14 DAY TRIAL // Debian Edu, a Linux distribution based on Debian 8.0 "Jessie" that provides an out-of-the box environment for a completely configured school network, has been released and is now available for testing.
Debian Edu is a Linux distribution also known under the name of Skolelinux. It's specifically built to run in schools and it has already been implemented in almost 200 teaching institutions from around the world, but mostly in Germany and Norway. It's being developed by an international team and right now it's moving from the older Debian base to the latest, which is the 8.0 branch, "Jessie."
Debian 8.0 "Jessie" is still under development and it has no released date, but most of the interesting things in the project happen in this branch. It's no wonder that this particular version was chosen for the Debian Edu project, especially now that the makers of the Debian base have started to provide long term support for the available distros.
This is just the first Alpha version for Debian Edu 8.0
The system is based on Linux kernel 3.16, which is one of the latest versions available, but that is bound to change eventually. It features a wealth of desktop environments, including KDE SC 4.11.12, GNOME 3.14, Xfce 4.10, LXDE 0.5.6, and MATE 1.8.
"Debian Edu is a complete operating system for schools. Through its various installation profiles you can install servers, workstations and laptops which will work together on the school network. With Debian Edu, the teachers themselves or their technical support can roll out a complete multi-user multi-machine study environment within hours or a few days. Debian Edu comes with hundreds of applications pre-installed, but you can always add more packages from Debian."
"Would you like to give your school's computer a longer life? Are you tired of sneaker administration, running from computer to computer reinstalling the operating system? Would you like to administrate all the computers in your school using only a couple of hours every week? Check out Debian Edu Jessie!," say the Debian devs in the announcement.
A number of important apps are also included by default, like Stellarium 0.13.0, LibreOffice 4.3.3, a selection of open source browsers, and numerous other packages for a school environment.
Check out the official announcement for more details about this release. You can download Debian Edu 8.0 Alpha right now from Softpedia. This is not a Live CD and it can only be installed. If you are going to install it, please don't use a production machine, as it is still under heavy development.