
Nitrux – Powered by Linux, KDE Plasma 5, Qt and Nomad Desktop - open-source-ux
https://nxos.org
======
tapoxi
See also, Fedora Silverblue:
[https://silverblue.fedoraproject.org/](https://silverblue.fedoraproject.org/)

Uses rpm-ostree for atomic updates with desktop applications run in Flatpak
containers and development done in VMs or Docker/OCI images.

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Gonzih
Cached version here
[https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:zGnFLu...](https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:zGnFLuq9qbEJ:https://nxos.org/+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk)

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reacharavindh
Hopefully it does not become a thing like how cryptocurrencies are + everyone
wants their own coin. There are already enough distributions of Linux. What
does this bring that KDE neon, Kubuntu, or even plain old Ubuntu ´KDE desktop
not do already?

To be honest, I appreciate attempts like VoidLinux that tries something
genuine and brings enough difference to warrant its existence and support, but
this really feels like some consumer wanting their own named distribution of
what already exists.

~~~
danieldk
For someone who does not know Void Linux, what does it bring that is genuinely
new? From the webpage's description, it looks like Arch with a different init
system.

To me e.g. Fedora's Team Silverblue and NixOS seem genuinely different, since
they completely rethink how installations and upgrades are done.

~~~
reacharavindh
From what little I have played with Void Linux so far,

* Void Linux is minimal by default, and comes without Systemd

* It can be had with Musl instead of Glibc as a lighter weight alternative

* Option of binary packages or source pages that you can compile yourself with -native

* LibreSSL by default.

Not saying that all of the above are how all Linux distributions should be,
but the lack of Systemd already hooked me in to try it out.

~~~
brobdingnagians
IIRC it is by some BSD-style people who took some of the design ideas from
BSD. LibreSSL is a huge plus for me in terms of security, and the more I learn
about systemd the happier I am to get away from it. Didn't know about Musl,
but that's nice too [
[http://www.etalabs.net/compare_libcs.html](http://www.etalabs.net/compare_libcs.html)
]

------
StreamBright
Error estableciendo una conexión con la base de datos

This is great. I guess they need a landing page that does not use SQL server
to render.

~~~
ComputerGuru
Or just fix whatever query hog system they’re using. Nothing wrong with an LP
that hits the DB. Just don’t f it up.

------
Koshkin
> Error estableciendo una conexión con la base de datos

~~~
Theizestooke
It's Ubuntu-based, with some modified KDE desktop.

~~~
codetrotter
Speaking of Ubuntu-based distros with KDE desktop, I recently found a distro
called "KDE Neon".

[https://neon.kde.org/](https://neon.kde.org/)

Well, actually, they themselves describe KDE Neon as "not quite a distro".

> Is it a distro?

> Not quite, it's a package archive with the latest KDE software on top of a
> stable base. While we have installable images, unlike full Linux
> distributions we're only interested in KDE software.

[https://neon.kde.org/faq](https://neon.kde.org/faq)

Anyway, I recently switched my laptop over to KDE Neon after my faithful
FreeBSD install broke.

I have previously used KDE-based desktops on Fedora and on openSUSE. (And a
lot of other DEs and distros over the years but the point was to speak about
KDE.)

For my laptop I have been very satisfied with KDE Neon. Still debating whether
or not to run it on my desktop.

~~~
heywire
I also have been very happy with KDE Neon on my Dell Latitude 7370. The only
downside is when I plug in a 4k and 1080p monitor, the system doesn't handle
the multi-dpi setup.

------
AnIdiotOnTheNet
I like the idea of a distribution where AppImages are the first class way of
adding applications, but I was pretty disappointed in Nitrux. It's all the
little things, like apparently not having a good way to display AppImage
icons, and how hovering over the dock icons doesn't tell you what the hell
they are. Why can't I point a widget at a directory of AppImages and get a
custom menu? etc.

Christ, they might have even fixed some of this since I last used it, but I
can't tell because they don't offer an ISO you can dump on a USB to try out

"...this means that the ONLY way to use Nitrux is deploying the ISO image
using znx. We DO NOT recommend that you flash the ISO raw to a storage device
AT ALL, please use znx." [0]

Once again, a fancy website and lots of ambitious words built around a
shoddily implemented half-baked idea.

[0] [https://nxos.org/en/compendium/#deploying-
nitrux](https://nxos.org/en/compendium/#deploying-nitrux)

~~~
newjersey
Looks like database connection issues... Archived at
[https://archive.is/olI6j](https://archive.is/olI6j)

~~~
AnIdiotOnTheNet
Nothing at all to do with the database issues, the site works fine for me and
I grabbed the ISO, it just doesn't actually work unless you use znx, as stated
on the site.

------
edoo
So it sounds like Ubuntu with different default GUI apps. I would almost
consider recommending something like that for brand new users but it would
have to be rather established. If you have the slightest experience installing
packages and editing the occasional config file you can switch your experience
to match this fairly easily.

Vanilla Ubuntu tends to include the mid range GUI, the one that performs OK
and doesn't look too bad. Plasma should likely be the default unless you know
you want a lighter weight GUI. Unity and GNOME just don't cut it for serious
multiple monitor usage. I always find myself on Plasma or xfce4. One example
is in Ubuntu 18.04 it is impossible to move the top taskbar off your 'primary'
monitor. That is so ridiculous.

------
natex
I thought I'd seen that logo before.
[https://www.bing.com](https://www.bing.com)

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jchw
This thing is getting panned hard right now on HN, but I think it looks cool.
I don't really like AppImage too much, nor Snaps or Flatpak, though. It's a
terrible workaround for open source OSes not being able to provide a stable
ABI. The UX is a bit nicer, though.

Still, a distro with nice, modern UX is welcome. I also enjoyed Manjaro for a
while.

~~~
twblalock
> I don't really like AppImage too much, nor Snaps or Flatpak, though. It's a
> terrible workaround for open source OSes not being able to provide a stable
> ABI.

It's a lot more than that. The point is that applications should be self-
contained and should not depend on the host operating system, and can be
installed and run in isolation without affecting each other unless you want
them to.

Hopefully it will one day mean that app developers can make just one package
that can be installed on all Linux distributions.

~~~
jchw
That's a different issue imo.

Isolation is one thing. We can accomplish that with kernel primitives we have
today. Yeah, a distribution mechanism like snaps would be needed.

But snaps are simply doing too much. Like, I should be able to download and
run software like I can on Windows and to a lesser extent, Android. The
deployment mechanism and the sandbox and the ABI issues all need to be solved
separately. Boxing an entire distro per each app is Not necessary for
isolation, Not good for security, and generally not a good solution to the ABI
issue that prompted it.

If it weren't for ABI stability problems, there would be no issue with still
having the isolation of snaps while being able to update components of the
base system like libssl.

On a side note, I really dont like how these things clutter the shit out of
mounts. Like, I appreciate that they are doing so for isolation, but the side
effect is that merely having an app installed adds n mounts? That seems
unsustainable.

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jose_zap
A great looking KDE distribution, I'm very impressed. Great job!

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coleifer
What's the catch? Why all the flashy marketing juju? Why would someone put so
much time into making the site all..."designed"?

And this:

> "Nitrux is made with <3 by people like you"

What the fuck? This is some kenneth reitz-level pandering.

~~~
justwalt
Could you explain the last line in your comment for someone who isn’t familiar
with Ken Reitz?

~~~
toyg
Kenneth Reitz is the author of Python library Requests. After Requests
exploded in popularity, he developed a somewhat unique approach to marketing
his libraries, to the point where anything he promotes nowadays becomes
controversial (i.e. “is it good because it is good, or because Kenneth writes
about it all-cute-y?”).

~~~
RidingPegasus
What a strange sentiment. I've never once heard anyone call Reitz
controversial.

I think the widespread usage of his libraries speaks for itself as to whether
they are "good", especially considering they have standard library
equivalents.

Am a big fan of Arrow, it's far better than DateTime.

~~~
toyg
Well, now you’ve seen two in a single thread.

Some of what Kenneth builds is very good, some less so. Sometimes he just
pulls annoying stunts that are disrespectful of the community at large, like
with pipenv. With all that “Human” marketing, he has burnt quite a bit of the
goodwill accumulated with Requests, but he’s also built a critical mass of
developers who will basically adopt anything he makes regardless of actual
merits; which in turn generates backlash. The two phenomenons tend to feed on
each other.

~~~
devxpy
I found most of his projects quite useful. Sure, it might involve a bit of
overselling, but the API design is really good for the most part.

Also - I don't think you can really sustain an open source project that brings
almost nothing, except a really good API (which some people really value) to
the table without good marketing.

------
majewsky
Just what the world needs... Another Linux distribution.

Seriously though, you need a lot more to sell me on a new distribution than
"Ubuntu, but with AppImages". That's actually a large part of the problem of
FOSS in general: We focus on the technical underpinnings rather than on the
problems that we intend to solve. If the creators of this distribution want to
address specific issues of the Linux desktop experience, they should do a
better job communicating that, not least to attract contributors.

~~~
mathw
I was just thinking about focussing on technical underpinnings like you said,
while reading their copy. Do I care that Nomad Firewall uses Qt? That's almost
the first thing they say about it, and then later about how it's written in
C++ with a QML user interface. That's what I'd expect for a Qt application
these days, and it's also almost entirely irrelevant.

I do tend to look askance at things written in JavaScript that aren't destined
to run in a web browser, but ultimately what I care about is whether it works,
and I suspect users who aren't developers (that would be most of them) really
only do care if it works for what they need it to do.

We keep promoting stuff as "ooh look this is written in Rust!" or "it's in
JavaScript!" but the important thing should be the effects of those things -
i.e. you might choose to write something in Rust for performance and
reliability reasons, and to write something in JavaScript for portability.

~~~
tomc1985
It would be really cool if all this tool fetishism-slash-cargo-culting turned
into performance fetishism.

"Look at how awesome our rich desktop UI is at only 2% CPU usage on an average
quad-core!"

versus all this "made with love" garbage

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myWindoonn
How interesting that their URL is nearly, but not quite, nixos.org.

~~~
undersuit
They refer to themselves and some of their software as NX multiple times.
Nitrux OS is the full name of NXOS, just like RedHat Enterprise Linux is for
RHEL.

~~~
cnorthwood
It's also confusingly the name of the OS for Cisco's Nexus line of switches.
It's IOS/iOS all over again...

