Universal Blue has replaced it with the Bluefin image. Screenshots of Jack Wallen/ZDNET
I used to use Linux since 1997. Years ago, I reached the point where I was sure nothing could surprise me anymore. Fast forward to this past weekend when Jorge Castro contacted me and proved me wrong.
Jorge used to work with Ubuntu but is currently working on a new project, called Universal Blue. Without going into technical details about the functionality of this distro (since most casual users don’t really care what happens “under the hood”, they just care about how things work) or not), see if I can describe what Universal Blue is. Understand, this is really the new stuff we’re talking about… and it’s great.
Also: Thinking about switching to Linux? 6 things you need to know
Imagine you have an operating system installed and you search around and decide that it is not the right desktop for you. You probably installed a version that came with the GNOME desktop. With Universal Blue, what you can do is “reboot” the operating system so that it is now based on KDE Plasma.
Or life partner.
Or LXQt.
I’m sure the list will continue to grow.
Also: How to use KDE Plasma Places for the desktop much more efficiently
According to the Git documentation: “With the rebase command, you can take all the changes that were made on one branch and redo them on another. For this example, you would check out the test branch, then that puts the base back on that branch the main branch…”
Technically, a Linux distribution not really “based on” the desktop environment but that’s an easy way to explain it.
Over the weekend I did some basic testing with this. I started using the default Universal Blue Release. After installing it, I used restart rpm-ostree command and restart the operating system with the Bluefin instance.
According to Jorge, Bluefin “is me and some friends who use uBlue and then make it their own — this is where I make decisions with stronger views, app indicators, and dock style. Ubuntu is like a ChromeOS maintenance cycle. For developers it includes a bunch of cloud tools like Kubernetes kind of thing. Misuse of the term cloud is purposeful, I’m trying. uses proven technology from the desktop cloud in terms of reliability and features, so you’ll see all the usual cloud-from-native in there, good for SEO.”
Also: How to install Linux apps from the command line
When I do the rebase, the command is:
sudo rpm-ostree rebase ostree-unverified-registry:ghcr.io/ublue-os/bluefin:38
Once the process was complete, I rebooted, logged in, and saw a completely different desktop environment.
I already know what you’re thinking: Why not install another desktop on top of an existing OS? It’s a valid question and I’ll explain with an example. Recently, I found Pop!_OS became quite unstable. I tried to track down the issue but with no success. In the end, I decided to install another desktop environment.
Also: How to simplify Flatpak application installation on KDE Plasma desktop
First, I tried KDE Plasma but was quickly reminded why I didn’t care much for that desktop environment (it’s too Windows-like). Then I tried Enlightenment, but that environment doesn’t care much for Wayland, so it’s a no-go. I was going to install standard GNOME, but that would screw up Pop!_OS. Temple? Are not. I soon realized that it might be time to switch to another distro, but I really don’t have time to do that at the moment. Now, if I’m using Universal Blue, I just run the rebase command and do the conversion. There will be no crashes, no complicated dependencies to deal with, and no mess. It’s clean, fast and simple.
Also: Best Linux laptops for consumers and developers
When I experimented with Universal Blue over the weekend, I was reminded of how great the Linux operating system is. Suddenly, I felt like I was back in the late 90s or early 2000s and seeing the future of operating systems before my eyes. That’s how impressive Jorge’s work is.
I was considering switching to Fedora OS. After all, one of the first Linux versions I ever used was Red Hat 5.2 (after a failed Caldera Open Linux 1 test). With Universal Blue (based on Fedora) I will never have to worry about such a problem again. It will also limit the “distribution jump” feeling that a lot of Linux users can’t stand.
Currently, Universal Blue is still in beta, so I don’t really recommend installing it on the machines you use every day. But let’s install it as a virtual machine and see how awesome the rebase is. Also, for now, the reboot has to be done using the command line. Hopefully at some point a GUI tool will be created that will eliminate the need to do the reboot from the command line. The simpler things are in Linux, the more people use it.
Also: The most important reason you should use Linux at home
I admire what Jorge has done with this project and hope it develops as I believe it can and should. If you’re curious about this, make sure to download Universal Blue and check out the rebellious feature. I suspect, once this is out of alpha, it will most likely become my everyday OS. I also believe that, once you try Universal Blue (and its rebase feature), you may be of the same opinion.
You can read more about what Jorge Castro is doing with Universal Blue on official blog.
