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October 26, 2020
Lunduke's Perfect Operating System

There have been a few questions from the community lately that have got me thinking (again -- my mind goes here fairly regularly) about what my ideal Operating System looks like.

Figured I'd make myself a list and publish it here. See what all you lovely nerds think of my "Perfect OS". :)

Probably built on Linux

Linux is so mature, with such great hardware support, this just makes sense. There are other great kernels and base systems out there... but hard to think of a good reason to not use Linux.

No On-Line updates.

If I want an update, I'll download it myself and install it, thank you very much. :)

No On-Line software repositories or stores.

Same goes for software. If I want to install an application, I'll download it (or get it off physical media) and put it on my computer myself.

In fact, no On-Line functionality in the OS at all.

No activation. No phone-home functionality. Applications can have all the connectivity they like, but the base OS itself? Shouldn't ever require the Internet. For anything. Zero exceptions.

All applications as single, movable file

I prefer the old-school Mac way of doing applications. Want to install a piece of software? Drag and drop it to your computer. Done. On Linux this can be accomplished via AppImage. I think that's how it should be.

No rapid releases

Releasing new versions every 6 months is not great. Every year? Better, but still too frequent. I would propose new major releases every... 5 years? Maybe. Part of me wants to say 10 years, but 5 years might be a nice sweet spot. Computers should last. And so should the software that runs on them. This is good for the environment, good for software compatibility, good for the soul. When new releases do come out? Focused on making sure applications continue to be backwards compatible. And forwards compatible. I want to be able to use the exact same version of a word processor in 2020 as in 2035.

One Desktop Environment

The look and feel of an OS should always be customizable. Window decorator themes, etc. are a good thing. But focusing on just one Desktop Environment makes it easier to ensure a good experience and software compatibility. Not sure which of the existing Desktop Environments would be the right way to go. Probably MATE, XFCE, CDE, or something along those lines. Fast, light, lean, clean. Modern GNOME and KDE are a no-go.

Modest System Requirements

The OS itself should not take a gig of space. 1 gig of RAM should be more than enough for the system to run smoothly (some applications could obviously require much more... but not the OS itself or the default software it ships with). The goal here is that the system should run (and run well) on low-end, currently available hardware -- with an eye towards long-term hardware compatibility.

Thoughts on viability of this approach

Creating such a system is, obviously, completely viable. All the pieces exist already (in use by various Linux distributions, etc.), just waiting to be assembled and tweaked for this setup.

Once created, is this a system that others would want to use?

Honestly? No clue.

I mean, I sure want to use this. If this existed right now, I would be using it today. There are a few systems out there (such as Puppy and PCLinuxOS) that address some of these items (quite well). But not all. With all these checkboxes checked? Holy moley would I get excited.

Using the same OS version in 2020 as in 2025? Sounds like heaven.

Getting excited about the big "2.0" release coming out -- a few years down the line? Yes, please!

Knowing that I could develop and release a piece of software now and have it work for all users of the OS for the foreseeable future? And that I, as an end user, can feel confident the software I own will work until the end of time? TAKE MY MONEY.

I want this.

Maybe it's time to buckle down and make it happen.

00:14:01
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XLibre, the "Vanity, Protest Fork" of Xorg, Has Yet Another Major New Release

Red Hat & Xorg tried to silence them, & GNOME leaders vandalized their wiki, calling them "Nazis". But XLibre 25.2 just released, containing more code commits than Xorg had for the entire year.

Ubuntu 4.10, C64, & BeOS added to the Wall!
https://lunduke.substack.com/p/ubuntu-410-joins-lunduke-journal

Get on The Wall with a Massively Discounted Lifetime Sub:
https://lunduke.substack.com/p/50-off-yearly-and-massively-discounted

More from The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.com/

00:11:31
Wikipedia Bans Wikipedia Co-Founder For Saying Wikipedia Should be Neutral

Larry Sanger, the Co-Founder of Wikipedia, has been "blocked indefinitely" after he proposed that Wikipedia include "Intellectual Diversity".

Ubuntu 4.10, C64, & BeOS added to the Wall!
https://lunduke.substack.com/p/ubuntu-410-joins-lunduke-journal

Get on The Wall with a Massively Discounted Lifetime Sub:
https://lunduke.substack.com/p/50-off-yearly-and-massively-discounted

More from The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.com/

00:16:17
Paid Minimalist Brave Browser? Yes, Please!

Want to pay for a streamlined, minimalist web browser without all the extra features? That's Brave Origin. Bonus: Free for all Linux users.

Remember: If you're not paying for the product, you are the product.

Ubuntu 4.10, C64, & BeOS added to the Wall!
https://lunduke.substack.com/p/ubuntu-410-joins-lunduke-journal

Get on The Wall with a Massively Discounted Lifetime Sub:
https://lunduke.substack.com/p/50-off-yearly-and-massively-discounted

More from The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.com/

00:16:47
November 22, 2023
The futility of Ad-Blockers

Ads are filling the entirety of the Web -- websites, podcasts, YouTube videos, etc. -- at an increasing rate. Prices for those ad placements are plummeting. Consumers are desperate to use ad-blockers to make the web palatable. Google (and others) are desperate to break and block ad-blockers. All of which results in... more ads and lower pay for creators.

It's a fascinatingly annoying cycle. And there's only one viable way out of it.

Looking for the Podcast RSS feed or other links? Check here:
https://lunduke.locals.com/post/4619051/lunduke-journal-link-central-tm

Give the gift of The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.locals.com/post/4898317/give-the-gift-of-the-lunduke-journal

The futility of Ad-Blockers
November 21, 2023
openSUSE says "No Lunduke allowed!"

Those in power with openSUSE make it clear they will not allow me anywhere near anything related to the openSUSE project. Ever. For any reason.

Well, that settles that, then! Guess I won't be contributing to openSUSE! 🤣

Looking for the Podcast RSS feed or other links?
https://lunduke.locals.com/post/4619051/lunduke-journal-link-central-tm

Give the gift of The Lunduke Journal:
https://lunduke.locals.com/post/4898317/give-the-gift-of-the-lunduke-journal

openSUSE says "No Lunduke allowed!"
September 13, 2023
"Andreas Kling creator of Serenity OS & Ladybird Web Browser" - Lunduke’s Big Tech Show - September 13th, 2023 - Ep 044

This episode is free for all to enjoy and share.

Be sure to subscribe here at Lunduke.Locals.com to get all shows & articles (including interviews with other amazing nerds).

"Andreas Kling creator of Serenity OS & Ladybird Web Browser" - Lunduke’s Big Tech Show - September 13th, 2023 - Ep 044

Making Music to Take Away the Pain

I’m laid up in my easy chair with my ankle wrapped in ice and elevated. I fell in the hard and sprained it. Had to have help walking into the house. Visually nothing.

So what better time to make some music.

The topic is - My Ordinary is Extraordinary - it’s how changing and improving your health comes from making the changes in daily, ordinary life. Not the New Year’s resolutions or hero workouts.

It fits in my Getting Old Better album where the music style is metal with a horn section.

https://suno.com/s/LlBBQDfm8iHwgI9t

I made a bluegrass version as well because I have been in a reminiscent mood lately and I’m from Appalachia.

https://suno.com/s/J2MvEduhEa4Fzam8

And for fun - a disco “I Will Survive” inspired take

https://suno.com/s/h3AGIFPdHtbnD3MP

It’s it working to take away the pain? Maybe a little bit. Certainly giving me something else to think about than how much this sucks!

9 hours ago
22 hours ago

Another Big Club Members Only Release.

OpenAI's New GPT Cyber Beats Mythos 5 - YouTube

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Ubuntu 4.10 joins Lunduke Journal Lifetime Wall!

TL;DR

Ubuntu 4.10, C64, & BeOS Lifetime Walls are now available for Lifetime Subscribers to put their names on! Plus: Lifetime Subscriptions are massively discounted through end of June (roughly 10 days).

Ubuntu 4.10 Lifetime Wall

Remember when Linux was fast, light, and required only 64 MB of RAM?

The Lunduke Journal remembers.

Let’s celebrating those good old days by adding a new “Lifetime Subscriber Wall” of the very first version of Ubuntu (4.10), released all the way back in 2004.

This brings the total number of Lifetime Subscriber Walls up to 14 (fourteen!), with 11 Walls completely, totally filled with the names of Lunduke Journal supporters.

That’s wild!

Three Retro Lifetime Walls Open

Which means there are 3 Walls currently available to put your signature on:

  • Commodore 64 : Half full

  • BeOS R5 : 1/3rd full

  • Ubuntu 4.10 : Just opened

 

Man. Look at that Ubuntu 4.10 screenshot. So very… GNOME 2… and brown. That, right there, is how I like to remember Ubuntu.

Support The Lunduke Journal & Get on The Wall

Grabbing a Lifetime Subscription to The Lunduke Journal — and getting your name on one of the Retro Computer Lifetime Subscriber Walls — is the best way to show your support for truly independent Tech Journalism.

  1. Grab a Lifetime Subscription (1 name on 1 Wall per Lifetime Subscription), scroll down for the links.

  2. Then Email Lunduke (“[email protected]”) with which Retro Computer Wall you would like to appear on (and what name you would like to use).

Your name will then appear on a Wall… on both Lunduke.com & during the end of Lunduke Journal shows.

Note: These fill up crazy fast. We’re talking days, not weeks. First come, first served. If you want to get on a specific Wall, don’t dilly dally.

Lifetime Discount Runs Through June

For the entire month of June, Lifetime Subscriptions are discounted down to $125 (regularly $300).

How to Grab a Discounted Lifetime Subscription:

There are 3 different ways to pick up a Lunduke Journal Lifetime sub. All of them work great and include the same perks. Choose whichever works best for you!

Get a Lifetime Subscription via Locals:

  1. Go to Lunduke.Locals.com/support.

  2. Select “Give Once“.

  3. Enter “125“ into the amount field.

  4. After checking out, Lunduke will toss you an email once your account is set to full lifetime status. (This usually happens within a few hours.)

Get a Lifetime Subscription via Substack:

  1. Go to Lunduke.Substack.com/subscribe.

  2. Select the “Lifetime Subscription” option.

  3. After checking out, Lunduke will toss you an email once your account is set to full lifetime status. (This usually happens within a few hours.)

If you would also like full, Lifetime access to Lunduke.Locals.com (which is included):

  1. Make a free account on Lunduke.Locals.com.

  2. Email “bryan at lunduke.com” with the email address you use on both Substack and Locals (can be different email addresses).

  3. Lunduke will toss you an email once your account is set to full lifetime status on Locals.

Get a Lifetime Subscription with Bitcoin:

Bonus: Save an extra $10 with the Bitcoin option, as Bitcoin processing has fewer fees associated with it.

bc1qyjakve8fywm8pz2v99v57yhjj0vzr2vjze6fcq

  • Email “bryan at lunduke.com” with the following information: What time you made the transaction, how much was sent (in Bitcoin), and the email address you use (or plan to use) on Locals.com or Substack.com.

-Lunduke

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Lunduke's Week in Tech : June 14 - June 20, 2026

Lunduke’s Thoughts of The Week

The Great Linux/BSD Display Server War(tm) continues to rage on!

This week, Valve’s SteamOS finally finished its transition to Wayland by default (demoting Xorg), a move that SteamOS had put off for the last two years. And, just a few days earlier, Slackware (the oldest actively maintained Linux distro) began officially testing XLibre as a replacement for Xorg.

The trend is clear: Xorg is being tossed into the dumpster (at the encouragement of the Xorg team and Red Hat), with Wayland and XLibre each gaining marketshare.

It will be interesting to see how these changes impact overall X11 (in general) vs Wayland marketshare… which has been staying steady at roughly 50/50, across all Linux distros, for a few years now.

This is all happening at the same time as Linux is becoming increasingly developed by AI bot, with over 10% of all code submissions to the kernel being written by AI during the previous week.

The world of Linux is changing… and changing rapidly.

Some of those changes seem great. Others are terrifying.

Sometimes… well… they are both.

Ubuntu 4.10, C64, & BeOS Walls

The support shown to The Lunduke Journal, from all of you, continues to amaze me.

We are now up to 14 (fourteen!) Retro Computer Walls, filled with the names of Lifetime Lunduke Journal Subscribers who want to show their support to the world.

 

The newest walls — Commodore 64, BeOS R5, & Ubuntu 4.10 (the first Ubuntu release) — are now available for you to add your John Hancock to.

Biggest Tech Stories - June 14 - June 20, 2026

Here are the major stories from the last week, with direct links to X and Substack. You can also watch / listen on a bunch of other platforms (Rumble, RSS Audio Podcast, etc.), listed on Lunduke.com.

  • OpenAI Buys Seat on Rust Board for $600K (X, Substack)

  • SteamOS Ditches X11 for Wayland (X, Substack)

  • Islamic Terrorists Attack Disney+ (X, Substack)

  • The Commodore Smartphone Blocks Social Media & Browsers (X, Substack)

  • AI Submissions to Linux Hits New Record, 10% of All Patches (X, Substack)

  • Slackware Tests Replacing Xorg with XLibre (X, Substack)

Huge thank you to all of The Lunduke Journal’s subscribers. You make all of this possible.

-Lunduke

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"C64" & "BeOS" Lunduke Journal Lifetime Walls open!

The “TempleOS” and “Macintosh System 1” Lunduke Journal Lifetime Subscriber Walls are full! Those suckers filled up in a single week! (You can check them all out at Lunduke.com.)

But, behold! The “Commodore 64” and “BeOS R5” Walls are now available to add your names to!

  • Windows 2000 : 2 spots left

  • Commodore 64 : Space available

  • BeOS R5 : Space available

 

Those last two spots on the Windows 2000 Wall won’t last long. And, honestly, I expect the C64 Wall to by full pretty quickly.

Don’t have a Lifetime Subscription yet?

Already have a Lifetime Subscription to The Lunduke Journal?

  • Email “bryan at lunduke.com” with which Wall you would like to be on, and how you’d like your name displayed (nickname, full name, etc.).

There are roughly 12 days left in June. How many Retro Computer themed Lifetime Walls can we fill up before the end of the month? Let’s find out!

Huge thank you to each and every one of you! You make The Lunduke Journal possible.

-Lunduke

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