BetaAnnouncement

Revision 7 as of 2008-10-02 14:45:33

Clear message

The Ubuntu team is pleased to announce the beta release of Ubuntu 8.10
Desktop and Server.  Codenamed "Intrepid Ibex", 8.10 continues Ubuntu's
proud tradition of integrating the latest and greatest open source
technologies into a high-quality, easy-to-use Linux distribution.

Ubuntu 8.10 Desktop Edition delivers the features you need for an
increasingly mobile digital life, including 3G wireless support and
guest sessions that lets users temporarily share computers without
compromising security.

Ubuntu 8.10 Server consolidates its support for virtualization with an
integrated Virtual Machine builder, and brings with it a fully-supported
Java stack and support for per-user directory encryption.

The Ubuntu 8.10 family of variants, Kubuntu, Xubuntu, UbuntuStudio, and   
Mythbuntu, also reach beta status today.

Desktop features
----------------

Xorg 7.4 brings improved support for automatic configuration of input
hardware, such as keyboards and mice.

3G support: Network Manager 0.7 comes with a number of long-awaited
features, including management of 3G connections (GSM/CDMA) and PPP/PPPoE
connnections.

Guest sessions: the User Switcher panel applet provides a new option for
starting a Guest session.  This creates a temporary, password-less user 
account with restricted privileges - perfect for lending out your laptop for
a quick email check, or configuring a surf station for guests at home.

Please see http://www.ubuntu.com/testing/intrepid/beta for details.

Server features
---------------

Encrypted private directories: the installer now offers the option to
configure a secret encrypted folder for each user, to be unlocked and
mounted at login time, using ecryptfs.

Virtualization: Ubuntu 8.10 ships with a Virtual Machine builder that allows 
complete Virtual Machines to be built from the command line in less than
five minutes, with support for scripting custom virtual images.

Java: a complete free Java™ stack is supported in Ubuntu 8.10, including
OpenJDK and Apache Tomcat 6.0, making Ubuntu a great choice for Java
development and deployment.

Kubuntu features
----------------

Kubuntu builds on the groundwork of the Kubuntu 8.04 KDE 4 Remix to provide 
a fully-supported KDE 4 desktop in Kubuntu 8.10.

Please see https://wiki.kubuntu.org/IntrepidIbex/Beta/Kubuntu for details.

Xubuntu features
----------------

Xubuntu comes with the light-weight Xfce 4.4.2 desktop environment for those who want a 
desktop that is easy to use, but places particular emphasis on conserving system resources.  

Please see https://wiki.ubuntu.com/IntrepidIbex/BetaAnnouncement/Xubuntu for further details.

UbuntuStudio features
---------------------

TBD

Mythbuntu features
------------------

TBD

Other
-----

* On the Desktop: KDE 4.1.2, GNOME 2.24, OpenOffice.org 2.4.1, X.org 7.4

* On the Server: Apache 2.2, PostgreSQL 8.3, PHP 5.2.6, LTSP 5.1

* "Under the hood": GCC 4.3.2, glibc 2.8, Linux 2.6.27, Python 2.5

The full release notes can be found at
http://www.ubuntu.com/testing/intrepid/beta

About Ubuntu
------------

Ubuntu is a full-featured Linux distribution for desktops, laptops, and
servers, with a fast and easy installation and regular releases.  A
tightly-integrated selection of excellent applications is included, and
an incredible variety of add-on software is just a few clicks away.

Professional technical support is available from Canonical Limited and
hundreds of other companies around the world.  For more information about
support, visit http://www.ubuntu.com/support

To Get Ubuntu 8.10 Beta
---------------------------

Download Ubuntu 8.10 Beta here (choose the mirror closest to you):

  Europe:

    http://gb.releases.ubuntu.com/8.10 (Great Britain)
    http://ubuntu.elasztik.hu/ubuntu.bitmind.hu/8.10 (Hungary)
    http://it.releases.ubuntu.com/8.10 (Italy)
    http://nl.releases.ubuntu.com/8.10 (The Netherlands)
    http://mirror.muntinternet.net/pub/ubuntu/releases/8.10 (The Netherlands)
    ftp://ftp.uninett.no/linux/ubuntu-iso/8.10 (Norway)
    http://ftp.vectranet.pl/ubuntu-releases/8.10 (Poland)
    http://ubuntu.ynet.sk/release/8.10(Slovakia)
    http://se.releases.ubuntu.com/8.10 (Sweden)

  Asia:

    http://tw.releases.ubuntu.com/8.10 (Taiwan)

  North America:

    http://ubuntu.osuosl.org/releases/8.10 (United States)
    http://ftp.ussg.iu.edu/linux/ubuntu-releases/8.10 (United States)

  Rest of the world:

    http://releases.ubuntu.com/8.10 (Great Britain)

Please download using Bittorrent if possible.

To upgrade to Ubuntu 8.10 Beta from Ubuntu 8.04 LTS,
follow these instructions:

https://help.ubuntu.com/community/IntrepidUpgrades

The final version of Ubuntu 8.10 is expected to be released in October 2008.

Known Bugs
----------

There are a few key issues that users will want to take note of before
upgrading to this beta.

  * A problem that could result in corruption of the firmware on Intel GigE
    ethernet hardware has led to the disabling of the e1000e driver in the
    Linux kernel included in Ubuntu 8.10 Beta. Ethernet devices that use this
    driver cannot be used with Ubuntu 8.10 Beta; support for this hardware
    will be re-enabled in daily builds immediately after Beta and this issue
    will be resolved for the Ubuntu 8.10 final release.
    https://bugs.launchpad.net/bugs/263555

  * No real-time kernel variant is available for the Linux 2.6.27 kernel
    included with Ubuntu 8.10 Beta.  Users of Ubuntu``Studio 8.04 who need
    real-time kernel support are advised not to upgrade to Ubuntu``Studio 8.10.

Feedback and Helping
--------------------

If you would like to help shape Ubuntu, take a look at the list of ways you
can participate at

  http://www.ubuntu.com/community/participate/

Your comments, bug reports, patches and suggestions will help turn this Beta
into the best release of Ubuntu ever.  Please report bugs through the
Launchpad bug tracker:

  https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+bugs

If you have a question, or if you think you may have found a bug but are not
sure, first try asking on the #ubuntu IRC channel on FreeNode, on the Ubuntu
Users mailing list, or on the Ubuntu forums:

  http://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-users
  http://www.ubuntuforums.org/

More Information
----------------

You can find out more about Ubuntu and about this preview release on our
website, IRC channel and wiki. If you are new to Ubuntu, please visit:  

  http://www.ubuntu.com/

To sign up for future Ubuntu announcements, please subscribe to Ubuntu's
very low volume announcement list at:

  http://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-announce