Parabola GNU/Linux-libre is an operating system for the

i686 The P6 microarchitecture is the sixth-generation Intel x86 microarchitecture, implemented by the Pentium Pro microprocessor that was introduced in November 1995. It is frequently referred to as i686. It was succeeded by the NetBurst microarch ...

x86-64 x86-64 (also known as x64, x86_64, AMD64, and Intel 64) is a 64-bit version of the x86 instruction set, first released in 1999. It introduced two new modes of operation, 64-bit mode and compatibility mode, along with a new 4-level paging mod ...

and

ARMv7 ARM (stylised in lowercase as arm, formerly an acronym for Advanced RISC Machines and originally Acorn RISC Machine) is a family of reduced instruction set computer (RISC) instruction set architectures for computer processors, configured ...

architectures. It is based on many of the packages from

Arch Linux Arch Linux () is an independently developed, x86-64 general-purpose Linux distribution that strives to provide the latest stable versions of most software by following a Rolling release, rolling-release model. The default installation is a minim ...

and

Arch Linux ARM Arch Linux ARM is a port of Arch Linux for ARM processors. Its design philosophy is "simplicity and full control to the end user," and like its parent operating system Arch Linux, aims to be very Unix-like. This goal of minimalism and complete us ...

,Parabola GNU/Linux-libre supports ARMv7
/ref> but distinguishes from the former by offering only

free software Free software or libre software is computer software distributed under terms that allow users to run the software for any purpose as well as to study, change, and distribute it and any adapted versions. Free software is a matter of liberty, no ...

. It includes the

GNU GNU () is an extensive collection of free software (383 packages as of January 2022), which can be used as an operating system or can be used in parts with other operating systems. The use of the completed GNU tools led to the family of operat ...

operating system components common to many

Linux distributions A Linux distribution (often abbreviated as distro) is an operating system made from a software collection that includes the Linux kernel and, often, a package management system. Linux users usually obtain their operating system by downloading one ...

and the

Linux-libre Linux-libre is a modified version of the Linux kernel that contains no binary blobs, obfuscated code, or code released under proprietary licenses. In the Linux kernel, they are mostly used for proprietary firmware images. While generally redis ...

kernel instead of the generic

Linux kernel The Linux kernel is a free and open-source, monolithic, modular, multitasking, Unix-like operating system kernel. It was originally authored in 1991 by Linus Torvalds for his i386-based PC, and it was soon adopted as the kernel for the GNU ope ...

. Parabola is listed by the

Free Software Foundation The Free Software Foundation (FSF) is a 501(c)#501(c)(3), 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded by Richard Stallman on October 4, 1985, to support the free software movement, with the organization's preference for software being distributed ...

as a completely free operating system, true to their Free System Distribution Guidelines. Parabola uses a

rolling release Rolling release, also known as rolling update or continuous delivery, is a concept in software development of frequently delivering updates to applications. This is in contrast to a ''standard'' or ''point release'' development model which uses so ...

model like Arch, such that a regular system update is all that is needed to obtain the latest software. Development focuses on system simplicity, community involvement and use of the latest free software packages.

History

Parabola was originally proposed by members of the

gNewSense gNewSense was a Linux distribution, active from 2006 to 2016. It was based on Debian, and developed with sponsorship from the Free Software Foundation. Its goal was user-friendliness, but with all proprietary (e.g. binary blobs) and non-free s ...

IRC Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is a text-based chat system for instant messaging. IRC is designed for group communication in discussion forums, called ''channels'', but also allows one-on-one communication via private messages as well as chat and ...

channel in 2009. Members of different Arch Linux communities, especially Spanish-speaking members, started the development and maintenance of the project software and documentation. On May 20, 2011, the Parabola distribution was recognized as a completely free project by

, making it part of the FSF list of free distributions. In February 2012 Dmitrij D. Czarkoff reviewed Parabola for

OSNews OSNews is a computing online newspaper. It originally focused on operating systems and their related technologies that launched in 1997, but is now aggregating consumer electronics news. The content is managed by a group of editors and the owner ...

. Czarkoff reported that on his test computer a number of hardware problems surfaced, due to lack of free firmware. He said Czarkoff also criticized the lack of documentation available for Parabola. He concluded "The overall impression of the Parabola GNU/Linux user experience exactly matches the one of Arch: a system with easy and flexible installation and configuration process and good choice of free software packages. Though the lack of documentation spoils the user experience, the Arch Linux resources can be used to further configure and extend the distribution. If my hardware would allow, I would probably stick with Parabola." Parabola used to have a mips64el port to provide support for the Chinese

Loongson Loongson () is the name of a family of general-purpose, MIPS architecture-compatible microprocessors, as well as the name of the Chinese fabless company (Loongson Technology) that develops them. The processors are alternately called Godson proc ...

processor used in the

Lemote Yeeloong Jiangsu Lemote Tech Co., Ltd or Lemote () is a computer company established as a joint venture between the Jiangsu Menglan Group and the China, Chinese Institute of Computing Technology, involved in computer hardware and computer software, softwar ...

laptop. It was discontinued due to a lack of resources and interest, and the final activity was seen in July 2014. Robert Rijkhoff reviewed Parabola GNU/Linux for

DistroWatch DistroWatch is a website which provides news, distribution pages hit rankings, and other general information about various Linux distributions as well as other free software/open source Unix-like operating systems. It now contains information on ...

in September 2017.

Differences from Arch and Arch ARM

240px, Parabola GNU/Linux-libre running the MATE desktop environment The project uses only 100% free software from the official Arch repositories for the

and

architectures and official Arch ARM repositories (except

larm Larm may refer to: * Lärm Lärm (German for ''noise'') were a Dutch straight edge hardcore band formed in 1981, first playing under the name of Total Chaoz. They referred to their music as "extreme noise", though having nothing to do with noise ...

and ur for the

. It uses free replacements when possible, such as the

kernel instead of the generic

. The filtering process removes around 700 software packages from the repositories that do not meet the requirements of

the Free Software Definition The Free Software Definition written by Richard Stallman and published by the Free Software Foundation (FSF), defines free software as being software that ensures that the end users have freedom in using, studying, sharing and modifying that softwa ...

for each architecture.

Social contract

Parabola has established a

social contract In moral and political philosophy Political philosophy or political theory is the philosophical study of government, addressing questions about the nature, scope, and legitimacy of public agents and institutions and the relationships betw ...

. The ''Parabola Social Contract'' commits the project to the free software community (viewing itself as only competing against nonfree systems),

free culture The free-culture movement is a social movement that promotes the freedom to distribute and modify the creative works of others in the form of free content or Free content, open content without compensation to, or the consent of, the work's origin ...

, democracy, and to follow Arch's philosophy. Under the

covenant Covenant may refer to: Religion * Covenant (religion), a formal alliance or agreement made by God with a religious community or with humanity in general ** Covenant (biblical), in the Hebrew Bible ** Covenant in Mormonism, a sacred agreement b ...

are included the

GNU Free System Distribution Guidelines The GNU Project () is a free software, mass collaboration project announced by Richard Stallman on September 27, 1983. Its goal is to give computer users freedom and control in their use of their computers and computing devices by collaborati ...

Installation

There are two ways to install Parabola, either from scratch using installable

ISO ISO is the most common abbreviation for the International Organization for Standardization. ISO or Iso may also refer to: Business and finance * Iso (supermarket), a chain of Danish supermarkets incorporated into the SuperBest chain in 2007 * Iso ...

images, or by migrating from an existing Arch-based system. The latter process is almost as simple as switching to the Parabola repositories list.

TalkingParabola

TalkingParabola is a derivative install CD based on TalkingArch. It is a respin of the Parabola ISO modified to include speech and braille output for blind and visually impaired users. TalkingParabola retains all the features of the Parabola live image, but adds speech and braille packages to make it possible for blind and visually impaired users to install Parabola eyes-free.

Mascots

The Parabola community has created a number of cartoon characters for the project. The characters are a gnu and a cat named "Bola", who is conceived after Parabola's main characteristics: "elegant, minimalist and lightweight".

References

External links

* *
Parabola GNU/Linux-libre appears on news section on SOLAR website (Software Libre Argentina)
!-- Broken 2014-06-10 --> {{DEFAULTSORT:Parabola GNU Linux-libre 2009 software Arch-based Linux distributions Free software only Linux distributions Pacman-based Linux distributions Rolling Release Linux distributions Linux distributions