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Mandrake Releases 8.2 Beta

Posted by timothy on from the gnice-and-kute dept.

joestar writes: "As seen at Mandrake's website, Mandrake Linux 8.2 Beta seems to be available for download at different places. The new features include the ability to install a Mandrake as small as 65Mb on the HD, and encrypted file-system support. I guess it's the good time to report all bugs we don't want to see in the final version. Very promising release, worth a look at!"

3 of 375 comments (clear)

  1. KDE 3.0? by sgtron · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Why didn't they just wait until April for KDE 3.0 to come out? Or are they going to release Mandrake 8.3beta at that time?

    --
    No todo lo que es oro brilla
  2. List of features of the first ML8.2 beta by nam37 · · Score: 5, Interesting
    In case you can't get to it...
    • The look and feel of 'Mandrake Control Center' has been reworked with 'better ergonomy' in mind. If you do not like it, or do not find it clear, or such - say it now.
    • Several new features are available during the installation:
      1. The ability to download and install updates after the packages installation.
      2. Minimal installation mode, which installs nothing but the basic system. This installation mode leaves you with a functional linux installation taking only 65 MB on your HD.
      3. Encrypted filesystem support.
    • In addition , there is a new rescue mode, with a help menu to automatically mount your old system, rewrite lilo and more.
    • New tools have been addded to the 'drakxtools' family:
      1. Drakbackup helps you keep your data safe, and restore them if something goes wrong.
      2. Scannerdrake helps you configure the scanner.
      3. rfbdrake lets you easily perform a remote control of an X session. Helping your friends get started with linux has never been easier.
      4. New file sharing function makes it simple to export local files.


      Obviously, these new tools need a lot of testing. In particular, scannerdrake has only been on the little number of scanners we got in the lab...

    • Other tools have been reworked (bugfixes, ergonomy, additional functionality):
      1. Diskdrake got support for encripted and network file systems
      2. urpmi and its graphical interface, rpmdrake got a face lift: New 'synthesis file', is almost 100 times smaller than hdlist, which makes urpmi.update -a (reloading the urpmi/rpmdrake database) a pleasurable experience - even with a slow modem connection! Rpmdrake will also work faster, and handle 'exceptional' situations better than in ML 8.1.
      3. MandrakeOnline got now the updates warning feature, i.e. it will warn you whenever you have to upgrade some package.
      4. Finally, 'msec', is more powerfull than ever. Use with care: in paranoid mode, msec will let you happily secure your box from yourself now (been there, done that).


    Of course you will also find all the newest versions of famous packages:
    • kernel 2.4.17, celebrating the comeback of kernel-secure, and a more robust supermount.
    • XFree86 4.2, with support for many video cards only supported in 3.3.6 version until now.
    • glibc 2.2.4
    • Window Maker 0.8
    • apache 1.3.22
    • evolution 1.01
    • kde 2.2.2
    • galeon 1.0
    • mozilla 0.9.7
    --
    The two rules for success are:
    1) Never tell them everything you know.
  3. Mandrake is evolving too slowly by bryanbrunton · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Mandrake has lost their position as "Newbie Linux of Choice".

    While I use Mandrake and have purchased every standard version that they ever released, I really feel that Mandrake is being left behind in the useability department by the likes of SuSE and many of the upcoming newbiew friendly distros like Redmond Linux. The real nit that I have with Mandrake is total lack of cohesion between the Drake Applications. Many of these applications really pioneered new functionality for the linux desktop, but they haven't grown together like applications from KDE, Gnome, Ximian, etc. They all function/look/act differently.

    Why hasn't someone inside of Mandrake taken pieces from the KDE and Gnome design standards and attempted to apply some uniformity between the applications that Mandrakes designs? It simply boggles the mind that tools like RPMDrake can be so poorly designed.

    And what about ICONS!!!! The Mandrake icons and the menu system itself are both totally unprofessional. Can Mandrake afford to pay an icon designer who knows how to make icons in more than two shades of blue?

    So what do we attribute the stagnification of Mandrake to? Is Mandrake's development model too open? No one within Mandrake has the guts or the brains to stand up and say: "No, we shouldn't be designed 20 applications that all look and function differently. There is a reason why KDE and Gnome came into existence." Then again, perhaps it is just the bureacratic chaos and momentum that surrounds Mandrake.