Return homeComputers homeUNIX home


OpenIndiana

OpenIndiana is an open-source operating system based on Illumos, the only open-source derivative of AT&T's Unix System V (Revision 4). Although based on SVR4, which began primarily as Sun Microsystems' (now Oracle) Solaris, it feels very similar to most modern Linux and BSD distros based on the MATE graphical user interface. Many software packages available for Linux and BSD — from LibreOffice, a popular (and, in my opinion, the best) productivity suite alternative to Microsoft's Office, to TiMidity++ (a software synthesizer), GIMP, a free open-source raster graphics manipulation program, and Inkscape, a free open-source vector graphics editor.

I installed OpenIndiana on my ThinkPad W541 in October 2024, which formerly ran Windows 10. While I don't use OpenIndiana as my "daily driver" (I still primarily use my 2020 Mac mini M1, running macOS Sonoma as of writing this), I am using it to create this page and my Unix section. OpenIndiana (specifically running the Vim text editor in MATE Terminal) was also used to create my AT&T Long Lines section, paying homage to the creator of it — and Unix.

My first impressions of OpenIndiana (PDF opens in new tab, created using LibreOffice in OpenIndiana)

Software

TiMidity++

A software synthesizer capable of playing MIDI, module and karaoke files — and outputting them to a variety of audio formats — right from the command line.


Return to topReturn homeComputers homeReturn to Unix home

Last updated: Nov. 3, 2024