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The topic is basically self-explanatory. Two days of semi-obsessive hacking resulted in a "custom" version of Xubuntu for the eeePC. Two minutes of half-assed brainstorming resulted in the name: eeeXubuntu.
The biggest advantage for most users at this point is the hardware support: I incorporated the patched madwifi/atl2 modules as a custom package. (I hate ndiswrapper, so should you.) Boot, install, and you're done.
http://wiki.eeeuser.com/ubuntu:eeexubuntu:home
Suggestions and feedback is very welcome. I want to really polish this off by Christmas time...
Imagine getting (or giving) an eeePC, an eeeXubuntu CD, and a 1GB flashdrive to/from a loved one: Wouldn't you want it-just-works simplicity for you and yours?
p.s. It's pronounced "eXXXXXXX.... ubuntu", preferably with finger tapping. Think Mr. Burns from the Simpsons and you've got the right idea.
2007.12.11: Version 2 has been released, booting from a CD now works. You can also create a bootable USB device directly from the Live CD
Last edited by oasisbob (2007-12-11 6:35:51 pm)
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Can't wait to try this out - brilliant work dude!
(being a little new to this all, can i use the eee to make my usb drive bootable, or do i need a seperate linux machine?)
Last edited by poloman (2007-12-11 5:35:38 am)
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This is great. Thank you. I'll have to try this when I get my Eee (should be in today).
Has this been tried and tested on different versions of the Eee? Generally, it should all be the same, but sometimes little difference can mess things up. I will try this on an 8G when it gets here and have an answer by tonight possibly.
Thanks again oasisbob, this saves a lot of time. 
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poloman wrote:
(being a little new to this all, can i use the eee to make my usb drive bootable, or do i need a seperate linux machine?)
You might be able to use the default Xandros install, I'm not really sure, but I doubt it.
One of my plans for the next release is to incorporate a flash drive installer, errr, maker into the iso itself. That way someone could burn a CD, boot their desktop using eeeXubuntu, and create the USB drive in one step.
If anyone has Python gtk/UI experience, send me a PM. I'd love to see this USB-creator script take the form of an icon on the desktop...
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hi friend can u explain the metod for do this new version of xubuntu?
i wanna make a my version with Kubuntu , all driver and some appz... pls let me know..
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disabuse wrote:
Has this been tried and tested on different versions of the Eee? Generally, it should all be the same, but sometimes little difference can mess things up. I will try this on an 8G when it gets here and have an answer by tonight possibly.
I think it should work OK... Unless the wifi hardware or chipsets changed, the Ubuntu installer should figure it all out. I've tried to stay as close to stock as possible.
edit: Oh, tested on other machines? Uhhh, hi everybody!
Last edited by oasisbob (2007-12-11 6:19:24 am)
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Hello oasisbob,
I am going to use your version of eeexbuntu but I have some question for you
I have not understood well if it has the drivers for the WiFi and the Webcam included ?
Is the FR language included or do I have to install it after ?
What are the softs that are going with this version please ?
Thank you very much for your reply.
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Great idea Oasisbob, I'm glad to see someone doing this. I've a couple of suggestions:
1 - Can you make a repository available so testers can try out the new debs instead of downloading the iso each time you change it? Most of us already have nicely tweaked xubuntu installs.
2 - Maybe substitute wicd for network monitor, as it works far better for wifi under xubuntu (remembers encryption passwords for starters)
3 - Maybe you've done this, but convert all background art from 1600x1200 to 800x480.
4 - Include skype2, since video skype seems to be a priority for lots of people
5 - Can't think of anything else.
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Oasisbob, thanks for this - I shall try it out tonight and report back here with my findings...
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tristan wrote:
Great idea Oasisbob, I'm glad to see someone doing this. I've a couple of suggestions:
1 - Can you make a repository available so testers can try out the new debs instead of downloading the iso each time you change it? Most of us already have nicely tweaked xubuntu installs.
I might. At the very least, I'll be posting the wifi/ethernet debs. However, my goal is primarily in getting a user-friendly base system going. For those users who have well-tweaked installs already, this will probably be of very little interest to them.
2 - Maybe substitute wicd for network monitor, as it works far better for wifi under xubuntu (remembers encryption passwords for starters)
It might be something with your specific install? WPA is working great for me in xubuntu using network-manager.
3 - Maybe you've done this, but convert all background art from 1600x1200 to 800x480.
Not a bad idea.
4 - Include skype2, since video skype seems to be a priority for lots of people
I was thinking about that... I'll have to check on redistribution rights, but it's a good idea. (Same for ucview.)
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Is there support fro the acpi stuff too?
Gosh, this is just toooo exciting...
Edit : Oh, wait a minute, just read the to-do. The fn keys aren't in there yet, shame! Please don't remove Brasero.. unless there's an alternative?
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fandaor wrote:
Hello oasisbob,
I am going to use your version of eeexbuntu but I have some question for you
I have not understood well if it has the drivers for the WiFi and the Webcam included ?
Is the FR language included or do I have to install it after ?
What are the softs that are going with this version please ?
Thank you very much for your reply.
Hi fandaor,
Recent versions of Ubuntu come with all language packs on the Live CD, it removes the unused languages after the installation is complete. You should be able to choose French during the installation and have it work.
Regarding the drivers, everything should work out of the box, including WiFi and the webcam. Surprisingly, webcam support has been one of the few things that hasn't needed tweaking at all. (Anyone who's lived through a manual video4linux configuration will agree.)
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have to check on redistribution rights
Basically, it's not permitted under the terms of Skype's "normal" EULA:
3.1 Distribution of Skype Software. You are not allowed to distribute the Skype Software under this Agreement. For the right to distribute You will have to agree to and meet with the Distribution Terms as published on the Skype Website.
Skype has a specific Distribution agreement, but, this is aimed at distribution on physical media, and, in any case, is not great for what you are looking to do, although, of course, Skype is able to make changes to this if it saw fit.
In particular:
1.3 You will not distribute other products or services together with Skype Software, unless You are a publisher of computer magazines for end users and distribute the Skype Software with Your magazine(s) for free.
1.4 You will not distribute Skype Software through other media than CD-ROM or DVD, unless approved by Skype in an explicit written communication to You.
Clauses 1.8 and 1.9 are rather onerous, unless you are willing to take on such an obligation:
1.8 You will constantly monitor the Skype Website in order to ensure that You are distributing the latest stable version of the Skype Software as well as that You are aware of any changes in the applicable legal documents. In the event that You cannot agree on any changes in any applicable legal document You will immediate cease any and all distribution of the Skype Software and, where applicable, any and all use of the Skype Software.
1.9 You will at any and all times clearly indicate that the Skype Software originates from Skype by marking the words “Includes Skype Software” on the packaging material and/or on the distributed physical medium, and will at any time comply with all further instructions provided by Skype for the distribution of the Skype Software.
There is an additional point which Skype's drafting does not allow for either - if someone wishes to torrent the .iso, this would not be possible, as each user would need to agree to the terms of this agreement, and get written permission from Skype. Similarly, even giving the CD to a friend would be an infringement without a licence to distribute, which really does not help with the way in which open source products are traditionally distributed (recognising that Skype, of course, is not open source in itself).
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Hello oasisbob, and thank you for the reply.
Can you please tell me what are the soft bundled with this release please ?
So I can check for the other softs I will need to add ^^
Thank you very much in advance,
Fandaor
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I was wondering if you compiled a custom kernel for this. Or if you even think this is needed.
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Would it be possible to get any screenshots of the default desktop? Also, how much space does the default install take up on the SSD?
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I'm DL'ng it now and look forward to having lots of OS's on SD cards for my own personal fun and amusement. Not to mention just plain showing off for people!
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xeem wrote:
Would it be possible to get any screenshots of the default desktop? Also, how much space does the default install take up on the SSD?
Would love to know this too. Oh and +1 for a desktop screen
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Excellent! I was about to go through the pain and suffering to get a build of xubuntu loaded on this machine and get everything working. Thanks so much for taking the time to do this. I am downloading this now and hope to give it a shot shortly.
Did you eliminate the swap partition to address the ssd writes issue? Thanks again!
Guy
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Oh boy, all sorts of questions and comments... Here goes:
neil wrote:
... not legal to distribute skype...
Thanks for the info, that's what I thought. To be honest, distributing non-free software rubs me the wrong way anyways.
fandaor wrote:
Can you please tell me what are the soft bundled with this release please ?
So I can check for the other softs I will need to add
For the most part, it has all the software that normal Xubuntu would have. The only changes I can thing of off the top of my head are:
(add) madwifi-tools
(add) gnome-power-manager
(remove) linux-restricted-modules, restricted-manager, etc
If you want to see details, look at the /casper/filesystem.manifest-desktop file for a full list of packages this comes with.
number2 wrote:
... custom kernel? ...
Nope! That would be a nightmare to maintain. The kernel is stock ubuntu generic. I was able to add the madwifi modules by compiling them from source against the stock kernel sources, then I added the resulting deb (from m-a) to this distro.
GuyFawkes wrote:
Did you eliminate the swap partition to address the ssd writes issue?
Yes and no... I didn't eliminate the swap partition because it is needed for hibernation, and I don't want to break that. However, I did turn vm.swappiness down so that the kernel won't actually swap under normal circumstances.
total used free shared buffers cached Mem: 507264 298024 209240 0 8028 125144 -/+ buffers/cache: 164852 342412 Swap: 546168 0 546168
Of course, that's just how I did it... The installer still lets you partition however you'd like.
how much space does the default install take up on the SSD?
Currently 1.7GB.
... a screenshot is coming soon.
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Sounds very nice!
One question I've been wondering about... for those of us testing out these custom installations, will there be an upgrade path to future versions of say eeeXubuntu? How would we go about getting caught up with changes you implement?
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mkrishnan wrote:
Sounds very nice!
One question I've been wondering about... for those of us testing out these custom installations, will there be an upgrade path to future versions of say eeeXubuntu? How would we go about getting caught up with changes you implement?
That's a very good question, one that I'm still dealing with.
First, eeXubuntu isn't intended to be a distribution per se, but rather a live CD. Once it's installed, the user is running Xubuntu with a few custom packages and scripted tweaks that occured on install. I really don't intend this to be a fork... I don't think that's in everyone's best interest.
With that being said, let's say I implement the ACPI function key configurations in the next release... That would be a compelling reason to "upgrade." I'm not sure how to handle this situation. One of the things that simplifies the patch process in eeeXubuntu is that I'm making changes to a known filesystem during the install... Once the install is over, there are no guarantees as to the state of the system. Perhaps retroactively applying the patches would work, maybe not... Debian's method for handling configuration files within the package management system doesn't exactly help either.
Advice is much welcome.
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In the short term it seems that running these distro's off of thumbdrives or SD cards would be beneficial and thus just requiring updating that image. Linux in general is pretty good about letting you back up[ prefs and libs and doing a complete re-install and restoring you stuff without too much disruption.
I know I intent to keep Xandros on the SSD and look for cheap 4 & 8GB SD/Thumbdrives for the rest until I find that I am using a OS enough to merit to being on the SSD. XP will likely always stay on a SD card.
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New release coming soon (within the hour)
I just finished a new release (r2) of eeeXubuntu, I'll be uploading it soon.
I fixed the CD booting problem, and added the script to make a bootable USB drive from the live CD itself. It's pretty slick...
If you haven't downloaded this yet, I'd hold off for the next release.
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oasisbob wrote:
New release coming soon (within the hour)
I just finished a new release (r2) of eeeXubuntu, I'll be uploading it soon.
I fixed the CD booting problem, and added the script to make a bootable USB drive from the live CD itself. It's pretty slick...
If you haven't downloaded this yet, I'd hold off for the next release.
Does this latest release include suspend / hibernation support if installed on the SSD?
Thanks for your work on this!
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