Canonical releases Ubuntu 10.04 LTS Alpha 3

The Ubuntu developers have announced the availability of the third alpha release of Ubuntu 10.04 LTS, code named "Lucid Lynx". The latest development milestone is the third of three planned alpha releases, which will be followed by two beta releases and a release candidate.

Ubuntu 10.04 LTS Alpha 3 is based on the 2.6.32 Linux kernel and features a number of changes over the previous 9.10 release, including the latest GNOME desktop environment. Additionally, the developers note that the open source Nouveau video driver is now used as the default for NVIDIA graphics hardware, improving resolution detection, and built-in social networking integration now includes support for Twitter, identi.ca and Facebook.

Screen shot of Ubuntu 10.04 alpha 3 showing Yahoo! as the default search provider The third alpha also marks the first Ubuntu release in which the default search engine has been changed to Yahoo!. The change comes as part of a new revenue sharing deal between Yahoo! and Canonical. According to Rick Spencer, Engineering Manager for the Ubuntu Desktop team, the "revenue will help Canonical to provide developers and resources to continue the open development of Ubuntu and the Ubuntu Platform".

The Kubuntu remix features the latest 4.4 release of the KDE Software Compilation (KDE SC), code-named "Caikaku". As with all development releases, use in production environments and on mission critical systems is not advised. Users testing the release are encouraged to report any bugs that they find.

Ubuntu 10.04 will also be a Long Term Support (LTS) version of the Debian-derived Linux distribution. The LTS versions of Ubuntu are supported for three years for the desktop releases and five years for server releases. The standard releases are supported for 18 months of updates for both the desktop and server versions.

More details about the release, including a list of known issues, can be found in the release notes. As usual the various desktop/laptop, server edition and Kubuntu and netbook remix versions of Ubuntu 10.04 LTS Alpha 3 are available to download from Ubuntu.com. Users currently running Ubuntu 9.10 on a desktop system can upgrade by pressing Alt+F2 and typing "update-manager -d" (without the quotes) into the command box, although use of this development version is not recommended in production or critical applications.

Lucid Lynx is expected to be released on the 29th of April of 2010. The latest stable release of Ubuntu is version 9.10, code named "Karmic Koala", from October of 2009.

See also:

• Ubuntu Software Centre updates for 10.04, a report from The H.
• Canonical releases Ubuntu 8.04.4 LTS, a report from The H.
• Lucid Lynx to include an Ubuntu Manual for beginners, a report from The H.

(crve)