PCLinuxOS Openbox

PCLinuxOS Openbox is a freely distributed and open source Linux operating system, a community edition of the well known PCLinuxOS distribution built around the lightweight and minimal Openbox window manager.

Availability and boot options

It is available for download as a single Live CD ISO image, compatible with the 64-bit and 32-bit hardware platforms. In order to use it, the ISO image needs to be burned to a CD/DVD disc or written to a USB flash drive.

The usual PCLinuxOS boot options are also available on this Openbox flavor, allowing users to start the live environment with default settings, without boot splash, in safe graphics mode, in failsafe mode, or by copying the Live CD to RAM (system memory).

In addition, users can check the CD media for errors, or drop to a shell prompt for system rescue and recovery tasks. It is also important to mention that you will need to choose a keyboard layout before entering the graphical session, and login using one of the username/password combinations provided.

Eye candy desktop environment, great apps

Openbox provides users with a minimal desktop environment that features a single panel located on the upper part of the screen, allowing them to easily interact with running applications and the system tray area. The main menu can be accessed by right clicking anywhere on the desktop.

Default applications include the Geany IDE (Integrated Development Environment), PCManFM and Thunar file managers, Evince document viewer, Fotoxx and GIMP image editors, GPicView image viewer, Audacious audio player, SMPlayer video player, Shotwell image viewer and organizer, Deluge and Transmission torrent downloaders, FileZilla file transfer client, Sylpheed email client, and Midori web browser.

Bottom line

Summing up, PCLinuxOS Openbox is an extremely fast and stable operating system, designed from the ground up to be used on low-end machines or computers with old hardware components. It's not very modern, but it does the job well enough to replace an unsafe Windows XP workstation.

What is new in this release:

• Added xfce4-power-manager to OpenboxCC
• New default wallpaper
• Reinstalled Geany as text editor

What is new in version 2010.11:

• Kernel 2.6.33.7-bfs kernel for maximum desktop performance.
• Openbox Desktop with Tint2 panel
• Nvidia and ATI fglrx driver support.
• Multimedia playback support for many popular formats.
• Wireless support for many network devices.
• Printer support for many local and networked printer devices.
• Addlocale allows you to convert PCLinuxOS into over 60 languages.
• GetOpenOffice can install Open Office supporting over 100 languages.
• MyLiveCD allows you to take a snapshot of your installation and burn it to a LiveCD/DVD.