PC/OS News

We are looking at simplifying the releases. Spreading them further apart so we dont seem like we are constantly at odds. So during our Skype pow-wow, we have decided what the release schedule will look like. We plan to keep the names, PC/OS OpenWorkstation and Webstation. PC/OS OpenCore will go away as it stands now. PC/OS OpenServer System will take its place. How will this work you ask? PC/OS OpenServer System will ship as PC/OS OpenCore did. No applications installed, no server functions installed. It will be the core system. It will ship with Server Kit as a bundle on pc-os.org, when you buy it server kit will ship as a separate ISO. This allows people to customize the server as they see fit. PC/OS OpenServer System will not get an experimental release, but will be updated through Maintenance packs.

Speaking of the experimental releases. PC/OS 10 and PC/OS 10.1 have been great but confusing to people. So from now on, the experimental releases will be known as PC/OS TestSuite. It will ship DVD ISO only as we will be including the developer kit by default. the reason? During the test phases we want people to be able to develop great applications, we want those that have the know how to be able to extend and enhance PC/OS.

With this PC/OS 2010 will not be released. Instead we are putting numerical versioning behind it. So PC/OS 2010 becomes PC/OS 11. The next LTS will be, PC/OS 12, etc. OpenServer System will still be called PC/OS OpenServer System 9.

We are changing the way we do sales of PC/OS disks. We are launching the PC/OS Storefront. We will no longer be using On-Disk.com. With the Storefront, we will be selling PC/OS disks and hard drives, USB Flash etc. Pricing to be determined.

The default theme for PC/OS will change. How and to what extent will be determined. We are considering the new default themes that Ubuntu is using in 10.04. We think they are great. This is two fold, first we want people that use Ubuntu to have a familiar face when coming to PC/OS, second we want the GNOME and XFCE releases to have a similar look to each other. Also, due to customer and user feedback, Firefox will be making the return as the default browser in PC/OS 11.

We hope you guys like the changes and as always feedback is welcome.

PC/OS OpenWorkstation 10.1 GNOME Released

The developers of PC/OS are excited to bring you this new installment in the PC/OS family. Users and customers have demanded it so we have now delivered it. This release is based on the GNOME desktop. We are targetting this release for a more high performance crowd. So as we keep working on this we need the great feedback our users generally provide including what you, as professional users, need and use. So lets get in here and go through whats included.

GNOME 2.28
Linux kernel 2.6.31
Empathy replaces Pidgin
OpenOffice.org 3.1
Exaile
Gambas2
WideStudio
Full multimedia codecs
Sun Java 6
Evolution Groupware Suite
GnomeBaker
Exaile
VLC
GIMP (With all plugins)
Google Chrome
Nimbus GTK theme and Metacity

As we continue to improve this release we will continue to add software and tools for everyone.

System requirements:

1 ghz Processor
512 mb of RAM
10 gb of Hard Drive Space
VGA display

Known Issues:

When you boot the Live CD when it gets to the gdm enter the user name 'custom' leave the password blank.

You can download the software from here

The md5 is available here

Or alternatively you can order a DVD from us directly for $20.00. To do this make a donation of $20.00 and in the details section of PayPal list your address.

PC/OS KDE and GNOME status

PC/OS KDE has been pushed back. The developer of PC/OS KDE feels that the current state of the project is not at a point where he feels comfortable to release it so its being pushed back until the 2010 release. So we will have a KDE release just not as soon as we had hoped. But we made an alternative promise and we will honor that. If you install KDE 4 from the repositories after March 10, 2010 we will support that if you have a support contract.

Also, we received a lot of feedback from users about the GNOME issue. People also want a GNOME release. So, for the 10.1 release we will go ahead and release a GNOME version of PC/OS. Ones already built and in Beta so thats a little more feasible and GNOME has quite a few fans as well. The core team will concentrate on this release. This will also be just a DVD release with a few twists. It will have the developer kit installed by default and will use the Nimbus graphics engine for the theme.

If you are a gnome developer and wish to help out, do let us know.

PC/OS 10.1 KDE release coming

Today we are pleased to announce the imminent release of PC/OS 10.1 KDE. One of our community members has decided to take control of this release and will be responsible for it. Micheal Vale, also known on the forums as mikev, is making this spin. After a few releases of a personal KDE release he submitted his work, we examined it to make sure it met our quality standards and it has. This will be the first KDE release of PC/OS. Here is a short FAQ on the KDE release.

1) Will PC/OS be changed over to a KDE desktop?

A) No, it will not. This is a totally separate release and will be maintained by the individual named who will develop his own team for this. At the moment until he gets a team established he will have the full cooperation of the PC/OS developers.

2) Why KDE and not GNOME?
A) We already have a desktop based on XFCE another GTK desktop, all applications for GNOME can be run on XFCE. GNOME has always been downloadable from the repositories.
We are releasing this because there are quite a few fans of KDE and many businesses who have invested in QT itself, this allows them to switch or adopt PC/OS and continue their investments.

3) Will KDE be treated as a second class citizen?
A) No, we are committed to making this happen and the KDE release will be released in conjunction with the XFCE release. 10.1 KDE will come out sooner as the developer has been working very hard on this so there will be no beta release of PC/OS 10.1 KDE

4) Will there be a CD release of PC/OS 10.1 KDE ?
A) For now it will be a DVD release. The CD release of PC/OS is XFCE based due to the fact that many recyclers use it and their machines tend to be older that cant support KDE 4. If the demand comes, we will release a Webstation KDE release.

5) Will there be a 64 bit version of PC/OS 10.1 KDE?
A) No, until the team gets established and has a solid footing it will be 32 bit only, although you can run it on a 64 bit machine. This is to keep the initial developer from getting burnt out as supporting two platforms is hard to do for one man.

6) Will my support contract cover PC/OS 10.1 KDE?
A) Yes it will. We will cover PC/OS 10.1 KDE and further releases of it.

7) Will you still have the Be type decorations on PC/OS 10.1 KDE?
A) No, Oxygen is beautiful as it is. The default desktop will share the same background picture and the KDM will be themed to look like the OpenWorkstation release.

8) When will it be released?
A) When its ready. We are looking at a couple of weeks although we haven't settled on a date. We are now putting the finishing tweaks on it.

So customers and enthusiasts have talked, we have listened and I want to thank Mike for agreeing to take part and welcome him to the team.