Mandriva Linux
Mandrake Linux is a Linux distribution. The first release was based on Red Hat Linux (version 5.1) and KDE (version 1.0) in July 1998. It has since diverged considerably from Red Hat and has included a number of original tools mostly to ease system configuration. Mandrake is also notable for compiling its packages with optimizations for Pentium-class and more advanced processors which are incompatible with older CPU versions such as 386 and 486. MandrakeSoft is the company behind Mandrake Linux. Mandrake Linux was originated by Gaël Duval, who was also a co-founder of MandrakeSoft.
Features
The major features that Mandrake Linux has are
Internationalization
Mandrake supports over 60 languages
Installation, Control and Administration
Mandrake uses the Control Center for administration of Linux rather than using a text editor to change settings. It has many programs known as Drakes or Draks, collectively named drakxtools, to configure many different settings. Examples include such as MouseDrake to set up a mouse, DiskDrake to set up disk partitions and draknet to set up a network connection. It written using GTK and Perl and can run in both graphical and text mode.
Software
Mandrake comes with several thousand software packages containing many different varieties of software.
Community
Mandrake has a large of community of users, that provides help, support, and software to the user of Mandrake Linux.
Constant Development
Mandrake Linux is constantly in development. A development version of Mandrake, known as the "cooker" is publicly available, but it is not recommended for use in a production environment because of the constant changes going on in it.
Desktops
Mandrake is geared to use KDE or GNOME as the standard desktops, but includes others such as IceWM, Blackbox, Window Maker and Twm. A unique theme known as "Galaxy" provides a good consistency between applications and desktop environments. Galaxy debuted in version 9.1 and Galaxy II appared in 10.0. A variant of Galaxy is "Galaxy Squared", which uses square window buttons rather than round ones.
Package Manager
Mandrake uses a package manager called urpmi. It uses the RPM package format. It is similar to apt-get. urpmi also has a front end called RPMdrake which the majority of users use to install software in Mandrake.
MandrakeMove
A LiveMove is the set formed by a LiveCD and a bootfloppy or USB key.
MandrakeMove is a new MandrakeSoft product that benefits from a Mandrake Linux LiveCD which doesn't need to be installed to run on a computer, and a USB key that automatically records bootloader, hardware configuration and personal data.
PCLinuxOS
A bootable Live CD distribution called PCLinuxOS, initially based on Mandrake Linux 9.2, was created by an active contributor known as Texstar. It is comparable to MandrakeMove, but it is reported to have better hardware support and a broader selection of useful software.
Versions
Latest Version
The latest version 10.0 Official Edition was released for download to Mandrake Club Members on April 14, 2004. The Official FTP tree will be released within a week, and public ISO images will be released later. This is in line with MandrakeSoft's new strategy of making releases available first to paying customers. In general, the Official Edition is intended to be more stable and well tested than the Community Edition.
The Community Edition, effectively a release candidate for the Official Edition, was released as ISO files on March 4, 2004 to Mandrake Club Members and the ISO files were made publicly available less than two weeks later. The Community Edition can be updated to the same software as in the Official Edition using the urpmi update tool. In general, the Community Edition is intended to more quickly incorporate new versions and new packages than the Official Edition.
The Free Edition contains some advertisements in the form of bookmarks in the web browser and slides during installation, to help cover the costs of producing the distribution.
Table of Versions
| Year | Number | Name |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 5.1 | Venice |
| 1998 | 5.2 | Leeloo |
| 1999 | 5.3 | Festen |
| 1999 | 6.0 | Venus |
| 1999 | 6.1 | Helios |
| 2000 | 7.0 | Air |
| 2000 | 7.1 | Helium |
| 2001 | 7.2 | Ulysse |
| 2001 | 8.0 | Traktopel |
| 2001 | 8.1 | Vitamin |
| 2002 | 8.2 | Bluebird |
| 2002 | 9.0 | Dolphin |
| 2003 | 9.1 | Bamboo |
| 2003 | 9.2 | FiveStar |
| 2004 | 10.0 | Community and Official |
| N/A | N/A | Cooker |
Gaming Edition
Mandrake 8.1 had a Gaming Edition, which was a game oriented Linux distribution. It had a port of The Sims and used the Transgaming WineX technology to support some games produced for Windows.