The ever-growing popularity of diminutive, cheap laptops like the EeePC and its brethren have convinced Canonical, makers of Ubuntu Linux, to release a new “netbook remix” of Ubuntu optimized for such machines.

The Ubuntu netbook remix is being developed around two common elements of ultraportable laptops — limited screen size and Intel’s Atom processor.

Rather disappointingly the remix will not be available as a free download. Instead the plan is offer the system directly to manufacturers. The main reason there won’t be downloads available is that Canonical has licensed proprietary media codecs and other software like Adobe Flash.

The strange thing is you can still download the test code from the netbook remix site. It’s possible the company may release a public version of netbook remix without the proprietary code, but so far it hasn’t made any announcements.

As for what’s different in the netbook remix, most of the changes are in the underlying system code, which is optimized for Atom chips. Judging by the limited screenshots available, netbook Ubuntu also features a slick-looking new launcher for accessing apps and files. The concept is similar — though considerably better looking — to the launcher that ships with the Xandros version of the EeePC.

Aside from being one of the hottest retail PC markets — EeePC maker Asus claims to have shipped a million units in the six months after its debut — so-called “netbooks” are notable because, to keep retail prices down, most manufacturers have opted to ship Linux rather than Windows.

The EeePC comes with a modified version of Xandros Linux and the Fedora community is hard at work on Eeedora, which, as the name suggests, is optimized for the EeePC.

Canonical’s press release says that netbooks featuring Ubuntu Linux Remix will be on retail shelves within six months, though so far no manufacturers have announced anything specific.

[via Tombuntu, photo credit]

See Also:

• Ubuntu Netbook Remix Coming Soon to an EeePC Near You
• Ubuntu 8.04 Brings Power and Polish to the Linux Desktop
• Ubuntu Has Wings: Popular Linux Distro Announces Mobile Version
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Ubuntu founder Mark Shuttleworth has spilled the beans on a new version of the popular Linux distro geared specifically toward ultraportable laptops like the EeePC. Bringing together Ubuntu’s ease-of-use with ultraportables’ low prices could prove a huge win for Linux.

The new Ubuntu flavor will be known as Netbook Remix and is apparently being developed with direct input from Intel, which makes the low-power chips found in many tiny laptops such as the EeePC.

Talking to the Guardian about Ubuntu, and Linux in general, Shuttleworth reveals that “we’re announcing it in the first week of June… we’re working with Intel, which produces chips custom-made for this sector.”

There’s already a website up, but it doesn’t have many additional details about what users can expect. Although the ordinary Ubuntu release will install on an EeePC, the process is not without some pitfalls (mainly related to the wifi card in the EeePC). Presumably this is exactly the sort of problem that the coming Ubuntu Netbook Remix will seek to solve.

Within the Linux community it’s no secret that Linux on ultraportables is a potential gold mine for finding new converts, and Ubuntu is certainly not the first distro to target a release especially for such devices. The Fedora community has a similar project, Eeedora, geared specifically toward the EeePC and OpenSUSE is working on a version tailored to similar machines.

Linux has proved a popular option with ultraportable manufacturers since eliminating the Windows licensing fees helps keep retail prices down. When you’re shipping a $2000 laptop cutting off $100 isn’t a big deal, but when you move down to $350 versus $450 the cost of Windows becomes much more significant.

Of course the default Linux distros that ship with most ultraportables will work just fine for many users. However, given that Ubuntu is a such popular choice for those just poking a toe in the Linux waters, a version tailored to devices like the EeePC will make Linux newcomers even more comfortable.

[via Slashdot]

See Also:

• Ubuntu 8.04 Brings Power and Polish to the Linux Desktop
• Ubuntu Linux Sets Its Sights on the Future with Intrepid Ibex
• Ubuntu Brainstorm Site Takes the Community Pulse
• Ubuntu Has Wings: Popular Linux Distro Announces Mobile Version