news 28 Posted January 5, 2016 Welcome to the Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter, Issue 448 for the weeks of December 21, 2015 - January 3, 2016. == Links to UWN == * Wiki page: https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbuntuWeeklyNewsletter/Issue448 == In This Issue == * Mourning the loss of Debian founder Ian Murdock * UbuCon Summit * Ubuntu Stats * VII Central America Free Software Summit * LoCo Events * Ian Weisser: Are you ready for new members? * Daniel Holbach: The world of Snappy at UbuCon Summit * Kevin DuBois: New Mir Release (0.18) * Dustin Kirkland: More people use Ubuntu than anyone actually knows * Julian Andres Klode: Much faster incremental apt updates * Paul White: My Ubuntu year - 2015 * Ubuntu Cloud News * In The Blogosphere * Full Circle Magazine #104 * Featured Audio and Video * Upcoming Meetings and Events * Updates and Security for 12.04, 14.04, 15.04 and 15.10 * And much more! == General Community News == === Mourning the loss of Debian founder Ian Murdock === Ubuntu is based on Debian, which was founded in August of 1993 by Ian Murdock. Ian passed away on Monday, December 28th at the age of 42. The loss has been felt throughout our community and beyond. The following are the official announcements from Debian and Docker (employer at time of his passing), as well as a collection of memorial posts published to the Ubuntu Planet. * Debian mourns the passing of Ian Murdock - https://bits.debian.org/2015/12/mourning-ian-murdock.html * In Memoriam: Ian Murdock - https://blog.docker.com/2015/12/ian-murdock/ * Jono Bacon: In Memory of Ian Murdock - http://www.jonobacon.org/2015/12/30/in-memory-of-ian-murdock/ * Marcin Juszkiewicz: Ian Murdock passed away - https://marcin.juszkiewicz.com.pl/2015/12/30/ian-murdock-passed-away/ * Lubuntu Blog: In Memory of Ian Murdock - http://lubuntu.me/in-memory-of-ian-murdock/ * Benjamin Kerensa: Remembering Ian Murdock - http://benjaminkerensa.com/2015/12/30/remembering-ian-murdock === UbuCon Summit === The UbuCon Summit is coming up on January 21-22 in Pasadena, California. "Join us at the UbuCon Summit for two days of Ubuntu talks by the best experts in the community and to discuss and shape the future of Ubuntu. The Summit is the evolution of UbuCon as a bigger a multi-track, multi-day event to learn, share and collaborate around Ubuntu as a project." Details at: http://ubucon.org/en/events/ubucon-summit-us/ The following articles have been written over the past few weeks about the upcoming event. * UbuCon Summit Conference to Start in One Month in California - http://news.softpedia.com/news/ubucon-summit-conference-to-start-in-one-month-in-california-497873.shtml * UbuCon Summit Brings Back the In-Person Ubuntu Conference - http://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2015/12/ubucon-summit-brings-back-in-person-conferences == Ubuntu Stats == === Bug Stats === * Open (120472) -726 over last 2 weeks * Critical (302) +11 over last 2 weeks * Unconfirmed (59758) -720 over last 2 weeks As always, the Bug Squad needs more help. If you want to get started, please see https://wiki.ubuntu.com/BugSquad === Ask Ubuntu Top 5 Questions this week === ==== Most Active Questions ==== * When counting lines with wc, don't print an error whenever is a directory http://askubuntu.com/questions/715974/when-counting-lines-with-wc-dont-print-an-error-whenever-is-a-directory * How to set the default program to open a certain file type in a certain folder? http://askubuntu.com/questions/714196/how-to-set-the-default-program-to-open-a-certain-file-type-in-a-certain-folder * Does upgrading Ubuntu kernel change its release name? http://askubuntu.com/questions/714612/does-upgrading-ubuntu-kernel-change-its-release-name * Why do some python scripts begin with #!/usr/bin/env python? [on hold] http://askubuntu.com/questions/716280/why-do-some-python-scripts-begin-with-usr-bin-env-python * How can I force sudo to always ask for a password after waking from suspend? http://askubuntu.com/questions/716419/how-can-i-force-sudo-to-always-ask-for-a-password-after-waking-from-suspend ==== Top Voted New Questions ==== * How to set the default program to open a certain file type in a certain folder? http://askubuntu.com/questions/714196/ * How can I force sudo to always ask for a password after waking from suspend? http://askubuntu.com/questions/716419/ * When counting lines with wc, don't print an error whenever is a directory http://askubuntu.com/questions/715974/ * How to lock screen 30 minutes after unlock http://askubuntu.com/questions/715721/ * Does upgrading Ubuntu kernel change its release name? http://askubuntu.com/questions/714612/ People Contributing the best questions and answers this week: Jacob Vlijm (http://askubuntu.com/users/72216/jacob-vlijm), cl-netbox (http://askubuntu.com/users/260935/cl-netbox), muru (http://askubuntu.com/users/158442/muru), A.B. (http://askubuntu.com/users/367165/a- and kos (http://askubuntu.com/users/380067/kos) Ask (and answer!) questions at http://askubuntu.com == LoCo News == === VII Central America Free Software Summit === Diego Turcios shares goals, photos and thanks to sponsors of the recent Central American Free Software Summit. He writes of Canonical and local Ubuntu enthusiasts "its communities have done a terrific job promoting Ubuntu on the region." http://diegoturcios.blogspot.com/2015/12/vii-central-america-free-software-summit.html == LoCo Events == The following LoCo team events are currently scheduled in the next two weeks: * West side Ubuntu Hour, Arizona LoCo Team: http://loco.ubuntu.com/events/ubuntu-arizona/3274-west-side-ubuntu-hour/ * Corvallis Ubuntu Hour, Ubuntu Oregon LoCo: http://loco.ubuntu.com/events/ubuntu-us-or/3283-corvallis-ubuntu-hour/ * Tempe Ubuntu Hour, Arizona LoCo Team: http://loco.ubuntu.com/events/ubuntu-arizona/3270-tempe-ubuntu-hour/ * Ubuntu Hour San Francisco, Ubuntu California: http://loco.ubuntu.com/events/ubuntu-california/3284-ubuntu-hour-san-francisco/ * Monthly meeting, FOSS User Group at Natick Community-Senior Center, Ubuntu Massachusetts LoCo: http://loco.ubuntu.com/events/ubuntu-us-ma/3252-monthly-meeting,-foss-user-group-at-natick-community-senior-center/ * Az Loco Installfest/Linux and open source workshop, Arizona LoCo Team: http://loco.ubuntu.com/events/ubuntu-arizona/3267-az-loco-installfest/linux-and-open-source-workshop/ Looking beyond the next two weeks? Visit the LoCo Team Portal to browse upcoming events around the world: http://loco.ubuntu.com/events/ == The Planet == === Ian Weisser: Are you ready for new members? === Ian Weisser shows us the Find-a-Task tool (http://community.ubuntu.com/contribute/find-a-task/) introduced last year for new contributors to find tasks to work on in Ubuntu. He points out that more people may be inclined to contribute if they received Ubuntu devices for the holidays. Finally, he explains how teams can contribute their own tasks and encourages suggestions to improve Find-a-Task be shared on the Ubuntu Community Team mailing list. http://cheesehead-techblog.blogspot.com/2015/12/are-you-ready-for-new-members.html === Daniel Holbach: The world of Snappy at UbuCon Summit === Daniel Holbach shares his excitement over the upcoming UbuCon Summit in Pasadena, California in January of 2016, writing "I look forward to meeting everyone and particularly look forward to what we've got to show in terms of Snappy Ubuntu Core." He goes on to outline a couple of Snappy specific sessions: Internet of Things gets 'snappy' with Ubuntu Core, and the Hands-on demo: creating Ubuntu snaps with Snapcraft. https://daniel.holba.ch/blog/2015/12/the-world-of-snappy-at-ubucon-summit/ === Kevin DuBois: New Mir Release (0.18) === Kevin DuBois announces the release of Mir 0.18 and links to the full changelog of the release before diving into some of the highlights around graphics, input and bug fixing. He concludes with some speculation as to what is coming next for Mir, including "various Internet-o-Things and convergence topics" and "more flexible screenshotting support." http://kdubois.net/?p=2032 === Dustin Kirkland: More people use Ubuntu than anyone actually knows === Dustin Kirkland responds to criticism about the number of systems and users that Ubuntu currently has. Since Ubuntu does not require registration of installations like other operating systems, he dives into various numbers they do have, from downloads of various containers, to cloud deployments and various Internet of Things uses. He also cites various companies (including Netflix, Paypal, Dropbox, Snapchat, Pinterest and Reddit.) whose platforms are running on Ubuntu, arguably bringing the number of "users" much higher. He concludes "More people use Ubuntu than anyone actually knows. Because of who we all are." http://blog.dustinkirkland.com/2015/12/more-people-use-ubuntu-than-anyone.html Dustin's post is a response to the Phoronix article "It Doesn't Look Like Ubuntu Reached Its Goal Of 200 Million Users This Year": https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=Ubuntu-No-200-Million-Users and Softpedia continues the discussion with "There Are Probably More than 1 Billion Ubuntu Users, .Canonical Lead Explains": http://news.softpedia.com/news/there-are-probably-more-than-1-billion-ubuntu-users-canonical-lead-explains-498035.shtml === Julian Andres Klode: Much faster incremental apt updates === Julian Andres Klode reports that the addition of read buffering to the application of the pdiff format that apt uses results in a tenfold increase in the speed of apt-get update. Other potential areas of improvement include write buffering and different compression methods. https://juliank.wordpress.com/2015/12/26/much-faster-incremental-apt-updates/ Julian continues with a post titled "APT 1.1.8 to 1.1.10 - going 'faster'" https://juliank.wordpress.com/2015/12/30/apt-1-1-8-to-1-1-10-going-faster/ === Paul White: My Ubuntu year - 2015 === Paul White looks back through on 2015 to share the various projects he worked on and things accomplished in the Ubuntu community. Highlights include applying for and becoming an Ubuntu Member, testing Xubuntu and Ubuntu GNOME, a term as a moderator on ubuntuorg and various contributions to the Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter. He also reflects on his switch from Kubuntu and takes the opportunity to encourage others to participate in the Ubuntu Weekly Newsletter. http://blog.pcw.me.uk/2016/01/my-ubuntu-year-2015.html == Ubuntu Cloud News == * Juju Charmer Summit: Docker Lightning Talk - https://insights.ubuntu.com/2015/12/22/juju-charmer-summit-docker-lightning-talk/ == In The Blogosphere == === Ubuntu aims for true convergence across devices in 2016 === Paul Hill of Neowin predicts that Canonical may achieve its convergence goal across all devices in 2016 after seeing an image on Google+ which included the message "The same Ubuntu experience across any device - coming soon". He embeds a short video entitled "Convergence in action" in his post and reminds us that convergence requires Unity 8 which will be an option for advanced users to select at the log-in screen of Ubuntu 16.04 LTS. http://www.neowin.net/news/ubuntu-aims-for-true-convergence-across-devices-in-2016 === Aethercast Developing Open Source Display Streaming for Ubuntu === Christopher Tozzi, The VAR Guy, takes a quick look at Aethercast, Miracast and data streaming. He predicts that streaming video to monitors and TVs from Ubuntu mobile devices via Miracast will blur the lines between the GNU/Linux experience (Ubuntu) and proprietary operating systems. Christopher adds that it will also help to advance Ubuntu "convergence", Canonical's primary focus for several years. http://thevarguy.com/open-source-application-software-companies/aethercast-developing-open-source-display-streaming-ubunt === Dedicated GPS Navigation Scope Coming to Ubuntu Touch === Silviu Stahie of Softpedia writes that the developer of uNav GPS Navigation is looking into the possibility of building a dedicated scope for Ubuntu Touch. He says that for now it's just a concept, that would be based on OpenStreetMap. Silviu expects to see more information about the new scope soon. http://news.softpedia.com/news/dedicated-gps-navigation-scope-coming-to-ubuntu-touch-498128.shtml === ZFS File System for Ubuntu 16.04 LTS Is 90% Ready === Silviu Stahie of Softpedia writes that the ZFS file system will be available in Ubuntu 16.04 LTS but only as a tech preview as it is not yet fully integrated into Ubuntu. He quotes Canonical's Chad Miller as saying that there is currently no support in the Ubiquity installer for ZFS but that using a temporary PPA an install using ZFS can be made. http://news.softpedia.com/news/zfs-file-system-for-ubuntu-16-04-lts-is-90-ready-498166.shtml === System76 Oryx Pro is the Ubuntu Linux gaming laptop of your dreams [Review] === Brian Fagioli of Betanews reviews the System76 Oryx Pro gaming laptop which ships with Ubuntu 15.10. He quotes an example configuration, priced at $2,317, shows us several photographs that confirm an impressive number of ports, and describes the 15.6 inch 1080p display as "absolutely gorgeous." In his summary Brian says: "It is undoubtedly one of my favorite laptops ever." http://betanews.com/2015/12/29/system76-oryx-pro-ubuntu-linux-review/ == In Other News == === Full Circle Magazine #104 === Full Circle - the independent magazine for the Ubuntu Linux community are proud to announce the release of issue one hundred and four. This holiday month: * Command & Conquer * How-To : Python in the Real World, LibreOffice, Install Mint on Raid 0 and Using The TOP Command * Graphics : Inkscape. * Chrome Cult: Security * Linux Labs: Building A 3D Printer Pt.1 * Ubuntu Phones: OTA-8.5 * Book Review: Spam Nation and Doing Math With Python * Ubuntu Games: Steam Link and Controller plus: News, Arduino, Q&A, Security, and soooo much more. Happy holidays to everyone out there in Ubuntu land from all of us at Full Circle. Get it while it's hot! http://fullcirclemagazine.org/issue-104 == Featured Audio and Video == === Ubuntu Podcast from the UK LoCo: S08E42 - Santa Claus Conquers the Martians - Ubuntu Podcast === It's Episode Forty-two of Season Eight of the Ubuntu Podcast! Alan Pope, Mark Johnson, Laura Cowen and Martin Wimpress are connected and speaking to your brain. In this week's show... * We installed a whole bunch of different Linux distros, went Go-Karting for Christmas, spoke at some conferences, did the San Francisco parkrun, and worked on the Ubuntu Pi Flavour Maker. * We look back at our 2015 predictions and make some new ones for 2016. * Worlds Biggest Data Breaches Visualisation * We have a command line love for removing all metadata tag information from an image: exiftool -all= -overwrite_original foo.png * We go over your feedback. That's all for this week. And that's it for Season Eight. We'll be going for curry in 2016 to decide whether we'll be back for a new Share this post Link to post
