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The Fedora 19 "Schrödinger's Cat" alpha release has arrived with a
preview of the latest fantastic, free, and open source technology
currently under development. Take a peek inside:
http://fedoraproject.org/get-prerelease
*** What is the Alpha Release? ***
The Alpha release contains all the exciting features of Fedora 19 in a
form that anyone can help test. This testing, guided by the Fedora QA
team, helps us target and identify bugs. When these bugs are fixed, we
make a Beta release available. A Beta release is code-complete and
bears a very strong resemblance to the third and final release. The
final release of Fedora 19 is expected in early July.
We need your help to make Fedora 19 the best release yet, so please
take a moment of your time to download and try out the Alpha and make
sure the things that are important to you are working. If you find a
bug, please report it--every bug you uncover is a chance to improve the
experience for millions of Fedora users worldwide. Together, we can
make Fedora a rock-solid distribution. (See the "Contributing" section
at end of this announcement for more information on how to help.)
*** Features ***
Fedora prides itself on bringing cutting-edge technologies to users of
open source software around the world, and this release continues that
tradition. No matter what you do, Fedora 19 has the tools you need to
help you get things done.
A complete list with details of each new feature is available here:
http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Releases/19/FeatureList
== Create and Develop ==
Would you like to play? Whether you're a developer, maker, or just
starting to learn about open source development, we have what you need
to bring your ideas to reality. Here's a peek at some of our new tools:
* Developer's Assistant is great for those new to development or even
new to Linux, this tool helps you to get started on a code project
with templates, samples, and toolchains for the languages of your
choice. Bonus: It lets you publish directly to GitHub.
* OpenShift Origin makes it easy for you to build your own
Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) infrastructure, allowing you to enable
others to easily develop and deploy software.
* 3D modelling and printing are enabled through a variety of tools,
including OpenSCAD, Skeinforge, SFACT, Printrun, and RepetierHost.
* node.js is a popular Javascript-based platform for those building
scalable network applications or real-time apps across distributed
devices. Also included is the npm package manager, providing access
to over 20,000 programs and libraries available under free and open
source licenses.
* Ruby 2.0.0, just released in February, comes to Fedora while
maintaining source-level backwards compatibility with your Ruby 1.9.3
software. Also included: a custom Ruby loader for easy switching of
interpreters.
* Scratch, a graphical, educational programming environment lets you
(and even better, the kids you introduce it to) create interactive
stories, games, animation, music, and art.
== Deploy, Monitor, and Manage ==
Make your machines work for you--not the other way around. Whether you
have one or "one too many" machines, Fedora 19 helps you boot manage
your systems and enables you to be proactive with tools for diagnosis,
monitoring, and logging.
* Syslinux optional boot tool integration brings you optional,
simplified booting of Fedora. We have added support for using
syslinux instead of GRUB via kickstart and plan to add a hidden
option in Anaconda installer as well. syslinux is especially ideal
for images used in cloud environments and virt appliances where the
advanced features of GRUB is not needed.
* systemd Resource Control lets you modify your service settings
without a reboot by dynamically querying and modifying resource
control parameters at runtime. This is one of many systemd
enhancements in Fedora 19.
* Checkpoint & Restore provides the ability to checkpoint and restore a
process and is useful for cases such as process failure, or moving a
process to another machine for maintenance or load balancing.
* Virt storage migration lets you move a virtual machine *and* in-use
storage without requiring shared storage between the hosts--a
significant improvement upon previous capabilities.
* OpenLMI is a common infrastructure for the management of Linux
systems that makes remote management of machines much simpler.
* High Availability Container Resources extend the corosync/pacemaker
HA stack beyond management of virtual guests to containers inside the
guests themselves. Define and add containers in your virtual guests
through discovery.
*** Desktop Environments and Spins ***
= GNOME 3.8 =
GNOME 3.8 brings new applications such as clock and improvements to the
desktop including privacy and sharing settings, ordered search,
frequent applications overview, and additionally provides the ability
to enable a "classic mode" for a user experience similar to GNOME 2
built out of a collection of GNOME Shell extensions. Refer to
https://help.gnome.org/misc/release-notes/3.8/ for more details.
= KDE Plasma Workspaces 4.10 =
A modern, stable desktop environment, KDE Plasma Workspaces 4.10
includes new features for printing and screenlocking, better indexing
of files, and improved accessibility features. Refer to
http://www.kde.org/announcements/4.10/ for more details.
= MATE Desktop 1.6 =
The MATE 1.6 Desktop introduces a large number of improvements to this
traditional, GNOME 2-like desktop interface. Refer to
http://mate-desktop.org/2013/04/02/mate-1-6-released/ for more details.
= Spins =
Spins are alternate versions of Fedora. In addition to various desktop
environments for Fedora, spins are also available as tailored
environments for various types of users via hand-picked application
sets or customizations.
Interest-specific Spins include the Design Suite Spin, the Robotics
Spin, and the Security Spin, among others. Other available desktop
environments, in addition to the GNOME 3.8 desktop which is shipped in
the default version of Fedora 19, as well as those highlighted above,
include XFCE, Sugar on a Stick, and LXDE.
For more information on Fedora Spins, visit:
http://spins.fedoraproject.org/
To see all of the Official Fedora 19 Release Spins, visit:
https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Releases/19/Spins
Nightly composes of alternate Spins are available here:
http://dl.fedoraproject.org/pub/alt/nightly-composes
*** Note on performance ***
Fedora development releases use a kernel with extra debug information
to help us understand and resolve issues faster; however, this can have
a significant impact on performance. Refer to
https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/KernelDebugStrategy for more details on
the kernel debug strategy. You can boot with slub_debug=- or use the
kernel from nodebug repository to disable the extra debug info.
*** Issues and Details ***
Schrödinger's Cat Alpha is a testing release. To report issues
encountered during testing, please file a bug report, or contact the
Fedora QA team through their mailing list or IRC, in #fedora-qa on
freenode.
As testing progresses, common issues are tracked here:
https://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Common_F19_bugs
For tips on reporting a bug effectively, read:
http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/How_to_file_a_bug_report
The Fedora QA team mailing list can be joined here:
https://lists.fedoraproject.org/mailman/listinfo/test
*** Contributing ***
There are many ways to contribute beyond bug reporting. You can help
translate software and content, test and give feedback on software
updates, write and edit documentation, design and do artwork, help with
all sorts of promotional activities, and package free software for use
by millions of Fedora users worldwide. To get started, visit
http://join.fedoraproject.org today!
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