Ubuntu 9.10 will be released in 4 days’ time. So, be patient! The Release Candidate versions are, however, currently available for download if you wish to test them out. In this version, there is a host of new features.

Firstly, in terms of boot up, the performance has shown in some tests, that it took much shorter time. Thanks for the enhanced Upstart script written by Scott James Remnant.

With UbuntuOne integration, Ubuntu users can use the service as a storage server and share files with fellow Ubuntu users. 2GB of storage is given as a default. The service allows synchronisation of files, contacts and Tomboy notes across all Ubuntu computers and the Ubuntu Cloud. If you require more space, additional storage is available at a monthly subscription charge.

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WordPress 2.8.4 has just been released to the public. This version is to patch a vulnerability that was discovered yesterday – a specially crafted URL could be requested that allows an attacker to bypass a security check to verify a user-requested password reset.

As a result, the first account without a key in the database (which is normally the admin), would have its password reset, with the new password emailed to the account owner. Although this does not allow any form of remote access, but it can be quite annoying.

Download File
WordPress 2.8.4

Netbook demands are on the rise over the last few months. It all started with the introduction of Asus Eee PC notebook, and suddenly all other big companies follow suits to create their own version of Netbook. As you would probably realise that in most of these netbooks, the default operating system (OS) is normally Microsoft Windows XP. What about other OS platform?

Ubuntu Netbook Remix 9.04 now offers Netbook users the support to install the latest version of Ubuntu on their lightweight device. Ubuntu developers have tested several popular netbooks in the market and separated them according to 3 Tiers:

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After reviewing a couple of Linux Operating Systems (OS), such as Ubuntu and Debian, this time I am going to introduce you another Linux OS that is one of my favourite – openSUSE 11.1. Similarly, openSUSE is a free, Linux-based OP for your computer, laptop or even server. What you can do with Microsoft Windows, you can almost do so with Linux, e.g. surf the web, watch DVDs, play games, etc.

In this release of version 11.1, there are tonnes of new features and improvements, such as improved desktop experience with GNOME 2.24 and KDE 4.1.3. On top of that, you get to run OpenOffice.org 3.0, which is one of the latest office suite and is comparable to Microsoft Office. Whilst this version proves to be really a breakthrough for openSUSE users, there are several enhancement and improvements that we can look forward to.

Download Link
openSUSE 11.1

The latest release of Debian 5.0 has released not long ago. If you have heard of Ubuntu, but not Debian, then it is time that you start getting yourself familiar with this Operating System (OS). Similar to Ubuntu and other Linux OS, Debian is a free OS for your computer, and uses the Linux kernel (which is the core of an OS). In Debian, there over 25,113 packages, precomplied software bundled up in a nice format for easy installation. What is more interesting is that, Ubuntu, widely used and popular Linux OS, is built on Debian OS platform.

Amongst all the Linux OS, Debian is one of those that I would fully recommend to everyone to use it. However, the level of usage could considerably meant for those who are advanced level and prefer to drill down to the low level configuration to get the system up and running. Once it is operational, it is a perfect OS to run servers and even desktops.

Download Link
Debian 5.0

Introducing another sophisticated paint and photo-editing program – GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program) – the next version 2.6.4 has just been released. There are several bug fixes over the previous version.

Gimp shares several similarities with Adobe Photoshop, but the most apparent differences between the two is that the latter is a paid version, whilst the former is made available publicly as an open-source program.

In saying so, it simply means that what you can do in Photoshop are likely to be the things that you can do with GIMP, including complicated image filtering, lighting effects, etc.

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Filezilla is one of the most popular and widely-used FTP applications. Despite it being an open-source program, it has surpassed its expectation by many users such that even some enterprises are using them as part of their work.

There are two kinds of Filezilla programs – one as a Client, and secondly as a Server. The client application is mainly by end users to connect up to the server to upload and download files to and from the destination. The server is the centralised location that stores the file.

The latest version of Filezilla Client 3.2.0 has just been released with several enhancements and improvements towards the earlier version.

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SUN Microsystems has announced the release of MySQL 5.1, the latest release of the popular open-source database application. According to the release note, it is mentioned that this version incorporates features that speed up processes.

The new service allows developers to automatically schedule common SQL-based tasks to execute on the database server, thereby reduces time-spent.

In addition, the new MySQL Query Analyzer tool, which was originally available to premium MySQL Enterprise subscribers, is also incorporated in MySQL 5.1. This tool can dramatically improve the speed and uptime of MySQL database applications, thereby reduces downtime.

Download Database Application
MySQL 5.1

Coming towards the end of 2008, Opera has released to the public the new kid on the block – Opera 10 Alpha, as an early Christmas present to Opera users and fans. Packed several features, especially with the much anticipated Presto 2.2 rendering engine, everyone must be dying to test out this new browser on their system.

The new rendering engine provides improvement to the browser in terms of speed, stability, support for new generation Web standards as well as several other key features. With Presto 2.2, it was mentioned that it gave a 30% speed improvement on resource intensive pages, such as GMail and Facebook.

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Released just yesterday, WordPress 2.7 is ready to take the Internet by storm and with that, WordPress 2.7 RC 1 is now available for download. Released on the first day in December 2008, about 280 fixes have been applied since its beta 3 version.

This version encompasses several changes, including a new Administration User Interface (UI), automated version upgrade function, and several other enhancements and bug fixes.

Although this was noted to be ready for trial, but make sure you back up all the essential files and database prior the upgrade. Trust me, you’ll like this version over any previous versions of WordPress!

Download Upgrade File
WordPress 2.7 RC 1