Hulu is one of the most popular video sites on the web. You can watch all kinds of different television shows and movies right in your browser. But there’s also another way to watch Hulu and that’s to download the Hulu Desktop application for Linux.

Please note that Hulu Desktop for Linux is currently labeled “beta” so don’t be surprised if you find some burps here or there if you try to use it. Also, I did not test this with a remote control as I ran the application in Linux Mint 8 in VMWare and the Apple remote I had didn’t work. So I used my trackball to navigate the application.

The package download for Hulu Desktop for Linux weighed in at a very petite 598KB.

Requirements
Here are the system requirements from the Hulu site:

Intel Core 2 Duo 2.0GHz
At least 2.0 GB RAM
Fedora 9, Ubuntu 8.04 or later
2 Mbps Internet connection
Flash 10.0.22

And here are the software requirements:

GTK+ 2.12 or higher
GLib 2.16 or higher
LIRC 0.8.2 or higher (required for remote control functionality)

When you first start Hulu, a default video will being playing in the Hulu interface.

Some Linux distros sell themselves by being minimalistic. They only come with a limited range of apps and everything is geared toward keeping the file size and hardware requirements absolutely minimal. Then there’s Ultimate Edition 2.5. Ultimate Edition leans the other way and throws in everything including the kitchen sink.

Ultimate Edition 2.5 is based on Ubuntu 9.10 and it weighs in at a chunky 3.1GB. Clearly this is a distro you won’t be able to fit onto a CD. But that’s fine as long as you have a DVD and DVD burner available. This larger size is due to the fact that it comes with a lot of software (more on that in the software section).

Ultimate Edition 2.5 includes GNOME, KDE 4.3.2 and XFCE. You can choose which desktop environment you want to work in when you login.

What’s New In This Release
One of the things I hate about reviewing certain distros is when the folks who make the distro don’t have a “What’s New” page on their site or a file in the distro itself. It makes it hard for reviewers to know which new features are included in the distribution. I have to go running around trying to figure out what the significant new features are so I can include them in the review.

Despite checking the Ultimate Edition site and also looking in the forum, I was not able to find a complete list of what’s new in this release. Since it’s based on Ubuntu 9.10, Ultimate Edition 2.5 should have all of the new features of the generic Ubuntu release.

Nor was I able to find an email address to contact the developer to ask for more information and the forum link posted on the front page of the UE site led to a “topic does not exist” message.

I encourage the Ultimate Edition developers to include a brief summary of new features in future releases. It makes it a heck of a lot easier for reviewers to note them in the review.

After googling around, I finally tracked down what appears to be a list of some new features but it’s on the Softpedia site and not on the actual Ultimate Edition 2.5 site. Hmmm. Not exactly a good way of announcing what’s new to reviewers and users.

Here’s what I found:

“Ultimate Edition 2.5 was built off Ultimate Edition 2.4 (Ubuntu Karmic 9.10 based) all upgrades pre-installed as of current. It has KDE, XFCE, and GNOME user selectable at login, 3 new themes and tons of apps. This release is huge obviously bigger then UE 2.4 ;) I am not going to spend my time writing a webpage, but just a post. Even though it is a very worthy release and deserves a webpage. I have alot on my plate in programming and other activities & I do mean alot. It has been out about a week, forum users have been grabbing it left and right.”

The Ultimate Edition 2.5 desktop using the UE 2.5 Gold theme.

Before I get into the meat of this review, please note that I’ve expanded the review template to incorporate additional details and changed the structure slightly.

Please let me know what you think of the new format and if you’d like to see other things added to the reviews. Thanks in advance for your feedback.

As usual, there’s quite a bit of new stuff in this release and here’s some of what you’ll find. Be sure to review the What’s New page on the Linux Mint 8 site for more info and screenshots.

Linux Kernel 2.6.31
Gnome 2.28
Ubuntu 9.10 Improvements (boot sequence, notifications, etc.)

Menu Improvements
Software Manager Improvements
Update Manager Improvements
Two New Applications: Upload Manager and File Uploader

Menu Improvements
Your Places are now configurable. You can now add additional choices and they will appear in the Places menu. You can also disable or enable any button in the System or Places menus. And you now have a “lock screen” button on the System menu.

I’m sure that some users will appreciate the ability to add more choices to the Places menu and will use it; it didn’t do much for me though as I’ve never felt the need to add any choices to the defaults. But it’s nice that the option is there for those who want it.

Software Manager Improvements
Software Manager now has screenshots in the bottom left corner of the application. It’s also now possible to see more reviews and information about an application.

There’s no need to refresh Software Manager now, as you’ll be notified when stuff is available via Update Manager. Software Manager is also now aware of the APT status of applications. And you can now mark multiple applications for installation or removal.

I like the screenshots a lot and it’s always interesting to see what other people have to say about an application. Helpful information and constructive feedback from other users can help save users from wasting their time downloading a lame application.

And I definitely enjoyed not having to manually refresh Software Manager. Anything that automates updates, installation/removal, etc. is a big plus to me. The less time I have to spend keeping track of software, the better.

Update Manager Improvements
You can change the columns shown in the list of updates and you can resize Update Manager. You’ll also see download progress information since Update Manager uses Synaptic to track updates. You can also add other repositories in Software Sources.

Two New Applications: Upload Manager and File Uploader
The tool formerly called mintUpload has been split into two applications: Upload Manager and File Uploader. The Upload Manager lets you add services using FTP, SFTP and SCP.

Once you’ve added your services you can then launch the File Uploader and your upload services will appear in your system tray. Click the ones you want and you can then upload files by dragging and dropping files.

The Live CD version of the Linux Mint 8 desktop.

The latest release of Fedora is version 12 and it includes some nifty new features. I downloaded the Live CD version of Fedora 12 that features the Gnome desktop environment.

What’s New In This Release
Here’s a sample of some of what’s new in this release:

Updated version of Grub with ext4 support
Faster boot time
Spanning desktop across dual monitors
Better webcam support
ABRT (automatic bug reporting tool)
Gnome 2.28
KDE 4.3
Empathy replaces Pidgin for IM
Epiphany uses WebKit instead of Gecko
Ogg Theora 1.1
NetworkManager enhancements
PackageKit command line software install enhancements
RPMs use XZ for compression instead of gzip (smaller downloads)

For most desktop users the faster boot time, better software compression, Gnome 2.28 and KDE 4.3 will probably be the main reasons to upgrade to this release. Some of the other new features may come in handy though, depending on your individual needs.

I don’t run multiple monitors nor do I do much with webcams so neither of those features is useful to me. Nor do I install software from the command line so the enhancements to PackageKit don’t hold much appeal for me. Still, there’s nothing to really complain about as far as new features go. There’s probably more than enough here to make it worthwhile to upgrade.

Mandriva Powerpack 2010
Mandriva One 2010
Mandriva Free 2010

For this review I picked the Mandriva Linux 2010 (Free) version. This version contains 100% free software and weighs in at a chunky 4.3GB when you download it. Now please understand that I am not a “free software fanatic” type at all. I have no problem using distros that have some proprietary software blended into them but I like to use one that doesn’t have that stuff every once in a while.

And Mandriva Linux 2010 (Free) was a good chance to do just that.

What’s New In This Release
This version of Mandriva has some new goodies and here’s a sample of what you’ll find when you install it:

Faster start up
Three themes
Gnome 2.28.1
KDE 4.3.2
Moblin (netbook desktop environment)
Firefox 3.5
Better parental controls
Moovida (new interface for Elisa)
Smaller install size
Ext4 default file system
RPMDrake search & interface improvements
X.org 7.4

I’m happy to see the updates to Gnome and KDE. The beefed up parental controls are also welcome. I don’t have kids but I’m sure there are some folks out there that do that might use Mandriva Linux. I’m also glad to see that Ext4 is the default file system in this release.

There’s quite a bit more in terms of new features so be sure to view the full list via the link above.

The desktop contains icons to join the Mandriva community or upgrade to the Powerpack edition.

Before I get into this review, I wanted to note the ongoing server problems DLR has been having. Please accept my apologies if you’ve been trying to access DLR or the DLR forum. DLR is growing and the additional traffic has caused some server overloads. My hosting company will be moving DLR to a more robust server (hopefully this week) and that might help. I have also installed the WP Supercache plugin. I thank all of you for your patience while we get the server/bandwidth issues worked out.

Please note also that I have added another page navigation plugin that will let you easily move between pages. Each page has a title so you can skip the parts of the review that don’t interest you. Just look below the regular numbered page links at the top and bottom of each review and you’ll see a handy dropdown menu. I hope it provides some value and makes navigation easier and more comfortable.

I have also added the Sociable plugin to make sharing DLR content easier. You’ll see icons for Facebook, Digg and other social networking sites right at the bottom of each article. Hope that helps for those who wish to share content that the enjoy here on DLR.

Okay, with that said, onto to the rest of the review.

What’s New In This Release
There’s a lot of great new stuff in this release. Here’s a list of some of what you’ll find in this release:

KDE 4.3
Social Networking Features (Various Widgets)
OpenOffice.org Integration
Ayatana Integration
New Look for Installer
Amarok 2.2
KPackageKit
Userconfig Returns
Enhanced Network Manager
GTK+ Integration
Firefox Installer

Some folks might not enjoy the social networking features included in this release but I liked them a lot. I have a Facebook and Twitter account so I find apps that let me access those two services to be quite useful and I’m glad to see them in Kubuntu 9.10. Note that if you are on Facebook you can become a fan of Desktop Linux Reviews.

The latest version of Kubuntu comes with social networking desktop widgets.

The OpenOffice.org integration is nice but really didn’t matter too much to me. I use OO relatively sparingly these days as I write my columns for ExtremeTech using Google Docs most of the time and I write these reviews in WordPress. But I always like to have OO available just in case and it’s nice that it’s better integrated with KDE this time around.

The slicked up installed looked good too though I didn’t notice any significant change in terms of speed or ease of the install.

I’m happy to note that Ubuntu Linux has hit version 9.10 and has some nifty new features that make it worth reviewing here.

Please note that for this review I used Release Candidate 1. I recommend waiting for the final release to come out before you download Ubuntu Linux and install it to your system or before you upgrade any existing Ubuntu Linux computers. The final release should be out soon.

What’s New In This Release
There’s some juicy stuff in this upgrade and here’s some of what you’ll find:

Gnome 2.28
Upstart (Faster Booting)
Empathy IM (Replaces Pidgin)
New Login Manager
Quickly (Easier Application Development)
Ubuntu One (Cloud Based Sharing & Storage)
Linux Kernel 2.6.31
Changes to Power Management
New Intel Video Driver Architecture
Ext4 File System Default
Grub 2 Default

That’s just a sample of the new features in this release. Be sure to check out the full list of new stuff.

Ubuntu 9.10's desktop is clean and clutter-free.

Just what the heck is Easy Peasy? And why should you care? Well it’s essentially a modified version of Ubuntu geared toward netbook users. The interface has been redesigned to work better for netbook users that might not need or want a more traditional desktop interface.

Before you read any further please take note that Easy Peasy should not be considered a desktop version of Linux. It’s designed for netbooks so if you don’t have any interest in that you should stop reading now and skip the rest of this review. If you’re bored and looking for something to read, head over to my opinion column site instead. That will keep you busy for a while as there are quite a few things to read there.

For those of you looking for an offbeat version of Linux to play with, read on!

Easy Peasy has a unique netbook-oriented interface.

What’s New In This Release
Here’s a list of what’s new in the 1.5 release of Easy Peasy:

# New visual look by Lasse Sætre and Mark Basset
# Awesome Linux kernel (2.6.30) optimized for netbooks with faster startup built by Martin Bammer
# Support for more netbooks
# Hybrid image (both .img and .iso at the same time) by Phil Howard

* This makes it possible to move the image to the usb stick with unetbootin or dd etc. Which means it’s now possible to intall from a Mac

# Many bug fixes [1]
# Upgraded software (Picasa, OpenOffice 3.1 etc.)
# Built off Ubuntu 9.04
# Smaller harddrive footprint
# Uses the new ext4 filesystem as default
# UXA by default

* The first distro to deliver real composite desktop which means it’s possible to run 3D in 3D (ie. the netbook interface and desktop effects)

# Banshee as default music player instead of Songbird
# Lots of clever solutions when it comes to upgrades through repositories

* Ubuntu security upgrades are available to easypeasy users as fast as they’re released, while easypeasy isn’t overwritten by Ubuntu

When I first launched DLR I had no idea how well the blog would be received or if it would really amount to anything. Well 30 reviews later here we are and I’m happy to see how things turned out and it’s fun to be able to take a look at another version of the first DLR review.

If you missed the first review, here’s a snippet that explains what Parsix Linux is:

Parsix Linux is a Gnome-centric distribution created in Iran and based on KANOTIX and Debian. I downloaded it a while back but never quite had time to get a review done for ExtremeTech while I was working there. Distrowatch had a good interview with him recently where he talks about why and how Parsix Linux was born and how it differs from KANOTIX. The developer of Parsix is Alan Baghumian, a native Iranian.

What’s New In This Release
There’s some good stuff in this release and here’s some of what you’ll find:

GNOME 2.26.3
Brand new kernel based on Linux 2.6.29.6 with extra patches and drivers
Updated installer system that supports separate /home partition
ext4 file system
GRUB 2
NetworkManager is finally default networking stack
AuFS and UnionFS support
SquashFS+Lzma compression for live-CD
GNU Iceweasel 3.5.3
GParted 0.4.6
Pidgin 2.6.2
OpenOffice.org 3.1.1
Compiz-Fusion 0.8.2

Parsix Linux features a somewhat bland but very functional Gnome desktop.

Kahel OS is a remastered version of Arch Linux. Arch Linux has a bit of a reputation as not being particularly friendly to average desktop users. Kahel OS is an effort to change that perception and make it easier for people to use Arch Linux.

Kahel OS uses a “rolling release” model which essentially means that you never really have to upgrade it in the traditional sense. You simply update your packages and when you do that you have the latest release automatically. There is no grand jump from one version to the next as there is with other distributions.

Note that there was some controversy in the Arch Linux forums about Kahel OS. I’ll let you draw your own conclusions from the thread itself.

What’s New In This Release
Given that Kahel OS operates on the rolling release model, there isn’t a list of “what’s new” along the lines of what you’d find for Ubuntu or one of the other distributions. I poked around the Kahel OS site just in case to see if there was anything useful to include in this section but I didn’t come across anything.

The login screen has the familiar orange coloring of the desktop.