Somebody has recently asked me about using Linux based software for audio production, so I thought it might be useful to write about it. Here we go:

 

The problem with installing a linux system on your pc is that you really need to make some new hard disc partitions. It is quite easy to ruin your Windows installation doing this and loose all of your work. If you want to try out linux before installing it, or you want to use it only occaisionally a live distro might be the best option.

 

There are plenty of live linux distributions dedicated to mutimedia work available. Not all of them contain the software you want and many have a less than regular development cycle. Here are some of the options as of today...

 

Artistx http://www.artistx.org

This distribution is a live DVD based on Ubuntu. The download will take ages unless you have a mega fast connection, but the selection of software is huge.

 

Apodio http://www.apodio.org

The latest version is just about to be released.

 

Bardix http://audio.christian-ahmer.de

The website is in German, and I have no experience of this system.

 

Musix http://www.musix.org.ar

The latest version of this is currently almost a year old, so it's not cutting edge. Musix is the only distribution i have tried to use before. I was pleased with the results, but that was some time ago.

 

M-dist http://www.plus24.com/m-dist/

This is the smallest download at just 140MB. If you have a slow connection of an older computer then you should choose this one for starters. You may find that it has all of the tools you need. The sequencer is Ardour.

 

Pure:Dyne http://code.goto10.org/projects/puredyne/

This is a development of the Dyne:Bolic distribution. A DVD and a CD version exists.

 

 

 

See I'm still here!