Familiar Linux

Familiar Linux
OS family	Linux (Unix-like)
Source model	Open source
Latest release	v0.8.4 / / March, 2007
Default; user interface	OPIE, GPE
Official website	familiar.handhelds.org

Familiar Linux is a discontinued Linux distribution for iPAQ devices and other personal digital assistants (PDAs),^[1]^[2] intended as a replacement for Windows CE. It can use OPIE or GPE Palmtop Environment as the graphical user interface.

Technical details

It is loosely based on the Debian ARM distribution, but uses the ipkg package manager.^[3] It contained Python and XFree86.^[4]

History

In May 2000, Alexander Guy took a kernel that had been worked on by Compaq programmers, built a complete Linux distribution around it, and released the first version of Familiar (v0.1).

The first version was released in May 2000.^[5]

It was developed as part of the Handhelds.org project.^[3]

Reception

According to a 2004 review by IBM developerWorks, Familiar Linux needed more polish and "could gain mass acceptance if a dual-boot procedure were made possible".^[6]

References

^ Software configuration management : ICSE Workshops SCM 2001 and SCM 2003, Toronto, Canada, May 14-15, 2001 and Portland, OR, USA, May 9-10, 2003 : selected papers. Bernhard Westfechtel, André van der Hoek, SCM. Berlin: Springer. 2003. ISBN 978-3-540-39195-1. OCLC 51975801.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
^ Crossing design boundaries : proceedings of the 3rd Engineering & Product Design Education International Conference, Edinburgh, UK, 15-16 September, 2005. Paul Rodgers, E. K. Brodhurst, Duncan Hepburn, Design Society. Design Education Special Interest Group, Institution of Engineering Designers. London: Taylor & Francis. 2005. ISBN 0-415-39118-0. OCLC 63766883.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
^ a b "LWN.net weekly edition". LWN.net. Retrieved 2021-04-25.
^ "LinuxDevCenter.com: Linux on an iPAQ". O'Reilly Media. 2005-02-27. Archived from the original on 2005-02-27. Retrieved 2021-04-25.
^ "In Pictures: Linux for mobile. A visual history". ARNnet. Retrieved 2021-04-26.
^ "Running Linux on an iPAQ". IBM developerWorks. 2004-12-15. Archived from the original on 2004-12-15. Retrieved 2021-04-25.

External links

Official website
Linux.com interview with the original author Archived 2021-04-25 at the Wayback Machine

[1] Software configuration management : ICSE Workshops SCM 2001 and SCM 2003, Toronto, Canada, May 14-15, 2001 and Portland, OR, USA, May 9-10, 2003 : selected papers. Bernhard Westfechtel, André van der Hoek, SCM. Berlin: Springer. 2003. ISBN 978-3-540-39195-1. OCLC 51975801.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)

[2] Crossing design boundaries : proceedings of the 3rd Engineering & Product Design Education International Conference, Edinburgh, UK, 15-16 September, 2005. Paul Rodgers, E. K. Brodhurst, Duncan Hepburn, Design Society. Design Education Special Interest Group, Institution of Engineering Designers. London: Taylor & Francis. 2005. ISBN 0-415-39118-0. OCLC 63766883.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)

[:0-3] "LWN.net weekly edition". LWN.net. Retrieved 2021-04-25.

[4] "LinuxDevCenter.com: Linux on an iPAQ". O'Reilly Media. 2005-02-27. Archived from the original on 2005-02-27. Retrieved 2021-04-25.

[5] "In Pictures: Linux for mobile. A visual history". ARNnet. Retrieved 2021-04-26.

[6] "Running Linux on an iPAQ". IBM developerWorks. 2004-12-15. Archived from the original on 2004-12-15. Retrieved 2021-04-25.