Mandriva 2008 Spring Ready
French distributor Mandriva has released its latest Linux offering, 2008.1 Spring.
According to the vendor, the major release includes around 100 enhancements, including a new multimedia center, and a reworked RPMdrake package installation interface.
Mandriva also claims to have a solution for synchronizing smartphones with the Gnome and KDE desktop environments. Phones based on the Microsoft Windows Mobile operating system, Blackberry MIDs and non-disclosed Nokia cellphones are supported. Xfce has been added to the list of optional desktop environments. If you opt for KDE, Mandriva gives you version 3.5.9; the new KDDE 4.0.3 is also included, but has to be installed separately. Gnome in Mandriva Spring is version 2.22. The kernel underpinnings are provided by version number 2.6.24. Additionally, Mandriva Spring is said to run on the Asus Eee-PC; this is a feature that the distributor points to as an outstanding feature; there is even a subforum on Eee User. The Release Notes list further new features and changes.
Mandriva Spring 2008 will run on the Asus Eee PC as this picture proves.
A free version of the distribution, known as Mandriva One can be downloaded here and will also run as a live CD. The "Free" version contains Open Source only software. The commercial version, Powerpack, is available from the Mandriva shop for 50 Euros as a download version, with the boxed version including installation media available for 70 Euros. The commercial versions include the Lindvd DVD software, codecs by Fluendo and the Wine-based Cedega environment which gives users the ability to run Windows games on Linux.
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Support Our Work
Linux Magazine content is made possible with support from readers like you. Please consider contributing when you’ve found an article to be beneficial.
News
-
KDE for People Initiative Calls for AI Ban in Plasma
A new community of KDE wants the project to adopt a strict no-AI policy for KDE Plasma.
-
KDE Sets Ambitious Goals for 2026 and Beyond
KDE Connect reveals the goals for the Linux desktop darling, with one of those goals long overdue.
-
It’s Time to Test Fedora 45 Beta
Fedora 45 beta has been released with updated Gnome, KDE Plasma, and kernel.
-
Ubuntu Stonking Stingray Gets Even Rustier
Ubuntu 26.10 has completed its migration to the Rust-based coreutils.
-
AI Fixes Linux Bottlenecks Using “Hideous” Code
A Linux developer used AI to fix bottlenecks that caused problems when building the kernel. The resulting AI-generated code needed a lot of work.
-
Advanced Video Coding Still Under Patent
Brazilian patent BRPI0109962B1 has expired, which means that DivX and Xvid are no longer problematic for Linux, but it doesn’t mean that video is all of a sudden fully unleashed.
-
2,000 Vulnerabilities per Linux Release
Thanks to AI bug hunters, the Linux kernel is seeing record numbers of vulnerabilities, and it's overwhelming developers.
-
Linux Exempt from California’s Age Verification Law
So long as Linux is distributed under the GPL, MIT, BSD, and Apache licenses, the OS is exempt from being required to verify the age of its users in California.
-
Roll Out the Cake: Linux Turns 35
35 years ago, a Finnish student began a humble project that would forever change the course of technology.
-
China Switching from Windows to Linux
China has ordered several government agencies to drop a Chinese-developed version of Windows 10 in favor of either KylinOS or UOS.
