Submitted by “We are pleased to announce that the first public beta release of Xubuntu, the latest official addition to the Ubuntu family of derivative distributions has arrived. Xubuntu is built around the solid Ubuntu core and the friendly and relatively lightweight Xfce desktop environment, with the specific goal of providing a nice user experience even on older hardware.” Screenshots o’plenty, boys and girls.
Why do we need a seperate distribution for this? It seems like a lot of wasted effort. All I do is apt-get install xfce4 on Ubuntu and bam! I have a perfectly function xfce 4.2.2 desktop.
These peoples’ time could probably be better spent tuning the packages in the normal repos.
Calling it a “separate distribution” is a bit of a misnomer. All the packages, like all the Kubuntu packages, are part of the same repositories as the rest of the Ubuntu packages. This announcement basically means that anyone who wants an Xfce desktop can just say apt-get install xubuntu-desktop, and also that Ubuntu will be willing to support (albeit probably for money) anyone who has problems getting Xfce to work properly.
While it seems a bit excessive to offer three different CDs which are different only in whether they include ubuntu-desktop, kubuntu-desktop, or xubuntu-desktop (and all dependencies), we should still be glad that each one only fits on a single CD. Ubuntu’s philosophy is to only include /one/ program for each task on the default CD, since otherwise not everything would fit. So think of this announcement as just saying that, if you know you’re just going to uninstall GNOME and put on Xfce, they can do that for you.
This announcement basically means that anyone who wants an Xfce desktop can just say apt-get install xubuntu-desktop
You have been able to do that for some time now. What’s new is that you can now download (it will probably also be shipped to your home free of charge from Ubuntu’s “shipit” service) Xubuntu live-cd, featuring XFCE desktop. The live-cd also includes a new hd-installer. And you don’t need to install GNOME. 🙂
I agree completely. Also, Dapper beta was just released yesterday, so is this (Xubuntu, Kubuntu, oranyotherbuntu release) really news?
Why wouldn’t it be? This is OSNews.
I’m sure there are enough people with interests to the screenshots, specs and releases of all Ubuntu flavor’s, so mention them all or don’t mention them at all.
Tiny mail would feed perfect in this distribution.
Nice, but I wish distros would STOP changing the friggin default layout, the new xfce is not like that. They think they know best when really they dont.
I kinda agree with you. It looks like they took xfce and tried to make it look more like the default ubuntu/gnome desktop.
My recommendation is to do a server install and then apt-get whichever desktop you want. If it’s xfce, it’s not much of a download.
yes, doing a server install on old hw and lay X+wm over it is the bestest way to revive it as a desktop…
Yeah, I cannot agree with you more. I hate that new layout neither. That make no different from Gnome, I want a fast Xubuntu that could run on my old computer. But their doing the wrong dirction and make Xubuntu slower.
That is no good
I hate that new layout neither. That make no different from Gnome, I want a fast Xubuntu that could run on my old computer. But their doing the wrong dirction and make Xubuntu slower.
How ? Just by making it look like gnome makes it slower ? Why ? To me it only means that there is some agreement as to what should default desktop look like to make people more productive. Thats good news.
Just by making it look like gnome makes it slower ?
I’m pretty sure it’s just like putting decals on a race car, so yes, looks can determine speed.
Software is far more distant from being “perfect” in comparison to cars, so the analogy isn’t that good (no matter the decals, whatever that is, if you have a rocket engine under the hood). It’s easier to make a program work 2x faster than do the same with a car. And the former is much more complicated (it’s not ‘more horsepower’ = ‘more speed’ kind of thing), so judging by it’s looks isn’t wise thing to do. And I thought that this complains about XFCE looking gnomish were related to the layout … which has nothing to do with speed whatsoever.
Happy Gnome user BTW
can I have an olvwmbuntu please. or a fvwmbuntu? and an ebuntu! dont forget an ebuntu.
Actually Im waiting for PornUbuntu to arrive.
Yet Another Buntu
I called it first.
> can I have an olvwmbuntu please. or a fvwmbuntu?
Sure, if you’re willing to do the work to create it. Obviously for KDE and Xfce there have been such people.
Edited 2006-04-21 16:56
booo Ubuntu booooo!! I’m really sick of seeing Ubuntu everywhere, all the articles, all the “How-To’s For Linux (using Ubuntu)” I tried 5.10 and just find it has an awkward feel to it. Stick with SUSE or Fedora. Novell’s putting out good money in R&D with the end-user videos they’ve been recording, being design driven, and not code driven. But if you’re going to use Linux, I say stick with SUSE or Fedora, or even PCLinuxOS. But if possible, get off Linux and just go entirely BSD. I spend my money on buying retail or packaged versions of SUSE, FreeBSD, and OpenBSD. For those who only care about desktop stuff, try PC-BSD, it is FreeBSD-based. They are trying to compete with Mac and Windows in simplicity, security, and ease of package installation(all dependancies included). The guy who started it tests his work on his parents, to see if it is fun and easy for them to use, or if his programming is of no benefit to the mass market, home user. So I say for simplicity, go with PCLinuxOS, SUSE is being driven in the direction of simplicity, or try PC-BSD. But go BSD for security, good and organized filesystem, and a real meekness and strong communication with the developers. All this Ubuntu stuff everywhere is hogwash. Please Ubuntu people, be more open minded when people talk about something that’s wrong with Ubuntu, maybe glarring design flaw, something that’s annoying, or even suggestions of improvement. That’s where I love BSD people, because I can go straight to them and tell them why a feature or design sucks, so long as I have something they can implament, and not me just venting.
I for my self have just good experiences with Ubuntu(been using it since Hoary)and after discovering it while using Dedian unstable i found it very good,newer had serious problems.I can not say the same about SUSE for example and PCLinuxOS…maybe it is me..newer really liked RPM-based distros….
BSD is nice for a server.
just my opinion…
Nonsense!
In the ubuntu forums people are telling what feature or design sucks all the time.
“and not me just venting.”
like right now? 😉
So don’t use it. I got annoyed with Ubuntu, too (after using 5.04 and 5.10 for awhile). But you know what? Like Gentoo, I still use their forums for getting work done.
Ubuntu is big. Ubuntu is popular. Use it for what it is good for, ignore it for what it isn’t (like being on your personal computer).
I’m probably the only one that actually liked the screenshots..
Colors look nice (even though it’s too close to windows xp silver theme.. ).
I’m all for a simple and fast distribution for basic tasks only, like this seems to be.
What I don’t understand is, if xfce is so much faster than gnome, but can run the same software, why not use the faster one, and just improve the smaller things needed ?
Don’t get me wrong, I like (and use daily) gnome. But having a well supported distribution, with a lightweight platform that most people can use, even if with a couple of applications missing, seems like a very good idea.
Installing the main version of gnome and apt-get xfce is not an option when you’re working with older hardware.
XFCE is just slightly faster than Gnome in Dapper beta..with my modest hardware.
I like it as a desktop but i find it lacking some of the features that Gnome has.
Anyway..you can allways download the Xubuntu.iso if you want.
I agree. I like the normal xfce as well (though currently I don’t use it), but this is an intriguing change. Gnome does have a good layout for the infamous “average user”, but it’s resource requirements nowadays mean that’s it just too slow to be enjoyable on some older harder. Combining the best of both worlds (gnome layout + xfce lightweightedness (if that’s even a word)) is interesting.
I’m just about tempted to try this out on my old G3 since happily they have a PPC version of it. Using linux, gnome on this box is way too slow, icewm seemed the best compromise. A gnome’ified xfce however… hmm…
XFCE is my favorite desktop, and now that it is easier to install as a base system I can see myself throwing this on a lot of older hardware. I’m downloading the ISO right now (already 62% of the way done after only 15 minutes). I can’t wait to use this as the next upgrade for my laptop (which is rather old).
I still use GNOME on my desktop because I’ve done numerous Ubuntu installs for others and it’s easier to answer all their questions if I use GNOME on a regular basis.
I totally agree. I like the new look. If I can have the Gnome look with the xfce’s lightweightedness (as macisaac put it) then great, I love it.
– Ubuntu
– Kubuntu
– Xubuntu
– Edubuntu
Isn’t that more than enough?
You could also filter the distro by office suite:
– OOOBuntu
– Abibuntu
– OOOKububtu
– Abikububtu
– OOOXubuntu
– Abixubuntu
– OOOEdubuntu
– Abiedubuntu
Where is the limit to this madness? Why not sticking to the applications that most users prefer and concentrating on it instead of diluting our forces?
Agreed. You forgot about EasyUbuntu from that list. I say they should keep developing Kubuntu, Edubuntu, Xubuntu, Easy Ubuntu, but make them available through apt-get and not seperate CD’s/DVD’s. Just make this Ubuntu distro and make all the other desktop environments available during the original installation procedure, or just install whichever one and let everyone apt-get whichever environment they want if they don’t like the default DE. In the same way SUSE installs all the DE’s at once if you select all of them. Doesn’t every other distro have their DE and let you choose to change whatever software or DE you want without being a sub-distro?
I think text size is a lot too large, don’t you think so?
http://shots.osdir.com/slideshows/618_or/37.png
I would say that the icons are too large, and the font size is actually pretty good (no sarcasm intended).
I have been waiting for this very day for a long time now. I can have a dedicated install cd just for xubuntu!
I see a lot of people whining about the customisation of xubuntu, but I for one like it a lot.
ROX is now gone in favor for thunar! It’s so clean and beautiful. Like nautilus without the fluff.
I can have icons on the desktop, and it automounts my cd:s and puts an icon on the desktop.
About this new default theme. If you don’t like then change it. It’s like three clicks away, but i guess that’s too much asking you whiners to do…
(This is freakin ubuntu. it’s all ABOUT being customized. Install LinuxFromScratch if you want a plain desktop…)
that doesn’t look like XFCE at all – WTF!
WTF is that they thought, “hey, we don’t like Fitt’s law, so window borders shouldn’t exist on the top or bottom, and Gnome’s wasting space on the double bar is a great idea!”
There are other distros, if you want decent defaults. At least Xubuntu is alive and well in some fashion, because it’s the only *buntu I’ll bother using.
yeah, i’ll probably try it out myself, but still. I kind of expected/wanted to see a slightly customized xfce install, rather than.,…what i got. hehe.
I have downloaded and tested the ISO and it’s awesome to have Xfce in a one-stop CD.
Myself, I prefer the default theme of the SVN trunk, that one with yellow, but as long as it’s Xfce I can stand any theme. 🙂
I’m sure that now that they have released this beta CD they will be able to fix the last standing bugs before a good final release.
All I can say is that I dreamed of a distro with apt-get, LiveCD, installer to HD, and Xfce. It’s a dream for me!!!
Thanks guys. Keep it up.
“Nice, but I wish distros would STOP changing the friggin default layout”
The whole point of a distro based on something is that you customize that something.
“They think they know best when really they dont.”
Obviously if you dont like it you use something else instead of whining about it.
When will Linux folks learn, looks is important. UGH what an ugly font. No linux distribution ever has (default) used a font as classy as Mac OS X or Windows XP.
The fonts look bad because the screenshot is compressed to a smaller size. Click on the picture again to get a bigger view.
I must say I like the interface changes they have done to XFCE. It looks cleaner and more usable. I hope XFCE 4.4 is out before the final release.
LOL no, its really bad EVEN if you zoom the pictures. Linux ppl should get out of their shoeboxes & take a look at the competition. Appeals…
/D