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GOS (operating system)
Encyclopedia
gOS or "good OS" was an Ubuntu-based GNU/Linux distribution created by Good OS LLC, a Los Angeles
-based corporation. Its CIO
Dave Liu described that after meeting Enlightenment
and open source
people, he realized that his dream to bring Web 2.0
applications into mainstream use could be achieved by creating a GNU/Linux distribution that made it easy for users to access Google
and Web 2.0 applications.
and other Web 2.0 apps for the modern user." This first version gOS (1.0.1_386) was based on Ubuntu
7.10 and the Enlightenment window manager E17.
On January 7, 2008, a test version (2.0.0-beta1) of gOS, intended to demonstrate the Everex
CloudBook
at the 2008 Consumer Electronics Show
, and named gOS Rocket, was released. This version was also E17 based. The definitive second version of gOS debuted at the end February 2008, together with the launch of Everex's new CloudBook, the gBook laptop, and a new, second version of the gPC, the "encore". This version was called gOS V2 Rocket, and was completely rewritten and now based on the GNOME
window manager, a built in Compositing window manager
, and the Avant Window Navigator
.
On April 6, 2008, Good OS launched a publicly available version of gOS, called gOS 2.9 "Space", intended for the gPC mini, This version is based on Compiz fusion, Gnome, and the Avant Window Navigator dock
manager, but also uses E17 code. It has a dock with a "stack
" very much like the "fan view" of Mac OS X v10.5
.
On September 23, 2008, Good OS launched gOS 3 Gadgets, which is described by Good OS, as "The third and best version of gOS to date, Perfect for Netbooks". It is still based on GNOME but has replaced AWN
with yet another launcher called Wbar. It introduces the full support for Wine
1.0, Picasa
(using the Wine libraries) and Google Gadgets
.
On December 1, 2008, Good OS announced its next operating system, Cloud
. Cloud can be described as an "instant on
browser based application environment". With Cloud, users can browse the Internet seconds after turning on their computer, and can also use it to run applications, like Skype, or a media player. Cloud shows a Dock similar to gOS 3 in the browser window, and will keep loading the main operating system (Windows, GNU/linux, OSX) in the background. An icon in the Dock will tell the user when the main OS has finished booting in the background, and can be used to switch instantly to the main OS, when tasks not (yet) supported under Cloud are needed. A beta test program for Cloud version 1.0 was announced January 30, 2009.
On January 3, 2009, Good OS released gOS 3.1 Gadgets (SP1), or Service pack 1, a bug-fixed version of gOS 3.0. Simultaneously, the Good OS team also launched a new official forum, as a replacement for the Google discussion group used previously and faqly, which is now defunct.
Faqly was a cross between an Internet forum
and a FAQ
where gOS users could ask questions and browse for answers. Other gOS users, or GNU/Linux experts, could then provide answers to the questions. But Faqly had some large usability problems, notably the fact that users had problems deciding when the system was searching for an answer, or entering a new question. Additionally, questions and answers could not be edited or deleted.
Around May 2008, all members of the Good OS team ceased to post in any blog, twitter, or any other web medium, including their own forum and website. While the website is still on-line, and gOS 3.1 can be downloaded, no sign of the developers has been heard of since then. Additionally, there are no sources of gOS available. Development of gOS seems to have been stalled, and the official forum (http://forum.thinkgos.com/) was not moderated anymore and was quickly overrun by spam and was closed halfway through 2009 (one of the few life-signs of the Good OS team after mid 2008); its function has been taken over by the unofficial forum. No sign of promised developments like the netbook launcher version or cloud have been realized.
According to DistroWatch.com, gOS is discontinued.
7.10 distribution (later versions after 2.9 use version 8.04) and themed desktop environment somewhat similar in appearance to Mac OS X Leopard. The earlier versions (1 and 2-beta) used the Enlightenment
17 window manager instead of the usual GNOME
or KDE
desktops, to create a desktop that had a similar appearance to Mac OS X
. Enlightenment acted both as an X window manager
and a desktop environment
. Therefore early versions of gOS worked on systems as low end as a 350 MHz Pentium II with 196 MB of RAM, but a typical gOS system would have used as a minimum a 1 GHz Pentium III
with 256 MB RAM. After gOS2-beta the later versions of gOS abandoned the use of Enlightenment as desktop manager (although some E17 code still seemed to be used), in favor of using GNOME, with Compiz Fusion and the Avant Window Navigator
. This increased the need for memory to values similar to normal Ubuntu.
Based on the idea of cloud computing
, all versions of gOS lean heavily on on-line applications built on Web 2.0 and AJAX
technology so they also do not use much hard disk space for applications. The whole gOS-1 system fitted comfortably in less than 2 GB. Also many of the documents created with gOS, such as Google Docs documents, can be saved on Google servers instead of on the local hard disk, so gOS can work with very small hard disks. In gOS V2 Rocket, Good OS introduced the use of Google's "Google Gears" technology which promises to make Google's web application
s usable without an Internet connection. Currently, Google Reader
and Google Docs are the only supported Google applications, though other web applications such as Remember the Milk
have added Google Gears functionality.
gOS 2.0 Rocket's primary features include a Mac OS X-like Dock
called "the Launcher" (using Avant Window Navigator
in gOS Rocket G and gOS Space, and iTask-NG in gOS Rocket E), containing icons to launch programs like the Firefox
web browser, Rhythmbox
audio player, Xine
video player, and Skype
for Internet telephony. There are also options to open many Google-based web application like Google Mail
, Google Docs, Google Calendar
, and Google Maps
. Other programs could be added to the Launcher as well. The first E17 based version of gOS used another Dock-style interface called the iBar.
Other installed programs could be started through menus, among the most important was the photo and picture editing program the GIMP, the document viewer Evince
, and the OpenOffice.org
office suite. More programs could be installed using the built-in Synaptic Package Manager
.
gOS 1.0.1 was introduced on November 1, 2007, preinstalled on the Everex Green gPC TC2502 sold at Wal-Mart
. gOS 1.0.1 fully supported the advanced Power management
capabilities of the gPC TC2502, so the system could be put in suspend mode and after turning on again was ready in a few seconds.
In December 2007, PC Club
followed suit and reintroduced their Enpower Fuzion desktop for sale with gOS installed for $189, which is their second system to include a GNU/Linux distribution since their controversial temporary inclusion of Linspire
(then LindowsOS) in late 2003/early 2004 and the sale of the Empower Essence system with Ubuntu during the month of June 2007.
Everex followed on by creating the CloudBook
, a laptop based on the VIA NanoBook
reference. The CloudBook was bundled with gOS Rocket with a hint that later versions would include a touchscreen. At an RRP of $400, it was to compete with the ASUS Eee PC in the cheap miniature Laptop space. Less well known is the fact that Everex simultaneously also worked on a more classic notebook, called the gBook, and on the Mac mini
like gPC mini all designed to run gOS v2.
Online vendor ClubIT.com offered a RoHS-compliant VIA C7
developer board bundled with gOS.
On 2008-01-07, Good OS LLC released a beta of the second version of gOS, called gOS-live-2.0.0-beta1 and nicknamed "Rocket". However this version did not seem to be a valid replacement for rev 1.0.1 as it was missing some essential functions, such as hardware and system administration tools, and the easy to use application installer "Add/Remove". It also missed the capability to access CDs and hard-disk partitions other than its own. The demo version status of this version became extra apparent when the new Everex CloudBook
which was due to debut January 25, 2008 was delayed for a month to allow Good OS time to rewrite this second version of gOS for the CloudBook, gBook. and second version of the gPC. On April 11, 2008, Good OS released an updated version of gOS Rocket E. In addition, a fan of gOS has also released an unauthorized remaster of gOS Rocket E which includes the aforementioned system administration tools and drive mounting as well as the Thunar
file manager.
Later it became apparent that the month was needed because Everex had decided that future versions of gOS for the Cloudbook, gBook and gPC2, would use the GNOME desktop environment, instead of E17. It was announced that this version would also be called "Rocket", to be precise gOS V2 "Rocket", (this version would also be offered to new gPC2 users) and would use the Avant Window Navigator
system to create a dock
to resemble the older gOS versions in looks and functionality. Until the launch of gOS 2.9 this version was not available as a Live CD
, but only to CloudBook owners. But after the launch of 2.9 it has now also become available as a Live_CD download from one of the mirrors as found on the Good OS web-site. This version is now referenced to as "gOS rocket G" ("G" for Gnome) to distinguish it from the older beta version now called "gOS rocket E", which is also still available for download.
gOS 2.9 Space became available as a generic GNU/Linux distribution on April 7, 2008, and is a debugged and extended version of the older gOS V2 Rocket G. It can be downloaded as an .ISO that can be burned on a DVD (it's slightly too large for a CD), or can be put on another external bootable medium such as a memory stick
or Secure Digital card
reader acting as an external USB drive, with enough capacity. A gOS 2.9 DVD was also announced to be sold from The Good OS store on their website, but until now has not become available. gOS Space is loaded with new MySpace features, but all the existing Google applications can still be used. As a GNU/Linux distribution, 2.9 is much more complete than 2.0-beta and is also less buggy. gOS Space is less "light" (using a small amount of memory) than older, publicly-available versions, as it's based on a combination of Ubuntu
7.10, the GNOME windows manager enhanced with Compiz fusion, and the Avant Window Navigator
, a Dock
-like launcher that has been enhanced with Stacks
. According to Good OS, there is also Enlightenment
code used, but its exact purpose is still unknown. In any case gOS Space needs about 384MB of RAM to work reasonably, the same amount as straight Ubuntu 7.10. When Ubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron) became available on April 24, 2008 it became obvious that trying to upgrade gOS 2.9 to the new Ubuntu renders it without any working kernels
, leaving a non-working system, so upgrading gOS has been disabled by Good OS. It is not expected that this will be fixed, but that instead a new gOS (rev 3.0) will be released, based on Ubuntu 8.04.
, launched the Sylvania g netbook. The Sylvania name is used under license by Digital Gadgets. Its similar to the original Everex CloudBook with more memory, and the trackpad and buttons have moved to the front of the device. the new system runs gOS 2.9M, a specially modified version of gOS 2.9 "space" based on Ubuntu 8.04
integrated into the desktop (not in a browser window) and includes Wine 1.0
and Mozilla Prism
. gOS 3.0 is based on the newer Ubuntu 8.04.1. This version goes "back to its roots", as it is intended for netbook
s. The Avant Window Navigator
's (abbreviated AWN or Awn) dock
-like bar has been removed in favor of a more "lightweight" launch bar called Wbar. It is similar to the one used in the first Enlightenment
-based gOS version. The gOS 3.0 Gadgets Live CD can be downloaded from the thinkgos site. In an official press release issued on August 6, 2008, gOS 3.0 Gadgets was announced to use LXDE
technology but this plan was later put aside. Launching Synaptic will reveal that none of the applications listed at LXDE's About page are installed.
. You can switch between a netbook user interface and the classic gOS desktop at will. This Launcher is provided by the gOS Community and is not officially supported by Good OS for system manufacturers. It is still in beta, and therefore contains some bugs. One remaining problem is that it does not work well with Compiz
.
from the system. Version 3.0 of gOS solves the problem, as it is actually based on Ubuntu 8.04. Good OS claims that new versions of gOS won't use Ubuntu's upgrading repositories, to prevent the problem from happening again.
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
-based corporation. Its CIO
Chief information officer
Chief information officer , or information technology director, is a job title commonly given to the most senior executive in an enterprise responsible for the information technology and computer systems that support enterprise goals...
Dave Liu described that after meeting Enlightenment
Enlightenment (window manager)
Enlightenment, also known simply as E, is a stacking window manager for the X Window System which can be used alone or in conjunction with a desktop environment such as GNOME or KDE...
and open source
Open source
The term open source describes practices in production and development that promote access to the end product's source materials. Some consider open source a philosophy, others consider it a pragmatic methodology...
people, he realized that his dream to bring Web 2.0
Web 2.0
The term Web 2.0 is associated with web applications that facilitate participatory information sharing, interoperability, user-centered design, and collaboration on the World Wide Web...
applications into mainstream use could be achieved by creating a GNU/Linux distribution that made it easy for users to access Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
and Web 2.0 applications.
History
The company initially advertised gOS 1.0 as "An alternative OS with Google AppsGoogle Apps
Google Apps is a service from Google providing independently customizable versions of several Google products under a custom domain name. It features several Web applications with similar functionality to traditional office suites, including: Gmail, Google Groups, Google Calendar, Talk, Docs and...
and other Web 2.0 apps for the modern user." This first version gOS (1.0.1_386) was based on Ubuntu
Ubuntu (operating system)
Ubuntu is a computer operating system based on the Debian Linux distribution and distributed as free and open source software. It is named after the Southern African philosophy of Ubuntu...
7.10 and the Enlightenment window manager E17.
On January 7, 2008, a test version (2.0.0-beta1) of gOS, intended to demonstrate the Everex
Everex
Everex is a manufacturer of desktop and notebook personal computers. It was established in 1983 and headquartered in Fremont, California. The company was founded by Steve Hui, John Lee and Wayne Cheung. In 1988, Everex was the leader in tape backup sales with half the world market...
CloudBook
CloudBook
The Cloudbook is an x86 subnotebook, or Ultra-Mobile PC developed by Everex using a VIA processor, chipset, and NanoBook reference design. It competes with the ASUS Eee PC, the OLPC XO-1 and the Classmate PC...
at the 2008 Consumer Electronics Show
Consumer Electronics Show
The International Consumer Electronics Show is a major technology-related trade show held each January in the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Not open to the public, the Consumer Electronics Association-sponsored show typically hosts previews of products and new...
, and named gOS Rocket, was released. This version was also E17 based. The definitive second version of gOS debuted at the end February 2008, together with the launch of Everex's new CloudBook, the gBook laptop, and a new, second version of the gPC, the "encore". This version was called gOS V2 Rocket, and was completely rewritten and now based on the GNOME
GNOME
GNOME is a desktop environment and graphical user interface that runs on top of a computer operating system. It is composed entirely of free and open source software...
window manager, a built in Compositing window manager
Compositing window manager
A compositing window manager is a type of window manager. A window manager is software that draws a graphical user interface on a computer display – it positions windows, draws additional elements on windows , and controls how windows interact with each other, and with the rest of the desktop...
, and the Avant Window Navigator
Avant Window Navigator
Avant Window Navigator is a dock-like bar for Linux, which sits on an edge of a user's screen and tracks open windows. Instead of representing open windows as buttons or segments on a bar, it uses icons to minimize screen space and add visual appeal. Avant Window Navigator was created by Neil J...
.
On April 6, 2008, Good OS launched a publicly available version of gOS, called gOS 2.9 "Space", intended for the gPC mini, This version is based on Compiz fusion, Gnome, and the Avant Window Navigator dock
Dock (computing)
The Dock is a prominent feature of the graphical user interface of the Mac OS X operating system. It is used to launch applications and switch between running applications...
manager, but also uses E17 code. It has a dock with a "stack
Stacks (software)
Stacks are a feature first found in Apple's operating system, Mac OS X v10.5 "Leopard". As the name implies, they "stack" files into a small organized folder on the Dock...
" very much like the "fan view" of Mac OS X v10.5
Mac OS X v10.5
Mac OS X Leopard is the sixth major release of Mac OS X, Apple's desktop and server operating system for Macintosh computers. Leopard was released on 26 October 2007 as the successor of Tiger , and is available in two variants: a desktop version suitable for personal computers, and a...
.
On September 23, 2008, Good OS launched gOS 3 Gadgets, which is described by Good OS, as "The third and best version of gOS to date, Perfect for Netbooks". It is still based on GNOME but has replaced AWN
Avant Window Navigator
Avant Window Navigator is a dock-like bar for Linux, which sits on an edge of a user's screen and tracks open windows. Instead of representing open windows as buttons or segments on a bar, it uses icons to minimize screen space and add visual appeal. Avant Window Navigator was created by Neil J...
with yet another launcher called Wbar. It introduces the full support for Wine
Wine (software)
Wine is a free software application that aims to allow computer programs written for Microsoft Windows to run on Unix-like operating systems. Wine also provides a software library, known as Winelib, against which developers can compile Windows applications to help port them to Unix-like...
1.0, Picasa
Picasa
Picasa is an image organizer and image viewer for organizing and editing digital photos, plus an integrated photo-sharing website, originally created by Idealab in 2002 and owned by Google since 2004. "Picasa" is a blend of the name of Spanish painter Pablo Picasso, the phrase mi casa for "my...
(using the Wine libraries) and Google Gadgets
Google Gadgets
Google Gadgets are dynamic web content that can be embedded on a web page. They can be added to and interact strongly with Google's iGoogle personalized home page and the Google Desktop application, as well as Google Wave...
.
On December 1, 2008, Good OS announced its next operating system, Cloud
Cloud (operating system)
Cloud is a browser-based operating system created by Good OS LLC, a Los Angeles-based corporation. The company initially launched a Linux distribution called gOS which is heavily based on Ubuntu, now in its third incarnation.- Overview :...
. Cloud can be described as an "instant on
Instant on
In computers, instant on is the ability to boot nearly instantaneously, so one can get online or use a specific application without waiting for a PC's traditional operating system to launch. Instant-on technology is today mostly used on laptops, netbooks, and nettops because the user can boot up...
browser based application environment". With Cloud, users can browse the Internet seconds after turning on their computer, and can also use it to run applications, like Skype, or a media player. Cloud shows a Dock similar to gOS 3 in the browser window, and will keep loading the main operating system (Windows, GNU/linux, OSX) in the background. An icon in the Dock will tell the user when the main OS has finished booting in the background, and can be used to switch instantly to the main OS, when tasks not (yet) supported under Cloud are needed. A beta test program for Cloud version 1.0 was announced January 30, 2009.
On January 3, 2009, Good OS released gOS 3.1 Gadgets (SP1), or Service pack 1, a bug-fixed version of gOS 3.0. Simultaneously, the Good OS team also launched a new official forum, as a replacement for the Google discussion group used previously and faqly, which is now defunct.
Faqly was a cross between an Internet forum
Internet forum
An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages. They differ from chat rooms in that messages are at least temporarily archived...
and a FAQ
FAQ
Frequently asked questions are listed questions and answers, all supposed to be commonly asked in some context, and pertaining to a particular topic. "FAQ" is usually pronounced as an initialism rather than an acronym, but an acronym form does exist. Since the acronym FAQ originated in textual...
where gOS users could ask questions and browse for answers. Other gOS users, or GNU/Linux experts, could then provide answers to the questions. But Faqly had some large usability problems, notably the fact that users had problems deciding when the system was searching for an answer, or entering a new question. Additionally, questions and answers could not be edited or deleted.
Around May 2008, all members of the Good OS team ceased to post in any blog, twitter, or any other web medium, including their own forum and website. While the website is still on-line, and gOS 3.1 can be downloaded, no sign of the developers has been heard of since then. Additionally, there are no sources of gOS available. Development of gOS seems to have been stalled, and the official forum (http://forum.thinkgos.com/) was not moderated anymore and was quickly overrun by spam and was closed halfway through 2009 (one of the few life-signs of the Good OS team after mid 2008); its function has been taken over by the unofficial forum. No sign of promised developments like the netbook launcher version or cloud have been realized.
According to DistroWatch.com, gOS is discontinued.
Design
gOS-1 was based on the UbuntuUbuntu (operating system)
Ubuntu is a computer operating system based on the Debian Linux distribution and distributed as free and open source software. It is named after the Southern African philosophy of Ubuntu...
7.10 distribution (later versions after 2.9 use version 8.04) and themed desktop environment somewhat similar in appearance to Mac OS X Leopard. The earlier versions (1 and 2-beta) used the Enlightenment
Enlightenment (window manager)
Enlightenment, also known simply as E, is a stacking window manager for the X Window System which can be used alone or in conjunction with a desktop environment such as GNOME or KDE...
17 window manager instead of the usual GNOME
GNOME
GNOME is a desktop environment and graphical user interface that runs on top of a computer operating system. It is composed entirely of free and open source software...
or KDE
KDE
KDE is an international free software community producing an integrated set of cross-platform applications designed to run on Linux, FreeBSD, Microsoft Windows, Solaris and Mac OS X systems...
desktops, to create a desktop that had a similar appearance to Mac OS X
Mac OS X
Mac OS X is a series of Unix-based operating systems and graphical user interfaces developed, marketed, and sold by Apple Inc. Since 2002, has been included with all new Macintosh computer systems...
. Enlightenment acted both as an X window manager
X window manager
An X window manager is a window manager which runs on top of the X Window System, a windowing system mainly used on Unix-like systems.Unlike the Mac OS and Microsoft Windows platforms which have historically provided a vendor-controlled, fixed set of ways to control how windows and panes display...
and a desktop environment
Desktop environment
In graphical computing, a desktop environment commonly refers to a style of graphical user interface derived from the desktop metaphor that is seen on most modern personal computers. These GUIs help the user in easily accessing, configuring, and modifying many important and frequently accessed...
. Therefore early versions of gOS worked on systems as low end as a 350 MHz Pentium II with 196 MB of RAM, but a typical gOS system would have used as a minimum a 1 GHz Pentium III
Pentium III
The Pentium III brand refers to Intel's 32-bit x86 desktop and mobile microprocessors based on the sixth-generation P6 microarchitecture introduced on February 26, 1999. The brand's initial processors were very similar to the earlier Pentium II-branded microprocessors...
with 256 MB RAM. After gOS2-beta the later versions of gOS abandoned the use of Enlightenment as desktop manager (although some E17 code still seemed to be used), in favor of using GNOME, with Compiz Fusion and the Avant Window Navigator
Avant Window Navigator
Avant Window Navigator is a dock-like bar for Linux, which sits on an edge of a user's screen and tracks open windows. Instead of representing open windows as buttons or segments on a bar, it uses icons to minimize screen space and add visual appeal. Avant Window Navigator was created by Neil J...
. This increased the need for memory to values similar to normal Ubuntu.
Based on the idea of cloud computing
Cloud computing
Cloud computing is the delivery of computing as a service rather than a product, whereby shared resources, software, and information are provided to computers and other devices as a utility over a network ....
, all versions of gOS lean heavily on on-line applications built on Web 2.0 and AJAX
Ajax (programming)
Ajax is a group of interrelated web development methods used on the client-side to create asynchronous web applications...
technology so they also do not use much hard disk space for applications. The whole gOS-1 system fitted comfortably in less than 2 GB. Also many of the documents created with gOS, such as Google Docs documents, can be saved on Google servers instead of on the local hard disk, so gOS can work with very small hard disks. In gOS V2 Rocket, Good OS introduced the use of Google's "Google Gears" technology which promises to make Google's web application
Web application
A web application is an application that is accessed over a network such as the Internet or an intranet. The term may also mean a computer software application that is coded in a browser-supported language and reliant on a common web browser to render the application executable.Web applications are...
s usable without an Internet connection. Currently, Google Reader
Google Reader
Google Reader is a Web-based aggregator, capable of reading Atom and RSS feeds online or offline. It was released by Google on October 7, 2005 through Google Labs. Reader was graduated from beta status on September 17, 2007.-Interface:...
and Google Docs are the only supported Google applications, though other web applications such as Remember the Milk
Remember The Milk
Remember the Milk is an application service provider for web-based task- and time-management. It allows users to manage tasks from computer as well as offline. It is being developed by an Australian/international team.- Features :...
have added Google Gears functionality.
gOS 2.0 Rocket's primary features include a Mac OS X-like Dock
Dock (computing)
The Dock is a prominent feature of the graphical user interface of the Mac OS X operating system. It is used to launch applications and switch between running applications...
called "the Launcher" (using Avant Window Navigator
Avant Window Navigator
Avant Window Navigator is a dock-like bar for Linux, which sits on an edge of a user's screen and tracks open windows. Instead of representing open windows as buttons or segments on a bar, it uses icons to minimize screen space and add visual appeal. Avant Window Navigator was created by Neil J...
in gOS Rocket G and gOS Space, and iTask-NG in gOS Rocket E), containing icons to launch programs like the Firefox
Mozilla Firefox
Mozilla Firefox is a free and open source web browser descended from the Mozilla Application Suite and managed by Mozilla Corporation. , Firefox is the second most widely used browser, with approximately 25% of worldwide usage share of web browsers...
web browser, Rhythmbox
Rhythmbox
Rhythmbox is an audio player that plays and helps organize digital music. Originally inspired by Apple's iTunes, it is free software, designed to work well under the GNOME Desktop using the GStreamer media framework. However, Rhythmbox functions on desktop environments other than GNOME.-Music...
audio player, Xine
Xine
xine is a multimedia playback engine for Unix-like operating systems released under the GNU General Public License. xine is built around a shared library that supports different frontend player applications. Another important feature of xine is the ability to manually correct the synchronization...
video player, and Skype
Skype
Skype is a software application that allows users to make voice and video calls and chat over the Internet. Calls to other users within the Skype service are free, while calls to both traditional landline telephones and mobile phones can be made for a fee using a debit-based user account system...
for Internet telephony. There are also options to open many Google-based web application like Google Mail
Gmail
Gmail is a free, advertising-supported email service provided by Google. Users may access Gmail as secure webmail, as well via POP3 or IMAP protocols. Gmail was launched as an invitation-only beta release on April 1, 2004 and it became available to the general public on February 7, 2007, though...
, Google Docs, Google Calendar
Google Calendar
Google Calendar is a free time-management web application offered by Google. It became available on April 13, 2006, and exited the beta stage in July 2009...
, and Google Maps
Google Maps
Google Maps is a web mapping service application and technology provided by Google, free , that powers many map-based services, including the Google Maps website, Google Ride Finder, Google Transit, and maps embedded on third-party websites via the Google Maps API...
. Other programs could be added to the Launcher as well. The first E17 based version of gOS used another Dock-style interface called the iBar.
Other installed programs could be started through menus, among the most important was the photo and picture editing program the GIMP, the document viewer Evince
Evince
Evince is a document viewer for PDF, PostScript, DjVu, TIFF and DVI designed for the GNOME desktop environment.The developers of Evince intended to replace the multiple GNOME document viewers with a single and simple application. The Evince motto sums up the project aim: "Simply a Document...
, and the OpenOffice.org
OpenOffice.org
OpenOffice.org, commonly known as OOo or OpenOffice, is an open-source application suite whose main components are for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, and databases. OpenOffice is available for a number of different computer operating systems, is distributed as free software...
office suite. More programs could be installed using the built-in Synaptic Package Manager
Synaptic Package Manager
Synaptic is a computer program which is a GTK+ graphical user interface front-end to the Advanced Packaging Tool for the Debian package management system. Synaptic is usually used on systems based on deb packages but can also be used on systems based on RPM packages...
.
gOS 1.0.1
Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...
. gOS 1.0.1 fully supported the advanced Power management
Power management
Power management is a feature of some electrical appliances, especially copiers, computers and computer peripherals such as monitors and printers, that turns off the power or switches the system to a low-power state when inactive. In computing this is known as PC power management and is built...
capabilities of the gPC TC2502, so the system could be put in suspend mode and after turning on again was ready in a few seconds.
In December 2007, PC Club
PC Club
PC Club was a privately-owned, United States-based chain of computer hardware stores established in City of Industry, California in 1992. The company closed all its stores on July 29, 2008. PC Club operated primarily in the west-coast states...
followed suit and reintroduced their Enpower Fuzion desktop for sale with gOS installed for $189, which is their second system to include a GNU/Linux distribution since their controversial temporary inclusion of Linspire
Linspire
Linspire, previously known as LindowsOS, was a commercial operating system based on Debian GNU/Linux and later Ubuntu. Linspire was published by Linspire, Inc. and focused on ease-of-use, targeting home PC users...
(then LindowsOS) in late 2003/early 2004 and the sale of the Empower Essence system with Ubuntu during the month of June 2007.
Everex followed on by creating the CloudBook
CloudBook
The Cloudbook is an x86 subnotebook, or Ultra-Mobile PC developed by Everex using a VIA processor, chipset, and NanoBook reference design. It competes with the ASUS Eee PC, the OLPC XO-1 and the Classmate PC...
, a laptop based on the VIA NanoBook
NanoBook
The NanoBook is an ultra-mobile PC reference design by VIA Technologies, Inc. It has a clamshell form factor, a 7-inch 800×480 touchscreen display, and a full-size keyboard. It weighs less than 850 g and has a claimed battery life of up to 4.5 hours...
reference. The CloudBook was bundled with gOS Rocket with a hint that later versions would include a touchscreen. At an RRP of $400, it was to compete with the ASUS Eee PC in the cheap miniature Laptop space. Less well known is the fact that Everex simultaneously also worked on a more classic notebook, called the gBook, and on the Mac mini
Mac Mini
The Mac Mini is a small form factor desktop computer manufactured by Apple Inc. Like earlier mini-ITX PC designs, it is uncommonly small for a desktop computer: 7.7 inches square and 1.4 inches tall. It weighs 2.7 pounds...
like gPC mini all designed to run gOS v2.
Online vendor ClubIT.com offered a RoHS-compliant VIA C7
VIA C7
The VIA C7 is an x86 central processing unit designed by Centaur Technology and sold by VIA Technologies.- Product history :The C7 delivers a number of improvements to the older VIA C3 cores but is nearly identical to the latest VIA C3 Nehemiah core. The C7 was officially launched in May 2005,...
developer board bundled with gOS.
gOS 2-beta (gOS Rocket E)
CloudBook
The Cloudbook is an x86 subnotebook, or Ultra-Mobile PC developed by Everex using a VIA processor, chipset, and NanoBook reference design. It competes with the ASUS Eee PC, the OLPC XO-1 and the Classmate PC...
which was due to debut January 25, 2008 was delayed for a month to allow Good OS time to rewrite this second version of gOS for the CloudBook, gBook. and second version of the gPC. On April 11, 2008, Good OS released an updated version of gOS Rocket E. In addition, a fan of gOS has also released an unauthorized remaster of gOS Rocket E which includes the aforementioned system administration tools and drive mounting as well as the Thunar
Thunar
Thunar is a file manager for Linux and other Unix-like systems, written using the GTK+ 2 toolkit, and shipped with Xfce version 4.4 RC1 and later. Thunar is developed by Benedikt Meurer, and was originally intended to replace XFFM, Xfce's previous file manager...
file manager.
gOS V2 Rocket (gOS Rocket G)
Avant Window Navigator
Avant Window Navigator is a dock-like bar for Linux, which sits on an edge of a user's screen and tracks open windows. Instead of representing open windows as buttons or segments on a bar, it uses icons to minimize screen space and add visual appeal. Avant Window Navigator was created by Neil J...
system to create a dock
Dock (computing)
The Dock is a prominent feature of the graphical user interface of the Mac OS X operating system. It is used to launch applications and switch between running applications...
to resemble the older gOS versions in looks and functionality. Until the launch of gOS 2.9 this version was not available as a Live CD
Live CD
A live CD, live DVD, or live disc is a CD or DVD containing a bootable computer operating system. Live CDs are unique in that they have the ability to run a complete, modern operating system on a computer lacking mutable secondary storage, such as a hard disk drive...
, but only to CloudBook owners. But after the launch of 2.9 it has now also become available as a Live_CD download from one of the mirrors as found on the Good OS web-site. This version is now referenced to as "gOS rocket G" ("G" for Gnome) to distinguish it from the older beta version now called "gOS rocket E", which is also still available for download.
gOS 2.9 Space
Memory Stick
Memory Stick is a removable flash memory card format, launched by Sony in October 1998, and is also used in general to describe the whole family of Memory Sticks...
or Secure Digital card
Secure Digital card
Secure Digital is a non-volatile memory card format developed by the SD Card Association for use in portable devices. The SD technology is used by more than 400 brands across dozens of product categories and more than 8,000 models, and is considered the de-facto industry standard.Secure Digital...
reader acting as an external USB drive, with enough capacity. A gOS 2.9 DVD was also announced to be sold from The Good OS store on their website, but until now has not become available. gOS Space is loaded with new MySpace features, but all the existing Google applications can still be used. As a GNU/Linux distribution, 2.9 is much more complete than 2.0-beta and is also less buggy. gOS Space is less "light" (using a small amount of memory) than older, publicly-available versions, as it's based on a combination of Ubuntu
Ubuntu (operating system)
Ubuntu is a computer operating system based on the Debian Linux distribution and distributed as free and open source software. It is named after the Southern African philosophy of Ubuntu...
7.10, the GNOME windows manager enhanced with Compiz fusion, and the Avant Window Navigator
Avant Window Navigator
Avant Window Navigator is a dock-like bar for Linux, which sits on an edge of a user's screen and tracks open windows. Instead of representing open windows as buttons or segments on a bar, it uses icons to minimize screen space and add visual appeal. Avant Window Navigator was created by Neil J...
, a Dock
Dock (computing)
The Dock is a prominent feature of the graphical user interface of the Mac OS X operating system. It is used to launch applications and switch between running applications...
-like launcher that has been enhanced with Stacks
Stacks (software)
Stacks are a feature first found in Apple's operating system, Mac OS X v10.5 "Leopard". As the name implies, they "stack" files into a small organized folder on the Dock...
. According to Good OS, there is also Enlightenment
Enlightenment (window manager)
Enlightenment, also known simply as E, is a stacking window manager for the X Window System which can be used alone or in conjunction with a desktop environment such as GNOME or KDE...
code used, but its exact purpose is still unknown. In any case gOS Space needs about 384MB of RAM to work reasonably, the same amount as straight Ubuntu 7.10. When Ubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron) became available on April 24, 2008 it became obvious that trying to upgrade gOS 2.9 to the new Ubuntu renders it without any working kernels
Linux kernel
The Linux kernel is an operating system kernel used by the Linux family of Unix-like operating systems. It is one of the most prominent examples of free and open source software....
, leaving a non-working system, so upgrading gOS has been disabled by Good OS. It is not expected that this will be fixed, but that instead a new gOS (rev 3.0) will be released, based on Ubuntu 8.04.
gOS 2.9M Escape Pod
As of July 2, 2008 Good OS, in consortium with Digital GadgetsOsram Sylvania
Osram Sylvania Inc. is the North American operation of lighting manufacturer Osram GmbH, which is owned by Siemens AG. It was established in January 1993, with the acquisition of GTE’s Sylvania lighting division by Osram GmbH....
, launched the Sylvania g netbook. The Sylvania name is used under license by Digital Gadgets. Its similar to the original Everex CloudBook with more memory, and the trackpad and buttons have moved to the front of the device. the new system runs gOS 2.9M, a specially modified version of gOS 2.9 "space" based on Ubuntu 8.04
gOS 3.0 Gadgets
About a month after a first beta version, the final version of gOS 3.0 was released on the gOS website on September 23, 2008. It features integrated Google GadgetsGoogle Gadgets
Google Gadgets are dynamic web content that can be embedded on a web page. They can be added to and interact strongly with Google's iGoogle personalized home page and the Google Desktop application, as well as Google Wave...
integrated into the desktop (not in a browser window) and includes Wine 1.0
Wine (software)
Wine is a free software application that aims to allow computer programs written for Microsoft Windows to run on Unix-like operating systems. Wine also provides a software library, known as Winelib, against which developers can compile Windows applications to help port them to Unix-like...
and Mozilla Prism
Mozilla Prism
Mozilla Prism is a product which integrates web applications with the desktop, allowing web applications to be launched from the desktop and configured independently of the default web browser. As of November 2010, Prism is listed as an inactive project at the Mozilla labs website.Prism is based...
. gOS 3.0 is based on the newer Ubuntu 8.04.1. This version goes "back to its roots", as it is intended for netbook
Netbook
Netbooks are a category of small, lightweight, legacy-free, and inexpensive laptop computers.At their inception in late 2007 as smaller notebooks optimized for low weight and low cost — netbooks omitted certain features , featured smaller screens and keyboards, and offered reduced computing...
s. The Avant Window Navigator
Avant Window Navigator
Avant Window Navigator is a dock-like bar for Linux, which sits on an edge of a user's screen and tracks open windows. Instead of representing open windows as buttons or segments on a bar, it uses icons to minimize screen space and add visual appeal. Avant Window Navigator was created by Neil J...
's (abbreviated AWN or Awn) dock
Dock (computing)
The Dock is a prominent feature of the graphical user interface of the Mac OS X operating system. It is used to launch applications and switch between running applications...
-like bar has been removed in favor of a more "lightweight" launch bar called Wbar. It is similar to the one used in the first Enlightenment
Enlightenment (window manager)
Enlightenment, also known simply as E, is a stacking window manager for the X Window System which can be used alone or in conjunction with a desktop environment such as GNOME or KDE...
-based gOS version. The gOS 3.0 Gadgets Live CD can be downloaded from the thinkgos site. In an official press release issued on August 6, 2008, gOS 3.0 Gadgets was announced to use LXDE
LXDE
LXDE is a free and open source desktop environment for Unix and other POSIX compliant platforms, such as Linux or BSD. The goal of the project is to provide a desktop environment that is fast and energy efficient...
technology but this plan was later put aside. Launching Synaptic will reveal that none of the applications listed at LXDE's About page are installed.
gOS 3.1 Gadgets
gOS 3.1 Gadgets was launched on January 3, 2009 as an upgraded bug fixed version of gOS 3.0 gadgets. This version fixes some bugs in gOS 3.0, but it isn't an obligatory update for users of 3.0 because bugfixes in gOS 3.0 are distributed using the built-in updater automatically. This version has had over 45,000 downloads.Netbook Launcher
On October 22, 2008, a beta version of the gOS Netbook Launcher was released. This is an independently developed extension of gOS that gives gOS 3.0 Gadgets the possibility to switch to a new "netbook user interface", similar to Ubuntu Netbook RemixUbuntu Netbook Remix
Ubuntu Netbook Edition , known as Ubuntu Netbook Remix prior to the release of Ubuntu 10.04, was a version of the Ubuntu Linux distribution that had been optimized to enable it to work better on netbooks and other devices with small screens or with the Intel Atom CPU.UNE was available starting with...
. You can switch between a netbook user interface and the classic gOS desktop at will. This Launcher is provided by the gOS Community and is not officially supported by Good OS for system manufacturers. It is still in beta, and therefore contains some bugs. One remaining problem is that it does not work well with Compiz
Compiz
Compiz is one of the first compositing window managers for the X Window System that uses 3D graphics hardware to create fast compositing desktop effects for window management. The effects, such as a minimization effect and a cube workspace are implemented as loadable plugins...
.
Upgrade problem for versions before gOS 2.9M
When Ubuntu released version 8.04 (Hardy Heron) on April 24, 2008, it became apparent that gOS (versions before gOS 2.9M Escape pod) could no longer use the update/upgrade facilities that Ubuntu offered. Any attempt to upgrade any version of gOS before version 2.9M will either fail with an "incompatible windows manager" error or will remove all kernelsLinux kernel
The Linux kernel is an operating system kernel used by the Linux family of Unix-like operating systems. It is one of the most prominent examples of free and open source software....
from the system. Version 3.0 of gOS solves the problem, as it is actually based on Ubuntu 8.04. Good OS claims that new versions of gOS won't use Ubuntu's upgrading repositories, to prevent the problem from happening again.
Version history table
| Colour | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Red | Release no longer officially available |
| Green | Release still officially available |
| Blue | Future release |
| White | Not publicly available |
| Version (screenshots) | Code name | development name | Release date | released for | Based on | Freely available? | Desktop Manager !! Dock manager !! Features and Changes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1.0.1_386 | gOS | Painfull | 2007-11-01 | Everex Everex green computers In the mid-2000s, Everex began selling several brands of green computers. These computers are targeted at users that only need access to web applications, versus Microsoft Windows-based applications .... gPC |
Gutsy Gibbon | Yes Live_CD | E17 Enlightenment (window manager) Enlightenment, also known simply as E, is a stacking window manager for the X Window System which can be used alone or in conjunction with a desktop environment such as GNOME or KDE... |
iBar | Initial release; Based on Ubuntu 7.10 and the Enlightenment 17 Desktop environment, plus lots of Google applications |
| 2.0.1-beta1 Screenshot | gOS Rocket (E) | Reloaded | 2008-01-07 | Everex CloudBook CloudBook The Cloudbook is an x86 subnotebook, or Ultra-Mobile PC developed by Everex using a VIA processor, chipset, and NanoBook reference design. It competes with the ASUS Eee PC, the OLPC XO-1 and the Classmate PC... Demo at CES 2008 |
Gutsy Gibbon | Yes Live_CD | E17 | iBar | Beta demo version especially developed to demonstrate with the Everex CloudBook at the 2008 Consumer Electronics Show Consumer Electronics Show The International Consumer Electronics Show is a major technology-related trade show held each January in the Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States. Not open to the public, the Consumer Electronics Association-sponsored show typically hosts previews of products and new... . still based on Enlightenment 17 desktop |
| V2 | gOS Rocket (G) | Unknown | 2008-02-22 | Everex CloudBook, gBook, gPC and gPC2 | Gutsy Gibbon | V2 NO, gOS 2G Yes | GNOME GNOME GNOME is a desktop environment and graphical user interface that runs on top of a computer operating system. It is composed entirely of free and open source software... |
AWN Avant Window Navigator Avant Window Navigator is a dock-like bar for Linux, which sits on an edge of a user's screen and tracks open windows. Instead of representing open windows as buttons or segments on a bar, it uses icons to minimize screen space and add visual appeal. Avant Window Navigator was created by Neil J... |
Final version as delivered installed on the CloudBook, and later the gBook and the gPC2. Not available as a live CD until the launch of Space. Now based on AWN and Compiz fusion. |
| 2.9 | gOS Space | Unknown | 2008-04-06 | Everex gPC mini | Gutsy Gibbon | Yes as Live_CD | GNOME | AWN | Specially promoted as a version for MySpace MySpace Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors.... users, adds "stacks" to the AWN launcher, and uses MySpace applications, does not need 3D hardware to support AWN. Fits on a live DVD DVD A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions.... . |
| 2.9M | gOS Escape pod 2.9M | Unknown | 2008-02-07 | Sylvania Osram Sylvania Osram Sylvania Inc. is the North American operation of lighting manufacturer Osram GmbH, which is owned by Siemens AG. It was established in January 1993, with the acquisition of GTE’s Sylvania lighting division by Osram GmbH.... g netbook |
Hardy Heron (8.04) | No, only on g-netbook | GNOME | AWN | Specific "light" version, especially developed for netbook systems |
| 3.0 beta | gOS 3.0 Gadgets beta | Aphrodite | 2008-08-06 | Netbooks | Hardy Heron (8.04.1) | Yes, as live CD | GNOME | Wbar | Light netbook version that supports the Google desktop, including Google Gadgets Google Gadgets Google Gadgets are dynamic web content that can be embedded on a web page. They can be added to and interact strongly with Google's iGoogle personalized home page and the Google Desktop application, as well as Google Wave... , and adds Wine 1.0 Wine (software) Wine is a free software application that aims to allow computer programs written for Microsoft Windows to run on Unix-like operating systems. Wine also provides a software library, known as Winelib, against which developers can compile Windows applications to help port them to Unix-like... , and Picasa Picasa Picasa is an image organizer and image viewer for organizing and editing digital photos, plus an integrated photo-sharing website, originally created by Idealab in 2002 and owned by Google since 2004. "Picasa" is a blend of the name of Spanish painter Pablo Picasso, the phrase mi casa for "my... . Fits on a Live CD Live CD A live CD, live DVD, or live disc is a CD or DVD containing a bootable computer operating system. Live CDs are unique in that they have the ability to run a complete, modern operating system on a computer lacking mutable secondary storage, such as a hard disk drive... , but it was a beta and had a few bugs. |
| 3.0 final | gOS 3.0 Gadgets final (Gnome) | Aphrodite | 2008-09-24 | Netbook Netbook Netbooks are a category of small, lightweight, legacy-free, and inexpensive laptop computers.At their inception in late 2007 as smaller notebooks optimized for low weight and low cost — netbooks omitted certain features , featured smaller screens and keyboards, and offered reduced computing... s and Nettop Nettop Nettop may refer to:*Nettop, a type of computer*NetTop, a NSA project... s |
Hardy Heron (8.04.1) | Yes, as live CD | GNOME | Wbar | Light netbook version that supports the Google desktop, including Google Gadgets, and adds Wine 1.0, and Picasa. Fits on a Live CD. Other flavors are still announced. |
| 3.1 (SP1) | gOS 3.1 Gadgets (SP1) (Gnome) | Aphrodite | 2009-01-03 | Netbooks and Nettops | Hardy Heron (8.04.1) | Yes, as live CD | GNOME | Wbar | Upgrade (bug fixed) version (service pack 1) of gOS 3.0 |
| 3.0 (Netbook edition beta) | gOS 3.0 Gadgets final with netbook launcher beta | Unknown | 2008-10-22 (beta) | Netbooks and Nettops | Hardy Heron (8.04.1) | The free netbook launcher can be installed on top of regular gOS 3.0. | GNOME | Wbar | for gOS 3 a special netbook application launcher is released, although it is still in beta, and is developed independently from Good OS. With it you can switch between a Netbook launcher Ubuntu Netbook Remix Ubuntu Netbook Edition , known as Ubuntu Netbook Remix prior to the release of Ubuntu 10.04, was a version of the Ubuntu Linux distribution that had been optimized to enable it to work better on netbooks and other devices with small screens or with the Intel Atom CPU.UNE was available starting with... or the classic gOS desktop. |
See also
- EasyPeasy
- EliveEliveElive is a GNU/Linux distribution based on Debian for legacy and commodity hardware with Intel processors. Elive uses the Enlightenment X window manager instead of GNOME or KDE...
- visually similar to gOS - Everex green computersEverex green computersIn the mid-2000s, Everex began selling several brands of green computers. These computers are targeted at users that only need access to web applications, versus Microsoft Windows-based applications ....
- GoobuntuGoobuntuGoobuntu is the unofficial name of a Linux distribution, based on the 'long term support'-versions of Ubuntu, that is used internally by Google. It adds a number of packages for in-house use, but does not have any other stark differences. Some have suggested that Google might plan to market the...
- Google Chrome OSGoogle Chrome OSGoogle Chrome OS is a Linux-based operating system designed by Google to work exclusively with web applications. Google announced the operating system on July 7, 2009 and made it an open source project, called Chromium OS, that November....
- Joli OS
- LXDELXDELXDE is a free and open source desktop environment for Unix and other POSIX compliant platforms, such as Linux or BSD. The goal of the project is to provide a desktop environment that is fast and energy efficient...
- ZonbuZonbuZonbu is a technology company that sells a computing platform which combines a web-centric service, a small form factor PC, and an open source based software architecture...