Two days to go…

Right now, I’m running on an Ubuntu 7.10 Gutsy Gibbon machine with no complaints. I am no code cruncher or heavy-duty tech here but I sure am satisfied with the direction of Ubuntu’s development.

My very first flavor of the Linux kernel was actually Ubuntu 6.06 Dapper and back then I was only starting to see the potentials of OSS. Now that I’m on the big and beautiful world of Open Source Operating Systems, the freedom is no less that addictive.

And in more ways than few, I really am excited about the release of the new version of my favorite flavor, Ubuntu 8.10 Hardy Heron. Right now its in Release Candidate but just a couple more nights and I can get some sleep (one hardly could with all this excitement).

New features, among others, include:

• GNOME 2.22

  The Ubuntu 8.04 release candidate brings you the latest and greatest GNOME 2.22.1 with lots of new features and improvements, such as a new version of the Nautilus file manager that uses the faster and more reliable GVFS backend and shows a list of possible actions upon insertion of removable media, an international clock applet that can show time and weather information for multiple locations around the world, the new Seahorse keyring manager, and Google Calendar support in Evolution.

  

• Linux kernel 2.6.24

  The release candidate includes the 2.6.24-16.30 kernel based on 2.6.24.3. This brings in significant enhancements and fixes that have been merged in the last few months into the mainline kernel, including: 1.) dynticks support for amd64, bringing the same power savings already available on 32-bit systems to 64-bit laptops and desktops, and 2.) the “Completely Fair Scheduler”, a new process scheduler introduced in Linux 2.6.23 that provides improved interactive performance.

• PolicyKit

  PolicyKit allows fine-grained control over user permissions and enhances usability and security, by allowing administrative applications to be run as a normal user and gain extra privileges dynamically only for privileged operations instead of requiring the whole application to run as root.

  

• PulseAudio

  The release candidate comes preinstalled with the PulseAudio sound server, which makes it possible to mix audio from multiple applications together, assign audio from individual applications to specific sound cards, adjust volume levels of each individual application, and perform advanced operations on audio streams such as transferring the audio to another computer or changing sample formats and channel counts.

• Xorg 7.3

  The latest version of the X window system, Xorg 7.3, is used in the release candidate, with an emphasis on better autoconfiguration with a minimal configuration file.

  

• Firefox 3 Beta 5

  Firefox 3 Beta 5 is the default browser, bringing much better system integration including GTK form buttons in web pages, a native GTK print dialog, file chooser dialogs with image previews, and icon theming that matches the desktop environment.

  

• Brasero

  The Brasero CD/DVD burning application, which complements the CD/DVD burning functions of Nautilus and replaces the Serpentine audio CD burning utility, is installed by default in the release candidate.

  

• Transmission

  The GTK version of the popular Transmission BitTorrent client comes preinstalled in the Ubuntu 8.04 release candidate, replacing the Gnome BitTorrent downloader.

  

• World Clock Applet

  Integrating the features of the intlclock applet, the GNOME panel clock in the release candidate can display the time and weather in multiple locations.

  

• Vinagre

  The new Vinagre remote desktop (VNC) client is installed by default, replacing xvnc4viewer.

  

• Uncomplicated Firewall

  The Ubuntu 8.04 release candidate includes ufw (Uncomplicated Firewall), a new host-based firewall application configurable from the command line which is designed to make administering a firewall easier for end users while not getting in the way of network administrators.

• Totem

  The Totem movie player now has a YouTube plugin that makes it possible to search for and play YouTube videos directly, a local search plugin for searching for video files via Tracker, and DVB support that lets you watch digital TV broadcasts.

• Inkscape

  Inkscape 0.46, which is available in the Universe repository, is a major update that introduces native PDF support, providing an easy, open source solution to editing text and graphics in PDF documents. Users will appreciate being able to draw up flyers, posters, and other documents, save them as PDF (or as the native .svg) in inkscape, and send them to a print shop for printing without ever leaving Ubuntu or loading a proprietary tool.

• ActiveDirectory integration

  Likewise Open, available from the Universe repository, enables seamless integration of Ubuntu within an Active Directory network. Users can use their AD credentials to log onto Ubuntu machines and access any kerberized services provided by an Ubuntu server.

• iSCSI support

  iSCSI Initiator has been fully integrated in the kernel, allowing Ubuntu to mount iSCSI targets as a block device. iSCSI is available in the Ubuntu Server installer if iscsi=true is passed on the kernel command line at the beginning of the installation process.

• Memory Protection

  Additional access checks have been added so that /dev/mem and /dev/kmem can only be used to access device memory. These changes will help defend against rootkits and other malicious code.

  The lower 64K of system memory is no longer addressable by default. This will help defend against malicious code that attempts to leverage kernel bugs into security vulnerabilities.

• SELinux Support

  In addition to supporting AppArmor, Ubuntu 8.04 LTS includes support for SELinux in the Universe repository. System security can be enhanced using SELinux, a kernel feature allowing fine-grained mandatory access control. SELinux, including security policies for most system processes, can be installed via the “selinux” package.

• umenu

  WinFOSS and the Windows open source software have been replaced by umenu, a simple launcher that lets the user install Ubuntu from Windows using Wubi, install Ubuntu to a partition without having to make their CD-ROM the first boot device, and find out more about Ubuntu at the www.ubuntu.com website.

  

• Virtualization

  KVM is now a fully maintained option for virtualization, and libvirt and virt-manager have also been integrated in Ubuntu, allowing for easy guest creation and basic management of virtual machines out of the box. Virt-manager can be used to administer guests on a remote server.

  The kernel also includes virtio, greatly improving I/O performance in guests.

• Wubi

  There is a new installation option for Windows users. Wubi allows users to install and uninstall Ubuntu like any other Windows application. It does not require a dedicated partition, nor does it affect the existing bootloader, yet users can experience a dual-boot setup almost identical to a full installation. Wubi works with a physical CD or in stand-alone mode, by downloading an appropriate ISO to install from. It can be found on the root of the CD as Wubi.exe. A full installation within a dedicated partition is still recommended, but Wubi is a great way to try Ubuntu for a few days and weeks before committing dedicated disk resources.

  

• Installation

  File systems are now mounted with the relatime mount option by default, for improved performance. More information about this feature is available at kerneltrap.org.

• LTSP

  The alternate CD now provides a quick option to install an LTSP terminal server. You can read more about this feature at https://help.ubuntu.com/community/UbuntuLTSP/LTSPQuickInstall.

Help spread the word! Embed!

http://www.ubuntu.com/getubuntu/countdown

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