This was originally posted at the Chromixium.org website and is re-blogged here for historical purposes.
I write to you today with some very important new about the Chromixium project. A few weeks ago, I was contacted by Google’s Trademark Enforcement Team. I was duly asked to cease use of the name Chromixium for this project.
The reason?
“While we wholeheartedly support your creation of a new open source operating system, we’re concerned that the name of the system, and some of the offerings within the system could confuse consumers into thinking that Chromixium is sponsored by, or affiliated with Google and its Chrome operating system.
The name Chromixium almost wholly incorporates Google’s Chrome trademark, and when used on a very similar type of operating system, could very well confuse consumers into thinking that your operating system was created by Google, or was created incorporating other Google products, like Chromium.”
They went on to say; “We’re especially concerned that users may think that Chromixium has some of the safety and security features of Chromium-based systems.
We must therefore request that you change the name of your open source project to something that is not confusingly similar to Chrome or Chromium. We realize that this is no small ask, as we are very willing to give you plenty of time to make this change.”
I decided not to take on the might of Google (well, the finances of Google) in a court of law, and after some very constructive exchanges with Google’s trademark lawyer, we agreed that the Chromixium mark would cease to be used by 1 April 2016. This includes this domain, GitHub, Chromixium social media presences including Google+ and YouTube.
What would replace Chromixium?
Chromixium was in my view a great name. I took great care when first choosing it to ensure there were no other projects with the same or similar names. It took the concept of Chrome/Chromium and by incorporating the ‘ix’, firmly placed the project under the ‘Nix umbrella of operating systems. I never thought that a similarity to an existing trademark could be unlawful, but in fact, having consulted some legal representation of my own, there was a good chance that I would not be able to persuade a judge in my favour.
Some people had started referring to the project in shorthand already - such as CMX or CrMx. Unfortunately there are quite a few companies within the technology sector already called CMX and CRMX is an existing trademark. Plus, if they still represent the name Chromixium, then would I be any better off?
It was important not to make the same mistake twice then. If I couldn’t use either of Google’s trademarks, Chrome and Chromium in the name, could I use some sort of acronym? This project is about 2 very important things - Chromium and Ubuntu. So I have come up with a simple new name that I believe manages to still encapsulate what the project is about. It is short, memorable and has lots of potential:
Chromium + Ubuntu = Cub
To ensure that there can be no mistaking what Cub is, it shall officially be known as Cub Linux®. I have registered Cub Linux as an official sublicensee of the Linux trademark with the Linux Foundation. As such I am bound to display the text:
The registered trademark Linux® is used pursuant to a sublicense from LMI, the exclusive licensee of Linus Torvalds, owner of the mark on a world-wide basis.
And so the Cub is born! Grrr!
Join the Cub!
We now have just over 2 months to move the entire project from where it is now, to a new home on the Internet and I need your help. I need as many visitors and followers as possible at the new site to get it moving up through the Google ranks.
https://cublinux.com
Yes, the new domain has SSL encryption which has been a long time coming. It’s going to take a while until all the site content is transferred, but it will come. With the new domain, comes a new Forum and a Wiki. Users of the old forum, please sign up and start using the new one now! There is also a brand new Questions & Answers page at the new website which works very much like Stackoverflow, AskUbuntu or Yahoo! Answers.
I also need everyone who generally follows progress on Google+ to follow me at the new Google+ page:
http://google.com/+Cublinux
I will also be tweeting and re-sharing content on Twitter (@CubLinux) and Facebook in case any of you prefer those tools, you can follow me and stay up to date:
https://twitter.com/CubLinux
https://www.facebook.com/cublinux/
You will have to bear with me if there are any problems with new sites. Just let me know and I’ll put it right! There’s a contact form on the new site. The hosting plan I have chosen should have enough bandwidth, but only time will tell…
What about the new release (Chromixium 2.0)?
There will be no more releases under the Chromixium name. My main goal now is Cub Linux 1.0 based upon Ubuntu 16.04. Obviously having to rebrand is likely to push the release date back a bit, but I am hopeful that there will be at least a beta release by May 2016. All updates will now be via the new channels mentioned above and work will start ASAP.
Development will be focused at a new GitHub project page, which will contain all the most recent source code and development.
What about support for existing Chromixium users?
You will continue to be supported in 2 ways:
- As Chromixium 1.5 is based on Ubuntu LTS 14.04 you can continue to use it right up until the end of life for Ubuntu 14.04 which will be early 2019. So if it works and you are happy with it, there is no need to change or reinstall. You will continue to receive patches and updates.
- I will continue to provide support at the new Cub Linux site, forum and social media pages.
There may be a final service pack to update the kernel and graphics stack to tie in with the Ubuntu 16.04 release. This will be conclude service pack support until end of life.
Unfortunately, I don’t know how feasible it will be to provide a (safe) upgrade path to Cub Linux 1.0. If you want to stay current, it is more than likely that you will need to install the first stable release of Cub Linux in place of Chromixium.
What if I want to try or install Chromixium now?
There’s nothing to stop you! You can download Chromixium from existing sources until the end of March 2016. After that I have a decision to make. I either reissue the existing releases, rebranded as Cub Linux, or I pull the ISOs altogether and focus on Cub Linux 1.0. I will only do the latter if I have an alpha or beta release ready for testing by then.
What can I do to help?
Please, please, go to the new website. Bookmark it. Follow it. Go to the Google+, Facebook or Twitter feed and click follow.
Donations are always welcome. I have had to shell out for new hosting and SSL certs. If you would like to donate, please click here.
Feedback on the new site design. Join the forum…
If you would like to assist with simple coding (Python/GTK), packaging (DEB), documentation, graphical design (Icons/Material Design) please get in touch.
Thank you all Chromixium users. I hope you will join our new Cub! Nothing changes but the name, the project rolls on!
Pingback: Linux News Today: Google Asks Chromixium OS Devs to Cease Use of the Name, Cub Linux Is Born | emka.web.id
Pingback: Google Asks Chromixium OS Devs to Cease Use of the Name, Cub Linux Is Born | Distro Linux news
Pingback: Chromixium cambia de nombre, ahora es Cub Linux
Hi,
I am brazilian and my english is very bad… but, i decide make a comment because i really like this project, and my dream in 2012 (or 2013, i don’t remember) it was to have one operating sytem like a Cub. Thanks guys.
Hello, your English is very good actually. Thank you for your kind words and I am pleased that you like this project!
Pingback: Olha as ideias: a Google quer que o projeto Chromixium OS mude de nome - Caderno de estudo TI
Pingback: Links 24/1/2016: Linux 4.5 RC1, Debian 8.3 Released | Techrights
Pingback: Revista Espírito Livre » Blog Archive » Google quer que o projeto Chromixium OS mude de nome
My now 9 year old Granddaughter has had a netbook we gave her for her 5th birthday. I had set it up for her originally using Joli OS and Jolicloud. Unfortunately Joli changed a lot and became more of a social media product.
In her school they use Chromebooks and she has decided she would like one of her own in preference to a Windows laptop. My daughter mentioned that to me yesterday and I thought perhaps I could make the netbook serve the same purpose….and more.
This morning I started Googling and came across Chromixium and just downloaded an iso. I think what I will do is put it on an SD card as the laptop has a built in SD card slot. Then, before installing it, she can get a flavor for whether it meets her needs (and wants”). Now I just need to figure out how to put it on an SD! 😉
Keep up the good (I think) work. Best of luck with the rebranding to CUB Linux.
Hi Bob, I really hope Chromixium is suitable for your daughter. Just shout if you need any help! We have a forum (https://cublinux.com/forum), or you can just ask a question (https://cublinux.com/questions/).
I find Rufus (https://rufus.akeo.ie/) is best on Windows to put the ISO on a USB or SD card and I would just use the terminal in Linux (sudo dd if=Chromixium-1.5-amd64.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M && sync).
Cheers 🙂
Rich….. Make that Granddaughter. 🙂 I have already tried a similar dd command (only diff was bs=1M, not bs=4M && sync) and burned it to an SD card, however it does not boot. Rather than stress over it I found my external CD drive and just completed the install.
The netbook, an Acer Aspire 1.66 GHz Atom processor with 1 GB of Ram and 250 GB HD, had been set up dual boot, Win 7 and Joli OS. I installed over top of the Joli partition. It booted, Windows appears to still be there and all seems good. It connects wirelessly and I can get to the Internet. I assume she will have no problem connecting to her school. So far so good.
It only has 1 GB of RAM with a potential 2 GB max. Think she will get any improvement going for an additional 1 GB?
So far I am impressed…….. well done!
Generally, the more RAM, the better. A Chromebook minimum is 2gb. But see how she gets on. Having that extra Gig just means she can afford to run more tabs and applications at once without slowing. Chromium can be a bit memory hungry at times, but 1gb is sufficient for general browsing. (If that makes sense!)
I also both have an Acer Aspire (but not an Atom-powered one) and have played around with running various Linux distro’s on a 1 Meg memory on a Dell D530 which has plenty of cpu muscle but spends more time than I would like paging out to the hard disk. Which slows it down significantly.
My recommendation is to goto to Crucial Memory website while booted in windows and run the memory detect program. That will give you exactly what memory modules you need to locate. Then see if you can find used/discounted versions of the module (e-bay?) to bump your daughters Netbook up to at least 2 Megs of memory. If it says it will do 4 Megs that would be even better. Both Windows and Cub will thank you for it. 🙂
Tom
Great news from you, thanks!
Great distro! Great work! Great team! 😉
Thanks, thanks again.
I am so sorry to hear that the bullies at Google used their financial and legal muscle to force the name change from Chromixium. That reflects very badly on Google and it only goes to show that they’ve long left behind their “Don’t be evil” slogan and that they’re turning into just another Evilco like Microsoft.
On a positive note, I wish everyone involved in Cub Linux all the best and I hope that this distribution prospers and that it becomes very popular. 🙂
Thank you Tim, I hope so too 🙂
i hate google and there forced tactics.
I have to agree with Dave’s comment directly above. Not only that, Google’s safety and security features argument is specious and it is wholly without merit.
For example, when GCHQ’s Communications Electronics Security Group in Cheltenham conducted a comparison of the security of assorted widely used operating systems, including Android, Google Chrome, Ubuntu and others, it was Ubuntu which came out on top in terms of inbuilt security ahead of all the others including Google’s own offerings.
Since Cub Linux in built upon Ubuntu foundations, that means that Cub Linux is a very safe and secure operating system to use.
*is
Thanks for your kind words. Sometimes, it is better in the long run to form a compromise and move on, but I agree with much of your sentiments 🙂
Olá Boa noite. Por favor, quero instalar o Chromixium no meu Chromebook Samsung com processador ARM, Alguem poderia me passar um tutorial. Depois que baixar o sistema como faço pra o Pendrive se tornar botavel? Dizem que abrindo o selo de garantia do Chromebook samsung e retirando um dos parafusos libera pra instalação normal de qualquer linux, alguem pode me confirmar. Aguardo detalges, pois pretendo instalar o sistema Chromixium como unico no chromebook, só ele funcionando.
Sorry, but Cub Linux does not support any ARM based computers, including ARM Chromebooks. We currently only support 32 and 64 bit Intel and AMD processors.
Pingback: Chromixium: Ubuntu Rasa ChromeOS | ad-12 Labs
I have been using Linux since 1999. At that time I used Caldera, using FIPS to partition the hard drive, and LILO for the boot. I have used all sorts of versions of Linux over the years. I had a Acer One Netbook with Windows 7, and then updated it to Windows 10. One day the screen broke, and I bought a slightly older Netbook, w/o a hard drive or adapter on Ebay for a very cheap price. Took out the hard drive, put it in the older Acer One, and used the adapter that was with the newer one, (battery still worked).
I decided to put several versions of Linux on my new Netbook, and I wanted one that looked similar to Chrome. These are great working with a USD Flash drive. On my hard drive I have Puppy Slacko, Lucid, Lubuntu, though my favorite is what is now called, “Cub Linux.” I like simplicity of the desktop, and the way I can access my files on Google Drive. This netbook is what I use when I go to McDonald’s.
Thank you, I am so glad that Cub Linux has found a place on your netbook 🙂
Came across Chromixium 1.5 while looking for alternate OS’s for the dual purpose of revitalizing older laptops in the face of Windows 10, and wanting something that not too confusing for my 80+ parents. Conceptually I think you are on a winning combination of features. Both my parents feel daunted by changing to Windows 10. They are currently using Ubuntu Mate on a couple of my older laptops. However there are still a few compatibility problems with other hardware so my aim in introducing them to something based on the Chromebook is to reduce the support calls and give them a familiar and functional operating environment.
Secondly, I think you’ll thank Google in hindsight for encouraging you to create a more stable foundation for your product, and,
Thirdly, I believe functionality (including simplicity) is overtaking complication as the main market consideration. Compare out of the box internet gateways and the new architecture of the desktops. My next laptop is just as likely to be an SSD chromebook.
Hello!!, and congrats! As much as I love Ubuntu, I
hate the interface! thanks for making this Linux OS
finally something that gives me motivation to
not get a macbook…
Please keep it up! take full advantage of the ubuntu 16.04 LTS as well.
I’m throwing this on my x220
but please, give it a better name. a name that makes it stand out.. nothing related to animal
a simple yet a meaningful name that will make it stand out not only among the linux enthusiast but also professionals.
Hello, thanks for using Cub Linux. We will be working on a new version based on Ubuntu 16.04 in the coming weeks and months. You’ll have to put up with the name though, it’s kind of ‘out there’ now 🙂
What is the upgrade path from current version of Cub Linux to the one with 16.04? Will it be easy to upgrade for current users?