Kiss – A Linux distribution with a focus on “less is more”

KISS

An independent Linux® distribution with a focus on simplicity and the concept of “less is more”. The distribution targets only the x86-64 architecture and the English language.

“Simple can be harder than complex: You have to work hard to get your thinking clean to make it simple. But it’s worth it in the end because once you get there, you can move mountains.” - Steve Jobs

Overview

• Uses a plain-text package system which is language agnostic and parseable with basic UNIX utilities.

• Uses a package manager written in 500~ lines of POSIX sh (excluding blank lines and comments).

• Based on musl libc, busybox and the Linux kernel.

• All shell code is linted by and passes shellcheck (including each and every repository package).

• Explicitly excludes the following software: dbus, systemd, polkit, gettext, intltool, pulseaudio, pam, wayland, logind, ConsoleKit2 and all Desktop Environments. See Philosophy.

Philosophy

Simplicity

This distribution follows the KISS principle (Keep it Simple Stupid).

A distribution being “simple” has many different interpretations. It may mean simple to use, simple to develop or simple in its implementation. Further, the phrase “simple to use” may differ from person to person.

Users with prior knowledge of Linux and basic programming skills will find this distribution simple in all three examples given above. A user without prior knowledge may see this distribution as the exact opposite.

The more code and documentation one adds to a project, the more time it takes to maintain it and the risk of things going awry rises. Code is weight and the focus should be on keeping it light.

Less is more

This distribution uses less software where possible and follows the belief that the less software and code running the less error prone the system will be overall.

The absence of software from the repositories does not mean it cannot be installed. Any user can further package whatever is preferred, else use third-party repositories.

It is easier to add things to a system than it is to remove them. Providing only a minimal base users can then extend this distribution to meet their individual needs.

from Hacker News https://getkiss.org/