The project Debian CUT (Constantly Usable Testing –Constantly Usable Testing–) It emerged more than 2 years ago from the hand of Joey Hess, who was looking for an alternative for users and / or developers who cannot wait 2 years (approximately) to see the new version of Debian (stable). It is a project not official, since it does not have the backing or support of Debian (still: P).
Before getting into the subject, let's get to know a little about the other "branches" of Debian.
About Debian unstable and testing
<° Debian unstable: it is the distribution where developers upload new versions of their packages. But, often some packages are not installable from unstable due to changes in other packages or transitions in libraries (libraries) that have not yet been completed.
<° Debian Testing: in contrast to unstable, it is managed by a tool that guarantees the consistency of the entire distribution. It only picks up unstable updates if the package has been tested long enough (10 days generally), is free of new critical release bugs, is available on all supported architectures (e.g. PowerPC, PA-RISC, and MIPS-based machines), and does not break with some other existing package in testing. This ensures that the packages leading to testing are reasonably bug-free (such as a system not booting, or X's not working at all). This makes it very attractive to users who like to regularly have the latest version of their software without having to deal with the more serious problems associated with them.
Why not use Debian Testing?
Debian Testing is where the developers of Debian prepare the next stable distribution (stable). While this is still their main goal, many users have adopted this version of Debianas it offers a good compromise between "freshness" and stability between packages. However, there are downsides to using testing, so the CUT project aims to reduce or eliminate the negatives.
Known issues in testing
<° Software packages “disappear”: The release team uses the distribution to prepare for the next stable release, and they release packages from it from time to time. This is done either to ensure that other packages can migrate from unstable to testing, or because a package has been buggy for a long time without moving towards a solution. The team will also remove the packages if managers believe that the current version of the software cannot be supported for 2 years or more.
<° Long delays in security reviews: Despite the 10-day delay in the unstable branch, there are always some annoying bugs (and security bugs are no exception) that are only discovered when the package has already migrated to testing. The maintainer can be quick to load a package that has been "solved" to unstable, and might even pose urgency by allowing the package to migrate as soon as possible, but if the packages get "stuck" in the current transition process, they will not migrate until the transition is complete. This can sometimes take weeks to happen.
The delay can be avoided by direct downloads to testing (through testing-proposed-updates), but that mechanism is rarely used, except during freezing of packages, where specific errors are corrected.
<° Not always installable: With the daily evolution test, updates sometimes break the latest available install images (particularly netboot images that get all packages from the network). The installer Debian it usually fixes packages quickly, but they are not automatically moved to testing because the installer should not always validate the new combination of packages. Colin watson summarizes the problem as follows:
“Obtaining the code for the new test installer takes a long time, and problems remain unsolved for long periods. The problem with the development of the Debian installer at the moment is that we are too slow in producing new versions of it. Your options now are to work with stable (software too old), testing (It would be nice, except sometimes it breaks and tends to take a week to fix anything), unstable (it breaks all the time). "
Leaving aside the old idea of: Debian = Outdated but Stable
In short, the project CUT seeks to modify the appreciation that most GNU / Linux users have about Debian, when trying to provide us with a "Rolling Release" type distribution, offering us a stable operating system but much more updated than the Debian stable version.
What can we expect from Debian CUT?
<° An internet connection is required for installation, so the size of the isos is very small (18 megabytes only). These isos can be burned to a CD or create a bootable pendrive (with unebootin for example).
<° Once the installation is finished, we can find a fully functional system (it brings for example Libre Office 3.4.4, kernel 3.1.0-1).
<° Before starting with the installation we can select which desktop environment we want to install on our computer, with the following options: KDE, XFCE (4.8), LXDE and GNOME (3.2.1) (with Gnome being the default desktop environment). I don't know the KDE and LXDE versions, I didn't test them: P.
Here are some screenshots:
Note: If we want to choose a desktop environment other than Gnome, we must select the Advanced options option, as shown in the following images:
It is certainly an excellent alternative for both Ubuntu and Linux Mint / LMDE.
Updated:
Official Link: http://cut.debian.net/
the bad thing about debian testing, in my case, is that from time to time it gives dependency problems when updating, and you have to wait, let them know how much to solve it
about debian cut, the most important thing is missing ... what is the official website of the project?
Thank you
Here it is.
http://cut.debian.net/
Well, I solve those problems using only:
sudo aptitude safe-upgrade
and I only use full-upgrade very occasionally.
Now the question arises: what is inside your source.list? 😛
I also use the safe-upgrade, but when it is necessary to do a full-upgrade is when problems sometimes arise
Small slip: P, the link has already been added, thanks for the observation 😉
I hope it won't take long to be official, things are looking good.
This is the only way for me to seriously consider using Debian ... I mean, I'm not willing to trade ArchLinux for Debian, but I could give Cut a shot and see how it goes :)
I'd like to try Archlinux, but I don't have enough time for a smooth installation. Maybe next summer I will try.
If you want to try ArchLinux, and save the installation time, try If you like Gnome Kahel OS or If you prefer Kde Chakra Linux
It's still not KISS so don't give it to him
netinstall
Possibly the best way to get Debian to recognize it officially would be to use it or "echo" its existence.
At least they already have my vote XD.
How is it in terms of stability? Updates are daily like testing? I'm downloading it and I'm going to test it.
Honestly, I have not been testing it long, but so far there have been no hot dogs of any kind. As for the updates, they have been daily.
Excuse the questions, I hope it's the last one, does it come with Iceweasel 9.0.1 ?.
Don't worry, that's what we're here for;).
It has Iceweasel 8.0 and Icedove 3.16. In order to install Iceweasel 9.0.1 and Icedove 8 (I couldn't update to the latest version at least from repositories ¬¬), I had to add the sid repos, update from synaptic and comment on them again.
Greetings.
Thanks friend, tonight I install Cut, I will give another vote of confidence.
Greetings.
You have to try it. It's the only way to know how it's really going. And of course I already want. I put it on the list.
perseus Is it worth removing LMDE to replace it with Debian CUT? Or is the difference not so much as to do it?
I ask because I use LMDE and well… if this other works better….
Hello Tina, I'm glad to hear from you: D ...
I tell you about the advantages that Debian CUT has over LMDE in my opinion:
<° Be able to install Gnome, XFCE, KDE, LXDE.
<° Have relatively more up-to-date software (this could be relative, but LDME has stagnated a bit as in the aspect of updates ¬¬)
<° Constant updates (they appear daily to me), without losing the stability of the system.
<° I don't know if it's my perception (Moscosov also told me the same thing), but one works with the "environment" in a more "light" and faster way.
In the end they are giving us the reason ... Rolling Release is the best, that simple ... they just need to accept KISS and voila, they will be worthy of entering the kingdom of Arch and enjoying paradise .... LOL!!!!
Fanatic !!!, I think that poor elav must be a masochist to have such a partner, hahahahahaha.
The "rolling release" should be the future of the different versions. Gone are the old days where "Linux" was "unstable" for computers (I think you get more "hot dogs" trying to do upgrade in cyclic release distributions).
If it were to be achieved as a de facto standard among distros, it would make a big leap, helping to further solidify GNU / Linux as a "serious" alternative for production and / or personal teams.
The semi rolling are the future, because after all the programs are not made by the distributions and more than once you can have an update, stop making a program work that in the previous version did work, now for now I comes in mind when they updated minitube on ubuntu 10.10
As for the difference, if you mean the ease of having a "usable" system at the end of the installation, believe me it's the same as LMDE.
Anything, just ask, okay?
Greetings 😉
And sorry for the quick response, I say it for the misspellings and other moneries XD
I see, so this is what ... Now, it says that the installation is done with only an internet connection, so, an installation (with XFCE 4.8, for example) how long would it take? :F
It takes me between 40 and 30 minutes, my connection is at 5M, but normally I do not download the full bandwidth ¬¬
One question, I'm going to download it to test but ... do you think it is stable enough for a work environment? It's what stops me from using a roling.
regards
I have been using Arch for several weeks, and my PC was very stable. Imagine the Debian guys are even more paranoid about stability. Right now I'm using Debian Testing and trust me, there is no instability of any kind. Then there comes Debian CUT, which has been a Testing with stability plus .. Anyway, highly recommended to be updated and have stability.
Uff… so in Debian Testing there is no stability of any kind, right? …. if I already said so, Debian is overrated… LOL !!!!
Come on, I'm kidding ... others are not going to take it too seriously HAHA.
you better that I was already preparing the torches and an angry mob to go looking for you at your house
😉
Well, here I have two gallons of water, one for the torch and one for you… to screw you around a bit and have a cold HAHAHAHAHA !!!!!
XD XD XD XD mini flamewar in sight XD XD XD XD
I think I'm late ¬¬. I only confirm what elav comments, it really is very stable and in theory much more than testing (I say this because I could never directly install debin testing on my computer and I would not like to take stable and modify the repos).
During pre-post 'research', the main idea of debian cut is to provide stability and 'freshness' for development or work environments;).
I have 3 days in debian testing, I configured the updates for every 2 weeks, so nothing "strange" has touched me.
You are the first that I read that says that about debian testing, the common thing is that they say -debian testing is more stable than ubuntu- and believe me, in Ubuntu I never had problems (I always do a paranoid configuration http://www.ubuntuhispano.org/wiki/configuracion-paranoica-intermedia-ubuntu), except for the wireless that I could not make it work in this lap that I currently have.
regards
It is so, nobody has said otherwise. Debian Testing is super stable. Who says otherwise has never used it 😛
Come on, being absolute is bad, compa. Myself for example ... when I started in this world, I used Debian Testing for a month or two, and you know what? ... Ubuntu 8.10 worked for me much more stable than Debian Testing, so my opinion was that Debian was not as stable as claimed (of course, I was not referring to stable but to testing).
Man I read wrong, I read "no stability" when you wrote "no instability" hence my confusion.
My mistake
Congratulations Perseus, very good article that sheds light on this "version" of Debian.
I'm testing it a few days ago and it has managed to make me forget about LMDE, install it with Gnome-Shell and it feels lighter than in other distro that I have tried with that environment, and the rest is the classic stability and power that Debian provides. As a recommendation, I suggest whoever installs it is that somehow see which is the fastest Mirror available and add it manually during installation, because I put the one that comes by default and the entire process lasts 2 hours and that. is that my connection is 10m.
I reiterate my congratulations and greetings.
Thank you very much friend, a pleasure to see and have you here 😀
Debian you would have to learn a little more to handle this Linux distribution, for example it is customizable in the installation and configuration, everything done by hand etc ..., And LMDE uses Debian Testing as a Base, it behaves the same as Debian and with the Mint features such as MintDesktop MintSoftware MintUpdate etc ... already ready to work for example MP3, Flash codecs, etc ... already all included and configured ...
A few days ago I installed Debian 6 on my Macbook Pro virtualized with VMware for Mac. I just want it to mess around and learn Linux without dying to crash the system since I am a graphic designer and I use OS X with commercial programs.
But now I have a dilemma for a friend who, although a beginner, has been a Linux user for a few years using Ubuntu 9.04 and taking advantage of the fact that he wanted to repartition the disk and upgrade his Ubuntu version, I have proposed him to switch to Debian with LMDE or Debian Cut so as not to die in the attempt. I don't recommend Debian 6 because you have 2 children and you don't have time, so I don't want to complicate your life when something unforeseen appears with packages or updates.
What do you recommend for him to get started with Debian in a non-drastic way? LMDE or Debian Cut? Or will you really have a happier life with Linux Mint 12?
Thank you very much
superlative I recommend Linux Mint 10, 11 or 12 It would make your life happier and more uncomplicated for newbies that starts in the world of free software GNU / Linux… Good luck! (AND)
First of all, thanks for writing. Of the 3 versions you propose, personally I would recommend Debian CUT or Linux Mint, the problem with LMDE is that at the moment its situation is not very clear, I mean the problem of updates and some comments from Clem, which he has branded "experiment." The other option you mentioned, Ubuntu, could be that Unity seems somewhat confusing or hateful to you (there are always people who "love" it or end up "hating" it), I say this if you are a "traditionalist" user or do not have the time to experiment with something relatively "new."
Now, if we dig a little deeper, Debian CUT offers you the 4 most "popular" desktop environments that exist in GNU / Linux (KDE, Gnome, LXDE and XFCE), which LM cannot offer at the moment. For ease of use and the "have a complete system after installation" aspect, any of these distros is a very good option. Regarding the desktop environment, I would recommend XFCE for its speed, simplicity and similarity to Gnome 2 (without a doubt XFCE has been a "refuge" for those who do not agree with the appearance or functionality of the new Gnome 3).
I hope I have helped you 😉
Thank you very much for your comments. Linux Mint 12 has been installed and I will start playing Debian 6 in my spare time and keep learning. For work I have to use OS X, so I can't mess around with Linux every day.
I have a question about Debian CUT, to see if someone can tell me something about it.
When we install from the Debian CUT mini iso or netinstall, we can choose the Debian branch that we want to install, at least in expert mode, if we choose the testing branch, in the end we obtain a source.list where the Testing repositories appear.
My question would be, then, if someone can tell me what real difference there is, today, between Debian Testing and Debian CUT, when both point to the same repositories.
And therefore, at this moment, what difference is there between using the unofficial Debian CUT netinstall and using the daily official version of the netinstall for debian testing, which we also find with or without non-free firmware, very useful in my case .
In short, I do not appreciate final differences between one version and another, I have the impression that at this moment CUT = Testing.
Thank you all.
Well, the main differences that I find between Debian CUT and testing would be the following:
<° Debian testing images are released weekly, regardless of whether it may include software that is "tested" correctly or not. As for CUT, the images are generated every 1 or 2 months, this depends largely on the tests performed on the "important" packages (eg xorg, kernel, etc.), which helps a lot with stability.
<° Debian CUT uses the following repositories:
deb http://snapshot.debian.org/archive/debian/20111231T093403Z wheezy main
deb-src http://snapshot.debian.org/archive/debian/20111231T093403Z wheezy main
same that are completely different from the test ones.
Greetings.
I use sid and have had no problems: D.
I too have been using sid for quite some time and have had few problems.
Ufff .. Don't tempt me .. don't tempt me ... 🙁
Hello people, hello Perseus, hello elav (I have you from esdebian) luck that I could see the site, from now on I will walk around here to read good articles. I'm surprised no one mentioned the following. squeeze + backports !!!
For me it was the solution. updated iceweasel, libreoffice, there is also the xorg to pull from there ... and more. All very stable. It is what I use now and I no longer change it (the idea of the CUT was already nailed to me).
Only "fatigue" in squeeze + backports:
Big programs like blender, gimp, inkscape (and I don't put video ed. Because I have no idea) may have a positive development in other branches, But let's be honest ... how it works for most people (as is my case) these powerful editors with more tools if we do not know and need all the potential of older versions. Maybe the Python console is also a problem, but whoever gets to programs can already go and find the sources and install them.
PS: KZKG ^ Gaara… you realized that people here don't seem to care about your taste for arch… haha… you defend him just like crazy. I continued in tulla.
Hahahaha welcome student:
A pleasure to have you here. With KZKG ^ Gaara don't take a fight .. it's a hopeless and impossible case. It is true what you say about the updated programs, many times we do not need some functionalities that the new versions bring, but at least I, so much stability bores me hahaha .. I like to spend my scares with Debian Testing and look at you, never I am pleased .. I will have to use Sid or Experimental xD xD
Nice to have you here and thanks for the comment 😀
Hmbre both you and KZKG ^ Gaara have things to criticize you:
You like reggaeton, you're old, you like Ubuntu, sometimes you touch my balls a little ...
Hahahaha
How about @alunado, thanks for write.
Frankly I have not used stable + backports, but from what you say, I suppose that CUT does something similar without the need for all this, let me explain, for example, to date, I already have LibreOffice 3.4.5 updated from the "original" repos of CUT.
We hope to see you often here… 😉
Welcome alunado 🙂
The fact that people "care" or not, I don't care, come here more often and maybe change your mind 😉
I had to use testing and ……………… no problem ……… .To be honest one, the openshop video editor …… sometimes closes me… but I don't know what it will be ……………… .and I use blender 2.61 inkscape gimp audacity hydrogen free ofice and all that it brings by default and without any anomaly ……………… animense …… .design and I even make an announcement for tv all this in debian testing I recommend them ……… ..
Hello everyone, I have read the article about Debian Cut and it has caught my attention. I have downloaded the image from its official page and when I go to install I get to the part where the necessary packages must be downloaded from the network, it gives me two options, one is to download the United States replica from snapshot.debian.org and the other is to put the download server manually.
When I give the option to download directly from the USA, it gives me an error, saying that it is impossible to download the necessary packages and since I am quite new to this topic, I do not know what replica to use to download the Debian Cut files. What replica or replicas can I use to achieve a successful port with this installation? Thanks to everyone beforehand.
S
Still in development? Or is he already arrested?
I go to the main page and see that the last image is from August 2012, one year after the last publication.
Ubuntu 13.04: very stable and with fairly new packages.
And it is not necessary to re-install since when a new version comes out it can be hot updated without problems.
I just updated to 13.10 without any problem, in a couple of hours everything was ready.
SolidK and SolidX is the solution for KDE and XFC.