Nitrux 1.8.0 has just been released. This new version comes with the latest LTS Linux Kernel, v5.15.11. The Debian-based distribution, contrary to most other distros, centers and encourages the use of AppImages instead of the usual software packages, uses OpenRC instead of systemd as its init system, is installed via Calamares, and implements the XFS file system by default.
For its desktop environment, Nitrux features NX Desktop, which is its own customized version of KDE Plasma 5. The desktop environment is very sleek and feels like a hybrid between KDE Plasma and the Deepin desktop environment. It’s displayed in its dark version by default but a light variant is also available.
Something else important of note is that it also includes early, experimental versions of its own new Maui desktop shell for both the Wayland and X11 protocols. Maui uses Cask as its shell container and Zpace as its window composer, and is meant to be an attempt at a convergent environment, striving to be usable for desktops and laptops, as well as tablets and smartphones.
Maui’s default interface is very minimalist, though buggy and slower in terms of performance, as opposed to the NX Desktop and this is to be expected, since it is still in its development phase and is included for testing purposes only.
If you wish to install Nitrux with a different desktop environment, it’s also available as a minimal ISO which only includes SDDM, i3, Calamares, xterm, and X11.
The new release also brings some important fixes to known issues, such as letting the Calamares install the boot loader while in Legacy BIOS mode and using BTRFS, resizing windows from their corners, root no longer being mounted as read-only, and removing the Wayland version of Plasma due to multiple performance issues.
You can download Nitrux and read further details regard this new release at
