I’m Anduin, the sole maintainer of AnduinOS.

Recently, I noticed by chance that AnduinOS made it onto Distrowatch's trending list. Additionally, my server is overwhelmed daily by numerous multithreaded downloads, which left me astonished, wondering how I possibly deserved this attention. After reviewing community feedback and comments, I felt inclined to share more about the system's development journey and its background, and also to engage with the community more thoroughly.

https://distrowatch.com/dwres.php?resource=trending

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First, yes, I am indeed a Microsoft employee. I work full-time at Microsoft as an engineer, though my work isn't related to Windows. Thus, my financial situation is stable, and I currently have no plans to commercialize this project. Fundamentally, AnduinOS isn't meant to be a commercial endeavor anyway. It was simply a toy and practice exercise I put together during a leisurely afternoon.

I often immerse myself in developing one-click configuration scripts—something many Linux enthusiasts do—because manually customizing a freshly installed system to match personal preferences is quite tedious. Typically, it takes me at least half an hour to repeatedly adjust settings. Naturally, at Microsoft, I use Windows daily. I find that Windows' interaction logic is highly efficient; unfortunately, its shell tends to crash frequently, and it's filled with intrusive advertisements.

On the other hand, Linux's freedom allows almost limitless customization. In my spare time, I exclusively use Linux and write various automation scripts. My friends and I frequently exchange our automated initial configuration scripts. Being an Arch and NixOS user has consistently reminded me of the value of building from scratch while maintaining an awareness of past actions.

Creating a distribution turned out to be not particularly difficult. Indeed, every NixOS and Gentoo user essentially becomes their own distro creator, utilizing formal languages to precisely describe the desired system configuration and aiming for a nearly "stateless" personal device.

With this idea, I realized I could simply modify Ubuntu's official ISO, recompress it, and create a personalized distribution. Many criticized AnduinOS as involving minimal effort—essentially just changing a theme. But that’s precisely the effect I intended. I’m essentially just an ordinary Ubuntu user looking for a comfortable Linux experience in my spare time, nothing more. Interestingly, many others consider this minimal alteration an advantage, as AnduinOS explicitly identifies itself as Ubuntu in its /etc/os-release file. It is Ubuntu, intentionally avoiding introducing new concepts, leveraging Ubuntu’s extensive ecosystem and community knowledge.

Of course, I eventually delved deeper into Debian's build toolchain, like using debootstrap. AnduinOS's source is more like an integrative wrapper allowing users to insert their own logos, dconf configurations, and generate their customized ISOs. I’m proud it has a convenient builder that's relatively easy to maintain.

Thus, AnduinOS hasn't required significant effort from me—it’s a hobby project I tend to during my leisure time (many know my primary job is developing .NET applications). Curiously, my main job often remains unnoticed, while my hobby projects unexpectedly thrive. Ironically, my most starred project is a recipe.

I'm genuinely surprised and grateful for the community's acknowledgment and interest in AnduinOS. I suspect its "success" lies precisely in the minimal changes—it’s merely Ubuntu dressed in a Windows theme, and that piques curiosity. I recognize this success may be fleeting and should not make me overly proud. After all, I’m standing on the shoulders of giants; numerous significant problems have already been solved, and I’m merely packaging and integrating existing solutions.

Initially, I didn't even pre-install an app store, and many criticized this decision. Some people speculated excessively about my motives, but the truth was simple—I didn't need it personally. As I mentioned, this ISO was just something quickly put together for my own use, later shared casually with the community. It perfectly suited my personal needs, and that's all I wanted. Now, it comes pre-installed with Flatpak, aligning with my requirements. While Flatpak introduces its own challenges (like file access restrictions), it conveniently isolates applications whose behaviors I can't fully predict.

I’ve learned a great deal about package management through this project, notably that apt, rpm, flatpak, snap, and appimage all fail to perfectly solve dependency issues and reproducibility problems. I continue to hold Nix in high esteem. Perhaps, if I ever fully adopt Nix, I'll utilize it to create my own OS.

Many have asked why I don’t accept donations, how I profit, and if I plan to commercialize AnduinOS. Truthfully, I haven't thoroughly considered these issues. It's not my main job, and I don’t plan to rely on it for a living. Each month, I dedicate only a few hours to maintaining it. Perhaps in the future, I might consider providing enterprise solutions based on AnduinOS, but I won’t compromise its original simplicity. It has always been about providing myself with a comfortably themed Ubuntu.

Amid the unpredictable global dynamics, I often feel I could lose my job anytime due to constantly changing U.S.-China relations. However, losing a job doesn't greatly concern me. As an engineer, the worst outcome would be spending a few months practicing algorithmic questions for job interviews. Additionally, AnduinOS might allow me to offer enterprise technical support or develop custom hardware—there are always opportunities to generate income. Some venture capitalists have expressed interest, but I've generally declined, reiterating that this is merely a hobby with no commercial future.

I've also noticed criticism labeling AnduinOS as malicious, claiming it spies for the Chinese government. I find conspiracy theorists impossible to communicate with, as conspiracies are unfalsifiable by design. Nonetheless, since the source code is openly available, users can compile identical ISOs themselves. Embedding backdoors would be irrational and easily exposed.

Certainly, AnduinOS is very new, immature, and maintained solely by me, leading to understandable concerns about potential abandonment or unresolved bugs. However, considering my stable lifestyle and the modest maintenance effort required, I intend to continue supporting it. If sponsorship or corporate cooperation emerges, perhaps I could even dedicate myself full-time.

Interestingly, the engaging story of AnduinOS demonstrates that an OS maintained casually in spare time may hold more attraction. Precisely because it’s a hobby—not commercial—there's no incentive to incorporate undesirable elements. My primary goal is simply to maintain this original intent.

Thanks to everyone for your support!