Trisquel
Encyclopedia
Trisquel GNU/Linux is a Linux distribution
using a free version of the Linux kernel
as distributed by the Linux-libre
project. The main goals of the project are the production of a fully free software
(free as in free speech) system that must be easy to use, complete, and with good language support.
Trisquel's name comes from the Celtic symbol triskelion
, or triskele in English, consisting of three interlocked spirals. The project's logo depicts a triskelion made of the union of three Debian swirls as a sign of recognition to the project on which it is based.
The project began in 2004 with the sponsorship of the University of Vigo
, and officially presented in April 2005 with Richard Stallman
, founder of the GNU Project
, as a special guest. It was originally developed as a Debian
-based distribution, but the repositories were changed to Ubuntu with the 2.0 release, in the summer of 2008. The project hosts its own repositories which are derivatives of Ubuntu's main and universe components, but with all proprietary software
removed. The differences include the removal of all non-free packages, the substitution of the original Linux
kernel
with the blob
-free version linux-libre
, and the addition of several packages.
By December 11, 2008, Trisquel GNU/Linux was included by the Free Software Foundation in its list of free Linux distributions. According to DistroWatch
, Trisquel was the most popular Linux-libre operating system in October 2011 and ranked 78th overall in popularity in the previous six months.
four freedoms
rule to exclude non-free software. This commitment leads to the removal of firmware blobs
and other pieces of software, as well as to the fact that no support is given to non-free software within the project's forums and documentation.
From a practical point of view, the most noticeable changes are the focused set of pre-installed software, the non-standard desktop configuration using only one deskbar instead of GNOME
defaults, and the original artwork, designed to be clean and elegant. Also, since version 3.5, XFS
is the default file system for the home directory, and Ext4
the default for the rest of the partition, to maximize performance.
All versions include this common software:
images, all of them recordable on a standard CD-R
except for the Pro Editions, which due to their size must be recorded on a DVD-R
.
On September 21, 2008, the first release candidate of this educational tool was made public. It was based upon the project's previous experiences in educational software (due to its origins as a university sponsored project, early versions of Trisquel included a large amount of scientific, engineering and teaching tools), and includes several school oriented technologies, such as the LTSP
environment and the iTALC classroom management system. It has also support for low-cost digital whiteboards, using an LCD projector
and a Nintendo
Wii Remote
, with customized free software that allows for the replacement of costly hardware solutions.
among others. It is mainly intended for the Spanish market, as some of the accounting software included is designed to match the Spanish tax regulations, but most of the applications included can be used worldwide. The application collection is completed with several all-purpose tools including a graphical firewall
, antivirus
for the scanning of Windows partitions and Wine
applications- and an automated backup system.
It was officially released at the international multimedia and communications show SIMO
on November 2007.
It runs on Ubuntu 10.10 with the Sugar desktop environment.
Sugar is Collaborative Educational Software as used on the OLPC (One Laptop Per Child) Laptop.
Developed by Sugar Labs Volunteers and Supporters.
and lightweight GTK+
and X11 alternatives to more commonly used GNOME
and Qt/KDE
applications.
in the distribution.
Linux distribution
A Linux distribution is a member of the family of Unix-like operating systems built on top of the Linux kernel. Such distributions are operating systems including a large collection of software applications such as word processors, spreadsheets, media players, and database applications...
using a free version of the Linux kernel
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....
as distributed by the Linux-libre
Linux-libre
Linux-libre is a project that aims to publish and maintain modified versions of the Linux kernel that include only free software. This is accomplished by removing software modules without included source code , obfuscated code or portions of code under proprietary licenses.This project is endorsed...
project. The main goals of the project are the production of a fully free software
Free software
Free software, software libre or libre software is software that can be used, studied, and modified without restriction, and which can be copied and redistributed in modified or unmodified form either without restriction, or with restrictions that only ensure that further recipients can also do...
(free as in free speech) system that must be easy to use, complete, and with good language support.
Trisquel's name comes from the Celtic symbol triskelion
Triskelion
A triskelion or triskele is a motif consisting of three interlocked spirals, or three bent human legs, or any similar symbol with three protrusions and a threefold rotational symmetry. Both words are from Greek or , "three-legged", from prefix "τρι-" , "three times" + "σκέλος" , "leg"...
, or triskele in English, consisting of three interlocked spirals. The project's logo depicts a triskelion made of the union of three Debian swirls as a sign of recognition to the project on which it is based.
The project began in 2004 with the sponsorship of the University of Vigo
University of Vigo
The University of Vigo is a public university located in the city of Vigo, Galicia, Spain. There are three campuses:* Lagoas-Marcosende, between the municipalities of Vigo and Mos;* A Xunqueira, in Pontevedra;* As Lagoas, in Ourense;...
, and officially presented in April 2005 with Richard Stallman
Richard Stallman
Richard Matthew Stallman , often shortened to rms,"'Richard Stallman' is just my mundane name; you can call me 'rms'"|last= Stallman|first= Richard|date= N.D.|work=Richard Stallman's homepage...
, founder of the GNU Project
GNU Project
The GNU Project is a free software, mass collaboration project, announced on September 27, 1983, by Richard Stallman at MIT. It initiated GNU operating system development in January, 1984...
, as a special guest. It was originally developed as a Debian
Debian
Debian is a computer operating system composed of software packages released as free and open source software primarily under the GNU General Public License along with other free software licenses. Debian GNU/Linux, which includes the GNU OS tools and Linux kernel, is a popular and influential...
-based distribution, but the repositories were changed to Ubuntu with the 2.0 release, in the summer of 2008. The project hosts its own repositories which are derivatives of Ubuntu's main and universe components, but with all proprietary software
Proprietary software
Proprietary software is computer software licensed under exclusive legal right of the copyright holder. The licensee is given the right to use the software under certain conditions, while restricted from other uses, such as modification, further distribution, or reverse engineering.Complementary...
removed. The differences include the removal of all non-free packages, the substitution of the original Linux
Linux
Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
kernel
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....
with the blob
Binary blob
In the free software community, binary blob is a pejorative term for an object file loaded into the kernel of a open source operating system without publicly available source code...
-free version linux-libre
Linux-libre
Linux-libre is a project that aims to publish and maintain modified versions of the Linux kernel that include only free software. This is accomplished by removing software modules without included source code , obfuscated code or portions of code under proprietary licenses.This project is endorsed...
, and the addition of several packages.
By December 11, 2008, Trisquel GNU/Linux was included by the Free Software Foundation in its list of free Linux distributions. According to DistroWatch
DistroWatch
DistroWatch is a website which provides news, popularity rankings, and other general information about various Linux distributions as well as other free software/open source Unix-like operating systems such as OpenSolaris, MINIX and BSD. It now contains information on several hundred distributions...
, Trisquel was the most popular Linux-libre operating system in October 2011 and ranked 78th overall in popularity in the previous six months.
Differences from Ubuntu
The main difference is the strict filter that Trisquel applies to what software packages should be distributed, endorsing the Free Software FoundationFree Software Foundation
The Free Software Foundation is a non-profit corporation founded by Richard Stallman on 4 October 1985 to support the free software movement, a copyleft-based movement which aims to promote the universal freedom to create, distribute and modify computer software...
four freedoms
Free software
Free software, software libre or libre software is software that can be used, studied, and modified without restriction, and which can be copied and redistributed in modified or unmodified form either without restriction, or with restrictions that only ensure that further recipients can also do...
rule to exclude non-free software. This commitment leads to the removal of firmware blobs
Binary blob
In the free software community, binary blob is a pejorative term for an object file loaded into the kernel of a open source operating system without publicly available source code...
and other pieces of software, as well as to the fact that no support is given to non-free software within the project's forums and documentation.
From a practical point of view, the most noticeable changes are the focused set of pre-installed software, the non-standard desktop configuration using only one deskbar instead of 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...
defaults, and the original artwork, designed to be clean and elegant. Also, since version 3.5, XFS
XFS
XFS is a high-performance journaling file system created by Silicon Graphics, Inc. It is the default file system in IRIX releases 5.3 and onwards and later ported to the Linux kernel. XFS is particularly proficient at parallel IO due to its allocation group based design...
is the default file system for the home directory, and Ext4
Ext4
The ext4 or fourth extended filesystem is a journaling file system for Linux, developed as the successor to ext3.It was born as a series of backward compatible extensions to ext3, many of them originally developed by Cluster File Systems for the Lustre file system between 2003 and 2006, meant to...
the default for the rest of the partition, to maximize performance.
Versions
There are six different versions of the system so far:- 2.x Robur, Long Term Support
- 3.x Dwyn, Short Term Support
- 3.5.x Awen, STS
- 4.x Taranis LTS
- 4.5.x Slaine STS - based on Ubuntu 10.10
- 5.x Dagda STS - based on Ubuntu 11.04
All versions include this common software:
- Linux-libreLinux-libreLinux-libre is a project that aims to publish and maintain modified versions of the Linux kernel that include only free software. This is accomplished by removing software modules without included source code , obfuscated code or portions of code under proprietary licenses.This project is endorsed...
kernelLinux kernelThe 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....
, 2.6.24 in Robur, 2.6.28 in Dwyn, 2.6.31 in Awen, 2.6.32 in Taranis, 2.6.35 in Slaine, and 2.6.38 in Dagda. - GNOMEGNOMEGNOME 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...
desktop environment, 2.22 in Robur, 2.26 in Dwyn, 2.28 in Awen, 2.30 in Taranis, 2.32 in Slaine, and 2.32 in Dagda. - A version of the Mozilla FirefoxMozilla FirefoxMozilla 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...
that never suggests non-free add-ons, and includes no trademarkTrademarkA trademark, trade mark, or trade-mark is a distinctive sign or indicator used by an individual, business organization, or other legal entity to identify that the products or services to consumers with which the trademark appears originate from a unique source, and to distinguish its products or...
ed art or names.
LTS Editions
There are three main editions of the Long Term Support edition available for download. The one called simply Trisquel is intended for home and personal use. There is Trisquel Edu, for classrooms and schools, and Trisquel Pro, for small businesses. All of them are available in 32 and 64 bit isoCD-ROM
A CD-ROM is a pre-pressed compact disc that contains data accessible to, but not writable by, a computer for data storage and music playback. The 1985 “Yellow Book” standard developed by Sony and Philips adapted the format to hold any form of binary data....
images, all of them recordable on a standard CD-R
CD-R
A CD-R is a variation of the Compact Disc invented by Philips and Sony. CD-R is a Write Once Read Many optical medium, though the whole disk does not have to be entirely written in the same session....
except for the Pro Editions, which due to their size must be recorded on a DVD-R
DVD-R
DVD-R is a DVD recordable format. A DVD-R typically has a storage capacity of 4.71 GB. Pioneer has also developed an 8.5 GB dual layer version, DVD-R DL, which appeared on the market in 2005....
.
Trisquel
The main edition of the distribution is designed for home use, including networking, multimedia, design and office productivity software, as well as some games. It includes a media center application with the ability to play DVDs and most video and audio formats out of the box.Trisquel Edu
Linux Terminal Server Project
Linux Terminal Server Project is a free and open source terminal server for Linux that allows many people to simultaneously use the same computer. Applications run on the server with a terminal known as a thin client handling input and output...
environment and the iTALC classroom management system. It has also support for low-cost digital whiteboards, using an LCD projector
LCD projector
An LCD projector is a type of video projector for displaying video, images or computer data on a screen or other flat surface. It is a modern equivalent of the slide projector or overhead projector...
and a Nintendo
Nintendo
is a multinational corporation located in Kyoto, Japan. Founded on September 23, 1889 by Fusajiro Yamauchi, it produced handmade hanafuda cards. By 1963, the company had tried several small niche businesses, such as a cab company and a love hotel....
Wii Remote
Wii Remote
The , also known as the Wiimote, is the primary controller for Nintendo's Wii console. A main feature of the Wii Remote is its motion sensing capability, which allows the user to interact with and manipulate items on screen via gesture recognition and pointing through the use of accelerometer and...
, with customized free software that allows for the replacement of costly hardware solutions.
Trisquel Pro
Trisquel Pro is a small business oriented operating system. It includes a pack of enterprise management software, including Abanq, OpenbravoPOS, and GNUCashGnuCash
GnuCash is a free and open source accounting software program that implements a double-entry bookkeeping system. It was initially aimed at developing capabilities similar to Intuit, Inc.'s Quicken application, but also has features for small business accounting...
among others. It is mainly intended for the Spanish market, as some of the accounting software included is designed to match the Spanish tax regulations, but most of the applications included can be used worldwide. The application collection is completed with several all-purpose tools including a graphical firewall
Firewall (computing)
A firewall is a device or set of devices designed to permit or deny network transmissions based upon a set of rules and is frequently used to protect networks from unauthorized access while permitting legitimate communications to pass....
, antivirus
Antivirus software
Antivirus or anti-virus software is used to prevent, detect, and remove malware, including but not limited to computer viruses, computer worm, trojan horses, spyware and adware...
for the scanning of Windows partitions and 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...
applications- and an automated backup system.
It was officially released at the international multimedia and communications show SIMO
Simo
Simo may refer to one of the following.Geography:*Simo, Finland, a municipality of Finland*Simojoki, a river of Finland*Simojärvi, a lake of FinlandPeople:* Simo, a Finnish or Serbian male given name...
on November 2007.
Trisquel 4.1-Sugar
Trisquel 4.1-sugar is the trisquel 4.1 version of sugar-desktop with sugar sweets 0.88.1It runs on Ubuntu 10.10 with the Sugar desktop environment.
Sugar is Collaborative Educational Software as used on the OLPC (One Laptop Per Child) Laptop.
Developed by Sugar Labs Volunteers and Supporters.
Trisquel Mini
Trisquel Mini is an alternative to the mainline Trisquel, designed to run well on netbooks and aging hardware. It uses a low-resource environment like LXDELXDE
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...
and lightweight GTK+
GTK+
GTK+ is a cross-platform widget toolkit for creating graphical user interfaces. It is licensed under the terms of the GNU LGPL, allowing both free and proprietary software to use it. It is one of the most popular toolkits for the X Window System, along with Qt.The name GTK+ originates from GTK;...
and X11 alternatives to more commonly used 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...
and Qt/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...
applications.
Trisquel Gamer
Trisquel Gamer is an independent edition maintained by David Zaragoza. It is filled with games and booted from a LiveDVD or USB drive. Although numerous similar distributions exist, Trisquel Gamer is unique among these because it shares Trisquel's firm policy of including only 100% free softwareFree software
Free software, software libre or libre software is software that can be used, studied, and modified without restriction, and which can be copied and redistributed in modified or unmodified form either without restriction, or with restrictions that only ensure that further recipients can also do...
in the distribution.
Installation
Trisquel is installable to hard disk from a graphical installer selected on boot or from within the live CD environment.See also
- List of Linux distributions endorsed by the Free Software Foundation