Slackware 14.1 beta

Cool, so there'll be a release soon. :-)
I skipped the last release, because 13.37 was so good.

and, more importantly, Why?

A big thank you to Pat and his comrades who work tirelessly on this year after year.

Sometimes it's just a sigh of relief to come home to Slackware after battling yet another change of init, logging, network configuration or whatever the big distros did last release.

I based a commercial embedded system on Slackware in 2005. 8 years later, you can install packages from Slackware 14 and they still work.

That packages are just tarballs mean that everyone in my company was able to easily create and test new packages. Even hardware engineers were able to package their own tools themselves.

The degree of ABI stability with the core libraries in Slackware is pretty darn amazing. That the init system, package system, etc. haven't really changed in that time is very useful. It's like RHEL-level system stability, while you still get updated software. You can run the latest KDE, or an old copy of Window Maker.

I have not had similar luck with Ubuntu trying to pull in newer packages into older installs. There is something to be said about a system where package dependency management is optional.

That said, it does boot much more slowly than other distros due to its serial RC scripts. The networking infrastructure is especially slow when your boot is delayed by a down DHCP server, for instance.

There's one Characteristic Slackware is going to lose soon: lilo.

I wonder if there's any other distro that is still exclusively sticking to lilo, not that it wouldn't work like a train toilet doesn't need replacing, but, you know, UEFI.

I have been using Vector (1st generation Slackware derivative) for many years but moved to Debian last year.
I found that Debian tried to insist I get my video driver from it own repo, rather than d/l & install from nvidia site, at the same time as it was telling me that it didn't support my card (too new to be in the Wheezy repos). I got around that but then found the multiarch got its knickers in a twist with confusion between the nvidia built libraries and its own. So installed Vector alongside for my gaming but found problems with Grub2 in setting up the dual boot into a software RAID.

After much tearing out of hair I'd thought try Slackware due to its using lilo. Lilo picked up the dual boot with no problem. On starting I installed nvidias driver without any trouble. Weeks of problems with Debian sidestepped by replacing it with Slackware. It just worked.

So PLEASE don't lose Lilo.... If something works well, why should it be replaced.

I did email Pat offering migration helping hand if and then when they decide to switch to systemd as well as starting dialog with him regarding community since historically the slackware community should be the oldest but going to [1] I found it difficult to actually find any community to begin, how to join, how to contribute etc.which leads me to believe it's community has shrunken to more or less non existence made up with selective userbase and those users clinging to an outdated idea which to me in modern time contradicts what originally stood for.

Just look and examine what it's philosophy is.

"What is Slackware Linux?

The Official Release of Slackware Linux by Patrick Volkerding is an advanced Linux operating system, designed with the twin goals of ease of use and stability as top priorities. Including the latest popular software while retaining a sense of tradition, providing simplicity and ease of use alongside flexibility and power, Slackware brings the best of all worlds to the table."

"advanced Linux operating system"

Looking at it there is nothing advanced about it maybe I'm just not finding that advancement it's supposed to bring in the GNU/Linux ecosystem.

"ease of use"

Perhaps for command line commander but for novice end user that wants to join the community or simply download it and get started not so much.

"stability"
Now this is where I assume the strength in Slackware lays a bit but given that I have not run slackware for a period of time ( I just installed it and ran it to get somewhat the feel of slackware ) I cannot compare to my other.

"Including the latest popular software"

I see absolutely no truth in this Just to get the latest Gnome running on Slackware I had to manually touch ( install rebuild etc ) 50+ components

Looking at the Slackware Philosophy

"The Slackware Philosophy
Since its first beta release in April of 1993, the Slackware Linux Project has aimed at producing the most "UNIX-like" Linux distribution out there. Slackware complies with the published Linux standards, such as the Linux File System Standard. We have always considered simplicity and stability paramount, and as a result Slackware has become one of the most popular, stable, and friendly distributions available."

With the exception of this representing the "feel" of unix thus being the most "UNIX-like" ( whatever that's supposed to be the unix philosophy means different things to different people ) the rest of the philosophy is not being representing anymore including it's popularity.

Conclusion what Slackware claims to be it no longer is.

It might have been that in the last decade but today not so much and it seems to be aimed more at it's maintainers then it is to general end users which will indicate that it's derivatives might be struggling as well.

If the remaining Slackware community want's to keep it somewhat relevant and not simply die off as well as to be closer to it's philosophy's I suggest it joins the systemd train. introduces pulseaudio and brings itself to modern times.

1. http://www.slackware.com