Ubuntu 8.10 Desktop Edition - Flexible Computing for a Changing Digital World
(Note from Steve: I've been running Ubuntu 8.04 for the last ten months and have to say that it is a pleasure to be rid of Windows Vista with its slow startup, annoying errors and warnings and the constant threat of Internet viruses. You can "try it before you install it" by running it from a CD that you burn from a free download. If there are no hardware problems with your PC or laptop then you install it -- and it can be easily setup to dual-boot along with your existing Windows operating system. A month after I installed it I no longer booted into Windows for anything and haven't missed it since! Ubuntu updates itself via the net and doesn't require any anti-virus programs at all. There are thousands of free programs for download like Sun's Open Office suite that completely eliminates the need for MS Office to read and write to all the popular formats. Try Ubuntu, you'll wonder why you waited so long to join the millions of other happy Linux users.)
London, October 27, 2008: Canonical Ltd. announced the upcoming availability of Ubuntu 8.10 Desktop Edition for free download on 30 October. In related news, Canonical also announced the simultaneous release of Ubuntu 8.10 Server Edition.
Ubuntu 8.10 Desktop Edition is designed for the pervasively connected digital lifestyle. With new 3G network support, users can move smoothly from wired and WiFi networks onto 3G cellphone networks while traveling. Ubuntu 8.10 is also built to be shared - users can start a quick "guest session" on the fly and let someone use their computer to surf the web or check email, while maintaining the security and integrity of their own data. And if that person really enjoys their brief session as an Ubuntu guest, they can put Ubuntu on any USB key and take it home to install on their own computer rather than having to burn a CD.
"Ubuntu 8.10 sees us lay the groundwork for a radically different, more mobile, desktop computing environment over the next two years," says Jane Silber, COO of Canonical and head of Online Services for Canonical. "Our rapid release cycle means we can deliver the elements to support this future faster, more fully realised, and more attractively packaged than the traditional OS vendors. Ubuntu 8.10 has many features that sign-post how Linux will provide the drive and innovation in desktop computing."
"Working with open source technologies like GNOME, Ubuntu 8.10 provides exciting new features for users like creating an always-on system that seamlessly connects wireless and cellular networks," said Stormy Peters, executive director at the GNOME Foundation. "Users no longer need to worry about finding a network - their computer is always connected. This is a great step for both mobile and desktop computing."
Read the full Ubuntu press release.
