What's new in Kiwi Linux 12.08
Sep 6, 2012
- It is based on Ubuntu 12.04.1, and keeping in line with the traditional and largely unwritten goals of the project, it targets Linux newbies who find some of the standard Ubuntu apps lacking or who are taken aback by anything too unfamiliar. Windows XP users for example. It also targets lazy people who would otherwise change about the same things on a vanilla Ubuntu install.
- So it features the Classic Gnome 2 desktop, Chromium, VLC, Pidgin, Flash, multimedia codecs and the rar and p7zip archive format handlers popular in Windows. Small changes compared to plain Ubuntu for someone who knows where to find these packages or change the defaults but for new users such small changes can save a lot of googling and digging in forums. I do not think there needs to be any rite of passage for someone to qualify to simply use a free OS.
- Besides the usplash theme and some changes to the installer slideshow the appearance is 100% Ubuntu. No point in spending time on custom wallpapers let alone entire themes and invalidating the hard work that went into the Ubuntu looks in the past few years just to gain some gratuitous differentiation. Besides, users tend to change their wallpapers.
- Also no separate community is encouraged, it is more or less Ubuntu, people should use the regular forums.
New in Kiwi Linux 10.08 (Sep 2, 2010)
- Chromium instead of Firefox because it is snappier, more stable, has built-in page translations, and has a cleaner albeit at first non-intuitive UI. HTML5 video codecs included.
- Shotwell instead of F-Spot - a nice fast tool, it is happening in Ubuntu 10.10 as well.
- Pidgin instead of Empathy - while I am sure that Empathy and the Telepathy stack is the way in the future, Pidgin is more mature at this point.
- VLC 1.1.3 along with Totem . VLC just handles better regular movies, DVDs, and subtitles. Totem is kept because Chromium annoyingly (but wisely) does not support Mozilla browser plugins that don't use XEmbed and are written instead in the old way using X Intrinsics.
- Adobe Flashplugin and the gstreamer ungood bunch for mp3 and various other codecs.
- Libdvdcss2 for encrypted DVD support
- Evolution removed as most home users are on webmail. The nice desktop-webmail helper app included
- p7zip and rar tools added to help file-roller deal with archives sent by Windows users.
- Gnote instead of Tomboy - more or less equivalent
- Compiz extra settings config
- Firmware to support the Speedtouch 330 USB modem driver - the initial reason to create this derivative is still shipped on the CD, but now fewer people need it having migrated to saner ISP connection equipment.
- Removed Mono, Erlang + CouchDB, Telepathy, Gwibber - as space needed to be freed for the above software the ones that were removed are those I considered stuff for more savvy users and less used by beginners.
New in Kiwi Linux 9.04 (May 2, 2009)
- The supported languages on the CD are English, Hungarian and Romanian.
- GUI for pppoeconf and support for Speedtouch 330 USB ADSL modem firmware.
- A graphical tool for restoring GRUB boot menus lost after installing other OSes.
- Evolution removed, no mail client at all on the CD
- Flashplugin-nonfree and gstreamer codecs for restricted audio and video formats
- Encrypted DVD playback via libdvdcss2
- Compiz extra settings GUI
- p7zip, unrar
New in Kiwi Linux 8.12 (Dec 18, 2008)
- Kiwi Linux 8.12 is a desktop CD based on Ubuntu 8.10 for the x86 architecture. It contains packages necessary for playing restricted multimedia formats by default and supports the Speedtouch 330 USB ADSL modem. The list of available languages is English, French, German, Hungarian and Romanian. Differences between Ubuntu 8.10 and Kiwi Linux 8.08: packages up to date as of 2008-12-15; added Wubi; OpenOffice.org 3.0 with up to date Romanian translation; GUI for pppoeconf; a graphical tool for restoring GRUB boot menus lost after installing other operating system; Evolution removed; Flash plugin and GStreamer codecs for restricted audio and video formats....
New in Kiwi Linux 8.08 (Aug 30, 2008)
- Kiwi Linux 8.08 is a desktop CD derivative based on Ubuntu 8.04.1 LTS for the x86 architecture. It contains packages necessary for playing restricted audio, video and Flash formats by default and supports the SpeedTouch 330 USB ADSL modem. Differences with respect to Ubuntu 8.04.1: packages up to date as of 28 August 2008; Thunderbird as the default mail client, Audacious as the default music player; Flash plugin and all GStreamer codecs; Compiz extra settings GUI; unrar and MS TrueType fonts; a graphical tool for restoring GRUB; Midnight Commander; the Medibuntu repositories enabled by default to allow installing w32codecs, Skype and Google Earth.