Distillate for productivity: Puristic Arch Linux + 6 window managers = Archcraft

Archcraft is a rather spartan, minimalist Linux distribution based on Arch Linux, which relies on Openbox and five other lightweight window managers instead of heavyweight desktops. The new rolling release is based on the current kernel Linux 5.18 and makes Arch more accessible for beginners.

Arch Linux made (easier)

Like ArchLabs, Archcraft replaces the text-based installation routine of Arch Linux, which is more aimed at advanced users and Linux professionals, with the convenient and easy-to-use installation routine Calamares, which installs the free operating system on the hard drive or SSD with just a few clicks. The default working environment is Openbox 3.6.1 for the X Window System.

Archcraft with the window manager Openbox 3.61 (Image: Archcraft)

The second window manager in the group is e.g. wm (GitHub) 0.9.10, but the Dynamic Window Manager (DWM) and i3 can also be installed from the official Arch repositories and the Arch User Repository (AUR).

< p class="p text-width">The distribution is primarily intended to appeal to productive users such as developers who prefer a preconfigured yet highly customizable Arch derivative that is particularly easy to install and who value a light and responsive system.

Archcraft is just another Linux distribution, made on top of Arch Linux. It uses window managers and lightweight applications, which makes it super fast.

With pre-configured settings, Archcraft provides you the best out of the box window manager experience.

p>Archcraft

Current software packages and new kernel

The official release notes also indicate the availability of the current Xfce 4.16, which as a full-fledged and comparatively heavy desktop environment under Archcraft is more of an exception.

The new software packages, runtime environments and libraries are – like the kernel – “Arch -typical” on the latest development status.

In addition to Openbox, bspwm, DWM and i3, the two window managers Herbstluftwm and Xmonad, written in Haskell and optimized entirely for tilling, are also on board and form the Basis for Archcraft's highly customizable user interface.

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figure> Archcraft's six window managers

With new skins, themes and icons, Archcraft attaches great importance to an aesthetic and tidy user experience and can be very easily and extensively adapted and individualized. From presets specially optimized for productive work to themes based on Windows and macOS, a large pre-selection is already offered “out of the box”.

Skins, themes and icons make Archcraft highly customizable (Image: Archcraft)

The 1.8 GB system image Archcraft v22.07 (ISO) is already available for download via SourceForge. The official project page on the GitHub developer platform provides further information.

Archcraft can convince

The YouTube channel “DistroTube”, for whose owner Archcraft represents “The best Openbox Distro I've tried”, presents Archcraft and its feature set in detail and provides corresponding impressions of the distribution.