A major problem for Wikinewsies is having common tools which we all use, and have a degree of familiarity with.
We can argue over preferences, but a real newsroom would see us all constrained to one set of tools, with uniform operating system installs.
The Wikinewsie.org Linux distro is an attempt to get to that, to a point where we all have the same software, and can readily share tips on how to use it, or any customisations we individually create.
This is currently at what I’ll call the version 0.0.2 alpha, i.e. very early on in the development phase but suitable for a few people trying it out. It is, for the time being, only available as a 64-bit edition.
This version requires burned onto a DVD, but should make a bootable DVD. Just remember, it is an image; so, with Windows 7, you can simply right-click on the .ISO file and select to burn it to a DVD. It is recommended you do so no faster than 3x speed; this to improve the probability of ending up with a usable disk.
The .ISO (approximately 1.8GB in size) is available here. Assuming you know how to check the MD5 sum for an ISO file, the checksum can be downloaded from here.
As-stated, this is an alpha, if not pre-alpha, version. A wide range of tools are installed, but no ‘branding’ or significant customisation implemented. Any requests or suggestions are most-welcome. The distro is based upon Ubuntu 12.04 Precise, a Long-Term Support (LTS) version. Thus, support for the base OS will be available for a five-year period.
