Bodhi Linux 3.0.0 Road Map/FAQ and Donation Drive Updates

The Here and Now - What is going on with Bodhi 2.x.y

In September of last year I posted a notice that the Bodhi 2.x.y update release cycle would be moving to releases three times a year. Then I went and made a liar out of myself when we didn't have a 2.5.0 release in January. For the sake of clarity I would like to let folks know that Bodhi 2.4.0 will be the last set of updated discs in our 2.x.y release cycle.

That being said - our 2.x.y software repositories will keep seeing their normal software updates through the summer of 2014. After this point the 2.x.y release will be moved into "security updates only" mode. Meaning the only changes to software in the 2.x.y repos at that point will be to patch security vulnerabilities. 2.x.y will continue getting security updates until 2017 when Ubuntu 12.04 reaches its end of life.

The Future - Plans for Bodhi 3.x.y

Our plan for major releases has always been every two years just after a new Ubuntu LTS release. This coming summer will mark our third major release - Bodhi 3.0.0. First, lets cover a few FAQs I've been getting regarding this new major release.

Q: Will you continue to support non-PAE Processors?

A: Yep. I do not currently know which kernel version we will be using on our non-PAE disc, but we will continue producing an ISO image that works on older non-PAE computers.

Q: Which version of Enlightenment will you use?

A: Unless I am able to beat E18 into a form I confident is consumable for "normal" users Bodhi 3.0.0 will continue to use the E17 desktop by default. Regardless of which desktop we ship with by default - both desktops will be easily accessible/swappable in our repositories.

Q: If you do use E18+ by default, what happens to systems that do not support compositing?

A: In case you were unaware, one of the "features" E18 brought with it is that compositing is now non-optional. We know that there are still plenty of useful computers out there that don't support this software. Because of this our non-PAE disc will always use E17. It will be the go to disc for running Bodhi on older hardware.

Q: What is the release cycle/date for Bodhi 3.0.0?

A: Because this is a major release, we will have a series of ISO image releases in order to thoroughly test this new base before we call things "stable". Right now the rough outline of release dates I have in my head looks like:

• March 2nd - Alpha Release
• April 27th - Beta Release
• May 30th - Release Candidate
• June 27th - Release Candidate 2
• August 2nd - Stable Release

That being said, I stick firmly to my "its ready when its ready" ideology. Meaning that if I am not content with what our 3.0.0 release currently looks like come the end of June - I will delay in releasing it. Bodhi 2.4.0 is solid release and I am in no rush to replace it with something that isn't equally stable.

If you have any questions that I did not cover above - please feel free to post them below in the form of a comment or post them at our user forums.

Bodhi 2014 Donation Drive Updates

In case you missed it, last month I posted about a promotion to drum up donations for the Bodhi project. As you can see here our January donation totals were fantastic. I'd like to thank everyone for the support they continue to show our project - without you we wouldn't exist. Remember - you have until the end of March to show your support before we pick a winner for a Bodhi powered netbook!

Cheers,
~Jeff Hoogland