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Mandriva rolls out Linux 2008
Oct. 10, 2007

Lately, in the Linux desktop races, distributions like Ubuntu, PCLinuxOS and openSUSE have been taking most of the headlines. Older Linux company Mandriva isn't ready to concede the desktop market to these Linux distributions as it releases its newest version, Mandriva Linux 2008.

Mandriva launched its latest community desktop Linux distribution, Mandriva Linux 2008, on Oct. 9. As in the past, Mandriva is releasing this free distribution via the Mandriva Club, the company-supported user group.

This new distribution is based on the 2.6.22.9 Linux kernel. Mandriva 2008 also has integrated a reworked hardware detection subsystem with support for many new devices such as graphics cards, sound cards and Wi-Fi chips. The revised hardware system also handles the automatic loading of drivers for permanently installed devices such as PCI and AGP cards, based on the lists of compatible devices provided by the drivers themselves.

This system also contains a list of preferred drivers for some devices that can be handled by multiple drivers. According to Mandriva, this results in even more accurate and comprehensive hardware detection than in previous releases.

For an interface, Mandriva gives users a choice between the KDE 3.5.7 and the GNOME 2.20 desktops. If you have superior graphic cards, you also have the choice of using either the Compiz/Compiz Fusion 0.5.2 or the Metisse 3-D desktop.

Mandriva 2008 also comes chock-full of Linux desktop applications. It includes OpenOffice.org 2.2.1, Mozilla Firefox 2.0.0.6, Evolution 2.12, and Thunderbird 2.0.0.6. The distribution also includes a wizard to import Windows documents and settings to make life simple for those who are moving from Windows to Linux or just dual-booting their PCs.

Mandriva Linux 2008 is available for download free of charge at the Mandriva Web site. The One installation CD is the recommended download with everything you need to start using Mandriva Linux 2008. This version comes with a full KDE desktop and application suite, Nvidia and ATI proprietary video card drivers, Intel wireless firmware, and the Adobe Flash and Sun Java browser plug-ins.

There are also versions that come without any proprietary software or drivers, and a DVD ISO download with everything that Mandriva has to offer. You can also download any version via BitTorrent.


--Steven J. Vaughan Nichols



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