GeeXboX (stylized as GEExBox) is a free
Linux distribution
A Linux distribution (often abbreviated as distro) is an operating system made from a software collection that includes the Linux kernel and, often, a package management system. Linux users usually obtain their operating system by downloading on ...
providing a
media center software suite for
personal computer
A personal computer (PC) is a multi-purpose microcomputer whose size, capabilities, and price make it feasible for individual use. Personal computers are intended to be operated directly by an end user, rather than by a computer expert or tech ...
s. GeeXboX 2.0 and later uses
XBMC for media playback and is implemented as
Live USB
A live USB is a portable USB-attached external data storage device containing a full operating system that can be booted from. The term is reminiscent of USB flash drives but may encompass an external hard disk drive or solid-state drive, tho ...
and
Live CD
A live CD (also live DVD, live disc, or live operating system) is a complete bootable computer installation including operating system which runs directly from a CD-ROM or similar storage device into a computer's memory, rather than loading f ...
options. As such, the system does not need to be permanently installed to a
hard drive
A hard disk drive (HDD), hard disk, hard drive, or fixed disk is an electro-mechanical data storage device that stores and retrieves digital data using magnetic storage with one or more rigid rapidly rotating platters coated with magne ...
, as most modern
operating system
An operating system (OS) is system software that manages computer hardware, software resources, and provides common daemon (computing), services for computer programs.
Time-sharing operating systems scheduler (computing), schedule tasks for ef ...
s would. Instead, the computer can be booted with the GeeXboX CD when media playback is desired. It is based on the
Debian
Debian (), also known as Debian GNU/Linux, is a Linux distribution composed of free and open-source software, developed by the community-supported Debian Project, which was established by Ian Murdock on August 16, 1993. The first version of De ...
distribution of
Linux
Linux ( or ) is a family of open-source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991, by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged as a Linux distribution, which i ...
.
This is a reasonable approach for those who do not need media playback services while performing other tasks with the same computer, for users who wish to repurpose older computers as media centers, and for those seeking a free alternative to
Windows XP Media Center Edition.
An unofficial port of GeeXboX 1.x also runs on the
Wii.
History
See also
*
List of free television software
*
XBMC Media Center, the cross-platform open source media player software that GeeXboX 2.0 and later uses as a front end GUI.
References
External links
*
{{Home theater PC (application software)
ARM operating systems
Embedded Linux distributions
Free media players
Linux distributions used in appliances
Linux-based devices
Linux distributions