Tempted to call this diary 'Open Source: Recommends', just to see how far I could push the diary pimping, but as Open Source just isn't very sexy, it has no command such as
apt-get begin impeachment
and I like neither Anne Coulter nor Bill O'Reilly, there's no way an Open Source diary (at least written by me) will ever reach that hallowed list.
Today we'll be looking at the Business Edition of SabayonLinux, a Linux distribution (or distro) from Italy that is based on the very powerful (and notoriously difficult to install) Gentoo distribution.
We'll also take a look at some excellent Open Source software that can make your computing experience on any platform more productive and more fun, thus the 'recommends'.
Gentoo distributions have come a long way in ease of installation, particularly with the release of a Gentoo graphical installer in recent days; Sabayon Linux is also an easy to install Gentoo system, with the difference being that most of the packages, drivers and codecs are prepared for you in advance.
This is significant for a couple of reasons: installing Gentoo packages (software) often involves long compile times, when you build the software from its source code; Gentoo is more conservative in what is considered stable, so the most cutting-edge packages (such as the 3D effects window compositing tools like Beryl/Compiz) are 'masked', meaning that you risk screwing up your install if you put them in.
The advantage Gentoo systems have over many other Linux distributions is that in compiling the packages from source code you fit the software to the exact specifications of your system, the result being very little bloat and astonishing responsiveness and speed.
I witnessed this incredible speed first hand last week as I installed the Gentoo liveCD to my computer's hard drive using its new graphical installer; the reason for trying out SabayonLinux Business Edition is that it treads the middle ground between Gentoo's stability (more conservative about package choices available) and the standard SabayonLinux which throws caution to the wind and includes everything on top of a Gentoo base, with a lot of games, 3D effects, drivers, and codecs as part of the install.
Choosing the middle ground was largely based on Gentoo's decision that the drivers for my wireless card were not widely tested enough to include as an additional install; also, straight Gentoo uses an older kernel, as the drivers are included in the more recent versions of the Linux kernel. Busier schedule, more time at office means need for wireless.
SabayonLinux Business Edition sacrifices little in the way of speed of a traditional Gentoo system; it does use a more recent kernel, and includes every imaginable bit of productivity software, for the office, for the graphical artist, for video fans, and for ripping/mixing and burning CD/DVDs.
What separates this edition from standard SabayonLinux is the lack of 3D games and 3D effects, in place of which they have chosen all the productivity software. If you like the 3D stuff, you can get the Beta 3 release now, or wait a few days and get the final release--I'm downloading the beta now, and will try it out shortly.
If you want the power of Gentoo, and its superior package (software) management, then that is just a console away; the emerge command connects to the Gentoo software repositories, which contain something on the order of 12,000 packages.
New to SabayonLinux (both the Business Edition and the standard) is the ability for the installer to check if you have a Gentoo install currently on your system and migrate all your user settings to the new installation.
Other new features are the option to use it as a liveDVD (1.7G download), or an internet kiosk, though not quite sure what the distinction is, as I just went for the straight install.
The Business Edition has two choices when installing--the graphical installer, and a text-based installer. The text-based installer is not to be confused with installing through the command line; it's a kind of poor man's graphical installer, with all of your actions being controlled strictly through the tab and enter keys on your keyboard. As I had trouble the last time I used the graphical installer (Sabayon standard 3.3), I chose the latter method for installation.
The installation process went flawlessly, with the nice addition of an auto partitioner that took the worry out of that process; the hardware and monitor resolution were well identified and correctly set from the get-go, and all the drivers needed for wireless are included in the more recent kernel that Business Edition uses. Total install time was 20-25 minutes, at which time I was asked to reboot, remove the DVD, and then finish the installation procedure, which meant setting up the firewall.
The desktop environment by default is KDE, and a very nice implementation of it, certainly one of the nicest around; startup and shutdown are very fast, and the responsiveness of applications opening is excellent.
If you want a very fast and responsive system for a newer computer with a decent graphics card and plenty of ram, then Business Edition is a good choice; if you have an older machine with limited ram, then the new Gentoo liveCD with graphical installer will better serve you. If you are into the 3D stuff, then wait for Sabayon standard, or get the beta now.
Just want to take a moment to look at some of the Open Source software that I use regularly on my desktop machine (Intel iMac), the first being Transmission, a bit torrent client.
Transmission is perhaps unique in bit torrent clients in that you do not need to open any extra ports for it to work; it uses the main http port for its downloads, and is content to run in the background using very few system resources (unlike Azureus, the java-based ram hog). I guess if you are fan of 'warez' and the like (i.e., 'Piracy!!!!') it's not the choice for you--this works best with things like Jamendo, etree, archive.org, and distro torrents. Fast downloads, and nicer security wise, not having extraneous ports open. It's available for all platforms.
One other application I can't speak highly enough about is Abiword; it's a word processor that is significantly lighter and faster than Open Office writer, and able to open and save in the proprietary Windows format, as well as a number of others. It's also multi-platform.
A new name in the Open Source software world is Miro; you may have known it as Democracy Player. It's gotten a name change and a face lift, and supports bit torrent, Youtube and Google video downloads (!); you can also customize the video feeds, adding ones that are from any number of sources. It can run from startup, downloading in the background as you liveblog or what have you, and when you are ready to watch the vids, you can watch them via Miro, or VLC, externally. An excellent choice, also for all systems.
SabayonLinux Business Edition is new enough that there is nothing on Youtube; included below are some of the magical 3D effects of Sabayon standard;
first, the liveDVD:
and then a tutorial (with 'more cowbell'):