Ubuntu Feisty Fawn Drawing Near

daria42 writes "Ubuntu developers are finalizing preparations for the release of the next version — dubbed Feisty Fawn — of the popular Linux distribution in mid-April. Overnight, Ubuntu developer Tollef Fog Heen announced Ubuntu's main software repository had been frozen — with no changes allowed to the code — as developers got ready to issue a fifth major test version ("Herd 5") of the next version of Ubuntu."

Comments

Re:No changes allowed

[jeevesbond]

This might sound harsh, but they don't care whether you know what a code freeze is. In fact if you don't know what that is why are you reading Slashdot?!

It's not like Microsoft, Canonical didn't create some press-release to tell everyone: 'We're freezing our codebase! Make sure all technical journals know!'

This story got on to Slashdot because of geeks avidly following Ubuntu's development process, which--unlike Windows--is totally open. If you don't know what a code freeze is: don't worry, just wait for the release. The fact you don't know is not Canonical's fault or problem.

If you do want to know: first imagine all the software projects Ubuntu uses (the Synaptic package manager on my system tells me I've currently got access to 20,304 bits of software, so much for the old: 'There isn't any software available for Linux' argument). When the devs start working on a release they use the newest versions of whatever software is available. As the new version of Ubuntu nears release though they have to be certain all the software will work together, so they do what's called a 'code freeze'.

A code freeze means they don't use any newer versions of software that are made available. They just make sure that whatever is now in the software repositories works. The reason for this is to stop any unforseen incompatibilities creeping in when a new version of a software package is used.

Here's a scenario:

The devs are working on the new version of Ubuntu: Happy Hippo. A new version of Firefox (no pedants, I am aware of the policy regarding Firefox, this is just a common software package and something the reader will identify with. No corrections needed!) has been created since the last release, so they import it into the software repositories. Call it: Version 2.

Before the code freeze a new version of Firefox is released (v2.1), with an autoPr0n feature many people love. This is imported into the new version of Ubuntu: Happy Hippo.

The code freeze happens... But a new version of Firefox is released afterwards (v2.2), with an enhanced autoPr0n feature (many people are calling this the next 'killer app'). Unfortunately, this is after the code freeze, so the new version of Firefox does not get imported.

Imagine if the devs didn't do the code freeze, and the new enhanced autoPr0n feature (in v2.2) caused a problem with The GIMP. But the devs had already checked Firefox, but not the latest version.

So the code freeze is necessary, although you don't necessarily need to know about it. :)