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Support Linux, Buy a T-Shirt

Most people who attend an open source conference typically walk away with t-shirts, stickers and other accessories branded with the logo of their favorite distro or open source project. If you don't go to those events, you can still buy cool stuff to show your support or to give as gifts this holiday season.

Here are some Web sites to check out:

Canonical's online store dates back to 2007 but, surprisingly, Ubuntu hasn't had one -- until now. The U.S. Ubuntu Shop launched quietly last month during the release of Ubuntu 8.10. Now you can grab a hat, mouse pad, and even Ubuntu Thinking Putty, all branded with the distro's "Circle of Friends" logo. 

If Fedora or JBoss is your thing, then head to the Red Hat Cool Stuff Store. Of course, you'll find the requisite hats and shirts, but you can also pick up a credit card bottle opener, golf balls, or an umbrella.

The openSUSE Shop is all about clothes -- there are no mouse pads or flash drives in sight. It does, however, offer baby items for you to dress up your littlest Geeko.

Show your Debian pride with something from The Debian Shop. From Buttons and magnets to calendars and coffee cups, there's a little something for everyone in this store.

The Mandriva Store has the usual fare -- cups, shirts, hats, and magnets -- but also sports underwear and dog clothes.

It's not just distros that have neat online stores. Do an online search of your favorite open source projects and you might be surprised what you'll find. Miro, Audacity, OpenOffice, and of course, Mozilla all have online shops too. 

Where do you shop for open source goodies? Let me know in the comments.

• ubuntu
• Fedora
• Red Hat
• opensuse
• Canonical
• shopping
• stores
• tshirt
• accesories

by aloha on Nov. 25, 2008

How about just donating some money to the project directly... Or give to the FSF - they'll make sure your contribution ends up supporting Open Source

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by Pietro on Nov. 25, 2008

Well, wearing a t-shirt with your favorite distro is more than financial support. It is public support for the cause. Do you remember all the 'Change', 'Hope' Obama t-shirts and buttons? They influenced, created a public image, and got others energized!

Besides, I doubt the cost of these t's are that high, and at many times the t's are donations from local vendors...

Of course, both buying a T and donating directly, will be even better!

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by Ashley on Apr. 09, 2009

I agree I'd rather just donate to the cause. I have enough golf shirts to last me for years from this type of thing, and t-shirts.

I sometimes think about all the unused 'goodies' that are given away as marketing promos.

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