Zenix Features
Zenix uses Debian 6.0 (Squeeze) as a base. Debian provides a stable base and was therefore chosen over the more rapid release cycle, and changes, associated with an Ubuntu base.
The goal of Zenix is to provide a light weight "base" without sacrificing functionality expected of a Desktop.
Zenix provides light window managers (openbox/awesome) and light weight applications such as cream/gedit rather then OpenOffice.
Minimum Requirements
Zenix will run on as little as 60 mb RAM (using awesome window manager), although to do so a swap partition is required (make the swap partition before you bootx/install). Zenix runs reasonably fast on 128 Mb, using midori as a web browser. Icecat (Firefox) will run, but is noticeably slow.
Minimal RAM: 128 Mb
Storage space: Zenix uses about 600 Mb if you are running it Live (CD/Flash Drive) or about 1.7 Gb of hard drive space if installed to a hard drive.
Window managers
Zenix includes openbox + tint2 and awesome.
- Openbox is a light weight window manager.
- Tint2 is a light weight panel and can be customized with a graphical tool, tint wizard. Tintwizard is not included in Zenix.
- Awesome is a light weight, fast window manager and works well with netbooks with smaller displays. If you are unfamiliar with awesome, please see the Zenix awesome page for an introduction to awesome and the Zenix customizations.
Persistence
The ability to use persistence to save data or changes to the system across live sessions is enabled by default. Personal data can be encrypted with Cryptkeeper.
You will need to configure persistence, providing space, prior to use.
Multimedia
Zenix includes Audacious, VLC, and Streamtuner.
Web browsers/Internet
Zenix includes both Icecat and Midori. Midori is a very fast browser ideal for lower RAM systems (midori ran quite fast on my 128 Mb test system) while icecat is more a full featured browser (most firefox extensions work with icecat).
- Adblock Plus and NoScript are included with Icecat.
- Midori has been configures with the built-in adblock extension (it uses easylist).
- Adobe flash is also included and works with both icecat and midori.
- Xchat is included as the default IRC client.
Productivity
Zenix includes cream, gedit, and bluefish. Included with gedit are a set of tags for web development.
Cream is a cross platform front end for vim/gvim with all the power of vim combined with a very friendly user interface.
Security
Zenix includes some additional security features including:
- Firewall- GUFW is the default configuration tool for iptables. UFW is active by default.
- PSAD- is configured with an active response to dropped packets.
- fwsnort- iptables is enhanced with fwsnort.
- Cryptkeeper- is a graphical interface to manage encrypted directories. It can be used in combination with a persistent home directory.
- Keepassx- is a cross platform encrypted database for password storage.
- Wireshark- is a graphical tool for capture and analysis of network packets. When running live it runs as root, but once Zenix is installed it runs without root privileges.
- Zenmap- is a cross platform graphical front end for nmap, a port scanner.