Slackware, one of the most important Linux distributions around, has reached version 12.1 today. The new release comes with many software updates and enhancements, new technologies and lots more. "This first Slackware edition of the year combines Slackware's legendary simplicity (and close tracking of original sources), stability, and security with some of the latest advances in Linux technology. Expect no less than the best Slackware yet." - says Patrick Volkerding in the release announcement.

Slackware 12.1 includes:

￭ Linux kernel 2.6.24.5, patched with Speakup to support speech synthesizers providing access to Linux for the visually-impaired community;
￭ System binaries are linked with the GNU C Library (glibc), version 2.7. This version of glibc also has excellent compatibility with existing binaries;
￭ Xorg 7.3.0;
￭ GCC 4.2.3;
￭ Support for fully encrypted network connections with OpenSSL, OpenSSH, OpenVPN, and GnuPG;
￭ Apache 2.2.8 web server compiled with Dynamic Shared Object support, SSL, and PHP 5.2.5;
￭ PCMCIA, CardBus, USB, IEE1394 (FireWire) and ACPI support, which makes Slackware a great operating system for your laptop;
￭ Automatic hardware detection and configuration with the udev dynamic device management system for Linux 2.6.x;
￭ Updated versions of the Slackware package management tools;
￭ Large repository of extra software packages compiled and ready to run.

Included applications:

￭ KDE 3.5.9
￭ Pidgin 2.4.1
￭ The GIMP 2.4.5
￭ Firefox 2.0.0.14
￭ Thunderbird 2.0.0.12
￭ Konqueror 3.5.9
￭ KOffice
￭ Amarok
￭ K3B
￭ SeaMonkey 1.1.9
￭ gkrellm 2.3.1
￭ gxine 0.5.11
￭ XChat 2.8.4
￭ XSane 0.994
￭ Qt designer
￭ KDevelop 3.5.9
￭ Pan 0.132
￭ Perl 5.8.8
￭ Python 2.5.2
￭ Ruby 1.8.6-p114
￭ Subversion 1.4.6
￭ git 1.5.5
￭ mercurial 1.0

About Slackware Linux:

Slackware was started by Patrick Volkerding with ease of use and stability in mind. This distribution is considered one of the most secure and stable at this moment. You will find the latest popular applications in an environment that offers simplicity and ease of use and, at the same time, power and flexibility. Slackware was created to melt the two worlds, of beginners and advanced users, into a single distribution that could satisfy everyone. Also, it is one of the oldest distributions, being started in April 1993, with the aim to give birth to Linux distribution that's closer to its ancestor, Unix. Slackware can work acceptably even on a 486 machine.

Download Slackware Linux 12.1 right now from Softpedia.