In today's open source roundup: Should you use a rolling release distro or a fixed release? Plus: How the philosophy of Linux affects its users, and why Windows 10 needs the Linux desktop Rolling release or fixed release Linux distros? Rolling release Linux distributions have been around for a long time, but not everyone is aware of what they have to offer. ZDNet took a look at the advantages and disadvantages of rolling release distros versus fixed release distros. SJVN at ZDNet reports: A rolling-release Linux is one that’s constantly being updated. To some of you, that will sound a lot like DevOps’ idea of continuous deployment. You’d be right in thinking so. In both cases, the idea is that users and developers are best served by giving them the latest updates and patches as they’re created. I can see the arguments for both sides. Personally, I believe that rolling releases should only be deployed by experts for their own use or for customers who demand hot, new improvements. For everyone else, I think the stability of fixed-release distributions make them a better choice, especially for production environments. More at ZDNet Matt Hartley at Datamation makes a case against rolling release distributions: …one might surmise that I really dislike using rolling release distributions. Or worse, I have little to no experience with them. The answer to this, of course, was addressed at the beginning of this article. I’ve been using rolling release distros for roughly a year now. I can see the appeal of using them, but I also feel that there needs to be a clearer set of guidelines for when they make sense as an option. For desktop users, I believe newbies should avoid using rolling release distros until they’re more comfortable rolling back packages and/or overcoming sudden breakage. Whether it’s something as silly as a broken GNOME extension that worked yesterday, or your Ethernet card suddenly stopped working, if you can’t overcome these issues – avoid rolling releases. More at Datamation How To Geek also compared rolling release and fixed release distros: A rolling release cycle is best if you want to live on the bleeding edge and have the latest available versions of software, while a standard release cycle is best if you want to benefit from a more stable platform with more testing. Having the latest version of all your software sounds good, but it’s often not as beneficial as you might think. You probably don’t need the latest version of low-level system utilities and services. You probably wouldn’t even notice the difference if you installed them — unless there were bugs because different versions of software weren’t tested together. Updating this stuff in midstream could result in your system becoming more unstable or a weird bug popping up. For software you do want the latest version — like your desktop applications — it’s fairly easy to update a few applications even if you’re using a Linux distribution with a standard release cycle. More at How To Geek The nine tenets of the Linux philosophy Linux has always done its own thing compared to how other operating systems work. And part of that difference lies in the philosophy of Linux development. Opensource.com examined how the philosophy of Linux affects its users. David Both at Opensource.com reports: One of the comments I received from my previous article was that another operating system has just as much capability on the command line as Linux does. This person said that you could just add this software to get these features and that package if you want those features. That makes my point. With Linux, it is all built in. You do not have to go elsewhere to get access to the power of Linux. Many people left comments stating that they could see how it might be nice to know the Linux philosophy as a historical curiosity, but that it had little or no meaning in the context of daily operations in a Linux environment. I beg to differ. Here is why. There are nine major tenets to the Linux philosophy. 1. Small is Beautiful 2. Each Program Does One Thing Well 3. Prototype as Soon as Possible 4. Choose Portability Over Efficiency 5. Store Data in Flat Text Files 6. Use Software Leverage 7. Use Shell Scripts to Increase Leverage and Portability 8. Avoid Captive User Interfaces 9. Make Every Program a Filter More at Opensource.com Why Windows 10 won’t kill the Linux desktop There are always articles in the media touting the “death of the Linux desktop.” Windows 10 has proven to be a great occasion for more of these articles to appear on various sites. Softpedia explores why Windows 10 needs the Linux desktop. Silviu Stahie reports for Softpedia: It will take more than just a technical preview of a closed system to put the final nails in the Linux coffin, whatever that means. What will happen when Windows 10 hits the stores? Will tens of thousands of Linux devs take a closer look at Windows 10 and just give up because the OS is much better than anything they might come up with? If anything, Linux is the system that drives Microsoft to push Windows into new territories, like the addition of multiple desktops. If you come to thinks of it, Linux is probably one of the main innovation drivers for Windows, so the nails might be coming from the opposite direction. More at Softpedia I shared my own thoughts about Windows 10 and the Linux desktop on my blog: As far as Windows 10 goes, it’s a big fat nothing-burger to me. So Microsoft is bringing back the Start button or whatever. Big deal. I don’t care what they do with Windows 10, you couldn’t pay me enough to use it as my daily desktop operating system. I dumped Windows many years ago and I’m never going back. I’d much rather be “on the fringe” (whatever the heck that means) then be stuck living in Microsoft’s world. It doesn’t matter to me what Microsoft adds to Windows 10. I simply have no desire to use Windows on any of my computers. I suspect that most other people who have gotten rid of Windows feel exactly the same way. We all left the Windows plantation a long time ago, and we are not going to go back because of Windows 10. More at Jim Lynch Did you miss a roundup? Check the Eye On Open home page to get caught up with the latest news about open source and Linux. Software DevelopmentOpen SourceSmall and Medium Business