Ubuntu Studio
I thought I’d put a quick mention for an upcoming linux distribution oriented towards multimedia creation…. ubuntustudio is targetted to be released in April (based on Ubuntu 7.04 Fiesty Fawn). From their site
Ubuntu Studio. A multimedia creation derivative of Ubuntu.
Ubuntu Studio is aimed at the linux audio, video and graphic enthusiast as well as professional.
I currently use Mandriva for audio recording/editing/etc. It’s always interesting to see another distribution though and especially one that aims to be tailored towards multimedia work. Admittedly most of the software is out there and available for Ubuntu proper as well as other distros. So the main advantage here is probably a specialized kernel for low latency/realtime recording… heavier use of jack (linux realtime audio subsystem.) The other main advantage of a specialized distro is in the choice of software installed by default.
Anyway, the project has a wiki page at this link. These days with hardware prices dropping and with good open source platforms available for this task (and new ones coming along like this.) I think ultimately it’s not going to be a big challenge to have a good operational dedicated audio workstation. For a long time I worked to avoid it, but frankly the needs/requirements of an audio workstation are different from those of a network server and different from a typical desktop. Some needs coincide, but others compete.
I’ll definitely be taking a look at Ubuntu Studio when it’s released.
