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TrueBSD 2.0-RC2

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The TrueBSD project have released RC2 of the upcoming 2.0 version.

TrueBSD is a LiveDVD operating system based on FreeBSD with many useful applications. All open programs will keep working even when you eject LiveDVD (using command cdcontrol eject) in order to get some data from your own CDs.

The following have been added/updated:

  • Updated the system environment and the kernel to FreeBSD 7.1-PRERELEASE;
  • Fixed errors in system installer (/sysutils/trueinstall) which were caused by wrong detection storage drives;
  • Created an official subversion repository (http://truebsd.org/wiki/doku.php?id=subversion);
  • Created a non-official port of x11-wm/ion-3;
  • Created an overlay of the ports tree;
  • Changed a file system hierarchy;
  • Created skel files which are used for each new user;
  • Created a ports tree with patched versions of the software;
  • Created a kernel module snd_hda_hack.ko for additional Intel audio cards support;
  • Script /sysutils/apachemanager for managing the Apache web-server;
  • Script /sysutils/hwdetect for new hardware automatic detection;
  • Script /sysutils/snddetect for new audio cards detection
  • Script /sysutils/ifdetect for net cards detection;
  • Script /sysutils/flashpluginctl for switching on/off the Adobe (R) Macromedia (R) Flash technology;
  • Script /sysutils/getoperalang for Opera translational files installation;
  • Script /sysutils/kblayout for choosing keyboard layout and switching method;
  • New Prompt for the zsh shell;
  • Rewrote the prelogin system utility with using the cdialog. Added new items in menu;
  • Rewrote newtconf script for net configuration with using the sysinstall functionality;
  • Removed function for creating core files for programs which was stopped with segmentation fault;
  • Removed createbzip, extractbzip, formatfloppy, termfont system utilities;
  • Removed all net- and audio cards drivers from the kernel and putted to separate kernel modules;
  • Created a nice highlighting for the system console and kernel messages;
  • Updated all software;

FreeBSD in 2007 – a review

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2007 is over. It was a very successful year for open source software and another 12 interesting months have passed for FreeBSD. In this post I want to look back at 2007 and see how FreeBSD faired, what happened in “FreeBSD land” and how FreeBSD based operating systems have developed. This post will be a sort of summary of the messages I posted during 2007.

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We’ll be looking at:

Start of this blog

Around April last year I was toying with the idea of starting a FreeBSD related news blog with the view to raise more awareness of FreeBSD and show it’s a perfect alternative to Linux. My first post was on 17 May 2007 and since then visitor numbers have rapidly gone up and feedback from visitors indicates that there’s definitely interest in such a blog. With the continuing growth of my WordPress.com hosted blog, I wanted to get some more flexibility and the ability to install plugins and scripts. Hence my move to Bluehost/FreeBSDOS (BTW, if you’re looking for cheap and reliable webhosting, I can really recommend them).

FreeBSD in 2007

FreeBSD LogoUnfortunately 2007 didn’t see the final release of FreeBSD 7.0; just 4 beta’s and a RC1. Well, maybe not “unfortunately”, because a top-quality product is better than a rushed-out flaky one that needs to be fixed and patched soon after its release. FreeBSD 7.0 incorporates some new and exciting technologies which will put this version a-par with, if not ahead of, Linux. Exciting stuff.

The FreeBSD Foundation have issued their quarterly newsletters (Q2, Q3, Q4), keeping the world up-to-date with the latest developments and news. The Foundation received a lot of coverage online and in the blogosphere with their Absolute FreeBSD book auction and their fund raising drive. The 2007 fundraising goal was $250.000, but a total of $403,511 was achieved. Well done.

There are already a couple of Linux related magazines for sale in stores, but BSD magazines aren’t available currently. “An interesting opportunity“, Software Media LLC/LP Magazine must have thought. They will issue first issue at the beginning of Q2 2008 and will contain an article by Dru Lavigne and Jan Stedehouder (Jan used and reviewed both PC-BSD and DesktopBSD for a month in his PC-BSB: the first 30 days and DesktopBSD: the first 30 days series).

Conference-wise, the ‘normal’ BSD conferences (BSDCan, EuroBSD, MeetBSD) were held, with a new one in Turkey (BSDConTR).
CONTINUED

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TrueBSD – ever heard of it?

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TrueBSD LogoRecently I came across a fairly new project called TrueBSD, a FreeBSD LiveCD based on XFCE.

There’s not a great deal of information on the TrueBSD website as to what the goals of the project are, how their project differs from FreeSBIE (another FreeSBIE Live CD based on XFCE), if they’re planning to branch off etc etc etc. This is all the info on the frontpage:

“TrueBSD is a LiveCD operating system based on FreeBSD with many useful applications. All oen programs will keep working even when you eject LiveCD (using command cdcontrol eject) in order to get some data from your own CDs. Just don’t forget to insert the LiveCD again before starting any other programs. TrueBSD is distributed under BSD license, but some of the included software can be covered by some other license..

I have emailed the lead developer about a month ago for more information and background regarding TrueBSD, but all I received back was an email saying he doesn’t speak English. I’ve also tried to contact other members of the team, but, unfortunately, no reply (as yet).

So, the main reason for trying to contact members of the TrueBSD team was to find out some more background info and to see if I should track them on this blog etc.

Does any of you guys you know anything about this project? If, so it would be great if you could drop me a line.