BackSlash Linux will no longer receive updates.

This page was last updated on June 21, 2024. The project, however, remains discontinued as of September 15, 2021.

Before I get into any more details and reasoning, I apologise for discontinuing the project so abruptly. I know quite a few people liked this distribution, but I have reasons for discontinuing the project. And therefore, I announce that the project will be in a 'fully discontinued' state as of September 15, 2021, and no new versions will be released. Any new patches to the existing systems won't be released, and there won't be any updates of any type — In fact, there has been none for some time.

Nostalgia...

The first version of BackSlash Linux – Anna was initially released in November 2016, and this was a project that I had been working on for a long time. I had just started learning Computer Science, and I was just too much excited to build something. The earlier versions were no different than the Cinnamon and the Pantheon default desktops. It was the third version – Olaf, in which the BackSlash Shell brought some serious look and feel changes, and the community was also optimistic about it, for the most part. As BackSlash Linux evolved, the last release, Kristoff, was one of the most beautiful looking Linux distributions out there for a while. BackSlash has enjoyed its days for sure, and now is the time to say goodbye.

Factors impacting this decision...

Some of you reading this message, might recognize/know me. Some of you might not. For those who do not know me, well, hope we meet sometime and you can realise how awesome of a person I am! Jokes apart, I was just student who was trying to do something stupid and I was having a lot of fun. Eventually, I liked what I built and I decided to post it on the internet one day and it took off. I can not thank you enough for those smearing number of downloads and YouTube videos, you guys have published on BackSlash Linux. It became so big that OSI 2017 invited me to introduce BackSlash Linux in their conference and OSFY did an an article on the distribution.

I did think of coming back to BackSlash Linux and keeping it alive, but I was busy moving forward in life, completing my studies, working on other projects, and so on. I had no time to work on BackSlash Linux, and I didn't want to leave it in the dust. So, I decided to write down this goodbye letter to all of you, dear users!

What this means for you - the end user...

Well, there are no new updates for you, unfortunately. This website will continue to function as usual, and you will be able to download the older releases of BackSlash Linux. But I probably, won't advise using BackSlash Linux as your primary system too. No support options would be available — support has been too limited for some time too. Social media handles of BackSlash Linux would be kept intact, and you are free to show some love by tagging BackSlash Linux in a post and/or posting on the timeline of the project page. Downloads for prior editions of BackSlash Linux are still available on Sourceforge and a link to the project is present in the navbar if you ever want to visit that page.

The return to the roots...

As I just mentioned, BackSlash Linux is going to be discontinued! But, if given enough time and a second chance, will I come back to it and restart the project? And the answer to that is Yes and also No - which together makes Yo! Okay, bad joke! There's a transition happening now, and Linux is becoming better each day. I'm not going to try and read the tea leaves and figure out what the future looks like in that regard. The question for BackSlash Linux is, "Do we try to compete by offering a choice when there are so many better distibutions?" A few months ago, I thought the answer was obvious and that we would, but now I'm convinced of the opposite. It's time when I take a cup of coffee, sit back on my porch, relax and see Linux grow.

Where to go from here...

Well, I can easily recommend you great distibutions like Ubuntu, Majaro or Mint to move on to and are very stable and beginner-friendly. You can also move on to something difficult, like Arch Linux or Nix, or even Nix on Arch; so that you can proudly say, "I use Arch BTW!" to your pathetic, gobbled-in-shit Windows-using friends.

Like a break up, posting this hurts me too; but like a break up, this is the unfortunate truth and has to be accepted!

I am putting up a Wall, where you can post your thoughts and memories about BackSlash Linux. I will see you guys soon.

Peace out! ✌