Posts Tagged ‘Ubuntu One’

Mark Shuttleworth steps down as Canonical CEO

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Posted 17 Dec 2009 — by Arun
Category Ubuntu

Mark Shuttleworth, the CEO of Canonical, the man behind Ubuntu, is stepping down by end of February next year. Jane Silber, the current Canonical COO and Director of Online Services will take over the CEO duties starting next March. I’m not sure what would be the impact of this, but Mark wants to focus his energy on product design, partnerships and customers for Canonical and Ubuntu. Jane Silber was a former VP at General Dynamics. She joined Canonical in 2004.

Canonical will be hiring a new COO and a new lead for Ubuntu One. Mark said the move won’t change the direction of the company. Mark will continue his role on the Ubuntu Community Council and Ubuntu Technical Board. Mark will continue to fund the Ubuntu project as he’s doing now. We have to wait and watch if this is going to have a positive change for Ubuntu or not.

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Ubuntu One Music Store

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Posted 17 Nov 2009 — by Arun
Category Ubuntu

Ubuntu team is working on a music store project for Ubuntu 10.4 with the aim of providing facility to purchase music from within a desktop music player. The idea is to integrate a web browser engine into Rhythmbox or Banshee, then add a link to the Ubuntu One music store into the music player. When selected this link will open in a web browser inside the player. Users will be able to browse and buy the music within the player itself. Any music purchased will be downloaded to the Music directory under  your home directory.

The store login will be integrated with Ubuntu One. If the user is singed into Ubuntu One, they can then purchase the music. If the user is not signed in, then the user will be prompted with a Ubuntu One registration/login window.

Sounds interesting. It might be a good way to buy non restricted music. I’m not a big fan of Rhythmbox though it does it’s job pretty well. i feel it would be easier for them if they could collaborate with Songbird team and make use of their eixsting technology.

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Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala released

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Posted 29 Oct 2009 — by Arun
Category Ubuntu

Ubuntu team has released their next iteration of Ubuntu OS, Ubuntu 9.10, code named Karmic Koala. I have already covered extensively the new features in Ubuntu 9.10 during the alpha, beta and RC cycles. Here is a short list of new features in Ubuntu 9.10.

  • Empathy has replaced Pidgin as the default instant messaging client, introducing the Telepathy framework.
  • Ubuntu includes Mozilla Firefox 3.5 for browsing
  • Faster boot with Upstart
  • Ubuntu 9.10 includes the Ubuntu Software Center. It’s supposed to be a replacement for multiple software installation options currently available in Ubuntu.
  • Includes the latest GNOME 2.28 desktop.
  • Ext4 and GRUB 2 by default for new installations.
  • Improvements to AppArmor and Uncomplicated Firewall.
  • The gdm 2.27.91 login manager is a complete rewrite compared to the version in earlier Ubuntu releases.
  • Ubuntu 9.10 includes alpha images for the Ubuntu Enterprise Cloud (UEC) and Amazon’s EC2.
  • Underlying technology for power management, laptop Hotkeys, and handling storage devices and cameras maps was moved from “hal” (which is going to be deprecated soon) to “DeviceKit-power”, “DeviceKit-disks” and “udev”.
  • Karmic uses GCC-4.4 as the default compiler.
  • Ubuntu One gives 2 GB of online storage to sync and backup your files.
  • Evince, the GNOME document viewer, now ships with an enforcing AppArmor profile. This greatly increases security by protecting you against flaws in the historically problematic PDF and image libraries.
  • Ubuntu 9.10 includes the 2.6.31-14.48 kernel based on 2.6.31.1.
  • The Intel video driver has switched from the “EXA” acceleration method to the new “UXA”, solving major performance problems of Ubuntu 9.04.

For known issues with Ubuntu 9.10, click here. You can download Ubuntu from here.

Kubuntu team has released Kubuntu 9.10. Here are the new features in Kubuntu 9.10:

  • KDE 4.3
  • Kubuntu Netbook Edition for 9.10 is optimised for netbook systems.
  • This release has an emphasis on connecting you to your online social networks.
  • OpenOffice KDE integration
  • KDE & Gnome desktop now share an official FreeDesktop standard for desktop notifications. The notification bubbles generated by KDE or Gnome applications now appear natively on the other desktop.
  • New installer
  • Amarok 2.2
  • Kubuntu 9.10 includes the latest release of KPackageKit.
  • K3b, the popular CD and DVD burning application has now been ported to KDE 4.
  • User management tool from the KDE 3 days has been resurrected for Kubuntu 9.10.
  • The Network Manager applet offers a more robust networking experience than it did in Kubuntu 9.04.
  • GTK+ integration
  • Installing this popular web browser will be a piece of cake in Kubuntu 9.10.
  • For those who prefer the old KDE 3 desktop a Kubuntu KDE 3 Remix is available.

Here are the known issues in Kubuntu:

  • The KPackageKit package manager used in Kubuntu 9.10 does not notify users if the packages they are installing come from repositories that are not secured with PGP. Users that wish to be informed of any packages installed from unsigned sources should use the apt-get command line tool as a workaround. (Launchpad bug)
  • KNetworkManager cannot connect to a wireless network with a hidden SSID. Install network-manager-gnome via a wired connection as a workaround. (Launchpad bug)
  • The “Hardware Drivers” package in Kubuntu (jockey-kde) requires a local package cache to function properly. Immediately after a new installation, this might not exist. If running jockey-kde after installing Kubuntu, first ensure there is a local package cache by running KPackageKit (K-Menu -> System Settings -> Add and Remove Software) and clicking on software updates or in a Konsole shell doing “sudo apt-get update” before running jockey-kde. (Launchpad bug)
  • For Kubuntu Netbook Edition, users who wish to run Wubi from a USB disk that has persistent storage enabled will need to run it with the –force-wubi option from the Windows command line. (Launchpad bug)
  • When using the OEM installation option on Kubuntu Netbook Edition, no “prepare for shipping” icon is placed on the desktop. Users who are doing OEM installations with Kubuntu Netbook Edition can access this feature under by choosing System->Prepare for shipping … from the main bar. (Launchpad Bug)

You can download Kubuntu from here.

ubuntu910

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Ubuntu One as part of Ubuntu – Fair?

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Posted 14 Oct 2009 — by Arun
Category Ubuntu

If you have followed the features in Ubuntu 9.10, you would know that Ubuntu one will be part of Ubuntu 9.10. Ubuntu One is an online backup solution similar to Dropbox. Am I right when I say including Ubuntu One as part of Ubuntu OS is similar to Internet Explorer being part of Windows OSes (though they are 2 different products)? If we’re against Microsoft bundling it’s software as part of their OS, then should we be against this too? Would it be a better strategy if Ubuntu gives an option (like Ubuntu One, Dropbox etc.) to users and let users decide which one to use? I know Ubuntu is not a monopoly like Microsoft, but what if it was and it was bundling it’s product with it’s OS? I would like to hear the opinions of Ubuntu users.

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Ubuntu 9.10 Alpha 3 relased

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Posted 23 Jul 2009 — by Arun
Category Ubuntu

Ubuntu team has released the 3rd alpha of next version of Ubuntu, Ubuntu 9.10, code named Karmic Koala. Kubunt 9.10 alpha 3 is also out. I found few interesting features in both Ubuntu and Kubuntu that might appeal to end users.

The first one is Empathy replacing Pigdin. This enables users to do text, voice and video chats with Google Talk users, MSN, Facebook and Yahoo users.

The second one is making Ubuntu One ships by default in all systems. I have Ubuntu One account and it’s does it job, but it’s still buggy.

Third is, webcam moving to udev. I thought it happened already since webcam worked fine until Ubuntu 8.10 came out. Ubuntu recognized the webcams fine in Ubuntu 8.04 and the picture qualities were good, but starting Ubuntu 8.10, Ubuntu shows the webcam with general device name than the actual webcam name and the video qualities are extremely bad.

Kubuntu is getting KDE 4.3, which includes more bug fixes and new features. I think it would be better than Kubuntu 9.04.

Kubuntu has released a new netbook version. There are still few bugs to sort out, but it’s a good start.

Kubuntu is removing Konqueror as default browser and  Arora as the default. The reason being, Konqueror is not compatible with many websites. I agree with that though many KDE fans won’t like that. Konqueror is quite powerful, but it’s not simple enough for normal users. Users should have an easy to use browser like Firefox. Though they can install Firefox in Kubuntu, I believe the default browser should be user friendly. I hope Arora is user friendly and can run all plugins and websites.

Kubuntu is bringing more social network features using KDE widgets and Kopete, which is good.

Now, lets move on to the changelog. Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala Alpha 3 includes:

  • Ubuntu Karmic Alpha 3 includes the latest GNOME 2.27.4 development release.
  • Empathy has replaced Pidgin as the default instant messaging client, introducing the Telepathy framework.
  • The gdm 2.27.4 login manager is a complete rewrite compared to the version in earlier Ubuntu releases.
  • Ubuntu Karmic Alpha 3 ships the https://ubuntuone.com/ file sharing service by default, providing tightly integrated file synchronization of your computer with other computers and the Ubuntu One network storage service.
  • Alpha 3 includes the 2.6.31-3.19 kernel based on 2.6.31-rc3. The kernel ships with Kernel Mode Setting enabled for Intel graphics (see below). linux-restricted-modules is deprecated in favour of DKMS packages.
  • Karmic Alpha 3’s underlying technology for power management, laptop Hotkeys, and handling storage devices and cameras maps was moved from “hal” (which is going to be deprecated soon) to “DeviceKit-power”, “DeviceKit-disks” and “udev”.
  • Karmic uses GCC-4.4 as the default compiler.
  • The new “ext4″ filesystem is used by default for new installations of Karmic; of course, other filesystems are still available via the manual partitioner. Existing filesystems will not be upgraded.
  • GRUB 2 is the default boot loader for new installations of Karmic, replacing the previous GRUB “Legacy” boot loader. Existing systems will not be upgraded to GRUB 2 at this time.

Here are the known issues in Ubuntu 9.10 alpha 3:

  • The GNOME login manager (gdm) does not yet have a graphical configuration tool.
  • If you install Karmic Alpha 3 alongside Windows, the grub boot menu may not offer to start Windows.
  • If you have internal hard disk partitions aside from Ubuntu itself, GNOME will attempt to automatically mount them at startup and ask for your password. Just cancel the dialog, unless you actually want to work with them.
  • The GNOME desktop displays two mixer applets on the amd64 desktop CD and alternate installs.
  • Building LTSP client chroots currently fails.
  • The Ubuntu Netbook Launcher crashes on shutdown.

You can download Ubuntu 9.10 Alpha 3 from here.

Kubuntu team has also released the 3rd alpha of Kubuntu 9.10. Here are the features in Kubuntu 9.10 alpha 3:

  • KDE 4.3 RC
  • Kubuntu 9.10 includes a netbook version of Kubuntu 9.10, suitable to install on light weight hardware like Netbooks.
  • Kubuntu 9.10 Alpha 3 will include Arora, a lightweight and fast webkit-based web browser. Konqueror is not compatible with many popular websites, so Kubuntu team is  considering arora as our default browser in order to try to provide one that more of our users will find satisfactory. Konqueror is still installed, but in Alpha 3, arora is set as the default.
  • Amarok 2.1.1
  • Kubuntu 9.10 will include the latest release of KPackageKit. New in 0.4.1.1 are new notifications, sweet animations, a history feature, usability fixes and a more robust overall experience with less bugs.
  • K3b 1.66.0
  • New social features that include Plasma widget as part of the default desktop experience for all of your identi.ca and Twitter needs, The openDesktop Plasma widget as part of the default desktop experience and  Facebook Kopete plugin so that you can chat with your Facebook contacts from the comfort of the default chat client.
  • QtCurve 0.65.1.
  • Kubuntu 9.10 offers further control over the look of your GNOME apps in KDE using kcm-gtk 0.5.

Here are the known issues in Kubuntu 9.10 Alpha 3:

  • If you install Karmic Alpha 3 alongside Windows, the grub boot menu may not offer to start Windows.
  • The Kubuntu Netbook Edition is missing the “install” icon on the desktop. You can start the installation from the menu.
  • The Kubuntu Netbook Edition image does not install under Windows (with wubi).

You can download Kubuntu 9.10 Alpha 3 here.

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