MX Linux 19.1 ISO Refresh Available

MX Linux 19.1 is available now and, according to the release notes, is packed with useful software updates and loads of bugfixes. If you're already running MX Linux 19, there is no need to wipe your HD and start fresh. You should be able to update normally.

The MX Linux 19.1 release contains all the goodies from both the Debian 10.3 (Buster) repositories and the MX repos.

MX Linux 19.1 comes with:

Xfce 4.14
Mesa 18.3.6
Kernel 4.19

The standard applications coming with the default MX installation:

- GIMP 2.10.12
- Firefox 73.0
- VLC 3.0.8
- Clementine 1.3.1
- Thunderbird 68.4.0
- LibreOffice 6.1.5 (+ security fixes!)

Not many users know this, but MX Linux provides not only 32-bit and 64-bit ISOs, but also the AHS (Advanced Hardware Support) ISO which ships with bleeding-edge software, including the 5.4 Kernel and Mesa 19.2.1.

Read about AHS here. Get MX Linux here and have fun.

Boost Your Debian / Ubuntu Performance With The XanMod Kernel

If you haven't been a Linux user for a long time, you're probably on Ubuntu or any of the other "standard" Debian derivatives (Xubuntu, Kubuntu, or even Devuan). The standard kernel that ships with the LTS variants of Ubuntu operating systems is not optimized for performance but rather for compatibility. If you want to get more out of your hardware, it's recommended to install an optimized kernel for that purpose. There are several alternatives to the mainline kernel. The XanMod Kernel is one of these alternatives and relatively easy to install on your own Ubuntu / Debian machine. You can learn more about the XanMod Kernel here: https://xanmod.org The latest release by the XanMod developer team includes the following changes : - Preemptive Full Tickless Kernel at 500Hz w/ Tuned CPU Core Scheduler. - Tuned Multi-Queue Block Layer w/ Low-Latency BFQ I/O Scheduler. - Caching, Virtual Memory Manager and CPU Governor improvements. - RCU Boost for bett...

Hyperbola Linux Not Linux Anymore?

The FSF-approved Hyperbola Linux distribution is maintaining the "Milky Way" branch until 2022 but is considering to switch the kernel from Linux to BSD due to various reasons. The main reasons being: Linux DRM and other unfree approaches to kernel design (including HDCP) Linux rapidly depending on components that are not optional anymore (systemd, PulseAudio, etc.) It's going to be interesting to see how this experiment turns out. Hyperbola switching to a BSD kernel is quite the surprise. The HyperBK kernel was updated only hours ago. Read more about the kernel switch on the official Hyperbola website: https://www.hyperbola.info/

Intel considering CPU undervolting driver for Linux

Windows users have it easy. The XTU (Intel Extreme Tuning Utility) allows laptop users to undervolt their laptop processors. On Linux, you have to rely on either a good fan setup in your notebook, or on intel-undervolt , the unofficial undervolting project. It seems like Intel is considering to implement their own Kernel driver solution for undervolting Intel CPUs in laptops. See this Kernel mailing list: https://lore.kernel.org/lkml/20200907094843.1949-1-Jason@zx2c4.com/T/#u There is some discussion going on about the undocumented MSR and if it should be permitted to play around with it for the sake of cooler laptop CPUs. Most developers seem to agree that it would be indeed a good idea to implement CPU undervolting on the Kernel level. Intel needs to provide better documentation of their CPU features, including MSR. Since Intel has a huge team of open source developers on their payroll, the development of a new Intel undervolting solution for Linux users seems to be very likely ...

linuxfriendly.blogspot.com