(opens in new tab)Contrary to popular belief, Apple did not invent the concept of the app store; another US software developer came up with a working equivalent as far back as 2001.
Lindows (now known as Linspire after a legal battle with Microsoft), had a feature called Click ‘n’ Run - or CNR (not as catchy) - which allowed users to click one button to install an application.
Lindows was a Linux-based distribution that wanted to encourage its users to embrace a subscription model, which included handing over personal details. But it was too far ahead of its time, with infrastructures like CDN (opens in new tab) and payment gateways (opens in new tab) still in their infancy.
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It's latest descendent, Linspire 9, is now owned by PC OpenSystems LLC, which just reduced the price of its physical media (distro shipped on microSD, USB or SD card) to $39.99, with free updates for 12 months. You can also download the distro for as little as $29.99.
The current iteration is based on Ubuntu 18.04 LTS, while the follow up, Linspire X, will follow 20.04 LTS and should be unveiled in 2021.
The goal of Linspire is to provide a complete operating environment that users can run on any system at any time, so the distribution does include proprietary code.
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