KIARA 15a (revised)

 KIARA is a live CD, based on  Slax 6.1.2, with added packages from Slackware 12.2 and Slax.org, and continually upgraded to include the latest versions of web software from the Mozilla Project.

KIARA 15.0 features:

Firefox 15.0 (a web browser),
Thunderbird 15.0 (an email client),
and  Seamonkey 2.12 (a browser with a fullsuite of web applications.

The revised edition removes the KOffice package I had ported from Slackware 12.2, which was redundant, as it had already been included with the base modules of Slax. In it's place I've restored the installation files for the Opera 12 browser. The files are located on your bootable disk (cd or flash drive) at */slax/opera-12.02, and can be used to install and run a temporary (deleted on reboot) instance of the opera browser from KIARA.  Flashplayer has already been installed, and ought to be supported for Opera.

 Here's a slightly cleaned-up version of the the READ ME text file is contained in that directory:

  For your variety, and convenience, KIARA containes the Installer Files for OPERA 12.02 If you have enough RAM, you can run Opera from a running KIARA live system, complete with support for flashplayer. Once you know how, installing Opera to your RAMdisk takes less than a minute. 

 1. From the Desktop, click on "storage media". Open the partition or device containing your KIARA files 

 2. Open the */slax/opera-12.02 directory in Konqueror. 

 3. Open a terminal window by hitting the F4 Key. 

 4. In the terminal, type sh install and hit "Enter". The installation should begin. 

 5. Complete the installation by answering the questions at the prompts. Usually, defaults (hitting enter) will suffice. You can always try hitting "Enter" until the installation is completed. Remember, none of this is permanent; you can't screw up your hard drive.

KIARA 15.0 released

A live CD based on  Slax 6.1.2, with added packages from Slackware 12.2 and Slax.org, and continually upgraded to include the latest versions of web software from the Mozilla Project.

KIARA 15.0 features Firefox 15.0 (a web browser), Thunderbird 15.0 (an email client), and  Seamonkey 2.12 (a browser with a fullsuite of web applications.

KIARA 14.01 released

I let this go way too long before upgrading.  Sorry about the lapse of attention


Features:  Firefox 14.01
                 Thunderbird 14.0
                 Seamonkey  2.11

KIARA 13.01 is available for download.

Okay, it's 95 degrees, my best friend was just released from the hospital, and and I don't even want to be near a computer right now.   Here's the link for KIARA 13.01  see the previous post for  information


There's an issue with mplayer, the audio isn't working at the command line,  but the KDE frontend, kplayer is working fine.  Dropbox seems to be working perfectly.

KIARA 13.01 uploading now

 


KIARA 13.01 is about to be released.   The new version of my homemade Slax-based live CD contains Firefox 13.01, Thunderbird 13.01, and Seamonkey 2.10.1.

It also features the addition of Dropbox, the excellent networking and backup application, although it's not enabled to run in the default Slax root mode.  To run Dropbox requires creating a normal user account, something I've been intending to write documentation about for a long time now.

I've actually made several changes in KIARA geared toward running a normal user account, a reflection of how I've been using it lately.  If anybody wants information on using KIARA (or Slax, for that matter) as a normal user, leave a comment, and I'll get around to it that much sooner.

KIARA 13.0 REVISED VERSION

After going back to a new copy of Slax 6.1.2 for my my main platform, KIARA 13.0 may be my best release.  It sports a great new version of Firefox, additional packages, and it seems to be extraordinarily stable.  Of all of my four old machines, there's one that previous KIARA versions have crashed on quite frequently, a Dell Optiplex GX280.  It hasn't crashed yet, and I'm using it right now.

But I needed to make one major change before people start really downloading.  Vim-gvim-7.2.018, the graphical version of VIM, was interfering with the function of visudo, the secure editing application that allows users to enable sudo for a normal account.  So I have removed gvim for the moment.

Future releases may see gvim restored.  It occurs to me that I'd like to see a different editor, probably nano used as the default text editor for visudo.  For years, Debian and Ubuntu have used nano as the text editor, and it's worked great.  Vim is not at all intuitive, and people shouldn't have to learn how to use a difficult new text editor just to enable sudo.   I believe that a simple addition to the startup scripts should allow me to make the change, but that's for the next release.

I also discovered that Tomas' Slax Drive is no longer enabled, so I added a link to information to the KIARA desktop.   There are other ways of storing data in the cloud for free.   I've been using Dropbox. 

Maybe I can add Dropbox to KIARA?  There are problems. I'll be thinking about this.   

KIARA 13.0 live CD

KIARA 13.0 introduces a new system of numbering for KIARA. Traditionally, I release a new KIARA CD with each new Firefox release, and from now on, the version number of each KIARA release will match the new Firefox. Simple, right?

KIARA 13.0 includes Mozilla Firefox 13.0 (Web browser) Thunderbird 13.0 (email client) and Seamonkey 2.10 (web suite), along with the current plugin-in for adobe flashplayer. I've actually added a whole pack of applications ported from Slackware 12.2 tgz format to Slax's lzm format:

gnuchess-5.07-i486-3.lzm
gnuplot-4.2.3-i486-1.lzm
gphoto2-2.4.3-i486-1.lzm
gqview-2.1.5-i486-2.lzm
gxine-0.5.903-i486-1.lzm
imagemagick-6.4.3_10-i486-1.lzm
jove-4.16.0.61-i386-1.lzm
pidgin-2.5.2-i486-3.lzm
vim-gvim-7.2.018-i486-1.lzm
windowmaker-20060427
cvs-i486-1.lzm
xgames-0.3-i486-1.lzm
xine-lib-1.1.15-i686-1.lzm
xine-ui-0.99.5-i686-1.lzm
xpdf-3.02pl2-i486-3.lzm

 I spent a couple days trying to get the iso down below the 700 mbs necessary to release a live cd instead of a live DVD. Finally, I added the modules and rootcopy files to a freshly downloaded copy of the original Slax 6.1.2, and decided that I was going to go ahead and release KIARA 13 as a DVD, so I added a bunch of packages. The resulting iso images weighed in at 703 mb, so I only had to remove a single package to get below the 700 mark. I can't vouch for how the added packages will perform, and xine and gxine don't seem to work at all. As usual, the most reliable video player for Linux remains mplayer, especially at the command line, and it's derivatives including kplayer.

 For information about how to use mplayer at the command line, open a terminal and type:

man mplayer