PCLinuxOS, Distros, and 10 reasons to try PCLinuxOS.

When I first started experimenting with Linux, it was quite primitive. I waited a couple of years, and tried it again. I purchased a bunch of distros from cheapbytes.com, and tried them all in various computers.
Only one of those distros worked on the majority of machines (where all the devices functioned properly). That distro was Mandrake 7.0. I think it was KDE 2.0 or 2.1 at the time. I stayed with Mandrake for several years (who bought out Connectiva Linux and changed its name to Mandriva Linux).
Through the years, I found some version releases were wonderful (Mandriva 8.2 was remarkably stable on a server for me, as well being a fine desktop).
For Mandriva in a desktop role, I discovered this guy who went by the handle of Texstar was taking the latest KDE releases and producing RPM packages to work with Mandriva. Mandriva even mentioned on their web pages that a person could find updated KDE RPMs created by a guy named Textar [sic]. Yes, here was a guy who was single-handedly keeping the Mandriva distro's primary GUI up to date, and they incorrectly spell his name.
More Mandriva versions were released, and Texstar relentlessly kept issuing updated KDE RPMs for each version. He did an incredible amount of very high quality work, and made the Mandriva experience much better than it would otherwise have been.
On Tex's web site (pclinuxonline.com) I read messages in the forums where folks were encouraging Tex to fork Mandriva and do his own distribution. Sal was one of the guys urging Tex to do his own distro. I was skeptical--although Tex had proved to be an incredibly talented and hard-working maker of KDE RPM's specific to the Mandrake/Mandriva distro, I thought that doing your own complete distro (even with forking Mandriva's source code) was too arduous and difficult a task.
So Tex stopped doing Mandriva KDE packages, and was reputed to be working (with a few others) on a new distro to be called PCLinuxOS. Frankly, I didn't pay much attention--I kept using Mandriva in both server and desktop roles.
Mandriva 10.0 came and went, then 10.1, and Mandriva 10.2/2005, 2006, and now 2007. Mandriva fired Gael Duval. Although I thought he was treated badly, I stuck with Mandriva. But I was becoming increasingly frustrated with Mandriva not officially releasing KDE updates. And while other 3rd parties jumped in to provide KDE updates, they didn't (particularly at first) have the quality and reliability of Tex's RPMs.
And Mandriva's software updater was often unreliable. They changed the organization and structure of their repositories (more than once). It was becoming increasingly difficult to keep a release updated.
Finally, when PCLinuxOS .92 came out, I made the switch from Mandriva. In a way, it was a sad time for me. I had been a silver edition Mandriva club member for several years. I thought Mandriva, as a company, was faithful to Open Source ideals. I had, for many years, paid my club membership *and* purchased boxed sets of each new release.
When PCLinuxOS .93a came out, I upgraded to it. This distro version has been wonderful--a real sweet spot. And on the rare occasion that Tex and the gang didn't have an RPM package for what I wanted, I'd compile my own.
However, there were a few things that just wouldn't compile. They needed the newer C/C++ development libraries, (and libraries that depended on those libraries). And, of course, other distros were starting to introduce new 3D accelerated effects with Compiz and Beryl.
The forums at pclinuxos.com mentioned that Tex and the gang were working on a new release. So, a version of PCLinuxOS 2007 was released internally. About a month later, PCLinuxOS 2007 Test Release 1 was released for wide-spread testing. For me, this version worked fine, with no issues--it is equivalent to, say, a Release Candidate version 2. After further testing and debugging, PCLinuxOS final is due out at the end of January.
What do I think of PCLinuxOS 2007 Test Release 1? I find it stunning. When the final 2007 release version comes out, I think it will skyrocket in popularity. Already, PCLinux OS has taken over 5th place (from Mandriva) on the distrowatch.com hit parade.
So, a couple of caveats--while PCLinuxOS contains quite a bit of server stuff in its repositories, it is primarily a desktop oriented distro.
Secondly, there are some non-free packages in the distro. You will get all the audio and video codecs and drivers you need. This distro is not for FOSS purists.
Top Ten reasons to install and use PCLinuxOS:
1. It's drop dead gorgeous, and very professional looking.
2. The Beryl/Compiz 3D acceleration effects are terrific--much better than any other distro I've tried.
3. The repository has over 5000 packages, and updates are incredibly prompt, smooth, and easy to do. Synaptic, the GUI package manager works easily and reliably with the repository's RPM packages. Dependency issues are usually well handled. All the development programs and libraries are up to date.
4. An up to date KDE version (3.5.6).
5. Bugs, problems, and issues are promptly fixed.
6. The PCLinuxOS community is positive and helpful. Documentation is excellent. Support is excellent.
7. It's quick and snappy.
8. Everything works.
9. Its very easy to install ... and ...
10. It doesn't require the largess and financial backing of a millionaire to keep it going.
So, yes, the former child (PCLinusOS) has grown up to supersede its parent (Mandriva). Put simply, for a desktop Linux distro, it's the best.
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| OpenSSH 8.5OpenSSH 8.5 was released on 2021-03-03. It is available from the mirrors listed at https://www.openssh.com/. OpenSSH is a 100% complete SSH protocol 2.0 implementation and includes sftp client and server support. Once again, we would like to thank the OpenSSH community for their continued support of the project, especially those who contributed code or patches, reported bugs, tested snapshots or donated to the project. More information on donations may be found at: https://www.openssh.com/donations.html Future deprecation notice ========================= It is now possible[1] to perform chosen-prefix attacks against the SHA-1 algorithm for less than USD$50K. In the SSH protocol, the "ssh-rsa" signature scheme uses the SHA-1 hash algorithm in conjunction with the RSA public key algorithm. OpenSSH will disable this signature scheme by default in the near future. Note that the deactivation of "ssh-rsa" signatures does not necessarily require cessation of use for RSA keys. In the SSH protocol, keys may be capable of signing using multiple algorithms. In particular, "ssh-rsa" keys are capable of signing using "rsa-sha2-256" (RSA/SHA256), "rsa-sha2-512" (RSA/SHA512) and "ssh-rsa" (RSA/SHA1). Only the last of these is being turned off by default. This algorithm is unfortunately still used widely despite the existence of better alternatives, being the only remaining public key signature algorithm specified by the original SSH RFCs that is still enabled by default. The better alternatives include: * The RFC8332 RSA SHA-2 signature algorithms rsa-sha2-256/512. These algorithms have the advantage of using the same key type as "ssh-rsa" but use the safe SHA-2 hash algorithms. These have been supported since OpenSSH 7.2 and are already used by default if the client and server support them. * The RFC8709 ssh-ed25519 signature algorithm. It has been supported in OpenSSH since release 6.5. * The RFC5656 ECDSA algorithms: ecdsa-sha2-nistp256/384/521. These have been supported by OpenSSH since release 5.7. To check whether a server is using the weak ssh-rsa public key algorithm, for host authentication, try to connect to it after removing the ssh-rsa algorithm from ssh(1)'s allowed list: ssh -oHostKeyAlgorithms=-ssh-rsa user@host If the host key verification fails and no other supported host key types are available, the server software on that host should be upgraded. This release enables the UpdateHostKeys option by default to assist the client by automatically migrating to better algorithms. [1] "SHA-1 is a Shambles: First Chosen-Prefix Collision on SHA-1 and Application to the PGP Web of Trust" Leurent, G and Peyrin, T (2020) https://eprint.iacr.org/2020/014.pdf Security ======== * ssh-agent(1): fixed a double-free memory corruption that was introduced in OpenSSH 8.2 . We treat all such memory faults as potentially exploitable. This bug could be reached by an attacker with access to the agent socket. On modern operating systems where the OS can provide information about the user identity connected to a socket, OpenSSH ssh-agent and sshd limit agent socket access only to the originating user and root. Additional mitigation may be afforded by the system's malloc(3)/free(3) implementation, if it detects double-free conditions. The most likely scenario for exploitation is a user forwarding an agent either to an account shared with a malicious user or to a host with an attacker holding root access. * Portable sshd(8): Prevent excessively long username going to PAM. This is a mitigation for a buffer overflow in Solaris' PAM username handling (CVE-2020-14871), and is only enabled for Sun-derived PAM implementations. This is not a problem in sshd itself, it only prevents sshd from being used as a vector to attack Solaris' PAM. It does not prevent the bug in PAM from being exploited via some other PAM application. GHPR#212 Potentially-incompatible changes ================================ This release includes a number of changes that may affect existing configurations: * ssh(1), sshd(8): this release changes the first-preference signature algorithm from ECDSA to ED25519. * ssh(1), sshd(8): set the TOS/DSCP specified in the configuration for interactive use prior to TCP connect. The connection phase of the SSH session is time-sensitive and often explicitly interactive. The ultimate interactive/bulk TOS/DSCP will be set after authentication completes. * ssh(1), sshd(8): remove the pre-standardization cipher rijndael-cbc@lysator.liu.se. It is an alias for aes256-cbc before it was standardized in RFC4253 (2006), has been deprecated and disabled by default since OpenSSH 7.2 (2016) and was only briefly documented in ssh.1 in 2001. * ssh(1), sshd(8): update/replace the experimental post-quantum hybrid key exchange method based on Streamlined NTRU Prime coupled with X25519. The previous sntrup4591761x25519-sha512@tinyssh.org method is replaced with sntrup761x25519-sha512@openssh.com. Per its designers, the sntrup4591761 algorithm was superseded almost two years ago by sntrup761. (note this both the updated method and the one that it replaced are disabled by default) * ssh(1): disable CheckHostIP by default. It provides insignificant benefits while making key rotation significantly more difficult, especially for hosts behind IP-based load-balancers. Changes since OpenSSH 8.4 ========================= New features ------------ * ssh(1): this release enables UpdateHostkeys by default subject to some conservative preconditions: - The key was matched in the UserKnownHostsFile (and not in the GlobalKnownHostsFile). - The same key does not exist under another name. - A certificate host key is not in use. - known_hosts contains no matching wildcard hostname pattern. - VerifyHostKeyDNS is not enabled. - The default UserKnownHostsFile is in use. We expect some of these conditions will be modified or relaxed in future. * ssh(1), sshd(8): add a new LogVerbose configuration directive for that allows forcing maximum debug logging by file/function/line pattern-lists. * ssh(1): when prompting the user to accept a new hostkey, display any other host names/addresses already associated with the key. * ssh(1): allow UserKnownHostsFile=none to indicate that no known_hosts file should be used to identify host keys. * ssh(1): add a ssh_config KnownHostsCommand option that allows the client to obtain known_hosts data from a command in addition to the usual files. * ssh(1): add a ssh_config PermitRemoteOpen option that allows the client to restrict the destination when RemoteForward is used with SOCKS. * ssh(1): for FIDO keys, if a signature operation fails with a "incorrect PIN" reason and no PIN was initially requested from the user, then request a PIN and retry the operation. This supports some biometric devices that fall back to requiring PIN when reading of the biometric failed, and devices that require PINs for all hosted credentials. * sshd(8): implement client address-based rate-limiting via new sshd_config(5) PerSourceMaxStartups and PerSourceNetBlockSize directives that provide more fine-grained control on a per-origin address basis than the global MaxStartups limit. Bugfixes -------- * ssh(1): Prefix keyboard interactive prompts with "(user@host)" to make it easier to determine which connection they are associated with in cases like scp -3, ProxyJump, etc. bz#3224 * sshd(8): fix sshd_config SetEnv directives located inside Match blocks. GHPR#201 * ssh(1): when requesting a FIDO token touch on stderr, inform the user once the touch has been recorded. * ssh(1): prevent integer overflow when ridiculously large ConnectTimeout values are specified, capping the effective value (for most platforms) at 24 days. bz#3229 * ssh(1): consider the ECDSA key subtype when ordering host key algorithms in the client. * ssh(1), sshd(8): rename the PubkeyAcceptedKeyTypes keyword to PubkeyAcceptedAlgorithms. The previous name incorrectly suggested that it control allowed key algorithms, when this option actually specifies the signature algorithms that are accepted. The previous name remains available as an alias. bz#3253 * ssh(1), sshd(8): similarly, rename HostbasedKeyTypes (ssh) and HostbasedAcceptedKeyTypes (sshd) to HostbasedAcceptedAlgorithms. * sftp-server(8): add missing lsetstat@openssh.com documentation and advertisement in the server's SSH2_FXP_VERSION hello packet. * ssh(1), sshd(8): more strictly enforce KEX state-machine by banning packet types once they are received. Fixes memleak caused by duplicate SSH2_MSG_KEX_DH_GEX_REQUEST (oss-fuzz #30078). * sftp(1): allow the full range of UIDs/GIDs for chown/chgrp on 32bit platforms instead of being limited by LONG_MAX. bz#3206 * Minor man page fixes (capitalization, commas, etc.) bz#3223 * sftp(1): when doing an sftp recursive upload or download of a read-only directory, ensure that the directory is created with write and execute permissions in the interim so that the transfer can actually complete, then set the directory permission as the final step. bz#3222 * ssh-keygen(1): document the -Z, check the validity of its argument earlier and provide a better error message if it's not correct. bz#2879 * ssh(1): ignore comments at the end of config lines in ssh_config, similar to what we already do for sshd_config. bz#2320 * sshd_config(5): mention that DisableForwarding is valid in a sshd_config Match block. bz3239 * sftp(1): fix incorrect sorting of "ls -ltr" under some circumstances. bz3248. * ssh(1), sshd(8): fix potential integer truncation of (unlikely) timeout values. bz#3250 * ssh(1): make hostbased authentication send the signature algorithm in its SSH2_MSG_USERAUTH_REQUEST packets instead of the key type. This make HostbasedAcceptedAlgorithms do what it is supposed to - filter on signature algorithm and not key type. Portability ----------- * sshd(8): add a number of platform-specific syscalls to the Linux seccomp-bpf sandbox. bz#3232 bz#3260 * sshd(8): remove debug message from sigchld handler that could cause deadlock on some platforms. bz#3259 * Sync contrib/ssh-copy-id with upstream. * unittests: add a hostname function for systems that don't have it. Some systems don't have a hostname command (it's not required by POSIX). The do have uname -n (which is), but not all of those have it report the FQDN. Checksums: ========== - SHA1 (openssh-8.5.tar.gz) = 04cae43c389fb411227c01219e4eb46e3113f34e - SHA256 (openssh-8.5.tar.gz) = 5qB2CgzNG4io4DmChTjHgCWqRWvEOvCKJskLdJCz+SU= - SHA1 (openssh-8.5p1.tar.gz) = 72eadcbe313b07b1dd3b693e41d3cd56d354e24e - SHA256 (openssh-8.5p1.tar.gz) = 9S8/QdQpqpkY44zyAK8iXM3Y5m8FLaVyhwyJc3ZG7CU= Please note that the SHA256 signatures are base64 encoded and not hexadecimal (which is the default for most checksum tools). The PGP key used to sign the releases is available from the mirror sites: https://cdn.openbsd.org/pub/OpenBSD/OpenSSH/RELEASE_KEY.asc Please note that the OpenPGP key used to sign releases has been rotated for this release. The new key has been signed by the previous key to provide continuity. Reporting Bugs: =============== - Please read https://www.openssh.com/report.html Security bugs should be reported directly to openssh@openssh.com ![]() |
A finely tuned engine
I think the review covers it. I would still drop it now if it did not keep Xfce. As for the eye candy, you can get rid of it if, like I, you find it more of an eyesore.
I too moved from Mandriva. For me, its so-called "2007" version was the last straw.
PCLinuxOS has given me no trouble, unlike the 7 or so others I've tried to some degree.
-----
I try to take one day at a time -- but sometimes several days attack me at once - Ashleigh Brilliant
I agree with some of your
I agree with some of your points but hat I really find annoying in every PCLinuxOS I read is the lack of concern about the internationalisation of the distro. Indeed I didn't find any non-english word in the whole live-cd. Even the bootloader at the beginning isn't translated, nor the installer who's pretty much Mandriva's.
So yes they took Mandrake, put a better package manager and a good new theme on it. But they also dropped everything that makes Mandriva 2007 worthy: the several CDs with different languages, the several formats (live cd, dvd installer...)
Localization of PCLOS
I find the fact that the PCLOS team concentrates on make a darn good distro in English not at all disturbing. A whole community has sprung up around the developers and that community is certainly up to the task of internationalizing.
Over on MyPCLinuxOS.com you can find localization efforts and howto's in many languages, pclinuxos.nl has Dutch remasters available, pclinuxos.de has a German remaster etc. etc.
Basically all of the packages already come with their localized .po files because their projects deliver them ready-to-eat.
So there is only a little bit of tweaking required plus the download of a few files that are quite conveniently located in the standard PCLOS repos, put there by.....the developers.
Installers and other distro-specific scripts are the prime focus of the localization effort based on MyPCLinuxos.com
So I resent the suggestion that PCLOS has no international aspirations or doesn't care for its overseas customers. Tex is treating us Europeans just fine, thank you.
Old Chinese saying goes: "Tex helps those who help themselves"
Internationalisation
I suppose you have to focus your efforts at the beginning. If other languages are not added at some point, I would wonder why.
The process may have begun. There is a German website and a Netherlands website.
re: Internationalisation
They're Texan's - so English is about as close as you can get to their native language.
Don't get your dander up, it's just a little joke there, ya varmints.
re: Internationalisation
"PCLinuxOS is an English only live CD initially based on Mandrake Linux that runs entirely from a bootable CD." - Distrowatch.com
PCLinuxOS is upfront with the fact that it is English only. If this is a problem, perhaps instead of complaining, you could join the community and help with translating.
Look at it this way:
Look at it this way: PCLinuxOS is the work of a handful of people. As already said, if people want to help add more localisations, I'm sure they'll be welcome.
That said, what is remarkable about PCLinuxOS is that it is clearly the favourite distro of many who do not have English as a first language, and, judging by the forums, people who struggle in English. You have to ask why that is, my answer would be that the general feel, and Ease of Use makes up for it.
Look at it this way
I've tried about 8 distros. PCLinuxOS is one of only two which have given me no trouble worth mentioning and it is several points better than the other.
It has not wasted any of my time. It is a cut above its parent (Mandriva) which itself is a darn sight less time-wasting than the others. I'd like to see localisations added and I hope that happens in time.
Works for me
I have a few computers here. Trying different distros like Ubuntu, openSUSE, fedora, mepis and the rest, It was a toss between pclinuxos and mepis. I think mepis is sweet enough but when it came down to getting standard desktop work done, I decided pclinuxos test release1 rocks! It has new versions of programs like digikam 0.9.0.
Have you all tried songbird !!? http://www.songbirdnest.com/
Load up synaptic and install this new music player. Tell me your not impressed!!!