found this artifact sitting in my shed.
Posted by rokirokino@reddit | linux | View on Reddit | 109 comments
it's just been in the shed in its original plastic wrap for decades. this is probably older than i am, i hadn't even heard of lindows before!
what do i even do with this? install it on a laptop, or keep it in its wrapping? i'm obviously keeping it for the novelty regardless.
AMidnightHaunting@reddit
This was my first linux distro. I switched to Redhat shortly afterwards when it was free and didn't require licensing.
Excellent-Lie-4249@reddit
Isn't this a windows parody Linux?
6gv5@reddit
It was a Linux distro from the early 2000s, that offered Windows compatibility out of the box through WINE preinstalled. We're talking about over 25 years ago when installing and properly configuring WINE on a OS the target user didn't know could have been problematic. Long story short, Microsoft complained and sued, eventually buying the Lindows name, and Lindows was renamed Linspire.
That CD is a piece of old Linux history worth of preservation.
undrwater@reddit
Agreed!
It was a horrible experience, BTW.
MilesAhXD@reddit
I use Lindows BTW
Twin_spark@reddit
I use Lindows BSOD / Kernel panic
ConcentrateNaive4556@reddit
im planning on remaking lindows from scratch.
you'll need a windows pc to install it.
anw im planning this:
windows will partially boot (just enough for files to be loaded, and ill prob replace a program so i can get to Linux.)
then as soon as windows loads, ill load into linux somehow. (using a vm or chrooting would be last resort, since that would be petty.)
tl;dr: github will prob go down bc of my project
pcs3rd@reddit
Welcome to wubi
maokaby@reddit
WSL? Perhaps it's even possible to avoid loading windows UI (it was possible many years ago, I didn't check since). So there should be fully functional windows core for running windows apps, and Linux UI like KDE, with full Linux support over WSL.
ConcentrateNaive4556@reddit
thought abt it. ye ill do that :P
massive_cock@reddit
Absolutely possible. My teenage daughter has an obsession with optimizing Windows to the point of breaking it into unusability. She disables everything... Including most of the GUI, last I heard it was just coming up as a blank screen with a mouse cursor like it was X11 25 years ago. She then set some login scripts to launch the programs she needed and noticed a two or three FPS uptick in CS (on a 4070 that didn't need help) and was satisfied.
jebusdied444@reddit
Ahmazing - she's created the new Xbox Windows handheld OS (the gaming one) basically on her own, including the expected performance improvements.
On a more serious note, that's so freaking cool, OP. It sounds like you encourage her tinkering, too.
arthurno1@reddit
I used to do the similar, but not for playing the games, just for the fun of it 😀.
arthurno1@reddit
I used for a while to run clone of Afterstep window manager, and some other machinations, back in Windows XP. But it was only the surface. Below, there was always Explorer.
High-Performer-3107@reddit
I bet it’s still possible. I mean headless windows servers are still a thing
Liarus_@reddit
Requirements: "enough ram to run two OSes"
Also how would you handle the GPU acess ?
sounds pretty neat in theory but an absolute megamess in reality
ConcentrateNaive4556@reddit
also, ima prob use Tiny11 or Tiny10
ConcentrateNaive4556@reddit
prob not gonna happen but just an ambitious project. im working on a linux-based VR rn :P
just a side project prob
undrwater@reddit
Glad you caught that! 😁
Slight_Manufacturer6@reddit
It really wasn’t that bad of an experience. It just never ran windows as expected, but they had one of the first nice software centers they called click-to-run making it a fairly nice experience for the time.
But you had to pay to be part of the club.
Jackal000@reddit
Nice! Will try and commit to this one as a daily driver.
wq1119@reddit
I misread "Bringing choice to your computer!" as ""Bringing chaos to your computer!" LOL
justarandomguy902@reddit
Holy moly I've checked and they're still developing it
urdescipable@reddit
Won't it be interesting if after the user-befuddling, documentation invalidating, yet another layer of option burying and advertising saturation, that user demand REQUIRED Microsoft to provide a common user experience taken from Ubuntu, Gnome to just to keep selling Windows.
We already have WSL2 buried jn Windows, so a text mode Linux experience is already on Windows. Now for a graphic experience. https://duckduckgo.com/?q=wsl2%20linux&iar=news&ko=-1
Instead of dealing with where on the ribbon is it, or was it a right click, or a long press, to get to the option I want, users could stick with and actually get through a task without periodical having their training and experienced trashed for this years model "Now with tail fins!".
Maybe we're past the point where we have to pull iut the choke, get out and crank the engine, get it and hand signal when we want to do things with OUR computers. The Locomobile was a great car, but the world moved on.
__konrad@reddit
And you could buy the old giant name letters on eBay:
Mumuskeh@reddit
Just realised Wine is this old.
6gv5@reddit
Yes, also used in pro audio contexts, although in disguise. The Muse Research receptor, the 1st VST hardware host used by a lot of popular artists, was actually a PC running Linux and WINE. It cost a arm and a leg back then; you wouldn't find any in smaller recording studios.
Here's a review from 2005.
https://www.soundonsound.com/reviews/muse-research-receptor
agent-squirrel@reddit
That's wild. Why would they not just ship it with Windows?
6gv5@reddit
Probably to save the cost of the license; Windows license wasn't cheap back then. Also possibly performance, lower resource consumption (lighter WM and no desktop manager) and stability; if memory serves they had to choose either Win2000 or XP SP1, not excluding the convenience of interfacing with the external electronics (panel controls, lcd etc).
grem75@reddit
WINE was already 8 years old when Lindows first released a beta.
Here is WINE from September 1993.
Jan_Asra@reddit
Well it'd be pretty damn impressive if the compatibility OS was released before the compatibility software.
Pschobbert@reddit
Aged to perfection.
Annual-Advisor-7916@reddit
It aged like... uh.. wine?
mooky1977@reddit
There is a proton of truth to that sentiment.
XaerkWtf@reddit
If configuring wine is really hard even now, back then it'd have been a whole odyssey
agent-squirrel@reddit
I have a copy of Mandrake Linux OS system 6.5 with three CDs in fairly good condition.
grem75@reddit
Which, for some reason, contains Mandrake 6.1. There was no Mandrake 6.5, but the Macmillan boxed sets all said that. I had one too.
agent-squirrel@reddit
Very strange indeed. I also can’t get it to install into a VM even with the most ancient hardware detected. It falls over while looking for its root device.
grem75@reddit
QEMU works well for that era. There are some quirks about the emulated Cirrus graphics that mean you need to turn off acceleration, but it does work fine once you get your XF86Config sorted.
If you have a decent host computer then 86Box is a great choice.
I used to have an album on Imgur with a whole series of screenshots from my Mandrake VM, but it seems to be gone. Maybe that one wasn't uploaded under my account and was lost in the purge they did. This is my Mandrake VM, notice when I chose the hostname I hadn't remembered it was actually 6.1.
haro0828@reddit
Yep and you could even buy Lindows PCs at Walmart
mk6moose@reddit
I have an old Linspire disk buried somewhere...
nicetuxxx@reddit
Yes. Absolutely. We should save an image from these CD.
Dangerous_Design_339@reddit
can you give us an iso?
scopedHeisenberg@reddit
Ahh yes good old Lindows OS. Microsoft itself attempted to sue Lindows and lost. Micheal MJD did a video on this too! I would keep it in the copy maybe to display it or you could try to install it on a computer
johncate73@reddit
Sued them, lost, and then paid them $25 million to acquire the name. Lindows then changed its name to Linspire and carried on.
Specialist-Delay-199@reddit
To be honest smart move I can make my own Windows like distro force Microsoft to do something about it then make a bunch of money off of their asses
Slight_Manufacturer6@reddit
Great idea… get ready for Winux… or Windex? Windex… the Linux distro that cleans Windows
Jarngreipr9@reddit
Why I remember a commercial of this on "limbo rock" music?
starlasexton@reddit
They had a reggae song with lyrics like "use linspire, set microsoft on fire". Really corny and this was after they renamed from lindows to linspire.
lsk-123@reddit
I still have in my head this one: https://youtu.be/IIYtKHnU4mQ?si=RvRAOfi4TmlILGPc
21 years later...
Specialist-Delay-199@reddit
make this the sub's infobox lmao
AnnieBruce@reddit
I remember this one. Never used it but it seemed like a neat idea.
I was not surprised at all when the lawsuit from Microsoft came down.
rabbitjockey@reddit
I forgot about that distro, great name.
krsdev@reddit
That was the first distro I used! Since it advertised itself as being easy to hop over from Windows to, it seemed like the logical choice. I think I lasted a week then I was back on Win XP again lol. Eventually gave Fedora Core 3 a try, then later Ubuntu 5.04 which is when it really clicked for me. Fun memories.
AssertRage@reddit
This was my first distro
toloal@reddit
X2, came with a Lanix PC around 2002.
earthman34@reddit
It actually worked, though there was very heavy mockery at the time from the Linux community, since the apps in the Lindows app store had to be purchased separately and they were all things that were essentially free in any Linux distro. The bigger disappointment for most people was that the vaunted Windows app compatibility was mostly wishful thinking. Walmart was selling PCs with Linspire preinstalled and I heard the return rate was pretty high. This was around the time Microsoft went full attack mode on Linux in general, so no way were they going to sit still for this. Also, the guy originally promoting this product turned out to be kind of a right wing weirdo. He's been involved in a million lawsuits.
I was surprised to find out that there's actually a version of this still around, and that it's actually still a thing. I guess there's enough people willing to pay for it.
spin81@reddit
I bet there's a niche but significant chunk of FOSS zealots out there who are of the libertarian persuasion.
Ok-Salary3550@reddit
Eric S Raymond is quite famously a kook of that ilk.
spin81@reddit
Perusing his wikipedia page right now, and hoo boy some of those non-software views are quite something. Apparently some folks have raised good money by getting paid to stop posting ESR quotes.
coladoir@reddit
how much? cause you definitely won the bet lol. it’s not even really niche, they’re quite open.
i’ve had to deal with many of those right wing libertarians in my time with FOS software. They’re always annoying and obnoxious.
linuxed1@reddit
Easy back! 2002-2003?
PrudentLandscape7229@reddit
"Beautiful" translated into Portuguese means handsome man... It is the most handsome operating system there is or for handsome guys
Glittering_Cook_8146@reddit
Definitely keep it in the wrapping.
WriterProper4495@reddit
Today it’s known as Linspire. I just learned this myself.
https://www.linspirelinux.com/
PlanAutomatic2380@reddit
This site looks like an absolute scam 😂
Specialist-Delay-199@reddit
Interestingly, it's getting scammed instead
Ezmiller_2@reddit
Definitely a shadow of it's former self. I haven't tried it though.
atoponce@reddit
TIL Linspire got resurrected. I remember when it was discontinued after Xandros acquired it. Interesting.
stipo42@reddit
The first computer I ever bought with my own money had lindows on it! Got it from Walmart around 2004?
It was 2000 dollars, had I think 256mb of RAM? Maybe 512?
I think an AMD processor?
No dedicated video card but I added a Sapphire card and increased the ram to 1gb.
strings_on_a_hoodie@reddit
I wish we could go back 20 years 🤣
AlxR25@reddit
they missed a huge opportunity naming it LindOS
phrendo@reddit
Is it legal hehe
mkkohls@reddit
That is dope sir. I remember when it was released. I was too scared/nooby at computers then to do Linux lol.
Bondy6@reddit
So I actually met the guy who made this! He was also the person who founded mp3.com and is now some ceo somewhere or other (don’t think it’s Linux related anymore).
He was really nice and had a passion for this stuff, I didn’t get to talk to him long but I think this may of been 10/15 years ago.
That’s brought back some memory’s as I tried this out after speaking to him and thought it was pretty awful. you used to get ridiculed if you mentioned this on a Linux forum post!!
my-comp-tips@reddit
https://youtu.be/QSdRTOh2jeA?feature=shared
Smart-Definition-651@reddit
I don't know if it was Lindows or Linspire which overwrote my entire windows disk.
Thinking that - like other linux distros - it was a live cd. Instead it started directly installing to disk. Major disaster !!
Martok721@reddit
I played around with Linxows back in the day.
Hour_Bit_5183@reddit
I remember having this exact CD. I got it from my friends dad who wouldn't give me a windows copy because "licensing". He is the one who got me into linux. RIP. Will always be remembered and missed.
crucible@reddit
For anyone who wants to play along at home:
https://archiveos.org/get/download-lindows.html
High-Performer-3107@reddit
That’s what I’ve been looking for. Thanks
MrAjAnderson@reddit
AnduinOS is a suitable replacement for this. https://www.anduinos.com
coladoir@reddit
Zorin OS as well.
bootlegSkynet@reddit
They should have went with another name. Linux would have went mainstream. The name made it sound like a knock off.
RoomyRoots@reddit
Very frequently I am reminded of PCLInuxOS which also worked as kinda as a Linux for people that wanted a Windows. It was one of my favorite distros before setting with Arch some 12 years ago.
Those old distros had a cute charm or my nostalgia is very romantic.
coladoir@reddit
There’s also Zorin OS, too. It’s definitely the youngest of the bunch though
johncate73@reddit
PCLinuxOS is alive and well, and turns 22 next month.
Ezmiller_2@reddit
PclinuxOS is still going. It reminds me of Mandriva, which is what PC is based on.
EveAtmosphere@reddit
I read it as ŁindowsOS and thought it was some Polish release of Windows for a second
no2gates@reddit
OMG, I forgot about that one! If I remember correctly, it was started by the person who started Napster (I could be wrong, but that's what I remember).
GodMadeTheStars@reddit
Actually it was mp3.com.
Izzejkk@reddit
From what I've read here, this DVD (or CD, old distros aren't usually heavy) is a beautiful piece of Linux history, keep it safe.
Nostonica@reddit
Awful distro, gave you a root account out of the box.
Also WINE was no where near where it needed to be for the target audience, back then we mostly hoped that something might install.
plausocks@reddit
i remember running its free version freespire way back in like 2006/7
nicetuxxx@reddit
Could you make an image file of these CD and share them on archive.org?
SteveHamlin1@reddit
https://archiveos.org/get/download-lindows.html
rokirokino@reddit (OP)
my pc doesn't seem to have a disc drive built in so i'll have to find an external one, but i'd be happy to share it once i do!
grem75@reddit
Which version is it? It might be already up there.
agent-squirrel@reddit
I have a copy of Mandrake Linux OS system 6.5 that I should post.
Schlumpfffff@reddit
If anyone's interested MJD on youtube reviews it, as well as Linspire
helthrax@reddit
I still have an Ubuntu install cd sitting around somewhere from about 2007 - 2009. I wish I knew where it was.
ApplicationMaximum84@reddit
Lindows became Linspire which continued on until a couple of years ago, I don't believe it's being worked on now.
ChocolateSpecific263@reddit
who buyed it op?
rokirokino@reddit (OP)
probably my grandfather, though he didn't remember having it (which can be attributed to it being in the shed unopened for 20 years)
csslgnt@reddit
Be VERY careful... given the history you just told, that thing might actualy be hunted by Microsoft... they are the kind of curse that demands proper exorcism 😳🥺
rokirokino@reddit (OP)
maybe if i stay very still and never acknowledge the windows 11 install on my PC microsoft won't find me...
slippinjimmy720@reddit
This reminds me of Michaelsoft Binbows
spectrumero@reddit
It was a cheap knock-off of Windows using Linux.
dannyvegas@reddit
Oh Wow. I remember this from back in the day!
I don’t remember anyone who actually tried to use it though.