[PLUG] Announcing Fedora 8 Test 3 (7.92)!

[Rahul Sundaram]

Hi,

Official announcement at

http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/F8Test3/ReleaseAnnouncement

Fedora 8 Test 3 is here! This is the last test release before the
development freeze and a great time to test all those packages that you
know and love. Test 3 is for beta users. This is the time when we must
have full community participation. Without this participation both
hardware and software functionality suffers.

Fedora is a Linux-based operating system that showcases the latest in
free and open source software. Fedora is always free for anyone to use,
modify, and distribute. It is built by people across the globe who work
together as a community: the Fedora Project. The Fedora Project is open
and anyone is welcome to join.

Up-to-date release notes for Fedora 8 Test 3 can be found at
http://docs.fedoraproject.org/release-notes.

== Changes from Fedora 8 Test 2 ==

  * Online Desktop provides a desktop experience designed around online
services. A preview of Online Desktop is provided via BigBoard, which is
a optional sidebar in GNOME.

  * KDE 3.5.7 is available in the KDE Live image as well as the regular
DVD. The KDE 4 (Beta) Development Environment is available in the
repository.

  * Live installations are faster and require a smaller root filesystem.
The file system layout has also changed somewhat.  System files for the
Live images are now under `LiveOS/`, and a new `README` file has been
provided as a short introduction to the live image.

  * Package management now features much better performance via `yum` and
friends.

  * The completely free and open source Java environment called Iced Tea
is installed by default.  Iced Tea is derived from OpenJDK, includes a
browser plugin based on GCJ, and is available for both x86 and x86_64
architectures. GCJ is still the default on PPC architecture.

  * CodecBuddy is now included, and promotes free, superior quality, open
formats to end users trying to play multimedia content under patent
encumbered or proprietary formats.

  * Bluetooth devices and tools now have better graphical and system
integration.

  * Laptop users benefit from the "quirks" features in HAL, including
better suspend/resume and multimedia keyboard support.

  * There is now improved power management thanks to both a tickless
kernel in `x86` and `x86_64` architectures, and a reduction in
unnecessary processor wakeups via `powertop`.

  * Eclipse 3.3 (Europa), a new release of the great IDE and development
platform, is available as part of this release.

  * The `pam_console` module has been removed in favor of access control
via HAL, which modernizes the desktop.

  * NetworkManager 0.7 provides improved wireless network management
support. It includes support for multiple devices and provides the
capability of system-wide configuration, among many other enhancements.
This transition may induce some regressions temporarily, and more
testing and feedback is appreciated.

  * Secure remote management capability is now provided for Xen, KVM, and
QEMU virtualization.

  * Transifex provides a web-based translation interface to allow users
to contribute translation work for Fedora hosted projects as well as
being able to provide translations to upstream directly to any upstream
project.

  * Integration of unique build IDs into Fedora's software building
infrastructure now provide enhanced debugging capabilities and core
dumps.

  * Fedora now offers easier rebranding of Fedora derivatives via a
`generic-logos` software package. Changes in Fedora's mirror structure
also make creation of derivatives easier.

  * Fedora now includes support for Nepali Language, extending its reach
to many more users.

=== What's New in Fedora 8 ===

  * A major list of features is available at
http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Releases/8/FeatureList.

=== Release Schedule for Fedora 8 ===

  * The Fedora 8 release schedule can be found at
http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Releases/8/Schedule. Fedora 8 is scheduled
for general release on 8 November 2007.

Rahul