Issue494
WORK IN PROGRESS
Welcome to the Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter, Issue 494 for the week January 2 - 8, 2017.
In This Issue
General Community News
Welcome New Members and Developers
Ubuntu Stats
Bug Stats
- Open (#) +/- # over last week
- Critical (#) +/- # over last week
- Unconfirmed (#) +/- # over last week
As always, the Bug Squad needs more help. If you want to get started, please see https://wiki.ubuntu.com/BugSquad
Ask Ubuntu Top 5 Questions this week
Ask (and answer!) questions at http://askubuntu.com
LoCo Events
The following LoCo team events are currently scheduled in the next two weeks:
Looking beyond the next two weeks? Visit the LoCo Team Portal to browse upcoming events around the world:
http://loco.ubuntu.com/events/
The Planet
Ted Gould: Inkscape Snap
Ted Gould writes that a new Inkscape version is out, being 0.92. Further a snap package is available, and Ted provides more detail in benefits of snaps, and how they were produced for Inkscape.
http://gould.cx/ted/blog/2017/01/04/Inkscape-Snap/
Ted Gould: Snapping Unity8
Ted Gould blogs more about snapping up Unity8. This has been in the works for some time, and Ted provides some history, benefits and status of where the process stands today (including pictures).
http://gould.cx/ted/blog/2017/01/05/Snapping-Unity8/
Kubuntu General News: Plasma 5.8.5 bugfix release in Xenial and Yakkety Backports now
Plasma 5.8.5 is out with its bug-fixes and translations. To update and use it, the kubuntu-ppa/backports can be used, with screen-dumps and links provided for using PPAs.
http://www.kubuntu.org/news/plasma-5-8-5-bugfix-release-in-xenial-and-yakkety-backports-now/
Leo Arias: Call for testing: IPFS
leo Arias wishes everyone Happy New Year, and makes a call-out for testers of IPFS (peer-to-peer hypermedia protocol) candidate snap. If you'd like to know more a link (with video) is provided to the IPFS website, plus guide to testing, summaries of testing days, and command needed to test.
http://elopio.net/blog/call-for-testing-ipfs/
Canonical News
10 desktop snaps written in December - http://insights.ubuntu.com/2017/01/05/10-desktop-snaps-written-in-december/
Interested in joining us at MWC? - http://insights.ubuntu.com/2017/01/05/interested-in-joining-us-at-mwc/
In The Blogosphere
Watch This Terrifying 13ft Robot Walk, Assisted by Ubuntu
Joey Sneddon of OMG! Ubuntu! provides a video and talks about the first manned robots first steps. The "robot-powered suit" responds and mimics the actions of the person in the cockpit, standing 13 feet tall . There is no mention if the robot uses ubuntu, but is clearly visible being used to monitor and debug the robot.
http://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2017/01/method-2-giant-ubuntu
Nexus 5 Compatible With Ubuntu Phones as of Ubport
Christopher McCandles of gigjets.com reports that ubuntu touch fans now have voice support working on the fairphone 2 port. New changes can be found in Ubport's system image server, and can be installed on Nexus 5 or Fairphone 2 via devel_rc-proposed, noting it's still a daily build and will likely contain bugs and daily updates.
http://gigjets.com/01/nexus-5-compatible-with-ubuntu-phones-as-of-ubport/
Canonical Clarifies Ubuntu Phone State: Nothing Really Until Snap-Based Image Ready
Michael Larabel of Phoronix writes there isn't going to be any Ubuntu Phone releases or major OTA updates until Snap-based image is ready. Michael then reports on Canonical's Pat McGowan's responses to questions from Ubuntu Phone users, providing a summary of what Pat said: no plan for OTA-15, Click-based on its way out but security updates still provided for important components. A link is provided for Pat's comments on ubuntu-phone-list.
http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=Ubuntu-Phone-Snap-Hold
uNav 0.64 Turn-by-Turn GPS Navigation App Now Available for Ubuntu Phones
Marius Nestor of Softpedia reports on the latest from developer Marcos Costales’ uNav, now at version 0.64. He lists the improvements in this relatively minor release, including: “centering on POI (Point of Interest) in search instead of in an area, correct roundabout of arrow directions for some countries, and Breton voice support.”
Debian vs. Ubuntu
Bruce Byfield of Datamation tells us Debian and Ubuntu have been in the top three linux distributions on Distrowatch for the last four years, and top six since 2005. Providing a short history of Ubuntu, the article then goes into a comparison of debian and ubuntu. Section headings are: desktops, admin and package management, governance and community, and finally making a choice.
http://www.datamation.com/open-source/debian-vs.-ubuntu.html
Ubuntu GNOME 17.04 to Be Based on the GNOME 3.22 Stack, Now Ships Linux 4.9
Marius Nestor of Softpedia looks into the alpha release of Ubuntu GNOME 17.04 based on the GNOME 3.22 stack. Both Flatpak and Snap support are provided out of the box, and the impression was good. Many links are provided including a url to download the 17.04 daily build, release notes etc.
Review: Dell’s new Kaby Lake XPS 13 Developer Edition laptop amazes
Bryan Lunduke of Network World provides a review of the new Kaby Lake XPS 13 developer edition laptop. As a summary, 10% price drop and runs any GNU/Linux distro so you've got to love. It's still not a cheap laptop, 13" 3200x1800 screen with i7-7500U, 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD. Finally it comes with Ubuntu 16.04 installed by default.
Upcoming Meetings and Events
For upcoming meetings and events please visit the calendars at fridge.ubuntu.com: http://fridge.ubuntu.com/calendars/
Updates and Security for 12.04, 14.04, 16.04 and 16.10
Security Updates
Ubuntu 12.04 Updates
Ubuntu 14.04 Updates
Ubuntu 16.04 Updates
Ubuntu 16.10 Updates
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Archives
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Additional Ubuntu News
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Conclusion
Thank you for reading the Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter.
See you next week!
Credits
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- Elizabeth K. Joseph
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- And many others
Glossary of Terms
Other acronyms can be found at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbuntuWeeklyNewsletter/glossary
Ubuntu - Get Involved
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