We have to thank the main distro players for being so compliant with our schedules. Ubuntu released in time for inclusion on last month's Linux Format DVD and Fedora 20 is slated for release in tome for next month's DVD (although Fedora release schedules can sometimes slip). Slotting nicely between the two is the recent release of openSUSE 13.1.

It means that once again, we can bring you a major distro on the Linux Format cover DVD and it is a full release. We do not like to include release candidates or betas, those are for testing and by the time you get your hands on the magazine it is too late to submit useful test data. Then there's the fact that you pay for your magazines and have the right to expect fully tested releases.

We have both the KDE and GNOME releases of openSUSE, in the form of the live CDs that you can test out before installing, but that's not all. Manjaro Linux is based on Arch Linux, a distro that is rapidly growing in popularity as a base for creating other distros, and it's good to see something that is not a Debian/Ubuntu respin. This version of Manjaro uses the OpenBox desktop, a lightweight and fast alternative, which makes Manjaro good for older hardware. It also makes it incredibly fast on modern hardware, an Intel i7 system here took longer to load the BIOS than boot the OS.

We also have a lot of other software relating to the articles in the magazine, including FlightGear (as reviewed in Hot Picks) with a lot of extra aircraft, from a Sopwith Camel to a Jaguar, or you could be predictable and go straight to the Spitfire.

Whatever you prefer to use from this DVD, we hope you enjoy it!

Neil Bothwick
DVD Editor