The Ubuntu Countdown Banners for the Karmic Koala 9.10 release are now available here.
There are 3 different styles to choose from, 2 that use a java script and are animated, and one that is static for websites and blogs that don’t use java.
Option 1: “Stars” by Thorsten Wilms(thorwill)
Option 2: “The Spotlight” by Andrew Higginson
Option 3: Static Image for those who can’t use java on their sites
Get your Ubuntu Banner today and let the world know that a new Ubuntu version is coming soon!!
Our sysadmins have asked me to advise people about some upcoming changes to rsync and FTP access to releases.ubuntu.com. In order to distribute CD images more effectively, releases.ubuntu.com will shortly be reorganised such that it can only support access over HTTP.
If you need rsync or FTP access, please use the new hostnames rsync.releases.ubuntu.com or ftp.releases.ubuntu.com respectively.
Access methods such as BitTorrent and jigdo are unaffected by this change.
[Discuss the Changes to releases.ubuntu.com rsync/FTP access on the Forums]
Originally sent to the ubuntu-devel-announce mailing list by Colin Watson on Fri Oct 2 18:44:19 BST 2009
Like everyone else with their heart invested in Ubuntu, I am tickled pink to see that Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala Beta has been released. Our global community of contributors and developers has worked tirelessly to get this Beta out, and there are lots of great features in there including Upstart switched on by default, improved boot experience, the new Ubuntu Software Center, new messaging indicator changes, and lots of EC2 and Ubuntu Enterprise Cloud awesomeness. You can download the furry little blighter here.
But wait…before you go and download it…I want to talk about the point of a beta…it is, in a word…
Unfortunately, nestled inside all of the lovelyness I described are some inevitable bugs. While we have an incredible bunch of people at Canonical and in the community that fix bugs, we are really looking to you good people to hunt these bugs down and report them so we (a) know about them and can (b) fix them and make Ubuntu the best Operating System it can be.
Of course, the whole system needs testing, but there are some key topics which some of us in the Ubuntu land would like you to give a solid test to. It is these features which are new to Ubuntu and need the most love and attention. So, let’s cover them…
Empathy Audio and Video Calls
Karmic ships with a new instant messaging client called Empathy, based on the tremendous Telepathy framework. Empathy is the right direction for IM in the GNOME and Ubuntu projects, and recent additions to it include screen sharing and audio and video calling. The audio/video side of Empathy has had some mixed results for different users, so this really needs your love.
This is how you test:
First, run Empathy from Applications->Internet->Empathy IM Client. Next add a Google Talk or Jabber account. If you see a contact with a microphone or video camera next to their name, right click them and click Audio Call or Video Call. It should call them, they will then accept the call and you can have an audio or video chat.
If this doesn’t work as expected, open up a terminal Applications->Accessories->Terminal and type in
ubuntu-bug empathy
Follow the instructions to file your bug. You can check to see if your bug has already been filed by looking at the Empathy Bugs List.
Another really useful thing you can do if you face problems is to first quit Empathy and then in the terminal type:
EMPATHY_LOGFILE=/tmp/empathy.log GST_DEBUG=*fsrtp*:5 EMPATHY_DEBUG=all empathy
This generates a log file and you should then attach the empathy.log file in the /tmp directory to the bug report.
Boot Experience
Karmic introduces a faster and more beautiful boot experience, but we are still trying to weed out some bugs here and there.
Testing this is simple: boot your system and after you see a message about GRUB loading, you shouldn’t see any other messages before you see the Ubuntu logo on a gray background. If you do see messages, you have found a bug.
We need you to let us know what the text says so we can eliminate the message from the boot process. There are a few ways you can do this:
If you think the bug is a kernel bug (typically when the message refers to a device or driver on your system), open up a terminal Applications->Accessories->Terminal and type in
ubuntu-bug linux
If you find that the gray graphic with the Ubuntu logo that shows while Ubuntu is loading doesn’t behave as you expect, run this command to report the bug:
ubuntu-bug xsplash
Finally, if you are having problems with the graphical login prompt, run this:
ubuntu-bug gdm
When you have filed your bug, view the bug report in your web browser, and under Bug Description there is a Tags line. Click the small yellow circle with a ‘!’ inside it and add the tag ubuntu-boot-experience. This will help our developers to find it and do their best to fix it.
EC2
All new Ubuntu releases (including Alphas and Betas) are now available as Amazon EC2 images. Thanks to the stunning work of Ara Pulido and Scott Moser, we have a great set of tests you can run to test out these images. First go and read this starters guide to EC2 and Ubuntu and then try the tests out here. You can leave your feedback on this wiki page and file bugs here.
Getting Help
If you have any questions or queries about testing and filing bugs, here are some resources:
ubuntu-bug and other tools.
A great place to get is IRC too, in these channels (all on the Freenode IRC network):
Thanks again for taking part in testing Ubuntu and in helping to make it as great as possible!
Originally posted by Jono Bacon here on Friday, October 2nd, 2009 at 12:59 am
[Discuss Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala Beta Released: Testers Needed! on forums]
Welcome to the Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter, Issue #161 for the week September 20th – September 26th, 2009 is available.
In this issue we cover:
* Ubuntu 9.10 beta approaching
* Ubuntu 9.10 beta freeze in effect
* Sponsorship deadline for UDS-Lucid approaching
* Ubuntu Community Council Elections 2009
* New LoCo Council member sought
* New Ubuntu Members
* Ubuntu California is now Approved LoCo
* Mark Shuttleworth: Don’t give up the Linux Desktop
* New Ubuntu Developers
* Ubuntu Stats
* LoCo News: New Mexico, Pennsylvania, Israel, & Florida
* Launchpad News
* Ubuntu Forums Tutorial of the Week
* The Planet: Kenneth Wimer, Collin Pruitt, & Neil Jagdish Patel
* In the Press & Blogosphere
* Full Circle Magazine #29
* Atlanta LinuxFest: Top 9 Ubuntu Highlights
* Ubuntu User Magazine
* Upcoming Meetings & Events
* Updates & Security
* And much, much more!
This issue of The Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter is brought to you by:
* John Crawford
* Craig A. Eddy
* Dave Bush
* Isabelle Duchatelle
* Liraz Siri
* Sayak Banerjee
* And many others
If you have a story idea for the Weekly News, join the Ubuntu News Team mailing list and submit it. Ideas can also be added to the wiki!
Except where otherwise noted, content in this issue is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License BY SA Creative Commons LicenseAttribution 3.0 License
We’re kicking off the regular series of LoCo stories with a great one which truly encompasses the spirit of Ubuntu.
It all began in October 2007, and the players are the New Mexico Loco Team and the Endorphine Power Company. Let’s introduce them:
The Endorphin Power Company, or EPC in short, is a non-profit organization “dedicated to improving the lives of people, with special focus on the substance-dependent and homeless, thus alleviating many of the challenges faced by current emergency medical systems. Additional purposes are the promotion of mental and physical health through exercise, energy consciousness and volunteerism.”
The New Mexico LoCo team is a group of Ubuntu and Linux enthusiasts active in a state in the US in which they live and breathe computing history (Altair and Microsoft were founded there). As such, one of their main goals is to live up to and continue that tradition by actively cultivating and spreading the ideals behind Ubuntu, Linux and Open Source.
Not being known for sitting on their thumbs, one fine day some of their members, with Dave Thomas and Eric Krieger in the front, started thinking what they could do as a community to bring “Humanity to others”. It was only an idea, but they thought the natural step would be to use their computing expertise to help their equals.
Said and done, Eric spoke to his boss at Charter Bank of Albuquerque asking him if the company would be interested in donating some used computing equipment to a local non-profit organization. The New Mexico LoCo would then take care of administrating this material and helping with the installation.
Charter Bank agreed and generously donated 25 computers, a server and several network switches for the project. With the equipment sorted out, discussion started taking place in the LoCo’s mailing list to determine which organization would receive the donation, in which it was agreed that the EPC would be the worthy candidate.
Working as a true team, the New Mexico folks set up a page for the project in the Ubuntu wiki, defining milestones and getting organized through their mailing list. The first big milestone in the culmination of this amazing effort came in February 2008, where they met to install and set up some of the workstations in the EPC computer lab. Of course, with the operating system we all know and love. That installation was a success, and provided a solid foundation to base the subsequent efforts on.
Fast forward 2009: a functional Ubuntu network at EPC, wi-fi, a wealth of side-projects, ideas for other initiatives, regular updates on the project, negotiation of a support and training agreement, and the satisfaction of doing a good job while having fun and helping others.
This really is an example of what we are and what we can do as a community sharing the Ubuntu spirit. It is more than the operating system we use, promote and support. It is the ethos we share, what moves us to get involved and help other people in real-world projects to make the world a better place.
Links
Sources
| Do you have an interesting LoCo story to tell? If you have organized an event, performed some work/advocacy in your local community, have built some resources, performed meetings or installfests, please email David (david.planella AT ubuntu DOT com). Do remember to send a picture to accompany the story! |