gNewSense
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 gNewSense |
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| Company / developer | Brian Brazil and Paul O'Malley |
| OS family | Unix-like |
| Working state | Current |
| Source model | Free software |
| Latest stable release | 2.3 [1] / September 14, 2009 |
| Update method | APT |
| Package manager | dpkg / Synaptic Package Manager |
| Supported platforms | x86, mips |
| Kernel type | Monolithic Linux kernel |
| Default user interface | GNOME |
| License | Free software licenses mainly the GNU GPL |
| Website | www.gnewsense.org |
gNewSense is a GNU/Linux operating system based on Ubuntu.[2] It tries to maintain the user-friendliness of Ubuntu but with all non-free software and binary blobs removed. The Free Software Foundation considers gNewSense to be a GNU/Linux distribution composed entirely of free software.[3]
gNewSense takes a relatively strict stance against non-free software. For example, any documentation that gives instructions on installing non-free software is excluded.[4] As a consequence, gNewSense is the operating system used by Richard Stallman (founder and president of the Free Software Foundation) as of January 2010.[5]
The project was launched by Brian Brazil and Paul O'Malley in 2006. In October 2006, after the 0.85 release,[6] it was given assistance by the Free Software Foundation.[7]
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Technical aspects
By default gNewSense uses GNOME, the official desktop environment of the GNU Project. KDE has also been available in gNewSense since just prior to version 2.0 in 2008.
The Ubiquity installer allows installing to the hard disk from within the Live CD environment without the need for restarting the computer prior to installation.
Besides standard system tools and other small applications, gNewSense comes installed with the following software: the OpenOffice.org productivity suite, the Epiphany Internet browser, the Pidgin instant messenger, and the GIMP for editing photos and other raster graphics. Common software development tools including GCC and the GNU Emacs text editor are installed by default.
Installation
Like Ubuntu, the same CD can be used to run the distribution as a live CD and to install. CD images are available for download.
Versions
Version 1.0, "deltad", was released on 2 November 2006 and was based on Ubuntu 6.06 "Dapper Drake". Version 2.0, "deltah", followed on 30 April 2008 and is based on Ubuntu 8.04 "Hardy Heron"; version 2.1 is a minor update which removes non-free software and expands hardware support.
Comparison with other distributions
Non-free software repositories are not provided by the gNewSense project, most non-free documentation and artwork have been removed and Ubuntu's "Universe" package repository is enabled by default. In order to avoid trademark problems that stem from the modification of Mozilla Firefox, gNewSense 1.1 rebranded it as "BurningDog". BurningDog likewise neither suggests nor provides/supports non-free plugins[8] for various web media, such as Adobe Flash. gNewSense 2.0 uses the Epiphany web browser as released by the GNOME Project, with an option in software sources to install GNU IceCat. Debian is another GNU/Linux distribution noted for strict licensing requirements. gNewSense excludes non-free software that Debian includes (such as non-free/proprietary firmware) and does not have repositories for non-free software (which Debian has). It should be noted, however, that gNewSense's policies allow including documentation that the Debian project considers non-free, particularly that licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License with invariant sections. This includes many manuals released by the GNU project themselves, which contain a lengthy manifesto promoting software freedom as an invariant section.
Limitations
Over one hundred pieces of non-free firmware were removed from the Ubuntu Linux kernel to make gNewSense. Such removals include support for some wireless network cards, and therefore gNewSense currently supports a reduced range of wireless network cards compared to some other GNU/Linux distributions. 3D graphics and application support were also removed by May 1, 2008 [9] because of licensing issues[10] with Mesa 3D. Since those issues were resolved on January 13, 2009, 3D support is now available again in the 2.2 release. [11]
Creating personalized versions
See also: Software remastering
The software which Brian Brazil developed to make gNewSense from Ubuntu, a tool called "Builder", is designed to be general enough so that it can be used by anyone to make their own free software distribution of GNU/Linux.
See also
References
- ^ http://lists.gnu.org/archive/html/gnewsense-users/2009-09/msg00090.html
- ^ "gNewSense Official Website : Free as in freedom | FAQ / FAQ | browse". gNewSense.org. http://www.gnewsense.org/index.php?n=FAQ.FAQ. Retrieved 2009-03-17.
- ^ http://www.gnu.org/distros/free-distros.html
- ^ http://wiki.gnewsense.org/Main/CommunityGuidelines
- ^ http://richard.stallman.usesthis.com/
- ^ Release 0.85
- ^ gNewSense 1.0 released - Free Software Foundation
- ^ gNewSense Official Website | Main / PressRelease20070122
- ^ http://www.gnewsense.org/Main/Deltah
- ^ [1]
- ^ http://www.fsf.org/blogs/licensing/2009-01-xorg-glx
External links
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