Parabola GNU/Linux-libre is a

free and open-source Free and open-source software (FOSS) is software available under a Software license, license that grants users the right to use, modify, and distribute the software modified or not to everyone free of charge. FOSS is an inclusive umbrella term ...

Linux distribution A Linux distribution, often abbreviated as distro, is an operating system that includes the Linux kernel for its kernel functionality. Although the name does not imply product distribution per se, a distro—if distributed on its own—is oft ...

based on

Arch Linux Arch Linux () is an Open-source software, open source, rolling release Linux distribution. Arch Linux is kept up-to-date by regularly updating the individual pieces of software that it comprises. Arch Linux is intentionally minimal, and is meant ...

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. History and development Arch Linux ...

for the

x86-64 x86-64 (also known as x64, x86_64, AMD64, and Intel 64) is a 64-bit extension of the x86 instruction set architecture, instruction set. It was announced in 1999 and first available in the AMD Opteron family in 2003. It introduces two new ope ...

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 planned to be succeeded by the NetBur ...

, 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 (ISAs) for central processing unit, com ...

architectures.Parabola GNU/Linux-libre supports ARMv7
/ref> It is distinguished from other Arch-based distributions by offering only

free software Free software, libre software, libreware sometimes known as freedom-respecting software is computer software distributed open-source license, under terms that allow users to run the software for any purpose as well as to study, change, distribut ...

. It includes the

GNU GNU ( ) is an extensive collection of free software (394 packages ), 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 operating systems popu ...

operating system components common to many Linux distributions and the

Linux-libre According to the Free_Software_Foundation_Latin_America , Free Software Foundation Latin America, Linux-libre is a modified version of the Linux kernel that contains no binary blobs, Obfuscation (software), obfuscated code, or code released u ...

kernel instead of the generic

Linux kernel The Linux kernel is a Free and open-source software, free and open source Unix-like kernel (operating system), kernel that is used in many computer systems worldwide. The kernel was created by Linus Torvalds in 1991 and was soon adopted as the k ...

. Parabola is listed by the

Free Software Foundation The Free Software Foundation (FSF) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded by Richard Stallman on October 4, 1985. The organisation supports 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 ...

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 ...

IRC IRC (Internet Relay Chat) 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 ...

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, later in-house LoongArch architecture central processing unit, microprocessors, as well as the name of the Chinese Fabless manufacturing, fabless company (Loo ...

processor used in the Lemote Yeeloong 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 that 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 exclusively free software from the official Arch repositories for the

and

architectures and official Arch ARM repositories (except alarm and the AUR) 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'' is a policy document written by Richard Stallman and published by the Free Software Foundation (FSF). It defines free software as software that grants users the freedom to use, study, share, and modify the softwar ...

for each architecture.

Social contract

Parabola has established a

social contract In moral and political philosophy, the social contract is an idea, theory, or model that usually, although not always, concerns the legitimacy of the authority of the state over the individual. Conceptualized in the Age of Enlightenment, it ...

. The ''Parabola Social Contract'' commits the project to the free software community (viewing itself as only competing against non-free 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, otherwise known as open content. They encourage creators to create such content by using ...

, 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 collaborat ...

Installation

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

ISO The International Organization for Standardization (ISO ; ; ) is an independent, non-governmental, international standard development organization composed of representatives from the national standards organizations of member countries. Me ...

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)
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