Review: SpiralLinux 11.220628
SpiralLinux is a young distribution which appeared on the DistroWatch waiting list in the middle of 2022. The project is described on its website as follows: SpiralLinux is a selection of Linux spins built from Debian GNU/Linux, with a focus on simplicity and out-of-the-box usability across all the major desktop environments.
SpiralLinux serves as an alternative live installation method for a highly reliable customized Debian system using only official Debian package repositories. If the description sounds familiar it may be because SpiralLinux is developed by the same person who created GeckoLinux, a desktop-oriented spin of openSUSE which strives to be easy to set up and use out-of-the-box. The two projects, SpiralLinux and GeckoLinux, share a common developer, common goals, and the same philosophy. They just use different parent distributions to provide their packages.
SpiralLinux is available in seven desktop flavours (Cinnamon, MATE, Xfce, Budgie, GNOME, LXQt, and KDE Plasma) along with a more minimal Builder edition. The Builder edition offers a minimal graphical interface based on IceWM and is intended to help people start with a small operating system foundation and work up with just a few desktop tools. I decided to try the KDE Plasma edition which is 2.0GB in size.
SpiralLinux (which I'll usually refer to as Spiral) booted from its live media to the Plasma desktop. The wallpaper is green and there are icons on the desktop for handling language support and launching the system installer. A panel sits at the bottom of the screen where it is home to the application menu, task switcher, and system tray.