Development on Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala is picking up pace, so take a deep breath and read on as I run through 5 notable updates during its most recent development sprint.
Ready… Set… READ!
Grub 2.0 Default for New Installs
GRUB2 will replace GRUB 1.5 in Ubuntu 9.10. This is for all installs starting from the first alpha onwards.
What is GRUB2? Basically, a slightly improved version of the Grub boot loader you currently look at when you turn your PC on. GRUB2 has had a slight visual refresh, and it has been made easier to fix and reinstall Grub — should you need to!
Banshee vs Rhythmbox (round 2)
Ubuntu developers are yet to decide what the default music player will be Ubuntu 9.10.
During the Ubuntu Developer Summit (UDS) it seemed that long-standing choice, Rhythmbox, was agreed on. But Banshee advocates have latterly piped up and now the decision which media player to ship in Karmic is, as of Alpha 2, still up for debate…
Aiming for 10 Second Boot
None of us enjoy a long, meandering boot when we power up our computers. We want to hit power, blink, login and get things done!
For Ubuntu 9.10, the distro’s engineers are aiming to reduce the boot time to 10 seconds. And so far, they’re making excellent progress on meeting this tight target. As part of this effort they’ve chosen NOT to adopt Plymouth as the boot loading tool.
While Plymouth looks pretty, i the computer won’t be booting long enough for us to notice it…
EXT4 Default Filesystem
Ubuntu 9.10 will use the EXT4 filesystem by default on new installs, delivering a significant speed boost for all Ubuntu users when writing/reading files and applications. EXT3 is Ubuntu’s current default file system. Existing installs (i.e., upgrade from 9.04 to 9.10) won’t be affected.
No New Theme/UI Revamp
Finally, a bit of a bum note.
A big user interface revamp was planned for the Ubuntu 8.10 release, which got pushed back to the 9.04 cycle is… Getting pushed back again.
Ubuntu now plans to debut with updated visuals as part of the Ubuntu 10.04 LTS release. Reasons for the delay? The Ayatana design team has proven successful, and many of the project goals they have in mind would better land together.
Something to look forward to next, then!