The Ubuntu developers are moving quickly to bring you the absolute latest and greatest software the Open Source Community has to offer. The Karmic Koala Alpha 3 is the third alpha release of Ubuntu 9.10, bringing with it the earliest new features for the next version of Ubuntu. The final stable version will be released on October 29th, 2009.
Upgrading from Ubuntu 9.04
To upgrade from Ubuntu 9.04 on a desktop system, press Alt+F2 and type in "update-manager -d" (without the quotes) into the command box. Update Manager should open up and tell you: New distribution release '9.10' is available. Click Upgrade and follow the on-screen instructions.
To upgrade from Ubuntu 9.04 on a server system: install the update-manager-core package if it is not already installed; edit /etc/update-manager/release-upgrades and set Prompt=normal; launch the upgrade tool with the command sudo do-release-upgrade; and follow the on-screen instructions.
New features in Karmic Koala
GNOME :
Ubuntu Karmic Alpha 3 includes the latest GNOME 2.27.4 development release. Empathy has replaced Pidgin as the default instant messaging client. The gdm 2.27.4 login manager is a complete rewrite compared to the version in earlier Ubuntu releases.
Ubuntu One file sharing
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.
Linux kernel 2.6.31
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.
hal deprecation
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".
New Intel video driver architecture available for testing
The Intel video driver has switched from the "EXA" acceleration method to the new "UXA". This solves major performance problems of Ubuntu 9.04, but could use further testing to flag any regressions it may bring.
New default compiler
Karmic uses GCC-4.4 as the default compiler, which in some parts is more strict than GCC-4.3.
ext4 by default
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 by default
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, as automatically reinstalling the boot loader is an inherently risky operation.
Download Ubuntu 9.10 a.k.a Karmic Koala Alpha 3 :
Ubuntu Desktop Edition
Download - 32 Bit
Download - 64 Bit
Ubuntu Server Edition
Download - 32 Bit
Download - 64 Bit
Kubuntu
Download - 32 Bit
Download - 64 Bit
Xubuntu
Download - 32 Bit
Download - 64 Bit
Ubuntu Studio
Download - 32 Bit
Download - 32 Bit
Note : This is an alpha release. Do not install it on production machines.
Bookmarks