Kumander Linux

I just tried GNU/Linux Kumander RC 2 on a virtual machine. I'm really enjoying the direction of the project, and I'm considering installing it on my main computer in the near future. Here are my suggestions:

1. In the file and/or folder context menu, add an option to compress files (e.g., 7z, zip, among others). Personally, I find this option quite useful in Windows.

2. It would be interesting to have a way to open the resource monitor from the taskbar, similar to Windows. This allows for quick and easy termination of unresponsive processes, which often happens when playing video games. I'm not sure if implementing this functionality is complex, as I haven't seen it in other distributions I've used. Alternatively, it could be added to the screen that appears when pressing CTRL + ALT + DEL. I know one possible solution would be to add an item to the taskbar that launches the resource monitor, but the idea is to enhance the taskbar without overcrowding it with items.

3. It would be great if the "Development" section included more default tools. My suggestion is to include "Insomnia," a tool that allows for asynchronous requests using the HTTP protocol, and "MySQL Workbench," which enables designing and manipulating databases (the latter is not available in Flatpak). In my opinion, this would allow users to start developing software right after installing the operating system.

Hello MelchioT and welcome to the forum.

It's great to hear that you are enjoying Kumander Linux, thank you for saying.

I think your suggestions are excellent and will benefit the people coming from Windows. I will do my best to implement these features ASAP.

I will update this thread when it is ready.

Regards,

Roy

Esta bien, estoy de vuelta. Tenga en cuenta que ahora puede traducir rápidamente esta página al español usando el complemento de Google en la esquina superior derecha.

I have spent a lot of time thinking everything through. Firstly, I was worrying that the ISO is getting too bloated. For that, I have come up with a new system:

You will now find greyscale application icons with a green plus sign in the Start menu, with a title containing the phrase "(Install)". Clicking on these will open the Software Center with said application ready to install. And when installed, the grey Start menu entry will automatically disappear.

There are two advantages by doing this: 1. We will save around 1 GB of the ISO file size (now 3.3 GB), and 2. All these applications will come straight from the Software Center (in most cases as Flatpak), meaning it is always as new as possible and will get automatic updates in the future.

Please note, that if you do not like the suggested app, you can simply right click it and click on "Hide Application" to make it go away.

Ok, let's move on to your suggestions:

1. In the file and/or folder context menu, add an option to compress files (e.g., 7z, zip, among others). Personally, I find this option quite useful in Windows.

Yes, I have added the 1 click compress option to the context menu. It's called "Compress (ZIP)". It only creates .ZIP files. If you need other formats, please click on the option below it ("Create Archive..."), where you will have access to 18 different compression formats.

2. It would be interesting to have a way to open the resource monitor from the taskbar, similar to Windows. This allows for quick and easy termination of unresponsive processes, which often happens when playing video games. I'm not sure if implementing this functionality is complex, as I haven't seen it in other distributions I've used. Alternatively, it could be added to the screen that appears when pressing CTRL + ALT + DEL. I know one possible solution would be to add an item to the taskbar that launches the resource monitor, but the idea is to enhance the taskbar without overcrowding it with items.

This has now been implemented in the following way: when you press CTRL + ALT + DEL, the logout dialog has gotten a new button called "Open System Monitor". Clicking it will cancel the logout process and bring up System Monitor, much like how Windows 7 did it.

I am planning to also integrate this feature into the taskbar in the future.

3. It would be great if the "Development" section included more default tools. My suggestion is to include "Insomnia," a tool that allows for asynchronous requests using the HTTP protocol, and "MySQL Workbench," which enables designing and manipulating databases (the latter is not available in Flatpak). In my opinion, this would allow users to start developing software right after installing the operating system.

I have included "Insomnia" in the "Development" section. However, it needs to be installed before using it.

As for "MySQL Workbench", I was in the exact same situation as you a few years ago. I also wanted to bring it over to Linux, but I was having issues doing it. I tried my best again now, but unfortunately, it is just not really compatible with Debian/Kumander (it is unstable). My recommendation is to not use it. Sorry about that.

However, in my research, I believe I have found a worthy replacement for you. It is called "DBeaver CE" and it is a popular, fully featured database frontend for many different types of databases, including MySQL. Please give it a try - I hope it will be sufficient for your needs.

By the way, as for myself, these days I usually install PhpMyAdmin on the database webserver. It is pretty powerful and easy to use and works out just fine for me.

Download the new ISO here: kumander-linux-1.0-rc3-live-amd64.iso (3.3 GB)

Ok, I think this wraps it up for now. Feel free to let me know how this works for you, and if you have any more suggestions, questions or comments.

Regards,

Roy

Excellent, thank you for considering the suggestions. In my case, the compression options appeared in different places than mentioned, and they work correctly. It would also be ideal to verify if the file compression already exists.

Excellent, thank you for considering the suggestions.

Certainly. As a Patron, your suggestions and ideas are my top priority and they are most welcomed. So thank you as well.

In my case, the compression options appeared in different places than mentioned, and they work correctly.

Hmmm, that is odd. I have been testing for some time, but I am not able to reproduce it here. Will continue to look into it.

It would also be ideal to verify if the file compression already exists.

Yes, you are right. I will implement this check for the next release.

To be honest, I am not 100% sure about the installable entries (the green plusses) in the Start menu. There are 11 of them. Maybe that is too many, and more apps like VSCodium, DBeaver CE and Blender should be preinstalled. I am just worried about bloating. But I think if the ISO size is under 4GB, it is acceptable.

If you have an opinion about this, do let me know. Otherwise I will soon make release candidate 3 official, and when ready I will release the final 1.0 version.

Regards,

Roy

On the weight of the ISO:

This is just my opinion, and I believe that to provide the most accurate answer, it would be best to ask the community in a survey what they think about the weight of the ISO.

My opinion:

I understand that the Ubuntu ISO is the most downloaded and currently weighs 4.4GB, which leads me to believe that people are willing to download an ISO of that size range (4GB-5GB). So, one option would be to keep the weight of Kumander within that range.

In my case, I have no problem with a heavy ISO since the download process, preparation of the bootable USB, and installation are tasks that are done infrequently on personal computers. I prefer the installation to be as comprehensive as possible to avoid wasting time downloading and, in some cases, preparing the system for the installation of certain required programs.

Kumander currently meets all the basic requirements for office work, web browsing, and content playback. So, in my opinion, it meets the expectations of the majority of people. In terms of software development, I believe that distributions should, at a minimum, include an IDE, a code editor, and at least one software like "DBeaver" and "Insomnia."

Finally, we must consider that the global network infrastructure is constantly improving, and the weight of a file is becoming less important. For example, in my case, the download of Kumander RC 3 only took 5 minutes, which means that in 40-50 minutes, Kumander could be installed on a computer, and that computer would be capable of performing almost any type of task by default.

I am not aware of the download speeds that the rest of the community has, which is why I initially mentioned that it would be good to survey others' opinions on the weight of the ISO. In my area, until a couple of years ago, only ADSL with a download speed of 8 Mbps was available, but now they offer fiber optic with 10 Gbps (the image of the download speed I uploaded earlier was from a 5G mobile internet connection).

Thank you very much for your input. It really helps a lot with decision making, instead of me just going back and forth in my own head guessing.

I agree with you that the ISO file can be between 4GB and 5GB. It is indeed nice to have the applications ready to use right after installing the OS.

As for internet, it is the same here in the Philippines. We live in a rather small city, but we still have access to 200 Mbps fiber connection (with possibility for up to 1Gbps).

Alright, very good. I will consider doing a survey about this. Thanks again!

Regards,

Roy

By the way, just to make everything clear: In the final release, I decided to remove the "Compress (ZIP)" option from the context menu, because it is already available in the right click menu under "Create Archive...".

It even sets ".zip" as the default compression method.

I hope this is ok with you.

Regards,

Roy