GLN034 – GNU Free Distributions, Hub 4 Integration, Tuxedo OS, Nextcloud

Monday, May 1, 2023, Ralph Hersel

Episode 34 of the GLN Podcast was recorded on April 27, 2023.

In this episode, Lioh, Ferdinand, and Ralf talk about Linux distributions that work without GNU tools, explain Nextcloud Smart Picker, and talk about Tuxedo OS and innovations in Nextcloud Hub 4 in an interview.

For the best listening experience, we recommend using the podcatcher app. For example pneumatic (Android) or gPodder (desktop) or GNOME Podcast (GNOME desktop).

Notes appear

Linux Distributions Without GNU

Hub integration 4

• Smart Picker: Integration of Smart Features into NC applications

• It is triggered by entering / in various applications, eg b. Talk, Office, Mail and in the Markdown editor.

• This gives access to the additional functionality provided by the NC Integration application

• In Talk: GIF Picker (Giffy), Location Map (OSM), Talk Talks, Files, ChatGPT, DALL-E, Copy (Whisper), Any Link

• AI services require service access keys (OpenAI)

• To enable this feature, integration apps (embeds) from the NC App Store must be installed. There are currently 95 app integrations.

• Selection: Deepl, Giphy, OpenAI, OSM, BigBlueButton, Collabora, Cpanel, Discourse, DokuWiki, DrawIO, Dropbox, Matrix Element, GitHub, GitLab, GPodder, Jira, LibreTranslate, Mastodon, Mattermosteer, Moodle, OnlyOffice, OpenProject, Pinterest QOwnNotes, Reddit, Movie Database, YouTube, and Zimbra.

• Bottom line: Apps integration improves direct access to Nextcloud’s other services.

tuxedo operating system

• Previously, supported operating systems for Tuxedo devices were only available through WebFAI, a fork of Debian Fully automated installation
• On the one hand, this means that installation via WebFAI puts the device into a state of delivery on the software side. On the other hand, the client cannot format or configure anything. The process takes up the entire disk. That was fine for some customers, but not for the majority.
• WebFAI is still around, but for a while, Tuxedo OS has also been available for ISO download, as is common on Linux distributions.
• Tuxedo OS is based on Ubuntu, and KDE Plasma is used as the desktop environment. However, plasma and other components do not come from Ubuntu, but from KDE Neon.
• Tuxedo OS 2 has been available since the end of February and was delivered with Plasma 5.27.1, KDE Frameworks 5.103, KDE Gear 22.12.2 and Kernel 6.1. Applications are not updated with a new version of the distribution, as is usual with Ubuntu, but the mainframe components are constantly updated in a sort of controlled rolling release. TUXEDO OS uses its own package sources for this, so that these components can be updated independently of the platform.
• About 2 months after publication, Tuxedo OS is at 23.04 for Plasma 5.27.4, KDE Frameworks 5.105 and KDE Gear, i.e. the latest stable versions.
• Other updated packages include the kernel, Firefox, and Mesa
• Tuxedo Snap is not used at all, snapd daemon is not installed. Accordingly, Firefox and Chromium come on disk as DEB packages.
• In addition to the TCC and Tomte configuration service, the Live CD comes with a nice little helper. Anyone who’s been in the unfortunate position of only being able to start their system via chroot will remember that they first had to gather a handful of the necessary commands or, ideally, could copy them from their notes. The chroot helper on the live image does this in two clicks and you are already in the installed system and you can try to fix the error. We did it right away for the sake of prejudice.
• Tuxedo OS can be installed on any computer, not just Tuxedo machines. So if you are looking for a well-maintained current distribution with KDE Plasma as your desktop, you should take a look at Tuxedo OS.
• A note on transparency: Ferdinand works for Tuxedo Computers. However, his contribution to this podcast represents his opinion as a blogger.

Interview – Nextcloud Hub 4