I think I can allow it for nixos, which is such a pain in the ass (I say that affectionately) that it merits the accolade. it's an os made of nix the language and nixpkgs the package manager. it happens to use the Linux kernel and a lot of gnu stuff, so maybe it could still be called a distribution, but it's so unlike 99% of what's out there.
The last thing I'm going to care about comparing distros is whether they used the same naming pattern as Microsoft instead of Apple. To give credit to their author, it sounds like their name really is Anduin Xue and this is their OS, not that they intended for it to sound confusing. Not all that different than how Debian was named, beyond including OS at the end.
I think the gp is complaining specifically about the "OS" bit; that makes it sound like a new operating system rather than a derivative linux distribution
This actually looks pretty neat, particularly the integration with Flatpak.
One thing that confused me when I first went to Linux a million years ago was the difference in how you install stuff. With Windows you download an exe file, double click it, next next next finish, and you have your app installed.
With Linux, every distro is slightly different and it's almost never quite as straightforward to people. I think Flatpak has the potential to bring that kind of Windows-style of installation to the masses, and it always kind of annoyed me that Ubuntu doesn't embrace Flatpak outta the box.
I run NixOS so I have my own opinions on the best way to package software. I'm just saying that I think Flatpak is, if nothing else, good for people who want to transition away from Microsoft.
My parents are both pretty smart people but I genuinely doubt that I would be successful in converting over to Linux if they have to type `sudo apt search my_package` and then `sudo apt install my_package` all the time. For people like them, who have been on windows for the last thirty years, I think that Flatpak is great.
Considering we already have Linux Mint which is Ubuntu based with the shite parts removed and where flatpacks are well supported, I wish it would say more about about the unique selling point of AnduinOS.
There's currently a large amount of non-technical Windows users who are being told Windows 10 is going to be no longer supported, and the only way for them to switch to Windows 11 is to buy a brand new device.
Anecdotally these people are less resistant to moving to Linux instead than you'd think, and having a distro which looks exactly like windows would be useful. Although I've just been recommending Kubuntu - KDE Plasma is already pretty close to Windows, and likely to be supported for a long time unlike this.
Getting off topic now, but I think this forced sunsetting by MS is a huge misstep - desktop/laptop PCs are no longer the necessity they used to be, I feel like a large proportion of people are going to choose to switch to just using their phone/tablet full time instead of buying a new Windows PC or installing Linux. Combined with their seemingly intentional devaluing of the xbox brand they seem to be hellbent on destroying everything that gives them mindshare with regular people.
Yeah but for these people Linux Mint is the clear recommendation. Cinnamon is pretty close to the traditional Desktop they know.
For non-technical users you want something mainstream with a big community. Sure, for me AnduinOS not being very popular would not be an issue because of the Ubuntu base and me knowing what to search for but for beginners it is better to stick something where it is easy to get help for.
I doubt many people will switch to Linux because of the forced switch. Most people will putter along on Windows 10 until they can upgrade. It's still too much of a disruption to swith to Linux, especially for non-technical users.
For sure - the people I mentioned anecdotally willing to switch were only willing because I was there to go through the rigmarole of making a bootable usb, changing bios boot settings and giving them a rundown of the differences in UX.
It is emphatic about no telemetry, so I wondered if that was in contrast to Ubuntu (been forever since I've used Ubuntu so I don't know, unless package repository interaction counts as telemetry). But it might just mean that in contrast to Windows or even just a general sense that distinguishes it even from apps which for many are one of the bigger sources of telemetry concerns.
Yeah I saw that too, but since it doesn't say how Ubuntu compares I assumed it was just a random fact they picked to put there.
For comparison the Bazzite website is fantastic for making me interested in it because it explains a lot about what it does to make my life easier!
It's good to have facts about things, but explaining how something helps the user is important too, the open source community definitely benefits from having marketing-style info IMO.
it's pretty straightforward to change: a makefile, some preset variables in a .sh, then it iterates through https://github.com/Anduin2017/AnduinOS/tree/5bbd94d9c4fa455e... - the tree also points at the gnome-extensions it uses to create and mod the global menu.
can't be too hard to rebase onto Debian (the superior .deb distribution). I put it on 2 endof10 laptops as whatever I do every few years, kde just doesn't stick
The desktop background reminds me of some screens that MEPIS OS used [0] back when I was first getting into Linux in high school and the idea of live distributions blew my mind. I assume it's a coincidence people just like pyramids I guess.
Maybe this is pedantic, but with a "No telemetry at all!" headline it's weird to see two telemetry-gathering applications (Youtube, Steam) in the demo screenshots. Unless there's something to mitigate this?
Edit: The headline text changes on each page refresh, most of the time it says something else.
I'd rather OS not fuck with my application settings on its own nor do I want it to install browser plugins for me. I wish I had a dollar for every "ubuntu, but looks like windows".
11’s design language (Fluent) in itself isn’t bad. Personally I find it preferable over the antialiased Windows 1.x look that reigned from 8 through 10. It also implements dark mode more completely than 10 does which is nice.
What makes 11 bad is all the other stuff, like ads in your start menu, taskbar losing functionality, endless background processes being added, etc.
That said there really should be a DE that has built in settings that produce legally distinct but spiritually aligned XP and 7 clone environments.
Why would one want to run this over Ubuntu? So much effort is wasted on producing and maintaining entire distributions when they are just another distro with a preinstalled package list and a skin?
Distros also represent sets of defaults and software choices (e.g. removing snap). Good defaults can make a world of difference and dramatically reduce time to usability on new installs.
Besides that distros also tend to include theming that’s much more complete and versatile (works at odd UI scales and such) than themes you find online, which can also be of value. Trying to assemble all the components and poke configs in all the right places to get a coherent look is frankly a huge pain in the rear.
Could that not be a script you run on a fresh Ubuntu install? I am just thinking in terms of all the heft and maintenance responsibility for maintaining this website, documentation, etc (which is all going to be virtually identical to every other documentation site), building isos, hosting them, doing releases.
When the end result is just install packages a, b, c, remove snap, add this theme, add this wallapaper. that is like a script to me lol.
aka ship a diff instead of shipping an entire asset.
Scripts are fine for the lightest of changes but quickly become ungainly and prone to failure, plus the user has to re-run it to reapply changes after system updates.
The reason I ask "why" is I don't understand what this does differently than a distro like Mint. There isn't really an explanation beyond "You remain anonymous to the system." All while promoting third-party software that does collect telemetry.
What exactly does this distro offer that others don't?
flatpack, snap and all thpse docker wanabee solve the right problem the wrong way.
(pseudo)static is a quick & dirty solution to a real problem. really solving it requires skills and time. which are all quite scarse given the new generation appetite for ease of use over efficiency
It looks bad: Security hole in popular library (crate) and you need to update everything (and, probably, wait till authors of software update their dependencies) instead of update one system library.
There is a language picker on the site which seems to give these translations. I'm also not 100% sure if the English version was the original version either, or at least it would explain some of the word choices if it wasn't.
It's static. There's a dropdown near bottom left to switch back to en-US. Looks like most of non-English versions are machine translated, except not all from the same singular version.
I made it half way down the page before I realized this wasn’t “ArduinOS”.
I can’t be the only one.
Same. Now, however: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44955159
Thanks. That's what I was hoping this was as I also mis-read it.
Same but then I saw "only 2 GB image"
At first I thought it must have been a typo…
That's what I thought too at first
That’s some mentally-induced bad keming right there.
I think it's more of a parafoveal processing effect in contextual word recognition.
I mean, it can be worse, I read the title and thought "an OS by Anduin Wrynn to help us remove that sword from Silithus".
“Why do I have this horde of zombie processes?”
"Hey they're doing a micropyth- oh.."
> AnduinOS, a one-man project from a Chinese Microsoft engineer, is quite a new Ubuntu remix that reshapes GNOME in the image of Windows 11.
> it modifies Canonical's current version of GNOME to look strikingly like Windows 11, using a collection of existing extensions and themes
https://www.theregister.com/2025/05/23/anduinos/
ex-Microsoft engineer: https://anduin.aiursoft.cn/page/about#:~:text=I%20chose%20to...
I really wish people creating a distro, and even more so distro of a distro of a distro should not call it OS. (Debian - Ubuntu . AnduinOS)
I am alwasy happy to look at new operating system projects. It is a major hobby.
Could distros use AnduinDI AnduinUbuntu AnduinLinux. or just Anduin
I dont like getting my hopes up like that.
I think I can allow it for nixos, which is such a pain in the ass (I say that affectionately) that it merits the accolade. it's an os made of nix the language and nixpkgs the package manager. it happens to use the Linux kernel and a lot of gnu stuff, so maybe it could still be called a distribution, but it's so unlike 99% of what's out there.
The last thing I'm going to care about comparing distros is whether they used the same naming pattern as Microsoft instead of Apple. To give credit to their author, it sounds like their name really is Anduin Xue and this is their OS, not that they intended for it to sound confusing. Not all that different than how Debian was named, beyond including OS at the end.
https://anduin.aiursoft.cn/page/about
The same naming pattern as Microsoft? Like a distro named Linux for Workgroups Lync 365?
I think the gp is complaining specifically about the "OS" bit; that makes it sound like a new operating system rather than a derivative linux distribution
This is also a pet peeve of mine.
Names could be trademarked… it’s like if I started a car company called Red, but later marketed it as RedLamborghini
This actually looks pretty neat, particularly the integration with Flatpak.
One thing that confused me when I first went to Linux a million years ago was the difference in how you install stuff. With Windows you download an exe file, double click it, next next next finish, and you have your app installed.
With Linux, every distro is slightly different and it's almost never quite as straightforward to people. I think Flatpak has the potential to bring that kind of Windows-style of installation to the masses, and it always kind of annoyed me that Ubuntu doesn't embrace Flatpak outta the box.
Flatpak is great for people who wish they were running Microsoft.
Others can just run a distro for people who believe in open source software.
I run NixOS so I have my own opinions on the best way to package software. I'm just saying that I think Flatpak is, if nothing else, good for people who want to transition away from Microsoft.
My parents are both pretty smart people but I genuinely doubt that I would be successful in converting over to Linux if they have to type `sudo apt search my_package` and then `sudo apt install my_package` all the time. For people like them, who have been on windows for the last thirty years, I think that Flatpak is great.
I have been distro-hopping since probably around 2004, whenever now someone is asking me what to recommend as a Linux, it’s as follow:
- Entry level and everything you will ever need, stable, etc: Mint
- Feeling adventures: go with arch or some of its arch-based distros.
- Used linux before: NixOS.
Considering we already have Linux Mint which is Ubuntu based with the shite parts removed and where flatpacks are well supported, I wish it would say more about about the unique selling point of AnduinOS.
There's currently a large amount of non-technical Windows users who are being told Windows 10 is going to be no longer supported, and the only way for them to switch to Windows 11 is to buy a brand new device.
Anecdotally these people are less resistant to moving to Linux instead than you'd think, and having a distro which looks exactly like windows would be useful. Although I've just been recommending Kubuntu - KDE Plasma is already pretty close to Windows, and likely to be supported for a long time unlike this.
Getting off topic now, but I think this forced sunsetting by MS is a huge misstep - desktop/laptop PCs are no longer the necessity they used to be, I feel like a large proportion of people are going to choose to switch to just using their phone/tablet full time instead of buying a new Windows PC or installing Linux. Combined with their seemingly intentional devaluing of the xbox brand they seem to be hellbent on destroying everything that gives them mindshare with regular people.
Yeah but for these people Linux Mint is the clear recommendation. Cinnamon is pretty close to the traditional Desktop they know.
For non-technical users you want something mainstream with a big community. Sure, for me AnduinOS not being very popular would not be an issue because of the Ubuntu base and me knowing what to search for but for beginners it is better to stick something where it is easy to get help for.
I doubt many people will switch to Linux because of the forced switch. Most people will putter along on Windows 10 until they can upgrade. It's still too much of a disruption to swith to Linux, especially for non-technical users.
For sure - the people I mentioned anecdotally willing to switch were only willing because I was there to go through the rigmarole of making a bootable usb, changing bios boot settings and giving them a rundown of the differences in UX.
I read this as Arduino OS. :sad_face:
Yes, this naming is really unfortunate. It appears to be inspired by a fictional river from the LOTR-iverse:
https://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Anduin
It appears to be the lead developer's name: https://github.com/Anduin2017
you're not alone it seems..
I'm not really sure after reading through the front page why it's different from Ubuntu, it mentions flatpaks so that's one aspect.
But there's no breakdown of what other major things are different, or why to pick it over Ubuntu or [other popular distro].
Or mint, which is a much more popular Ubuntu derivative which uses flatpaks
It is emphatic about no telemetry, so I wondered if that was in contrast to Ubuntu (been forever since I've used Ubuntu so I don't know, unless package repository interaction counts as telemetry). But it might just mean that in contrast to Windows or even just a general sense that distinguishes it even from apps which for many are one of the bigger sources of telemetry concerns.
Yeah I saw that too, but since it doesn't say how Ubuntu compares I assumed it was just a random fact they picked to put there.
For comparison the Bazzite website is fantastic for making me interested in it because it explains a lot about what it does to make my life easier!
It's good to have facts about things, but explaining how something helps the user is important too, the open source community definitely benefits from having marketing-style info IMO.
it's pretty straightforward to change: a makefile, some preset variables in a .sh, then it iterates through https://github.com/Anduin2017/AnduinOS/tree/5bbd94d9c4fa455e... - the tree also points at the gnome-extensions it uses to create and mod the global menu.
can't be too hard to rebase onto Debian (the superior .deb distribution). I put it on 2 endof10 laptops as whatever I do every few years, kde just doesn't stick
The Ghost of Lindows.
The desktop background reminds me of some screens that MEPIS OS used [0] back when I was first getting into Linux in high school and the idea of live distributions blew my mind. I assume it's a coincidence people just like pyramids I guess.
[0] - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mepis.png
No ARM builds either, despite being based on Ubuntu, so I'm not even going to bother trying it out since I expect poor experience on an emulated x86.
Maybe this is pedantic, but with a "No telemetry at all!" headline it's weird to see two telemetry-gathering applications (Youtube, Steam) in the demo screenshots. Unless there's something to mitigate this?
Edit: The headline text changes on each page refresh, most of the time it says something else.
Well, YouTube isn't an application is a webpage, install plugins to block tracking there.
Steam is opt-in for metrics, all it does is collects hardware report. Unless I'm missing something?
It still logs rather a lot by default, like which applications you launch and how long you use them for.
Which is fine, all laid out in their privacy policy etc., but it's not clear to me where Anduin's "No telemetry at all!" promise starts and ends.
Maybe "no added telemetry" would be more pedantically-correct.
I don't know, I understood it as "No OS level telemetry or telemetry in first-party apps".
> It still logs rather a lot by default, like which applications you launch and how long you use them for.
If you're talking about Steam, those are social features that can be disabled if you want to hide the fact you're playing a hentai game (NSFW) https://www.reddit.com/r/Steam/comments/1ie66ix/nsfw_show_me...
I'd rather OS not fuck with my application settings on its own nor do I want it to install browser plugins for me. I wish I had a dollar for every "ubuntu, but looks like windows".
Is this meant to be a Windows 11 clone on Ubuntu?
Is windows 11 really the GUI that we want to be emulating?
11’s design language (Fluent) in itself isn’t bad. Personally I find it preferable over the antialiased Windows 1.x look that reigned from 8 through 10. It also implements dark mode more completely than 10 does which is nice.
What makes 11 bad is all the other stuff, like ads in your start menu, taskbar losing functionality, endless background processes being added, etc.
That said there really should be a DE that has built in settings that produce legally distinct but spiritually aligned XP and 7 clone environments.
right my first reaction was 'cool a more macos like linux experience, let's take a look'
Why would one want to run this over Ubuntu? So much effort is wasted on producing and maintaining entire distributions when they are just another distro with a preinstalled package list and a skin?
Distros also represent sets of defaults and software choices (e.g. removing snap). Good defaults can make a world of difference and dramatically reduce time to usability on new installs.
Besides that distros also tend to include theming that’s much more complete and versatile (works at odd UI scales and such) than themes you find online, which can also be of value. Trying to assemble all the components and poke configs in all the right places to get a coherent look is frankly a huge pain in the rear.
Could that not be a script you run on a fresh Ubuntu install? I am just thinking in terms of all the heft and maintenance responsibility for maintaining this website, documentation, etc (which is all going to be virtually identical to every other documentation site), building isos, hosting them, doing releases.
When the end result is just install packages a, b, c, remove snap, add this theme, add this wallapaper. that is like a script to me lol.
aka ship a diff instead of shipping an entire asset.
> Could that not be a script you run on a fresh Ubuntu install?
It would be amazing if you could just download the combo of the script and image so you don't have to spend time configuring it :)
Scripts are fine for the lightest of changes but quickly become ungainly and prone to failure, plus the user has to re-run it to reapply changes after system updates.
Only 2 GB iso! Smaller than Ubuntu! ... I remember when Ubuntu 14.04 was 1 GB ISOs... oh that was a decade ago :(
The last time I installed Ubuntu, it was from a CD. ;)
For a long time, Ubuntu ISOs fit on a CD-ROM. Once that barrier was broken, the sizes inflated pretty rapidly IIRC.
They used to send you free CDs to hand out if you asked!
I hope I didn't throw away the ones I had!
This feels like a lot to run on an arduino. Even the arm ones arn't hitting 100mhz.
> a lot to run on an arduino
This is aNduinos, unrelated to aRduino.
It's Anduin as in the fictional river from LotR
It’s sad that it seems some of the comments are asking “Why?”…
I’d say this is a good middle ground compromise for people who want the privacy of QubesOS but with an Ubuntu experience underneath
The reason I ask "why" is I don't understand what this does differently than a distro like Mint. There isn't really an explanation beyond "You remain anonymous to the system." All while promoting third-party software that does collect telemetry.
What exactly does this distro offer that others don't?
So it's just another Linux distribution? A Flatpack-based spinoff of Ubuntu?
flatpack, snap and all thpse docker wanabee solve the right problem the wrong way.
(pseudo)static is a quick & dirty solution to a real problem. really solving it requires skills and time. which are all quite scarse given the new generation appetite for ease of use over efficiency
What is the right way to solve this problem in your view?
If Rust continues to take over we will end up with (truly)static everything, which doesn't look too bad.
It looks bad: Security hole in popular library (crate) and you need to update everything (and, probably, wait till authors of software update their dependencies) instead of update one system library.
Dynamic linking is much better in the long run. As you can proxy things more easily if changes are needed.
But it needs more ABI hygiene, and maintaing that compatibility proxy layer.
Yet, I agrew that unfortunatly, it feels much more effective at first to just "freeze the whole stack in amber".
Context: https://debconf25.debconf.org/talks/78-static-linking-pitfal...
[dead]
Aaaaaargh a fucking AI did translate this from English to German when I look at it. Horrible translation.
Eine freundliche Distribution. Ok, fuck yes, if it is friendly, does it say good morning and good night? And ask me how I am?
"Es ist eine perfekte Kombination aus Erfahrung und Ökologie." Ok, it's about ecology, so something about trees and nature and owls and bunnies?
"AnduinOS ist Ihre finale Linux-Distribution!". Wait, you'll think I DIE if I use this?
I think your user agent is doing the translation, but "ecology" is a weird word choice in the original(?) English version too.
There is a language picker on the site which seems to give these translations. I'm also not 100% sure if the English version was the original version either, or at least it would explain some of the word choices if it wasn't.
It's static. There's a dropdown near bottom left to switch back to en-US. Looks like most of non-English versions are machine translated, except not all from the same singular version.