The Raspberry Pi platform is set to receive yet another Linux distribution, this time Firefox OS. Mozilla is now working to release its distribution on the mini PC in an effort to demonstrate just how versatile this OS really is.

Numerous developers have made their operating systems available for Raspberry Pi, but they didn't have to make too many modifications. Sure enough, you can't just take a distro and load it onto an ARM-powered device without having to make some changes. On the other hand, Firefox OS has been available until now only on a few mobile phones or through an emulator that can run inside the Firefox browser.

If Mozilla launches Firefox OS for Raspberry Pi, also known under the name Foxberry, it will prove that its system is actually much more flexible than previously thought and that it can run in a multitude of environments and platforms, not just on the mobile ones.

Firefox OS (Foxberry) is in the works

The idea to make this distro work on Raspberry Pi was launched during the latest MozFest 2014, which just ended. Users can't test it just yet and there are a lot of issues to solve, but the Mozilla devs seem to be very serious about this project. It would be the first outside platform to host Firefox OS, after the mobile one.

"Starting with MozFest, Mozilla will prepare and maintain a way for current Raspberry Pi board owners to download and flash their current hardware with Firefox OS for Raspberry Pi. Following MozFest, we are looking for the amazing ideas and physical applications that creative or practical people have developed on Fx OS enabled Raspberry Pi platforms. More details to follow about a 2015 Challenge."

"After MozFest in late October- we are actively seeking the development contributions that can extend Fx OS functionality on RaspberryPi devices to be at parity with Raspbian/RPi as a hobbyist environment. Users will be able to read from sensors and control motors, LEDs, solenoids, slave boards, etc. A modified Fx OS for Raspberry Pi will be able to fly a drone, and to be competitive with other media player OSes available for RPi," reads the official wiki.

For now it's only possible to run a demo of the new Firefox OS for Raspberry Pi inside another already available distribution, called Raspbian (based on Debian). This is only a demo and there is no intention to make it better by improving it in the future. All the developers’ attention is directed towards the actual distro, which doesn't have a launch date just yet.

You can download the Firefox OS demo files from the official website, and there is also a comprehensive wiki that explains each step that users must take.