I tried a Linux distro that promised free, built-in AI — and things got weird

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ZDNET Highlights

• Gnopix is ​​a Linux distribution that is free to install and use.
• Gnopix runs smoothly, offers a ton of apps, and is user-friendly.
• It looks like the gnoppix-ai package is broken, so I would avoid it.

I’ve used, tested, reviewed, suggested, recommended, and generally experienced more Linux distributions than I can remember. More often than not, those distributions are blended together, as if the only thing differentiating them is the combination of base, desktop environment, and theme.

However, sometimes I come across a general-use Linux distribution that makes me think, “Wow, this would be a great operating system for anyone!” This thought crossed my mind when it came time to review Gnopix’s latest release.

If you’ve never heard of Gnopix, it’s another Debian-based distribution aimed at the average user. And although the developers praise Gnopix’s ability to use AI, I’ve found that it’s secondary to its more general purpose.

What about Gnopix and AI?

Over the past year or so, I’ve discussed the use of AI on Linux a lot. I’m not saying you should use it, but for the right purpose, it makes a compelling argument. As with most Linux installations, I’ve defaulted to running AI locally, and it has served me well. I would go so far as to say that Olama is probably the choice for 95% of my AI needs. Soon, I think this figure will reach 100% because the more I use local AI, the less I will need a cloud-based solution.

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All this to say when I read about it gnopix When the team added AI to the mix, my interest peaked. For that purpose, I downloaded the latest release of Gnoppix (v25) and installed it as a virtual machine on Pop!_OS. After installation, I immediately went to see what AI tools were included, but I discovered that the core version (read: free) does not include applications.

I took the KDE Plasma version of Gnoppix 25, but you can take the Xfce version official download siteBoth desktop environments are highly configurable, but I believe KDE Plasma is the true DE of choice

It only took me a few seconds to figure out that AI can be added to Gnoppix with a single command:

sudo apt-get install gnoppix-ai -y

Before you go ahead and run the above command, know that it will download approximately 30GB over the internet, so make sure you have a reliable network connection, the required storage space, and enough time. Also note that, to install the gnoppix-ai app, you will need at least the following:

• 4 core CPU 2+GHz
• 8 GB RAM
• 30GB free space on SSD

Sadly I couldn’t fully install gnoppix-ai due to a gnoppix-gpt dependency issue, but gnoppix-gpt is part of the gnoppix-ai package. After a quick poke around the menu hierarchy, I moved into the Gnopix AI installer. I ran that package to see what would happen. The GUI initialization window popped up and didn’t seem to do anything.

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The good news is that the apt-get command installed Olma, which was usable out of the box. I can pull up an LLM and start using it from the command line (or I can install the Mst or Alpaca GUI and do it). I went ahead and installed Alpaca to see how the AI ​​would run on Gnopix.

My results were pretty typical of AI on Linux. I ran my usual query, what is Linux? And the results were quite “accurate” and given quite quickly. I say “largely” precisely because the last thing that was said was that Linux had some drawbacks, such as a steep learning curve, may require technical expertise, and may offer limited support. Although some people may believe those statements, I consider them misleading.

With a little work, you can get AI working on Gnoppix desktop. Given how the developers promote the AI ​​on the site, one would think it should work out of the box. It’s possible that the reason I couldn’t install Gnopix AI properly was because I was using the free version of the OS. If this is the case, you may want to remove the Gnoppix AI installer from the developers menu.

Beyond AI

One thing that did bother me a bit was that once the installation was complete, I logged in to find the installed Gnopix icon on the desktop. This may confuse new users, so I decided to click on it and see what would happen.

Nothing.

Delete that icon.

Note: The icon reappeared after a reboot.

There was also a ReadMe.txt file on the desktop. I opened it up and found it to be a nice addition that will be of great benefit to new users. There is one section that I think is important to mention, where it is said:

False reports about Gnopix are circulating on the Internet, particularly due to inaccurate journalistic reporting. With Wikipedia refusing to list Gnopix as a Linux project, we need to set the record straight.

To set the record straight, the name Gnopix was obtained by replacing the “k” in Knoppers with the “g” for GNOME, to honor Klaus Knopper’s original work on the Debian-based LiveCD.

Too: 5 reasons I use local AI on my desktop – instead of ChatGPT, Gemini or the cloud

And there you have it. The record has been set straight.

Out of the box, Gnoppix includes a lot of software. You’ll find apps for almost anything. I’d go so far as to say that Gnopix includes the largest amount of software of any Linux distribution I’ve tested recently. You’ll find LibreOffice, BleachBit, Catfish (file search), Dia, Dragon Player, Elisa, FileZilla, Firefox ESR, GDB Package Installer, Gnopix Tor Control, HomeBank, ISO Image Writer, JUK, Kgpg, Kgit, KMail, KOrganizer, Kate, KeePassXC, etc.

There is a lot of software packed into Gnoppix.

a seamless os

Even with the AI ​​issue, I found the Gnoppix 25 to be a smooth operating system. Although I increased the system resources to meet the needs of the AI ​​system (meaning I gave this VM more RAM than usual), I found that KDE Plasma just finished rendering on Gnopix. From my extensive experience working with KDE Plasma, I have found it to be one of the best performing full desktop environments available for Linux, and Gnopix proves that theory. The desktop not only performed well, but it also looked part of the modern Linux desktop. Although it was based on a dark theme by default (come on!), I quickly customized the desktop and made it exactly how I liked it.

With the combination of well-oiled AI I had running (Olama and Alpaca) and KDE Plasma, Gnopix was a real pleasure to use.

What is Gnopix for?

Because Gnopix is ​​based on Debian and offers a KDE Plasma desktop option, I would say that this Linux distribution is suitable for almost any type of user (from zero experience to years of experience). However, I would suggest that if you want to add AI to the mix, you should skip the gnoppix-ai package and go straight for Olama and Alpaca. I’m guessing the developers will resolve the gnoppix-ai installation issues soon, but until then, avoid that installation.

If you’re not interested in AI, ignore those entries in the menu system, and enjoy a well-balanced, high-performance, easy-to-use Linux distribution.

Also: My two favorite AI apps on Linux – and how I use them to get more done

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