Another one of those days that I look forward to …. yes, openSUSE 11.0 has been officially released.
“Looking at the list of Top500 supercomputers, we find that 20 of the top 50 run SUSE Linux. This ratio extends to the entire Top500 – around 40% run SUSE.”
If you have never heard of this distro, as is now known as Mercedes-Benz of Linux, openSUSE originated in 2005, with Novell’s decision to begin developing the existing Suse Linux Professional product in collaboration with external developers, including bringing the community into the beta-testing process. Previously all development had been done in-house.
A lot has changed since openSUSE 10.3, and a lot of work has gone into improving openSUSE. In this release you’ll find updated versions of almost every program, a vastly improved installer, faster and easier package management, and much more. Features added to OpenSuse 11.0 since version 10.3, the latest stable version, include Linux kernel 2.6.25, Xen 3.2 virtualisation, windowing engine X.Org 7.3.
openSUSE 11.0 includes two branches of KDE — the KDE 3.5.x series, which is the stable and older KDE series that many openSUSE users are already familiar with, and the cutting edge KDE4. GNOME users will find a lot to like in openSUSE 11.0. openSUSE’s GNOME is very close to upstream GNOME, because Novell and openSUSE want to do as much work as possible in the upstream release. OpenOffice.org 2.4 provides openSUSE users with a top-notch office suite with a word processor (Writer), spreadsheet (Calc), presentation tool (Impress), and drawing software (Draw). Here’s some of the improvements you’ll see in openSUSE 11.0:
Rewritten installer that makes installation even easier- Faster and easier package management
- Easier system updates with PackageKit
- Easier 3-D effects with Compi z-Fusion and CCSM
- KDE 4 – The next generation KDE Desktop
- GNOME 2.22 – Latest and greatest GNOME release
- Firefox 3.0 – openSUSE ships with Firefox 3.0 beta 5, will update to 3.0 final
- OpenOffice.org 2.4 – Latest OpenOffice.org, with dozens of improvments and new features, including better VBA support, 3-D transitions in Impress, and import support for Microsoft Office 2007 document formats.
- Banshee 1.0 – Major update to Novell-sponsored multimedia application.
- Tasque – Simple and elegant to-do application.
- NetworkManager 0.7 – Cutting edge release of NetworkManager, which includes support for EV-DO/UMTS cards.
- PulseAudio – Better sound management in GNOME.
- Linux kernel 2.6.25 – Most recent major release of the Linux kernel
- Nearly every application has been updated since 10.3
- More than 200 new features specific to openSUSE
It’s now easy to enable and configure Compiz in KDE and GNOME, using Simple CCSM, which is labeled Desktop Effects in the main menu. Using the Simple CCSM dialog you can enable/disable Compiz, and change some of the more prominent Compiz features without getting deep into all of the functionality of Compiz. From here you can choose effects profiles which vary from lightweight profiles with a few effects to more comprehensive sets of effects which may have a more marked effect on performance. More advanced users may want to delve deep into Compiz functionality with the CompizConfig Settings Manager (ccsm), which is also part of openSUSE 11.0’s default package set.
Check out the list of more than 200 new features specific to openSUSE.
Users have two options for installation — the live CDs, which feature a simplified installer that doesn’t require the user to make any decisions about package selection, and the openSUSE DVDs, which allow users to choose their desktop (including KDE 3.5 and Xfce, or no desktop at all) and other packages not included on the live CDs.
LiveCD Installer
DVD Installer
KDE 4.0.x Desktop
KDE 3.5.x Desktop
Gnome 2.22 Desktop
Wine with its monumental 1.0 release
Download openSUSE 10.3:
To install from the DVD, see openSUSE 11.0 DVD Installation. For live CDs, see openSUSE 11.0 Live-CD Installation. As usually I recommend, use torrents so not to overload ftp servers.
Download: Software.opensuse.org
Buy it: http://en.opensuse.org/Buy_openSUSE
Instructions are available as follows:
- Installation from DVD/CD:
- Official openSUSE 11.0 Start-Up guide
Step-by-step installation guide - Network Installation:
- Internet Installation
Don’t forget to check out the openSUSE-Community.org website … a great place for information.
To get help, provide any feedback, ask questions, or get involved and help contribute to the openSUSE distribution, please communicate. There are several ways to get in touch with the openSUSE community, including:
- IRC: #opensuse on irc.freenode.net
- Discussion Forums: newly launched openSUSE Forum
- Mailing Lists: in particular, the opensuse@opensuse.org (subscribe) is available for all support questions. For additional help with subscribing, check here
- For other ways such as Jabber and Usenet, see the Communicate page.
If you find a bug report it http://bugzilla.novell.com and will help openSUSE mature more.
Expect posts on openSUSE from me. If you have some questions, or topics that you would like me to cover, regarding 11.0, let me know and I’ll see if I can.
A huge thanks to all those involved in the release, particularly all the community contributors, for making this an excellent openSUSE release!
Read the following to get yourself introduced to 11.0:
- openSUSE 11.0: Installing ATI and nVidia Video Drivers
- OpenSUSE 11 a redemptive OS with a Mactastic shine
Article By: E@zyVG
Mr.Novell\'s Blog 