Author: Andrew Conway

TuxJam’s quartet of Al, Kevie, Dave (aka thelovebug) and Andrew (aka mcnalu) return to bring you picks from the world of free and open source software peppered with creative commons tunes. And, no, we have not become slaves to AI – Artifical Intelligence – but are grateful to Al, our newest co-host, for suggesting both reviews in this show. As usual, we begin with our usual round-up from recent releases mentioned on distrowatch.com.

We then take a look at the resurrection of the venerable Damn Small Linux which first appeared back in 2005. Originally this packed a lean but functional linux distro into a mere 50MB which could be put on credit card sized CDs or USB thumb drives back then. These days such a small distro wouldn’t be as useful so the limit has been increased to 700MB. We take a look at DSL 2024RC1.

Have you ever dreamt of simulating electrical circuits using free and open source software that you don’t need to compile or even install? If you have you might want to seek professional help, but dream no more, such a thing exists in the form of circuitjs: a menu-driven, point, click and drag app that runs in your browser.

We finish up with feedback we have received. Please do leave feedback either by commenting here or using the various methods list here.

Creative commons licensed tunes played in this episode are:

• Forget The Whale – Without You
• Mahidevran – Drifter
• Weathered Pages – Don’t Give Up
• Koresma – Drift Away

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We don’t start with our usual round up from distrowatch, nor do we review anything nor conclude with feedback. We do however have tunes and a yarn with Kevie and Andrew (aka mcnalu). This is just a short show we recorded to inform listeners of the upcoming Podcrawl Jitsi at 18:00BST (17:00 UTC) on Saturday 19 August. Hope to see you there!

The creative common tune played during this show is:

Drink up me mateys by Black Bones

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TuxJam 101? Are we going back to basics? Yes! The basics being the usual creative commons tunes, free and open source software and good beer. In this show, Kevie, Dave (aka thelovebug) and Andrew (aka mcnalu) start with their usual roundup from distrowatch.com.

We take a look at Vanilla OS and, although we liked what we saw, we didn’t get to see as much as we’d like due to various technical issues which we will feed back to the developers.

Next up, we look at the beverage taste tracking app Flavordex and – purely as a service to you, dear listener – force ourselves to consume beer and whisky (with no e!) so we can enter something into the app.

We end with a roundup of feedback and note that Andrew will be attending (or have attended) FOSDEM on 4-5 Feb 2023 and co-manning the Free Culture Podcasts stand there. The next podcrawl is set for 25 March, just after the vernal equinox, in which we will raise a glass to the arrival of spring.

Creative commons licensed tunes played in this episode:

• Rude – Cold Inside
• Forget the Whale – The Little Robot
• Fallen To Flux – From The Outside Looking In
• Steep – Let Me Go

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In our first show of the new year Dave (aka thelovebug), Kevie and Andrew (aka mcnalu) start with their usual distrowatch roundup, which includes a special recommendation from friend of the show Peter “MintSpider”.

Next we take a look at Quickemu, developed by Martin “Wimpy” Wimpress, and its handy graphical front-end Quickgui, co-developed by another friend of the show, Yannick Mauray along with Mark Johnson. With our serious look at emulation out of the way we play around with Super Retro Mega Wars, an app available via F-Droid and Google Play for Android that helps us relive our misspent arcade game playing youth. Warning: Games were played during the recording.

We finish up with our roundup of feedback, a review of our best-attended podcrawl to date and announcement of the next podcrawl on Saturday 26 February – details will appear here. Please do let us have any feedback and feel to bring it along with a beer or two to the podcrawl. Kevie briefly discusses a Christmas present he received: a retro style bluetooth speaker and FM radio.

Creative Commons tunes played in this episode include:

• Aspirin – Try
• Always the Alibi – Killing Me Inside
• Micaroni and Vulcano – Polarized
• WhiteCat – Start Over Together

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Following our usual summer hiatus we are back at our microphones to bring you some ear chutney lovingly made from recent falls of free and open source software, spiced with creative commons musical goodness.

After we have scanned distrowatch for recently releases we turn our attention to non-linux non-distro called Serenity OS. It is built from the ground up as a love letter to the UNIXy operating systems of the late 90s and early naughties. An era which your hosts remember with varying degrees of fondness. Next up is a review of a simple android app called Planisphere. If you are looking for a no-frills FOSS app to help you find your way around the night sky then this may be for you. We end, as always, with a round-up of comments from you, dear listeners.

Creative Commons tunes played in this episode are:

1. Bumy Goldson – Bluebird
2. Bessonn&Sa – Your Love Explodes
3. Red Crickets – Flowers (From Her Gun)
4. Eventual Groove – Melda One
   

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Kevie, Dave (aka thelovebug) and Andrew (aka mcnalu) are joined by Marshall (aka timttmy), who, while not crushing rocks, has set up and run a Snikket server for instant messaging.

We discuss how we use Snikket via its app in preparing each episode of TuxJam (yes, unbelievable perhaps, but we do try!) and Marshall’s experience of installing and maintaining the server.

We also take a look at recent releases listed on distrowatch and have a look at the Solus linux distro with the Budgie desktop. As usual, we bring things to a close with a round up of feedback.

Creative Commons tunes played in this episode are:

• Glass Violet – Hourglass
• Back On Earth – I Don’t Wanna Let You Know
• David Krystal – Say You Love Me
• Smoking With Poets – Pain(t) On Me
  

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In this episode of TuxJam, the usual crew of Andrew, Dave and Kevie take a look at some of the Distrowatch offers of the month, along with some more in-depth reviews of the KaOS distro and Android screen recorder ScreenCam. We also take a look back to the socially distant and COVID-19 restrictions compliant Podcrawl Jitsi which took place in mid-March.

CCmusic tracks included in this episode are:

• Robert Avellanet – The One and Only
• Freeky Cleen & Dickey F – Walking On Clouds
• FUZZIT – Vaccine 3
• Marc Corominas Pujadó – Life is Beautiful

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Andrew, Dave and Kevie take a break from the hot summer sun and return with episode 67. The guys set aside their differences on pronunciation and review BunsenLabs, a Linux distro that has risen from the ashes of the discontinued CrunchBang distro.

As the days turn brighter and the nights get longer, in order to make those outside chores a bit more pleasant the focus turns to filling up your chosen listening devices with your favourite podcast. They then turn their attention to podcatchers with a look at Antennapod on Android and Gpodder for those who still like to use a PC.

With the heat of summer and the nagging to get out of the house, we also discuss Podcrawl Glasgow, which is due to kick off at 6pm on Saturday 28th July in the State Bar, Holland St, Glasgow. We hope that as many as possible will make the journey to Glasgow to join up with the TuxJam crew.

Projects included in this episode are:

• BunsenLabs (distro)
• Antennapod (Android)
• Gpodder (desktop)

Also, let us not forget the usual mix of CC tracks :

• Summer Pop Upbeat by Trending Music
• Let Me Sing For You by Mikhail Rezanov
• We’ll Be Fine by Julie and Gent
• Summertime by Tullio
• Aube by Remy Bourgeuis

Your feedback is always welcome, email us direct should you have any advice, tips, questions or simply want to say hi.

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Kevie and mcnalu have entered into the Christmas mood and recorded this show with sporrans wrapped in tinsel and kilts decked with holly (externally only). First up it’s the usual round up of lesser known GNU/linuxes on distrowatch. Next they recount their experiences with Peppermint Linux 7 and Kevie concentrates his attention on site specific browers (SSBs) with ICE .

Andrew then reviews the oldie but goldie FOSS game Pingus which offers a Christmas level-set. There’s also an extra gift for geek suggestion that we didn’t include in TuxJam 53 because it’s only just been released: the intriguing book Learning Linux in a Month of Lunch Break by Steven Ovadia of the My Linux Rig blog.

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Why not give a geeky Christmas gift to a family member or close friend?  Even if they’re not a geek (yet), you might surprise them with something they didn’t even know you they wanted.

In this special edition of TuxJam we review a number of items that might just make the perfect gift for a geek.

Stocking fillers – under £10

• USB water pump – automate watering plants and more.
• USB cup warmer
• Geek mug
• Pet rock – low maintenance pet
• Book: Linux pocket guide by Daniel J Barrett

Low price – £10 to £25

• Remote control candles
• Scientific spice rack
• Pixel hand overn glove
• ZX Spectrum wallet
• Stormtrooper decanter
• USB fridge – room for one can
• Millenium Falcon – metal kit
• BBC Microbit – just the microbit itself (recommend starter kit below)

Mid price – £25 to £100

• BBC Microbit starter kit
• Hatching dinosaur candle
• Cut-throat razor
• Black cow vodka

High price – Over £100

• Home planetarium – see stars in constellations in your own home
• Star Trek communicator – connects to your phone via bluetooth, Captain
• Tie Fighter Desk
• Loot crate – Geek-themed stuff in a box
• ZBOX – More geek-themed box

And finally… You REALLY love your partner price:

• Britannia Juke Box

Along with these Christmas themed creative commons tracks:

• Just Another Holiday Season by Marco Buono
• Still the Night by Jason Silver
• Jingle Bells by Anup

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