Lotsa Gaming Stuff, RMS Message, Promising Distros of 2017
Most notable today and yesterday was the number of articles about Linux gaming. From console games to the most popular of the year, folks seem to be gaming out the end of 2016. Elsewhere, Tux4Ubuntu aims to bring the plucky penguin back to Ubuntu and Jack Wallen explored the "small footprint" LXLE. The Linux Experiment shared tips for Linux security and MakeTechEasier highlighted security with Firejail.
Security is on everyone's mind these days and The Linux Experiment has a few tips for increasing it. Blogger Thomas M said it all begins with updates. If you don't apply the security patches, nothing else matters. He also suggested splitting up your system into different partitions and disks to contain or limit any harm. Using a firewall and a strong password seem obvious, but many still use passwords like 12345 in this day and age. Disk encryption is recommended in case of loss and beware of the risks of your browser. MakeTechEasier's Himanshu Arora recommends using Firejail, "an SUID program that restricts the running environment of untrusted applications, reducing the risk of security breaches. Behind the scenes, what Firejail does is it enables a process as well as its children to have their own private view of the globally-shared kernel resources, including the network stack, process table, and mount table."
Jack Wallen today said that LXLE doesn't really feel like a run-of-the-mill lightweight distribution. Instead, he said, it feels like a "good ole regular footprint Linux." It's based on Ubuntu and features the LXDE desktop. It ships with all the biggies: LibreOffice, GIMP, Firefox and includes Synaptic for installing more. It even ships with 100 wallpapers. The desktop is easy and functional and uCareSystem is a full-featured update manager. The installer can be buggy and the live system user is undocumented, but overall Wallen said "LXLE is a treat to use."
TecMint's Gabriel Cánepa shared his pick of the five most promising new distributions on Distrowatch.com's waiting list. He starts out with SemicodeOS, which is a distro for developers. "EnchantmentOS is a Xubuntu 16.04-based distribution that includes especially-selected applications with low-memory requirements." Bodhi Linux-based Escuelas Linux "includes out of the box a wide variety of educational software." His other picks are specialty distros, but interesting for administrators.
Joey Sneddon today asked if Ubuntu could use more Tux. Why yes, yes it can and the Tux4Ubuntu project was formed to do just that. "Through an interactive bash script you are able to install Tux themed themes and apps:
* GRUB2, BURG & rEFInd boot-loader themes
* Plymouth theme
* LightDM/Unity Greeter login screen styling
* Collection of 100+ wallpapers (most without Tux)
* Arc GTK Theme, Paper Icons, Roboto Fonts
* Install a selection of Tux games
* Buy some Tux-branded merchandise
Richard Stallman posted today of why folks still support GNU. "Because they appreciate the importance of the freedom that we defend, for them and for everyone. With more funds, we could hire additional staff to do more of this." He asked, "Please support the FSF today."
Inside every Linux user is a gamer first-person-shooting to get out. If you doubt that, just look at some of the articles from the past few days on that very topic:
* Linux Gaming Was Great In 2016, But 2017 Should Be Even Better
* Owlboy Coming To Mac And Linux
* The original 'POSTAL' is now open source under the GPL
* Doom is indie-style gaming at its best (requires wine)