying light-weight. Fluxbox doesn't take much hard disk space and it doesn't eat much RAM. If you've got a computer with little RAM, fluxbox is certainly faster than a heavy-weight desktop environment that requires lots of RAM. In such comparison fluxbox leaves you with more RAM for running applications.
The man page of fluxbox is a great introduction to its many features and also a helpful guide for configuring it.
"The endless stream of Ubuntu derivatives just refuses to end..."
An endless (official) stream of Kubuntu, Edubuntu (if that even counts), Xubuntu, and Fluxbuntu (if that even counts). So a box of one dozen eggs is three endless streams of eggs?
Linux, and all of open source, as far as I can discern, is all about derivative work with incremental improvements. Why reinvent the wheel when all you need are knobbier tires? If this opening remark is supposed to indicate the author's eyes rolling, it's inflammatory.
Now, if we're remarking upon the conversion of Mepis and the abovementioned Ubuntulite, there may appear to be a burgeoning stream, but in some way it gives me heart that Linux developers and packagers are beginning to agree on more than they disagree upon. We've picked an OS, it is Ubuntu (OK, OK, Debian) and now we're skinning it. Sounds like the tuner market to me, and that's promising.
I seem to recall someone commenting in the Shuttleworth article last week, that if Ubuntu tried to become Debian it would inherit its broad internal diversity and disagreement, hence why EVERYTHING is available in Debian.
Well, looks like despite his original intentions, Ubuntu's basically going the same route. This is Linux's "problem"- everyone has their own preferred way of doing things, and there's no Microsoft- or Apple- like corporate entity standing there saying NO, YOU MUST DO IT THIS WAY AND ONLY THIS WAY.
Sooner or later I think they're going to have to rebrand these things, and have Ubuntu be the name of the base system, and perhaps default to the Gnome desktop version...
I _really_ think this ubuntu/kubuntu/xubuntu/fluxbunto is the wrong approach. Why not stick to vanilla ubuntu and maintain the kde-desktop packages etc? It is such a waste of time. What I mean is, that it's no difference to install ubuntu and then add another desktop. No need for all these distribution that underneath is the same thing.
BR/D
Struck a chord, I always thought Ximian had the right approach to the linux desktop. Letting go of the underpinning and focusing on the user experience could only hasten the arrival of the linux desktop. The ubuntu/kubuntu/xubuntu/fluxbunto 's all have the right idea and direction, they just need another degree of isolation. The os and the desktop should be two separate entities. Then we can address making them all cross-compatible.
I've been running Ubuntu since 2004 (pre-release 4.10) and I have to say the proliferation of forks, take-offs, "based-ons", etc. is getting a little, um, embarrassing. I guess it's a form of flattery - but do we really need a "*buntu for red-headed, left-handed gilwickies"?




