Which Mandriva Linux Edition That's Right For You

Mandriva One 2008

The One edition of Mandriva Linux is a Live CD. A Live CD is an operating system which boots and runs directly from CD, with no installation required, and without making any permanent change to the system on which it runs.

Mandriva One, however, is a hybrid Live CD, meaning it also has an installer allowing it to be installed to the system's hard disk, should the user so desire. This makes it the ideal edition of Mandriva Linux to try if you are not confident enough about Linux to be sure you want to install it permanently to your hard disk.

You can boot Mandriva One in live mode to try it out. If you like it, you can install it to your hard disk. If not, you can simply remove the CD and reboot and your system will not be affected. The small size of Mandriva One also makes it ideal for users with slow or bandwidth limited Internet connections.

Sometimes, several single CD versions of Mandriva One are made available with a Mandriva Linux release. There are two main differentiating factors between the various versions: the desktop environment used and the languages supported. Some versions use the KDE desktop environment, some use the GNOME environment. As space makes it impossible to include all supported languages on a single CD, the languages supported by Mandriva Linux are spread across the various versions of One.

The current release of Mandriva One is Mandriva Linux 2008 One. The latest release of Mandriva One is always available from the official download site.



Mandriva Linux Free 2008

The Free edition of Mandriva Linux is so named because it is 'free' in both senses: it costs nothing and it contains only free and open source software, as defined by the Free Software Foundation and Open Source Initiative.

It contains a fully functional distribution with a range of applications aimed at typical desktop use. It must be installed to your hard disk prior to use. This is the ideal edition of Mandriva Linux to use if you wish to evaluate a comprehensive Mandriva Linux edition, or if you wish to use only free / open source software on your system.

This edition is made available with every Mandriva Linux release in x86-32 and x86-64 versions, on either three CDs or a single DVD.

The current release of Mandriva Linux Free is Mandriva Linux 2008 Free. The latest release of Mandriva Linux Free is always available from the official download site


Mandriva Linux Powerpack 2008

The Powerpack edition of Mandriva Linux is a commercial edition (this means it is available only via the Mandriva Store, to Mandriva Club members, or from an authorized reseller). It contains a range of applications aimed at typical desktop use, development work, or server use. As a commercial edition, Powerpack contains proprietary software, including various proprietary drivers and firmware packages to improve hardware support, and some useful applications and browser plugins.

This edition is made available with every Mandriva Linux release in x86-32 and x86-64 versions, on a single DVD. The version available from the Mandriva Store is a single DVD containing both x86-32 and x86-64 versions. It is available as a slim-pack DVD only, or in a boxed edition with a manual. It is also available via a subscription service, allowing download access to the Powerpack edition for one year (two Mandriva Linux releases) for a flat annual rate.


The current release of Mandriva Linux Powerpack is Mandriva Linux 2008 Powerpack. The latest release of Mandriva Linux Powerpack is always available from the Mandriva Store