- Customized GNOME 4.2.9 Interface
- Linux kernel 6.2.0-36
- Rhythmbox Music Player
- Video player
- OnlyOffice 7.4
- Geary mail client
- Brave Web Browser 1.60
- OpenSSH Client and Server Samba
Thursday, December 7, 2023
Freespire 10 Released
Thursday, July 20, 2023
Freespire 10 Beta 1 and Linspire 14 Beta 1 Released
Today we are happy to release the newest Beta's of our flagship systems, Linspire 14 Beta 1 and Freespire 10 Beta 1. These are Beta builds which means they are provided for testing only we do NOT recommend these to be deployed in any kind of production environment. These builds are for users to provide us with feedback. Both of these builds use the Ubuntu 22.04 LTS base. Both are free downloads but as they are undergoing constant and consistent changes they are not representative of the final builds.
Linspire 14 Beta 1
Linspire 14 Beta 1 is our premium distribution it contains everything you need for a home user. Whether you are a student, home office worker, gamer or contemporary home user Linspire contains all the tools, codecs and applications to get you started.
- Linspire 14 Beta 1 changes are as follows:
- GNOME 42.9
- Linux Kernel 5.15.0-46
- Google Chrome 114
- Geary Mail Client
- Steam Client
- Discover Software Store
- Flatpak 1.14.4
- OnlyOffice 7.4
- Rhythmbox
- Totem
- Full multimedia and codec support
- All security updates up 7/15/2023
Other changes we have made is that we have removed the Ubuntu Advantage Tools as well as Canonical specific tools.
You can download this release here:
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/Beta/Linspire-14-2023.07.29-desktop-amd64.iso
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/Beta/Linspire-14-2023.07.29-desktop-amd64.md5
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/Beta/Linspire-14-2023.07.29-desktop-amd64.sha256
Beta 2 will be released mid-August
Freespire 10 Beta 1
Freespire 10 Beta 1 is our free distribution. Freespire can be redistributed freely and installed on multiple machines and modified as the user see's fit. This distribution can be used by the power user and Linux enthusiast. In this release we limit the number of proprietary non-free drivers and codecs that we include. Whether you are a developer, Linux power user or contemporary home user Freespire contains all the tools, utilities and applications that you need. Whether you want to experiment with different desktop environments you can download multiple software packages from the Ubuntu repositories or Flatpak.
Freespire 10 Beta 1 changes are as follows:
- GNOME 42.9
- Linux Kernel 5.15.0-46
- Brave Browser 1.52.130
- Geary Mail Client
- Steam Client
- Discover Software Store
- Flatpak 1.14.4
- OnlyOffice 7.4
- Rhythmbox
- Totem
- Free format multimedia and codec support
- All security updates up 7/15/2023
In this release we have removed the Ubuntu Advantage Tools as well as Canonical specific tools.
You can download these ISO's here:
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/Beta/Freespire-10-desktop-amd64.iso
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/Beta/Freespire-10-desktop-amd64.sha256
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/Beta/Freespire-10-desktop-amd64.md5
We will be releasing Beta 2 in September 2023
Wednesday, March 2, 2022
Freespire 8.2 Released
Wednesday, January 12, 2022
Freespire 8.0.1 Released
- XFCE Desktop 4.16 - A very lightweight and easy to use Linux desktop environment
- Kernel 5.4.0-94 LTS - A long term supported kernel that has been enhanced for functionality and security
- Synaptic - Linux package manager and alternative to the Software application. We also put Synaptic back in the whisker menu per user request.
- Google Chrome 97 - A web browser from Google uniquely engineered for privacy, security and performance.
- Ice SSB - An application that takes any web property and makes it a desktop application
- Kpatience - Suite of solitaire games
- Dreamchess - A fun and entertaining game for the chess enthusiasts out there
- Gmail - E-mail client from Google
- Google Drive - Access your online Google drive with this application. You can download and upload files and more. Google Drive integration is not present in Thunar
- Google Calendar - Online calendar application.
- Google Translate - A utility to translate text to any language you wish
- Google News - Online world wide news
- Video Player - Video and multimedia player
- Rhythmbox - Music player
- LibreOffice - Dedicated office suite for word processing, spreadsheet, presentations and vector drawing
Friday, December 10, 2021
Freespire 8.0 GNOME Released
Today we have a very special release for you guys, Freespire 8.0 with the GNOME desktop. A freespire build with the GNOME desktop has been the most requested build that we have ever received. We do not like to release anything unless we think its functional, beautiful and ready. We released Freespire 8.0 last week to much fan fare. It was our most successful release to date. We have been working on the GNOME release for months and a testing issue kept us from releasing it with the XFCE build. This GNOME release is identical to the GNOME desktop release of Linspire.
The GNOME release does not mean we will stop making an XFCE build. We will be doing both parallel with one another. Our GNOME release is based on GNOME 3.36.8. With Freespire 10 we will be moving to GNOME 4. Our GNOME desktop features a single panel with app launchers and "show applications" button which brings you to the App drawers.
For flexibility, users can switch back to the traditional GNOME desktop through the tweaks application. Aside from the desktop and a more recent kernel build the Freespire GNOME release is identical to the XFCE build. and focuses on web centric applications though traditional desktop applications are available through the software center.
Freespire GNOME features
Linux kernel 5.11
GNOME 3.36.8
Dash 2 Panel GNOME extension
Rhythmbox
Totem
Google Chrome 96
Ice SSB
Gmail
Google Docs
Google News
Google Keep
Google Calendar
Google Meet
Google Translate
Solitaire
Dreamchess
as with our traditional Freespire releases aside from Google Chrome there are no proprietary codecs or drivers included although they are available through the software center.
To install Freespire GNOME is very simple click on the "Show Applications" button on the taskbar and when the drawers open click on the Install icon and setup is very simple and straightforward.
You can download the GNOME release from here
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/8/freespire-8G.iso
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/8/freespire-8G.iso.md5
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/8/freespire-8G.iso.sha256
If you wish to donate to the freespire project you can do that here as well
If you have bandwidth caps or would like to recieve a copy of Freespire 8 GNOME or XFCE on a USB key you can purchase that here as well
Sunday, December 5, 2021
Freespire 8.0 Released
Today, the PC/OpenSystems LLC FOSS development team has released Freespire 8.0, an update which delivers much needed system enhancements and security fixes. Once again we have let users decide; they have spoken, and we have included all the most requested Google services; Calendar, Docs, and Gmail. For more traditional use cases, Freespire core has not changed at all : it’s still a full featured desktop OS, with all of the applications and resources of the Ubuntu repositories available as always. To repeat : Freespire does not incorporate any proprietary media codecs; aside from the use of Google Chrome there are no other vendor-specific software applications pre-installed at all.
Tuesday, August 31, 2021
Freespire OSS Fall Fundraiser 2021
Friday, July 30, 2021
Freespire 7.7 Released
- XFCE Desktop 4.16
- Kernel 5.4.0-80
- Synaptic
- Google Chrome 92
- DuckDuckGo set as the default search engine and homepage
- Ice SSB
- Kpatience
- Dreamchess
- Geary Mail Client
- Kolourpaint
- Parole
- Rhythmbox
- Caja is now the default file manager (Thunar is still in the base install)
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Windows 11 Mode |
Sunday, May 9, 2021
Freespire 7.5 released
Hey guys,
Today we’re releasing Freespire 7.5. While incremental, it does incorporate some important OS fixes to version 7.0 which we will detail. Freespire, for those not in the know, is the open source equivalent of Linspire and Xandros, but with strictly libre / open source components. There are no proprietary code or codecs included with Freespire; the team tries to adhere as closely as possible the definition of free software.
Some of the patches implemented :
FIXED: XFCE has been upgraded to the latest release with all patches implemented
FIXED: Kernel 5.4 has been upgraded to the latest version
FIXED Air Pod support has been improved
The distribution includes :
XFCE Desktop
Kernel 5.4
Synaptic
Firefox
Thunderbird
Kpatience
Dreamchess
Abiword
Gnumeric
Gdebi
Kolourpaint
Parole
Rhythmbox
Plus several other security updates. You can download the ISO from here.
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/7/release-750F.iso
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/7/release-750F.iso.md5
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/7/release-750F.iso.sha256
Friday, October 30, 2020
Freespire 7.0 Released
Today our internal development team is pleased to announce the release of Freespire 7.0, a major update to Freespire which brings the codebase to the latest Ubuntu 20.04 LTS. Once again, PC/OpenSystems has worked diligently to bring you the best, most meticulously designed and engineered FOSS desktop on the market today. Freespire is the community-supported base from which Linspire is built and aims to bring the best, and only the best, open source has to offer to its users, featuring an intuitive interface with the expressed intent of increased productivity.
Monday, June 22, 2020
Freespire 6.0.3 Released
Freespire is the community-supported base from which Linspire is built and aims to bring the best, and only the best, open source has to offer, along with an intuitive interface designed for productivity. The Freespire 6.x series will be the last one featuring the 18.04 LTS codebase; Freespire 7 will be based on the next 20.04 LTS code and kernel.
Features included in Freespire 6.0.3 :
Customized XFCE 4.14 desktop
Kernel 5.3.0-59
Chromium Browser 83
Ice SSB
Thunderbird 68.8
Abiword
GNUMERIC
Kpatience
DreamChess
Parole Media Player
KolourPaint
Redshift GTK
These are only some of the changes. Overall there have been over 200 updates applied to the core system.
One of the biggest changes is the removal of SNAPD and snaps from our distributions, Linspire included, going forward. From now on we will include Flatpak as a replacement for SNAP due to privacy concern issues with SNAP.
You can download Freespire 6.0.3 from here
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/6/freespire-603.iso
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/6/freespire-603.iso.sha256
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/6/freespire-603.iso.md5
If you have limited bandwidth or would like to purchase a boxed copy of Freespire 6.0.3 you can do that here as well.
Monday, February 10, 2020
Freespire 6.0 Released
Today is another great day for the Freespire development team, as we announce the release of Freespire 6.0. This release is our FOSS solution, with no binary-only drivers or multimedia codecs included and strictly Libre applications. Freespire is released bi-annually and showcases the best that the open-source community has to offer. Our users enjoy a multitude of different desktops - for this release we are releasing the MATE desktop first; KDE comes next, keep an eye out for it. With Windows 7 at the end of life, many people have PCs which may not be optimal for Windows 10; now is a good time to migrate to one of the most recognized desktop Linux distributions, which is optimized for just these sorts of PCs.
Here’s what’s offered:
MATE 1.20
Kernel 5.3.0-28
Chromium Web Browser
Abiword
Gnumeric
Ice SSB
Parole
Shotwell
Software Center
Synaptic Package Manager
Fully community supported by other users and contributors, with an intuitive layout for ease-of-use, Freespire 6.0 is the latest and greatest high-performance desktop distro available, stable as a table and backed by the full scope of Ubuntu / Debian software. Please give it a try! You can download it here:
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/6/freespire-6.iso
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/6/freespire-6.iso.md5
https://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/6/freespire-6.iso.sha256
If you are hindered by data caps you can purchase a bootable USB key here
Tuesday, October 15, 2019
Freespire 5.0 Released
Our goal was to “trim the fat” on the distribution. Many of our users and customers have told us that Linspire / Freespire as a whole were bloated; so what we did in response was pick “best of breed” applications that added to the overall simplicity of the system. And what if the app you want is not preinstalled? Go to the Software Center and explore its treasure trove of compatible applications.
Freespire 5.0 contains the following enhancements:
Kernel 5.0.0-31
KDE 5.12.9
Ice 6.0.4
Chromium Browser 77
KolourPaint
Calligra Office
Amarok
Kpatience
DreamChess
DragonPlayer Video Player
Kamerka
Boot Repair
Firewall configurator
Synaptic Package Manager
Freespire 5.0 does not contain any proprietary, binary-only software. Its source code is available via the Synaptic Package manager. Freespire is free to download and redistribute. You can download it here
http://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/5/freespire-5.iso
http://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/5/freespire-5.iso.md5
http://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/5/freespire-5.iso.sha256
If you have limited or metered bandwidth and would like to have install media or to support the distribution you can purchase here as well.
Thursday, May 2, 2019
Freespire 4.8 Released
KDE Plasma 5.12.7
KDE Frameworks version 5.44.0
QT version 5.9.5
Kernel 4.18.0-18
Chromium Web Browser
Geary
Ice SSB
Amarok
VLC Player
Calligra Office Suite
Karbon
Kolourpaint
DOSBox
Kpatience
Dream Chess
Shotwell
Discover Software Center
Synaptic Package Manager
Fully community supported by other users and contributors, with an intuitive layout for ease-of-use, Freespire 4.8 is the latest and greatest high-performance desktop distro available, stable as a table and backed by the full scope of Ubuntu / Debian software. Please give it a try!
Download links:
http://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/freespire-48.iso
http://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/freespire-48.iso.md5
http://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/freespire-48.iso.sha256
For those of you that have caps on your data downloads and who want the security of install media rather than downloading an ISO and creating a Live DVD/USB you can purchase a copy of Freespire below.
Today we are launching our Summer Fundraiser for Freespire development. Freespire relies on our users and sponsors to continue to provide this distro. Any contributions are accepted
Thursday, December 20, 2018
Freespire 4.5 Released
Freespire 4.5 has the following features and and enhancements:
Kernel 4.15.0-43
LTS 18.04.1
Mate 1.20.1
Chromium Browser 71
Geary e-mail client
Abiword
Gnumeric
A full list of installed applications can be found here
You can download freespire 4.5 free of charge and redistribute as you wish; if you have bandwidth restrictions or prefer installation media you can purchase that here
http://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/4/freespire-45-x64.iso
http://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/4/freespire-45-x64.iso.md5
http://distro.ibiblio.org/blacklab/freespire/4/freespire-45-x64.iso.sha256
Freespire 4.5 does NOT contain any proprietary or binary only multimedia codecs, device drivers or applications - users can make the decision to install those pieces themselves if necessary.
If you would like to donate to the Freespire development team to help fund development, replace aging equipment and advertising you can do so here