Software libre! Cuba develops own free Linux called 'Nova'

Cuba released its own distribution of the free Linux operating system this week, as the Communist island seeks to wean its citizens and institutions from what it says are insecure, capitalist-produced Microsoft Corp. software, according to a report.

The Reuters news service reported Wednesday that the new version is called "Nova," and was introduced at a technical conference in Havana.
Based on a Linux variant called Gentoo that is popular with highly technical users, Nova has been in development since 2007, according to the Associated Press , after Free Software guru Richard Stallman visited the island and persuaded government officials to move off Windows.

Microsoft software, such as Windows, is widely used in Cuba, though much of it is pirated, according to Reuters.

About 20% of the computers in Cuba, where PC sales to the public only began last year, run Linux, Hector Rodriguez, dean of the School of Free Software at Cuba's University of Information Sciences, told Reuters.

"I would like to think that in five years our country will have more than 50 percent migrated (to Linux)," he said.

A three-minute video demonstrating Nova Baire, the Cuban Linux's name in Spanish, is available on YouTube.

It is based on Gentoo, a Linux variant introduced in 2002 and run by a foundation based in New Mexico.

It is a source-based distribution, meaning that the Gentoo operating system is downloaded and compiled on each individual computer. That can offer performance benefits for enthusiasts, though it may be complicated for less technical users.

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