Introduction

The Ubuntu developers are moving very quickly to bring you the absolute latest and greatest software the Open Source Community has to offer. The Hardy Heron Tribe 1 is the first alpha release of Ubuntu 8.04, and with this new alpha release comes a whole host of excellent new features. The feature list for 8.04 has been slowly taking shape since Heron opened late last month. While much is yet to be decided for 8.04, here are some of the new things that have already arrived, as well as a good look at the approved specifications for Hardy Heron.

Note: This is still an alpha release. Do not install it on production machines. The final stable version will be released in April 2008.

In General

These features are showcased for your attention. Please test them and report any bugs you find. If you want to see what the developers have cooking for the next alpha release take a look through the hardy blueprint page https://blueprints.launchpad.net/ubuntu/hardy

Upgrading from Ubuntu 7.10

To upgrade from Ubuntu 7.10, run "update-manager -d" using the update-manager package from gutsy.

Xorg 7.3

The latest Xorg is available in alpha1, Xorg 7.3, with an emphasis on better autoconfiguration without config files.

Massive merge from Debian

As with the beginning of any development cycle, the Hardy one has seen the merge floodgates upon once again. This merge not only brings in lots of new version of various packages, but also a fair number of totally new applications.

Download Tribe 1

Get it while it's hot. ISOs and torrents are available at:

• http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/releases/hardy/alpha-1/ (Ubuntu) BR http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/kubuntu/releases/hardy/alpha-1/ (Kubuntu) BR http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/edubuntu/releases/hardy/alpha-1/ (Edubuntu) BR http://cdimage.ubuntu.com/xubuntu/releases/hardy/alpha-1/ (Xubuntu)

Caveats

As is to be expected at this stage of the release process, there are several known bugs that users are likely to run into with Hardy Alpha 1. We have documented them here for your convenience along with any known workarounds, so that you don't need to spend time reporting these bugs again:

• Due to the too high priority of a Bluetooth GStreamer plugin, Totem (GStreamer) wont play most files. This will be fixed in bluez-utils 3.22-1ubuntu2 in hardy.
• Due to the X server failing to provide a configuration file, the keyboard selection made during install will not be carried over to the installed system.

Reporting Bugs

It should come as no surprise that this alpha release of Hardy Heron contains other bugs. Your comments, bug reports, patches and suggestions will help fix bugs and improve future releases. Please report bugs through [https://bugs.launchpad.net/distros/ubuntu/+bugs the Ubuntu bugtracker]

If you want to help out with bugs, the [http://wiki.ubuntu.com/BugSquad Bug Squad] is always looking for help.