Linux distribution
Mabox Linux 24.07
A spin of Manjaro, which is a spin of Arch, is leaving the normally centred Nate Drake in a right tizzy.
IN BRIEF
If you’re used to a traditional desktop environment, Mabox will present a learning curve. This is balanced out by a comprehensive manual, a handy shortcut list and a slick interface.
SPECS
LXF suggests:
CPU: 2GHz (dual-core)
Mem: 4GB
HDD: 30GB
Builds: x86_64
Mabox Linux is a Manjaro-based rolling release distro. The developer’s About page states that it’s based on the latest stable release and uses a rock-solid LTS kernel.
Downloads of the most recent (24.07) and past versions are available via Sourceforge. After downloading the 2.3GB ISO and booting it into a virtual machine, we were pleased to see that not only does Mabox support live mode but you can also choose to run it with proprietary or open source drivers. These steps are covered in Mabox’s user manual, complete with helpful illustrations (https://maboxlinux.org/users-guide/). We were less impressed to see that neither the manual nor the extensive forums list the exact system requirements to run Mabox (the specs on the left are for Manjaro).