Version 8.0.4 of the Ubuntu Linux distribution is available now—via CD, DVD, and (of course) free download./ Codenamed Hardy Heron, Ubuntu 8.0.4 features the GNOME 2.22 desktop environment, a selection of new media features, a selection of new applications, and Wubi, a Windows-based installer that can create a fully functional Ubuntu installation in a folder in an existing Windows file system and let users set up a boot menu to switch between Ubuntu and Windows at startup.
“Ubuntu 8.04 LTS Desktop Edition is a very significant release as it will take Ubuntu squarely into the business environment,” said Jane Silber, COO of Canonical Ltd., Ubuntu’s commercial sponsor. “Our business and home users have told us that they want a longer support cycle to make Ubuntu a better deployment option. We have responded to that and added a commitment to much broader software and hardware support that we and our partners are excited to deliver.”
Ubuntu 8.0.4 is the second version of the distribution to promise security and maintenance updates into the future: three years for the desktop version and five years for the server version. Ubuntu 8.0.4 ships with updated desktop applications including the photo management tool F-Spot, integration with Magnatune and the Myth TV open source TVR, and is the first Linux distribution to include Firefox 3 (albeit Beta 5). Ubuntu 8.0.4 also includes the PulseAudio audio server, the Transmission BitTorrent client, the Brasero CD-burning application, and other updates. The GNOME 2.22 release includes a new file-system layer (GVFS) and a number of significant under-the-hood fixes as well as usability and interface enhancements.
Ubuntu is on a six-month release cycle; the next version (dubbed Intrepid Ibex) is due in October 2008.
