AnduinOS

This Hacker News discussion centers around a new Linux distribution called AnduinOS. The opinions expressed reveal several key themes, primarily related to the distro's naming, its purpose and justification, and its underlying technical choices.

Naming Confusion and Misdirection

A significant number of commenters were initially confused by the name "AnduinOS," mistaking it for "Arduino OS." This confusion stemmed from a perceived similarity in pronunciation and the widespread recognition of Arduino as a platform for embedded systems and hobbyists.

"skvmb" expresses this sentiment with a "sad_face."
"meta-level" confirms, "you're not alone it seems.."
"newfocogi" states, "I made it half way down the page before I realized this wasn’t 'ArduinOS'. I can’t be the only one."
"dcminter" shares, "Same. Now, however: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44955159"
"Saris" also reports, "That's what I thought too at first."
"throwup238" attempts a technical explanation: "I think it's more of a parafoveal processing effect in contextual word recognition."
"cnst" notes, "At first I thought it must have been a typo…"

The name is also attributed to the lead developer's name, "Anduin Xue," which some feel is unfortunate due to the LOTR reference and the potential for confusion.

"rlue" points out, "Yes, this naming is really unfortunate. It appears to be inspired by a fictional river from the LOTR-iverse: https://tolkiengateway.net/wiki/Anduin"
"JoshTriplett" clarifies, "It appears to be the lead developer's name: https://github.com/Anduin2017"
"mvieira38" also states, "It's Anduin as in the fictional river from LotR"
"zamadatix" defends the developer, "Not all that different than how Debian was named, beyond including OS at the end."

Another point of contention is calling a derivative distribution an "OS."

"ThinkBeat" expresses a strong opinion: "I really wish people creating a distro, and even more so distro of a distro of a distro should not call it OS. (Debian - Ubuntu . AnduinOS)".
"zem" agrees with the core complaint: "I think the gp is complaining specifically about the 'OS' bit; that makes it sound like a new operating system rather than a derivative linux distribution."
"astrange" sarcastically questions the naming convention by comparison.

Justification for a New Distro

A recurring theme is the question of why AnduinOS exists and what unique value it offers compared to established distributions like Ubuntu or Linux Mint. Many users feel that derivative distributions need to strongly articulate their distinct advantages.

"whalesalad" directly asks, "Why would one want to run this over Ubuntu? So much effort is wasted on producing and maintaining entire distributions when they are just another distro with a preinstalled package list and a skin?"
"cosmic_cheese" argues for the value of defaults and theming, but "whalesalad" counters that this could be achieved with a script.
"Saris" expresses a lack of clarity: "I'm not really sure after reading through the front page why it's different from Ubuntu, it mentions flatpaks so that's one aspect. But there's no breakdown of what other major things are different, or why to pick it over Ubuntu or [other popular distro]."
More constructively, "Saris" praises other distros' explanations: "For comparison the Bazzite website is fantastic for making me interested in it because it explains a lot about what it does to make my life easier!"
"iAMkenough" echoes this sentiment: "What exactly does this distro offer that others don't?"
"cardanome" also seeks unique selling points: "Considering we already have Linux Mint which is Ubuntu based with the shite parts removed and where flatpacks are well supported, I wish it would say more about about the unique selling point of AnduinOS."

The distribution's stated goal of emulating Windows 11 is also discussed, with some seeing potential for Windows users transitioning to Linux, while others question the appeal of Windows 11's design.

"p1necone" sees an opportunity: "There's currently a large amount of non-technical Windows users who are being told Windows 10 is going to be no longer supported, and the only way for them to switch to Windows 11 is to buy a brand new device. Anecdotally these people are less resistant to moving to Linux instead than you'd think, and having a distro which looks exactly like windows would be useful."
However, "p1necone" also suggests Kubuntu as an alternative, "KDE Plasma is already pretty close to Windows, and likely to be supported for a long time unlike this."
"chrsw" tempers the optimism: "I doubt many people will switch to Linux because of the forced switch. Most people will putter along on Windows 10 until they can upgrade. It's still too much of a disruption to swith to Linux, especially for non-technical users."
"cardanome" also believes Linux Mint is a better choice for newcomers due to its familiarity and community support.
"idiotsecant" questions the premise: "Is windows 11 really the GUI that we want to be emulating?"
"cosmic_cheese" offers a nuanced view on Windows 11's design: "11’s design language (Fluent) in itself isn’t bad. Personally I find it preferable over the antialiased Windows 1.x look that reigned from 8 through 10."

The distro's claim of "No telemetry at all!" is also a point of discussion, particularly when demo screenshots show applications like YouTube and Steam, which are known to collect some data.

"Retr0id" flags this: "With a 'No telemetry at all!' headline it's weird to see two telemetry-gathering applications (Youtube, Steam) in the demo screenshots."
"0x457" attempts to clarify the OS's potential stance: "I understood it as 'No OS level telemetry or telemetry in first-party apps'."

Technical Choices and Packaging

The discussion touches upon the technical underpinnings of AnduinOS, particularly its reliance on Flatpak and its static linking approach.

"thesnide" expresses a general critique of containerization technologies for solving problems the "wrong way," favoring dynamic linking for long-term maintainability, but acknowledging the immediate appeal of "freezing the whole stack in amber."
"blacklion" voices a concern about static linking: "Security hole in popular library (crate) and you need to update everything (and, probably, wait till authors of software update their dependencies) instead of update one system library."

The use of Flatpak is a significant topic, with differing opinions on its benefits and drawbacks.

"tombert" sees Flatpak as a key to attracting new Linux users by providing a more familiar, Windows-like installation experience. He contrasts this with the traditional Linux command-line approach: "With Linux, every distro is slightly different and it's almost never quite as straightforward to people."
"neilv" counters that embracing Flatpak is catering to users who "wish they were running Microsoft," and suggests it undermines open-source principles.
"TheFreim" defends Flatpak, asserting it is free and open-source software and beneficial for developers.
"j45" advocates for choice in packaging: "People don’t seem to understand the world doesn’t have to accept a solely form of packaging - theirs."
"sgc" expresses a strong dislike for Flatpak, Snaps, and Docker, viewing them as overly opinionated and difficult to customize, preferring AppImages or direct installation when possible. "sgc" is concerned about software being "locked in a box."
"wvenable" laments the standardization of installation methods, noting that both Windows and Linux are converging on more complex installation processes, with a lack of a single, consistent standard.

The small ISO size ("only 2 GB image") is notable for some, especially in comparison to older Ubuntu releases.

"gertlex" observes, "Only 2 GB iso! Smaller than Ubuntu! ... I remember when Ubuntu 14.04 was 1 GB ISOs... oh that was a decade ago :("
"totallykvothe" expresses surprise at the size: "'The ISO is only 2GB' 0_o."

The presence of WPS Office in screenshots also raises concerns for one user due to reported trust issues with the software.

"_imnothere" flags WPS Office as a "huge red flag" due to past allegations.