Ubuntu 9.10 Karmic Koala is out. The demand for ISOs is incredible, so bit torrent is the preferred method. The mirrors are:

Ubuntu 9.10

• ubuntu-9.10-alternate-amd64.iso.torrent
• ubuntu-9.10-alternate-i386.iso.torrent
• ubuntu-9.10-desktop-amd64.iso.torrent
• ubuntu-9.10-desktop-i386.iso.torrent
• ubuntu-9.10-server-amd64.iso.torrent
• ubuntu-9.10-server-i386.iso.torrent
• New: IPv6 only torrents for users of IPv6 (learn more about IPv6)

Even getting to the torrent file via http is incredibly slow. I have a copy of the torrent file (not the ISO) at http://opensource.sfsu.edu/files/ubuntu-9.10-desktop-i386.iso.torrent It should be a lot faster to get the *.torrent on campus :-) I also have a couple of bit torrent downloads running on campus. I'll leave these running in the hopes that if you decide to download Karmic's awesomeness you'll get the bits from within 130.212.0.0/16

I've noticed how fast Jaunty is on my Thinkpad X300. Well, I timed it today:

• Power on: 0:00
• Thinkpad bootsplash clears: 5:26
• Grub text clears: 10:50
• Ubuntu progress bar appears: 15:07
• Ubuntu progress bar finishes: 22:98
•  GDM login prompt: 26:52

There you go. < 26.52 seconds. 

Before you wonder what sabdfl is, it stands for Self-Appointed Benevolent Dictator For Life, a title assigned to Mark Shuttleworth. Its a meritocracy, not a democracy! Mark was interviewed by Jorge Castro online after the release of Jaunty Jackalope, the code name for Ubuntu 9.04. The full interview is up at https://wiki.ubuntu.com/MeetingLogs/openweekJaunty/AskMark Here are some excerpts:

Cloud computing is very popular these days. You are almost worthless if you can't wing it about cloud computing. It goes well with hand gestures... "Don't worry, it all happens over there in the cloud". A cure-all for 2009.

If you always wanted your very own cloud, but didn't know how, here's your chance. A DIY cloud project called EUCALYPTUS from the good folks at UC, Santa Barbara (my tax dollars at work!). From their website:

I came across a nice step-by-step article on how to build firewalls using Debian or Ubuntu. Firewall Builder is available from the libfwbuilder and fwbuilder packages in both Debian and Ubuntu (in Universe).   Read the article in full at http://www.debian-administration.org/articles/632

Remember Seinfeld and the "No soup for you" episode? The Soup Nazi would get upset and say "No soup for you" just like that. Well, I was looking at screenshots of Windows 7 (I still haven't tried it) and saw this screen. It reminded me of the Soup Nazi. Just like that, if you are using the Starter Edition (whatever that means) of Windows 7, the Windows thingamajig will step in and say "No apps for you" . Try Ubuntu instead. No Soup Nazis there!

I'm not so sure if I should rejoice after seeing this bit of news on one of the LUGs. I usually avoid anything that Dvorak says. Its just rant special, and not much else. Therefore, with mixed feelings, I post:

"Every so often I take a stab at Linux, to see exactly what I like and do not like about the OS. Many of its problems, for me, stem from its inability to run on my overloaded hardware, or the occasional driver that makes the OS impossible to use without hand-tweaking something or other. That said, I seriously like the Ubuntu 8.10 implementation and will now install it permanently on my latest machines. It's a winner. "

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From Slashdot: http://linux.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=09/02/06/177231&from=rss

...a new custom version of Ubuntu aimed at netbooks and based on 8.04 Hardy Heron has been released by HP. Targeted to the HP Mini 1000 Mi, the netbook customization comes complete with OpenOffice, Firefox, Thunderbird, Sunbird, Pidgin, and a few others. "Overall, HP has created one of the best thought out Linux interfaces for netbooks. The software is designed so that users who have never used Linux should have no trouble performing basic tasks. But experienced Linux users can always fire up a terminal window by hitting Alt+F2 and entering 'gnome-terminal.'"

Just saw this in my inbox from the edubuntu-education list. The archived version is posted at https://lists.ubuntu.com/archives/ubuntu-education/2009-January/000187.html

I wanted to release this on the Ubuntu Education list first.  I am proud to announce that Addison Community Schools in Addison, MI, USA has chosen Ubuntu Linux for our Mobile Computer Lab.  The hardware is Samsung NC10 Netbooks and with the excellent help provided by the following sources I was able to provide a compelling argument for Ubuntu:

http://nc10linux.wordpress.com - The #1 source for helping Ubuntu the obvious choice over Windows on the NC10.
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/NC10 - The mouse can be a bit wild.  The instructions here brought it under control.

I tested WIndows XP Pro and Windows 7 Beta (Windows Vista wasn't even a possibility) and both did well.  However neither could provide any reason to spend the money for the licenses.  I put the finished product in front of students and they were very happy with it.  This brought me to the conclusion that the operating system is irrelevant.  The students need a web browser and an office suite to get their work done.  With our use of Google Apps even the office suite is becoming irrelevant.

Thanks for the great work that all developers have done on Ubuntu and other Open Source projects.  You are enabling small rural school districts like ours to focus what little money we have on getting better hardware and not on license after license.  Microsoft can "donate" as many licenses as they want to TechSoup and the like, it doesn't change the fact that the Open Source Community is producing excellent software.

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