[Linuxcommand-announce] [LinuxCommand.org: Tips, News And Rants] Project: Getting Ready For Ubuntu 10...

[William S. <bs...@pa...>]

As you have probably heard, the next release of Ubuntu, 10.04 ("Lucid
Lynx") will occur during the final days of April 2010. My production
systems (the ones on which I do my writing and photography) are running
Ubuntu 8.04 and I have decided to upgrade them to the upcoming version.
This is the first of five-part series that will document my transition
to the new version.

The 10.04 version, like the earlier 8.04 and 6.06 releases, is a
so-called LTS or Long Term Support version of Ubuntu. This means that
it receives security and bug fixes (but not application version
upgrades) for a period of three years. This differs from the usual
eighteen month support period for ordinary Ubuntu releases. I have used
the LTS versions for several years and feel that it is the best choice
for my production systems. I use a lot of Linux distros in my work, but
for the machines I must rely on, I choose stability over the latest
features. For example, my server systems are running CentOS 4 which
first appeared in early 2005 and is still supported by Red Hat and the
CentOS team. In fact, the main reason I switched from Red Hat (Fedora)
to Ubuntu for my desktop systems was the availability of the Long Term
Support versions, a feature that Fedora does not offer.

The Opportunity

In a past life, I ran the QA department of a software company and I
often employ these skills to perform software testing on new Linux
releases. This case will be no different. The first beta release of
10.04 is scheduled for March 18 so we will begin our work then. Testing
is not just something I do for fun (it isn't) but it's important to
look for problems that might interfere with the deployment. By checking
for problems now, we have a better chance of getting them fixed before
the final release.

The Mission

Our mission is to upgrade the production systems while preserving the
existing data and functionality of the current systems. We'll also look
for exciting new features and applications that will enhance their
productive capacity. We will probably do a little scripting and system
administration along the way, too :-)

The Players

The two production systems involved are my Dell Inspiron 530N (which
originally shipped with Ubuntu 8.04 factory installed) and my IBM
ThinkPad T41 laptop. We'll also use my main test computer, a Dell
Dimension 2400N which is currently hosting our All-Text Linux
Workstation. We might also take a look at the 10.04 Netbook Remix
version to see if it offers any compelling reasons for upgrading my two
netbooks, which are now running 9.04 UNR.

Stay tuned. This ought to be fun.

Further Reading


- Ubuntu LTS
- Lucid Lynx Release Schedule
- Lucid Lynx Technical Overview





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Posted By William Shotts to LinuxCommand.org: Tips, News And Rants at
3/09/2010 02:29:00 AM