LXLE - Lubuntu Extra Life Extension

[ronniew]

Linux Format Magazine Ships LXLE on DVD in Issue 177

Whether you've just discovered Linux, or you're a full-time guru, Linux Format has everything you need to make the most of your OS. Published monthly and sold around the world, the leading UK Linux magazine highlights the latest developments in the world of open source, examines new software and book releases, and shows you how to go further with our hands-on tutorials.

http://www.linuxformat.com/

[ronniew]

Upcoming LXLE Linux Beta 1 now out for testing.

This beta tries to polish up a few areas, lower memory usage and provide a more streamlined incarnation of its recent predecessor, in preparing for the Ubuntu Linux LTS 12.04.4 update. This is the first beta version of three scheduled before official release in late January 2014.

http://lxle.net/articles/?post=upcom...ut-for-testing

[ronniew]

After polishing up the pre 12.04.4 beta I decided to make a short promo for it. I don't really make videos so don't expect Scorsese or Apples advertising crew, lol.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=99zomqqk1tM

[bobblex]

I've now got the latest version of LXLE running on one of my systems. I used to have a problem accessing the virtual terminals (VT) and found after moving to Lubuntu 13.10 I had the same problem. It turns out it has something to do with the Nvidia drivers. If I run the default installed video drivers I get nice hidef VTs, but with the Nvidia drivers I get no VTs unless I add the "nomodeset" option to grub. With the "nomodeset" option I can bet VTs but they are in 640x480 rather than the 1280x1024 default for my monitor. Not a problem, however, as I can access the VTs now. The large text is easier to read, just not as pretty.

The latest LXLE is really running smoothly on my old Dell 2350 with a 1.8Ghz P4, 1GB RAM and a couple of 80GB drives.

[ronniew]

The LXLE 12.04.4 Release Candidate is now available since Ubuntu's 12.04.4 kernel freeze went into effect on 12/12/2013. After a few days of testing, updates and more polish, LXLE is now in final testing days before officially being released in tandem with the LTS 12.04.4 update.

http://lxle.net/articles/?post=lxle-...date-available

[ronniew]

Updated the LXLE startpage to support DuckDuckGo region boosted search. Also made DDG region boosted plugins for any browsers searchbar. More details and plugins can be found here.

http://lxle.net/duckduckgo-region-search-plugins/

[monkeybrain20122]

I have downloaded it and made a 4G live usb with persistence for some guy whose hard drive has broken as a stop gap solution before he gets a new computer/hard drive. It is an old machine that used to work with lubuntu 12.04 but lubuntu 12.04 is eol so I got lxle.

I don't understand how lxle is "long term suppport" as it seems to be just lubuntu with the same repositories but with lubuntu restricted extras preinstalled and a lot of ppas enabled by default (vlc nightly build etc etc along with some obscure ones)

I use many ppas, I am not one of those 'only install from the official repo or your system will break and the dingo will eat your baby' people, but lxle's sources.list out of the box is longer than mine. With so many ppas' installed without the user's knowledge is problematic as you need to be aware of what to update and what to hold back and which to disable after installing what you want, or dependency conflicts may arise later (since there are so many ppas), also some ppas may just stop working after a while and need to be removed (e.g medibuntu)

I am also not sure why it comes with so many junks preinstalled and I had to spend a bit of time to remove them. It looks like there is no real process of selection invoved and the maintainers just install whatever they find in the repos randomly thinking that it may be useful (do they even use them?) For example, is it excessive to come preinstalled with all those games?

As for DDG, you can always get it if you want it, but most people want google.

[ronniew]

Seems to be and actually knowing can be two different things. LXLE is an LTS because as a community we are choosing to support it for the same duration as Ubuntu. Is it an official LTS release from canonical? No. Are updates updates and support provided? Yes. We manage our own PPA for lxle in which we keep system components and other software up to date, and provide support and documentation through our forums and wiki. LXLE is also utilizing a number of underlying technologies that are different than lubuntu, addresses problem areas, reconfigures backend processes for better memory management, etc.

The PPA's / Repositories that are enabled are our's and the developers direct repository or PPA such as LibreOffice, VLC, Openshot, etc. Main repo's or PPA's were only used to ensure their continued updates. Medibuntu shutting down came as a surprise to everyone since it had been a stable repository for so many years. Regardless removing the repository was addressed immediately and is something every user on any system sometime will have to learn.

As for 'junk' preinstalled. LXLE is setup with the idea of being a drop in and go OS, meaning that you could really install it on any PC, particularly an older system and be relatively done. This comes in handy if either you just want to do a quick install for either yourself or someone else, or your a brand new linux user trying to get a few more years out of your old computer.

The process of selection of software had a lot of thought put into it, trying to find balance between easy, feature rich apps combine with a lightweight system. Each major category of normal computer use was address with at least one capable easy to use app, preferably a lightweight one. The software selection and setup has received a positive response with numerous publications and partnerships in it's relatively short life such as the following

DistroWatch Review
PCWorld Magazine
Video Reviews
Our Reviews
More Articles
and
Linux Format Magazine - Distributed LXLE DVD on the cover of their december issue.

As for DDG. It's an excellent search engine which is private and doesn't track you. It's a search engine that Richard Stallman uses, it's almost entirely opensource. They regularly contribute code and funds to opensource projects. Gnome, Firefox, Ubuntu, Debian and about 50 other well known distros and browsers come with DuckDuckGo as an option and most of those distro's configure DDG as the default search engine, such as Debian, Linux Mint, Peppermint, Gnome Web Browser and Midori just to name a few. So as far as what search engine I tend to use and promote is pretty obvious given their opensource track record, privacy policy, and acceptance within the opensource community.

If LXLE isn't something that you really care for all that much for whatever reason, it's always a really nice thing to have so many other distro's available to choose from, there is a distro out there for everyone.

[cmcanulty]

I really like LXLE and the idea to combine lightweight with actual decent software not like a lot of lightweight distros that you end up having to add to and tweak ad nauseum. Especially good for linux newbies, thanks so much for your efforts!

[monkeybrain20122]

The PPA's / Repositories that are enabled are our's and the developers direct repository or PPA such as LibreOffice, VLC, Openshot, etc. Main repo's or PPA's were only used to ensure their continued updates. Medibuntu shutting down came as a surprise to everyone since it had been a stable repository for so many years. Regardless removing the repository was addressed immediately and is something every user on any system sometime will have to learn.

Still doesn't change the fact that with so many ppas enabled there is a high risk that updates will get out of sync eventually and since lxle is aimed at new users they would have a hard time fixing the inconsistencies that may result.

Unlike some people here who give dire warnings for installing anything outside the official repos I am as far from an update purist as one can be, I use a lot of ppas myself--but still I have less ppas than lxle out of the box,-- using ppas per se is not my problem, ppas are one of the most attractive features of the Ubuntu ecology. But I enabled them myself so I know what have been enabled and when dependencies issues arise (which happen from time to time especially when you use lots of them) I know how to fix them, say by downgrading some packages and pinning them and/or disabling some ppas, or more drastically ppa-purge. It is not rocket science but it would be a hazard for new users if they have no idea what is going on. Also I try to avoid ppas which upgrade a lot of packages or use them just for some packages and disable them afterwords, new users wouldn't know that especially if they have no idea what ppas are and that they are enabled.

And as a matter of fact I knew there were ppa installed because I got some odd error messages installing vlc (can't remember what they were now), so I checked the sources list. Incidentally since the version of vlc is not going to get update from that ppa there is little point of using it anyway. It will forever be 2.0.8 or whatever version that comes with Precise (See Videolan's forum)

As for 'junk' preinstalled. LXLE is setup with the idea of being a drop in and go OS, meaning that you could really install it on any PC, particularly an older system and be relatively done. This comes in handy if either you just want to do a quick install for either yourself or someone else, or your a brand new linux user trying to get a few more years out of your old computer.

I would be quite surprised that someone would be able to use an old machine with <= 1g of ram (typical for Lubuntu use case) for video editing and playing some of the games preinstalled (and there are how many games again??!!)

As for DDG. It's an excellent search engine which is private and doesn't track you. It's a search engine that Richard Stallman uses, it's almost entirely opensource. They regularly contribute code and funds to opensource projects. Gnome, Firefox, Ubuntu, Debian and about 50 other well known distros and browsers come with DuckDuckGo as an option and most of those distro's configure DDG as the default search engine, such as Debian, Linux Mint, Peppermint, Gnome Web Browser and Midori just to name a few. So as far as what search engine I tend to use and promote is pretty obvious given their opensource track record, privacy policy, and acceptance within the opensource community.

RMS wouldn't use lubuntu restricted extras or flash in the first place It is not a big deal, just saying that it makes more sense to make DDG an option rather than the default especially for new users, which you say you cater to. In any case it is not difficult to add if you want it and know about it. But since you claim to cater for out of the box experience and preinstall so many non free stuffs anyway, it does seem odd.