Close
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
Read Down
Sign in
Close
Welcome!Log into your account
Forgot your password?
Read Down
Password recovery
Recover your password
Close
Search
Logo
Subscribe
Logo
  • Latest News
  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Video
  • Big Data and Analytics
  • Cloud
  • Networking
  • Cybersecurity
  • Applications
  • IT Management
  • Storage
  • Sponsored
  • Mobile
  • Small Business
  • Development
  • Database
  • Servers
  • Android
  • Apple
  • Innovation
  • Blogs
  • PC Hardware
  • Reviews
  • Search Engines
  • Virtualization
More
    Subscribe
    Home Development
    • Development

    Linux Leaps Forward

    Written by

    Jason Brooks
    Published March 25, 2003
    Share
    Facebook
    Twitter
    Linkedin

      eWEEK content and product recommendations are editorially independent. We may make money when you click on links to our partners. Learn More.

      I was surprised yesterday morning by a message I received from a Red Hat mail-bot announcing that if I upgraded to a paid RHN subscription, Id have download access to Red Hat 9 a week before it hits FTP servers and retail shelves everywhere.

      The early-access-for-paid-subscription deal wasnt strange to see. Giving paid subscribers to Red Hats software update service a first crack at OS upgrades seems like a fair deal, and possibly a good way to stoke interest in the service.

      What caught my attention was the version number. Red Hat 7 underwent releases point one, two and three before it reached Version 8 last fall, and here we are at 9, with a nary a point release between them.

      This is a break with tradition, and I dont imagine theyre doing it just to one-up SuSE, which is close to releasing Version 8.2 of is own distro—Mandrake Linux has already beaten them both to 9.1, anyway.

      Red Hats produced three beta releases since Version 8, and judging from these releases, it looks as though Red Hat 9 will have changed enough for the version jump to make sense.

      Red Hats next version will be its first to support ACLs (access control lists) in the ext3 filesystem, through extended attributes. This feature, which will enable finer-grained control over file permissions in Red Hats Linux offering, had been tested in beta software leading up to Red Hat 8, but it was left out due to stability concerns.

      [Ed. Upon further investigation of this issue with Red Hat officials, we learned that because of problems using extended attributes and access control lists in combination with NFS and the ext3 file system, Red Hat pulled ACLs out of the product near the end of the development cycle. They have since found the cause of the problem and the feature will be in a subsequent release.]

      In the new version, Xfree86, glibc, KDE, and GNOME will all see significant point upgrades, and the OS will ship with an Xft-enabled build of Mozilla, the excellent font rendering of which Ive particularly appreciated while using the beta releases.

      Also, the betas Ive been using include a very nice graphical client for configuring Samba shares, a tool that Id found frustratingly absent from previous versions.

      Whatever else you read into Red Hats version number jump, it indicates how quickly Linux and associated open source technologies are progressing as their user bases and development communities grow. Red Hats aggressive software upgrade moves may be whats required for it to stay at head of the pack.

      This pace of progress can present a challenge to administrators looking to maintain stability on their platforms, but then thats what the Red Hats better-serviced, more conservatively revised, and much higher-priced Enterprise Linux product line is about.

      Maybe theres a marketing upside to this name change, after all.

      How did the hop from 8 to 9 for Red Hat Linux strike you? Drop me a line at [email protected].

      Jason Brooks
      Jason Brooks
      As Editor in Chief of eWEEK Labs, Jason Brooks manages the Labs team and is responsible for eWEEK's print edition. Brooks joined eWEEK in 1999, and has covered wireless networking, office productivity suites, mobile devices, Windows, virtualization, and desktops and notebooks. Jason's coverage is currently focused on Linux and Unix operating systems, open-source software and licensing, cloud computing and Software as a Service.

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      Get the Free Newsletter!

      Subscribe to Daily Tech Insider for top news, trends & analysis

      MOST POPULAR ARTICLES

      Artificial Intelligence

      9 Best AI 3D Generators You Need...

      Sam Rinko - June 25, 2024 0
      AI 3D Generators are powerful tools for many different industries. Discover the best AI 3D Generators, and learn which is best for your specific use case.
      Read more
      Cloud

      RingCentral Expands Its Collaboration Platform

      Zeus Kerravala - November 22, 2023 0
      RingCentral adds AI-enabled contact center and hybrid event products to its suite of collaboration services.
      Read more
      Artificial Intelligence

      8 Best AI Data Analytics Software &...

      Aminu Abdullahi - January 18, 2024 0
      Learn the top AI data analytics software to use. Compare AI data analytics solutions & features to make the best choice for your business.
      Read more
      Latest News

      Zeus Kerravala on Networking: Multicloud, 5G, and...

      James Maguire - December 16, 2022 0
      I spoke with Zeus Kerravala, industry analyst at ZK Research, about the rapid changes in enterprise networking, as tech advances and digital transformation prompt...
      Read more
      Video

      Datadog President Amit Agarwal on Trends in...

      James Maguire - November 11, 2022 0
      I spoke with Amit Agarwal, President of Datadog, about infrastructure observability, from current trends to key challenges to the future of this rapidly growing...
      Read more
      Logo

      eWeek has the latest technology news and analysis, buying guides, and product reviews for IT professionals and technology buyers. The site’s focus is on innovative solutions and covering in-depth technical content. eWeek stays on the cutting edge of technology news and IT trends through interviews and expert analysis. Gain insight from top innovators and thought leaders in the fields of IT, business, enterprise software, startups, and more.

      Facebook
      Linkedin
      RSS
      Twitter
      Youtube

      Advertisers

      Advertise with TechnologyAdvice on eWeek and our other IT-focused platforms.

      Advertise with Us

      Menu

      • About eWeek
      • Subscribe to our Newsletter
      • Latest News

      Our Brands

      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms
      • About
      • Contact
      • Advertise
      • Sitemap
      • California – Do Not Sell My Information

      Property of TechnologyAdvice.
      © 2024 TechnologyAdvice. All Rights Reserved

      Advertiser Disclosure: Some of the products that appear on this site are from companies from which TechnologyAdvice receives compensation. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site including, for example, the order in which they appear. TechnologyAdvice does not include all companies or all types of products available in the marketplace.