Vine Linux 5
Where To Get Help
You can always post a note in the Desktop Linux Reviews Forum and we’ll do our best to offer feedback or at least point you in the right direction. You might also want to check out the Vine Linux Wiki (via Google Translator) and also the Vine Linux forum (also via Google Translator).
Final Thoughts & Who Should Use It
If you are in the market for a great Japanese distribution then Vine Linux is a terrific choice. If you’re a distro-hopper that wants to experiment or just have some fun with a Japanese-based distro then it’s also a great choice. Vine Linux is also fine for everybody else assuming you don’t mind changing the default language to English during the installation.
Frankly though I’d recommend Fedora as a better option if you simply want to experience the convenience of the Anaconda installer without having to switch languages. Then again Vine Linux has its own aesthetic appeal that some users might appreciate and the fact that it comes from Japan at least adds a bit of variety to the experience.
Overall my impressions of Vine Linux are very favorable and I think it’s certainly worth a download. You may or may not use it as your daily distro but it’s fun to just check it out and see what it’s like.
| Product: | Vine Linux 5.0 |
| Web Site: | Vine Linux (Via Google Translator) |
| Price: | Free |
| Pros: | Let you choose from a range of install options and lets you customize your software choices. |
| Cons: | Default language is Japanese so the initial install screen might throw people. Doesn’t come with any office suites or significant office apps available during the install. You’ll need to download them via Synaptic after you install Vine Linux. |
| Suitable For: | Particularly great if you need a Japanese Linux environment. Can also be used by pretty much any other group of Linux users. Just be mindful that you’ll need to change the default language to English during the install. |
| Summary: | Vine Linux provides Japanese (and English) users with a good desktop Linux experience. Installation is easy and can be customized. Vine Linux also provides a good range of Linux apps (with the exception of office apps). |
| Rating: | 3.5/5 |
(7 votes, average: 2.71 out of 5)
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I enjoyed this distro as well. But I fond some oddities if not irregularities:
In the 64 bit version when I tried to install Abiword, dependencies were missing, couldn’t make spell check work in OpenOffice, and installing multimedia codecs from Synaptic caused these codecs and other files to be downloaded and installed from source. Also, gnomebaker and brasero were wonky.
Hmmm…thanks for the heads up about those problems, Joe. That’s good to know.
I installed Vine 5 on my desktop, and I have to say, I was astonished. Distro is great, fast, I really like the rpm installer, you can install any rpm package via that little proggy, so, I installed OpenOffice 3.1.1 downloaded from Openoffice.org, and I also installed Firefox from mozilla.com site to avoid Japanese preference since the version that comes with Vine is a community edition made to prefer japanese sites and language. Codecs were easy peasy, self-build packages built from source, newest packages, a veru good kernel, everything works great. I think, Vine Linux 5 is somewhere between RHEL 5.3 and Fedora 11. Just were it should be. I recommend it.
The wallpaper are cherry blossoms which are very famous in Japan.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cherry_blossom
=)
Thanks for reviewing something out of the ordinary, Jim. I always enjoy reading about different distributions. I do not try out every single one, and I am going to pass on this one, but I still value the information.
Did you learn any Japanese or any culturalisms along the way? Back in the mid nineties when I was at Digital, I worked with a Japanese employee who was on six month assignment with our Internationalization (I18N) department, where I worked at the time. I had a GREAT time with Toshiki and a number of other team members, as well as visitors from several other countries. A few years later, I ran into Toshiki again, when he was once again on a six month assignment. The years in between had caused me to lose the ability to understand his accent and I could barely understand him, but it sure was good to see him anyway. I enjoy cultural differences very much!
@ Carlo:
Carlo thanks for letting us know what it was. I’m…er…botanically challenged…heh.
@ Brian Masinick:
Brian I took one week of basic, intensive Japanese and promptly fled the class because it was way too hard. Yes, I am a wimp.