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 GNewSense
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| Founded: |
2006 (edit) |
| Version: | 2.3 (edit) |
| Release Date: | September 14, 2009 (edit) |
| Next Release: | unknown (edit) |
| Platform(s): | i386 (edit) |
| Packaging: | DEB (edit) |
| Interface(s): | GNOME (edit) |
| Derivative of: | Ubuntu (edit) |
| Home Page: | http://www.gnewsense.org/ (edit) |
gNewSense is a GNU/Linux distribution sponsored and endorsed by the Free Software Foundation. It is created by removing non-free software and binary blobs from Ubuntu. gNewSense also is packaged from Debian repos, which contain non-free blobs. The folks at gNewSense use conversions to take the non-free blobs out of the software, and add new features in as well.
GNOME[]
GNOME is the main desktop environment. Other desktop environments aren't used because most of them aren't free. KDE is used on some Ubuntu editions, for example, and the folks at gNewSense don't want to use it because it would take too much effort to even reduce the blobs in it.
As of right now, the project has been halted, and no new versions have come out. It still uses one of the older versions of GNOME, although a new version has come out with more graphics options and more applications. Linus Torvalds, the founder of Linux, endorses the OS as the best non-free one he's seen yet.
GNOME for gNewSense comes with default applications such as OpenOffice.org, Tetravex, EMACS, and others. This default application set may be useful, but the GNOME interface that had been modifed for the use of gNewSense makes it hard to get new applications to run, therefore doesn't allow any new known applications to run. This is because they modified it to only run software that doesn't have blobs in it.
Modifications[]
Several modifications have occured. The Linux kernel from Debian has been modified to not allow any blobs or popular software such as Mozilla Firefox. This is due to Firefox not using completely free software. It doesn't allow any others to run in it either, because of the use of things such as toolbars, or even any logos to companies that haven't been approved by the software developers yet.
They have also modified the software so anyone can make a spin-off of the OS. Anyone can develop onto the platform, although it isn't as easy as just making a customized theme for it.
Website Transition[]
The gNewSense website got caught in the middle of transitioning from one script to the next. As soon as the developers on the software stopped working, the transition stopped as well. Currently, they are working on making the gNewSense website into a wiki. The wiki is smack-dab in the middle of transitioning,
Also, the older website has been staying as well. You can access the old website and the new website at the same time, along with all the document files.