SIL's Language Software Development team for Linux (LSDev-Linux) is pleased to announce the 1.0 Beta 1 release of the Balsa system. There's a Quick Start here.

Balsa is a system that runs on an SD card that turns a netbook into a Basic Language Software Appliance. It contains basic language software with a simple to use interface.

Balsa Features

• Balsa is free. There are no restrictions on making copies and distributing them to others.
• Simple User interface; designed for unsophisticated users.
• The operating system and programs are all contained on a single SD card.
• Simple upgrading without affecting your data
  • No need for an Internet connection
  • Turn off the machine
  • Put in a new Balsa SD card
  • Turn the machine back on
• No viruses - ever! No need for an anti-virus program.
• Can be customized to use languages other than English.
• Can be customized with other Ubuntu programs.

Here is more information about what programs come with Balsa.

Making a Balsa SD Card

To make your own Balsa SD card, you will need:

• A blank 4 gigabyte (minimum) or 8 (recommended) SD card
• A Windows or Linux computer with 5 or 9 gigabytes of free temporary space on its hard drive. After the card is made, the temporary files can be deleted.
• An Internet connection to download about 700 Megabytes

What's New in this release

Here are some of the features of the Balsa beta release:

• Based on Xubuntu 10.04 (lucid)
• Distributed as a compressed image file. The compression system we use is 7-Zip. It reduces the size by 30%, compared to other compression programs.
• Quick Start Documentation.
• Improved support for Windows:
  • Windows can now be used to make a Balsa SD card
  • You can easily set up a Windows machine to run Balsa. Plug a Balsa SD card into the machine and run a set-up script. When you boot again, you can choose to run Balsa.
  • Removing Balsa capability from the computer is simple as well. Just run a short script.
• Improved set up in Linux. To set up a Linux computer to run Balsa, plug in the card, and click on a desktop launcher. Reboot, and Balsa will appear in the boot menu.

Here are some other changes from the alpha release BALSA-0.6-jaunty:

• Changed the name from BALSA to Balsa
• Dropped support for OLPC XO-1
• KMFL support has changed from SCIM to IBUS
• Applications have been updated.
• Many bug fixes.