Ubuntu 11.04 Being Released Next Week

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By Kevin Parrish
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Canonical said that the full-blown version of Ubuntu 11.04 will arrive on April 28.

Thursday Canonical said that Ubuntu 11.04 will be made available for public use in one week: April 28, 2011. This new version of the popular Linux OS will sport a new interface called Unity, making the Ubuntu experience easier, more visually appealing than prior builds. It will also introduce a cleaner workspace and a launcher located on the left-hand side of the screen.

"This release breaks new ground for Ubuntu by offering users a PC experience that is stylish and efficient," said Jane Silber, CEO of Canonical. "With this release Ubuntu will recruit an entirely new wave of users to free software. Ubuntu 11.04 is a high watermark for what has been achieved with open-source technologies for the everyday computer user."

Canonical said that the new Unity interface is designed for newer machines, inspired by smartphone and tablet designs. However, the new OS will automatically detect the graphics hardware and adjust accordingly, offering a "classic" version for rigs that don't have the hardware for the visually-enhanced Unity interface. Users can also manually switch from Unity to Classic, allowing for a more consistent theme across a large desktop deployment.

"Ubuntu 11.04 moves away from traditional interfaces, embracing fast and powerful search as the best way to find applications and files," the company said. "This is a trend that comes to Ubuntu from the Web, where users have come to prefer search as the starting point for most journeys. Searching is hosted in the dash. The dash brings files, applications, music and video together in a single location. It’s all searchable through the same bar."

The new build of Ubuntu will also feature a "global menu" for most pre-installed apps, support for touch screens, Ubuntu Software Center integration into the dash for adding apps to the system with just a few clicks, dozens of handy keyboard shortcuts, and a volume indicator that allows a user to adjust the volume and queue, play, switch and stop the music.

For those who are unsure whether 11.04 will be an ideal upgrade, Canonical will offer a free test-drive when the OS launches next week, accessible within a web browser. "Visitors to Ubuntu.com will be able to access a complete version of the latest product without having to download anything. All that is required is an Internet connection and an open mind," the company said.

For those who simply can't wait, 11.02 Beta 2 "Natty Narwhal" is ready for downloading here. Then again, why not wait one more week for the full-blown final release?

Kevin Parrish
53 Comments Comment from the forums
  • retrig
    Oh, and gonna grab some popcorn and watch the religious wars over Unity.
    Reply
  • warmon6
    retrig11.04 Nibbled Nutsack. No matter how much they polish the turd, the apps still suck. Linux has two useful places: servers and embedded devices.
    Which apps that suck you talking about? :P

    All the apps windows (that i would use) that I could find the equivalent of (or run the windows program though Wine) in Ubuntu would use run just fine except for autocad.
    Reply
  • pelov
    retrigOh, and gonna grab some popcorn and watch the religious wars over Unity.
    It's a little crazy isn't it? you know there's gonna be other versions of 11.04 anyway.

    Personally, I'm still undecided. I sort of miss the ol' desktop, but I do appreciate them taking steps forward and trying out other approaches. As always the LTS versions are the ones with the most stability and support (obviously), the 6 month cycles are where you push the envelope.
    Reply
  • joytech22
    I'm going to grab this as soon as it's available!

    Ubuntu is my favourite distro of Linux, it's fast, safe and has plenty of support as well as sporting nice colour themes (even though other distros can change their colour schemes as well).
    Reply
  • dogman_1234
    How large must the partition be?
    Reply
  • retrig: Linux has top notch web browsers, office software, IDEs, graphics software, anything most people use a computer for, etc... I'm not sure what awesome and noble tasks you found Linux unsuitable for, but it's possible you just didn't put any effort into learning a new piece of software.

    ..back on topic:

    10.10 was the best release ever, 11.04 makes some improvements, but overall, Unity seems like a 2nd rate version of gnome-shell. The launcher is cool, but I wouldn't say it's better than something like cairo-dock, which has been available forever.

    Hopefully they continue to improve Unity for 11.10, when they begin using gnome3 instead of gnome2.3 as the base for Unity.
    Reply
  • XD_dued
    I feel like linux's main problem for penetrating into the mainstream user base is lack of a kind of "executable" file for installing programs.
    Reply
  • illo
    dogman_1234How large must the partition be?
    20GB is recommended, but you can get away with 15.
    Reply
  • Tomtompiper
    XD_duedI feel like linux's main problem for penetrating into the mainstream user base is lack of a kind of "executable" file for installing programs.
    This is the biggest strength that Linux has, using repositories for applications that can be pre checked for mal-ware and viruses. No wonder this practice was copied by Apple (Appstore) and expect to see it soon on Windows8 when MS steal another great idea then sue everybody for using it before them. Synaptic is a joy to use, anybody without enough knowledge to install bleeding edge software from a terminal shouldn't be using it and should stick with the tried and tested stuff in the repositories (App Stores).
    Reply
  • pelov
    TomtompiperThis is the biggest strength that Linux has, using repositories for applications that can be pre checked for mal-ware and viruses. No wonder this practice was copied by Apple (Appstore) and expect to see it soon on Windows8 when MS steal another great idea then sue everybody for using it before them. Synaptic is a joy to use, anybody without enough knowledge to install bleeding edge software from a terminal shouldn't be using it and should stick with the tried and tested stuff in the repositories (App Stores).
    say it isn't so, tomtom! say it isn't so! apple wasn't the first to introduce a truly innovative future in modern computing? now windows will be copying the same feature? The hipsters will have your head.

    I love the terminal, but linux of today, and in particular ubuntu, isn't the linux of old. everything can be done via point and click and you can pretty much avoid the terminal completely. if you do try it you'll learn to love it, which is sort of what i feel about unity. Right now i'm sort of indifferent, but i'm liking it more the more i use it.
    Reply