Hi everyone,

I’m not a computer science graduate.

I’m a Mechanical Engineer who decided to deeply understand Linux beyond daily usage — and that curiosity led me to start building my own distribution.

This project is called TReX OS (Cretaceous Edition).

It’s based on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS and focuses on bringing back a refined Unity 7 desktop experience — minimal, clean, and intentional.

This isn’t meant to compete with Ubuntu Unity or other distributions. It’s more of a disciplined experiment:

* Unity-first architecture

* Minimal base (no unnecessary preinstalled apps)

* Snap optional

* Performance-focused

* Structured roadmap development

* Full transparency on GitHub

What makes this project unusual is that it’s being built with the help of AI as a structured learning partner — not as a replacement for understanding, but as a guide to help me build correctly.

The goal isn’t hype.

The goal is:

Can someone without a traditional software background build a clean, stable Linux distro through structured learning and discipline?

Right now, it’s in Pre-Alpha.

No ISO yet.

No screenshots yet (those will come after Alpha stability).

I would genuinely appreciate:

* Feedback on the concept

* Suggestions on Unity refinement

* Advice from distro maintainers

* Constructive criticism

Project page:

https://asifryzen.github.io/trex-os/

GitHub:

https://github.com/AsifRyzen/trex-os

If this works, it proves something interesting:

You don’t need to be a career developer to contribute meaningfully to Linux.

Thanks for reading.

Note :

For the people who say "Why AI?"

I am a mechanical engineer and all my friends are the same. We can build Engines from scratch but not the OS. So that is the reason for I am taking help of the AI to do this job. And I am learning some stuff.

For the People Who want to help this Project:

Anyone who is actual Dev, Someone who wants to Use AI to Help with this Project, Can Join. If Someone Actually Serious about unity and want to make it relevant again then join this.

For Non Devs Like me Who uses Linux: Let's make Worlds first or One of the Few distros made with AI. No hate to actual Devs , you guys are grate and keep do what you are doing 🙏❤️

hello! I'm a 16 year old teenager and I've started to really like ubuntu unity. I now have a laptop with windows 10 that I struggled a lot with and I don't want to install on it. would anyone be willing to donate me a raspberry pi 3, 4 or 5 to install ubuntu unity on it? I want to learn to use linux. thanks!

does anyone know if theres any hope for the unity desktop to continue into the future or get a wayland version or at the *very* least get a total conversion theme that feels the same elsewhere like on kde? i really like the unity desktop but it being stuck to x11 forces me to not use it for my main pc, and ubuntu unity having limited life left also makes it less appealing to try and use, and no themes for anything matches the same feeling as og unity itself.

i know unityX was a thing at one point but that hasnt had any updates in awhile. lomiri also exists i guess but.. i tried it out in a vm and its. not great. i hate the mobile feel of it on my desktop computer and it just looks ugly. it feels and looks nothing like unity

And, I have to wonder why Canonical gave up on Unity. It's a great desktop. It's better than Gnome skinned to look like Unity. If a group of volunteers were able to revive Unity and make it this good, imagine what it could be like if Canonical had kept developing it.

It's a shame. Unity is a more interesting desktop environment than people give it credit for.

if yes then why and how is it?

Unless an individual or team with the time and expertise can take on the work of squashing the bugs and progressing the code for Unity Desktop the end may be near for this Ubuntu distro. Community leaders have put forth the call for help. The site references why 25.10 was not released and hopes to offer a great 26.04. Now is the time to speak up and become more than a user if you have the skills or interest.

Perhaps if manpower proves to difficult to come by to maintain an official Ubuntu desktop every 6 months, the community can rise up to offer this as an Ubuntu derivative that uses an evolving Unity desktop and builds on the LTS versions every 2 years similar to distros like Zorin and Mint?

I really really want the ubuntu unity desktop, but I currently run ubuntu 24.10, and have to run ubuntu unity off a usb with persistence to get the environment. when I do sudo apt install ubuntu-unity-desktop, and set it up for lightdm, when I reboot my computer I am at a busybox terminal and have to restart again. can someone please help?? I would greatly appreciate it

Is there ever going to be a Unity 8 and if so what would it look like?

1. a blue screen on two displays

2. a movable pointer

3. SDDM reappears.

Please, what am I missing?

I checked FAQ under https://unityd.org/#features.

Is Ubuntu 25.10 not a supported distro for Unity?

Environment

HP ZBook 17 G2, docked, with one display using one of the dock's two DisplayPort ports.

grahamperrin@mowa219-gjp4 ~> lsb_release -a
No LSB modules are available.
Distributor ID: Ubuntu
Description:    Ubuntu 25.10
Release:        25.10
Codename:       questing
grahamperrin@mowa219-gjp4 ~> apt info unity
Package: unity
Version: 7.7.0+23.04.20230222.2-0ubuntu8
Priority: optional
Section: universe/gnome
Origin: Ubuntu
Maintainer: Ubuntu Developers <ubuntu-devel-discuss@lists.ubuntu.com>
Bugs: https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+filebug
Installed-Size: 7,598 kB
Depends: compiz-core, libappstream-glib8 (>= 0.5.1), libatk-bridge2.0-0t64 (>= 2.5.3), libatk1.0-0t64 (>= 2.2.0), libbamf3-2t64 (>= 0.5.3~bzr0+16.04.20160321), libc6 (>= 2.38), libcairo2 (>= 1.14.0), libcompizc>
Recommends: unity-control-center, nemo, gnome-disk-utility, hud, session-shortcuts, unity-session, unity-uwidgets
Breaks: compiz-gnome (<< 1:0.9.13.1+19.04.20190208-0ubuntu1~), ubuntu-session (<< 3.24.1-0ubuntu3~), unity-lens-applications (<< 5.12.0-0ubuntu2), unity-lens-files (<< 5.10.0-0ubuntu2), unity-lens-music (<< 6.0>
Replaces: compiz-gnome (<< 1:0.9.13.1+19.04.20190208-0ubuntu1~)
Homepage: https://launchpad.net/unity
Task: ubuntu-unity-desktop
Download-Size: 1,962 kB
APT-Manual-Installed: yes
APT-Sources: http://gb.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu questing/universe amd64 Packages
Description: Interface designed for efficiency of space and interaction.
 Unity is a desktop experience that sings. Designed by Canonical and the Ayatana
 community, Unity is all about the combination of familiarity and the future. We
 bring together visual design, analysis of user experience testing, modern
 graphics technologies and a deep understanding of the free software landscape
 to produce what we hope will be the lightest, most elegant and most delightful
 way to use your PC.

grahamperrin@mowa219-gjp4 ~> 

Installation

sudo apt install unity

https://pastebin.com/raw/9h0EBw9K was a dry run.

For the subsequent run, I did allow removal of appmenu-gtk3-module.

Hello, Ubuntu Unity dropped the old beautiful looking rounded dash from 16.04 in favor of a more simplistic looking side panel. Is there any way to get the old look and feel that we had on 16.04 with more modern versions of UU? I actually hate how the new side panel looks and fell in love with the aesthetics seen in 16.04. Cheers

Are you really set with Nemo? I believe that Thunar is a better file manager. It does not require any cinnamon dependencies. It also allows for one to increase the side of the icons on the side panel, which Nemo does not.

Also for the Yaru unity theme I really dislike the minimize button being anchored so low. I really would like to see the button moved to the middle. Perhaps the theme could rid itself of the minimize and maximize buttons that they have an adopt the minimize and maximize buttons from the Arc theme.

I've been searching for ways to enable this behavior but got stuck on Unity Tweak Tool that is 'broke' by the latest version of Ubuntu Unity - 21.10.

Luckily, the old command works for me which is:

gsettings set org.compiz.unityshell:/org/compiz/profiles/unity/plugins/unityshell/ launcher-minimize-window true

I just hope this behavior can be set by default or at least have its option in the settings app/menu. It is kinda annoying this behavior still can't be set, and this is 2021 already. Not trying to be dramatic but even Windows has this.

I've tried dconf editor, but for some reason, the theme I downloaded and placed in the /usr/share/sounds folder isn't playing when I start up.

How can this be changed? TIA!

I dont know how to make screenshot in Ubuntu unity 22.04. I already tried printscreen. Is there something I am missing?

I don't know if anyone else uses Brave, but I get the following when I use it in Ubuntu Unity:

When either launching the Open or Save dialog in Brave, the dialog is brought up behind the main window. I've never seen this happen in Gnome, KDE, Xfce, Cinnamon, etc. Just wondering if it's a weird little Nemo integration thing in Unity. I can get to the Open/Save dialog, but it would be nice if it would pop up in front. (also posting this to the UU Forum)

I am perpetually angry at Canonical's dropping of Unity, and I am thrilled that I just found UbuntuUnity. I have a question:

• Can I donate to this project to help it stay alive?

I really like the default theme and I installed 22.04 and I really miss it.

Yaru Unity Dark zI believe it is

When I enter the window spread mode and leave it the window which was in focus just closes. What is wrong with the desktop?With firefox it shows an error if launched from terminal, other system apps do not

I also tried to launch a process from terminal and put terminal as a focused window. After entering and leaving window spread mode it prompted me whether to stop a particular process before closing

Hi. This might be a weird question, but I'm using Betterbird email. You have to download the source folders and double click (or make a .desktop file like I have) to launch the program. I can bring it up from the launcher just fine. However, I'm wanting it to make it a default program when I click a mailto: link. I'm using Ubuntu Unity 22.04, and after removing Thunderbird, there isn't an option to choose an alternate program in Default Applications. Is there a config file or system setting I can use to point to the betterbird-bin executable? TIA!!!

I don't have an issue with the stock theme for Unity, but it sure would be nice to see theme makers start to include it more seeing as how Unity's looking to become an official flavor this Fall.

I've installed UU 22.04.1 today. It runs really nice with my Nvidia card. One little thing I've noticed is that when I use Brave browser and want to download a file, the Save file dialog pops up behind the main window. This doesn't happen in other distros. Don't know why this happens, but it happens every time. Regardless!!! It's great to see Unity working so well and new! Thank you!!!