The KDE Plasma Desktop in 4.5 Beta2
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
KDE Community Ships Second Beta Release of the 4.5 Free Desktop, Applications and Development Platform
June 9th, 2010. Today, KDE has released the second beta version of what is to become KDE SC 4.5.0 in August 2010. KDE SC 4.5 Beta2 is targeted at testers and those that would like to have an early look at what's coming to their desktops and netbooks this summer. KDE is now firmly in beta mode, meaning that the primary focus is on fixing bugs and preparing the stable release of the software compilation this summer. Over the last two weeks, roughly since the first beta, 1459 new bugs have been reported, and 1643 bugs have been closed, so we're witnessing a lot of stabilization activity right now. More testing is in place, however, while the restless developers continue to create a rock-stable 4.5.0.
KDE SC 4.5 sports many improvements, among which are:
Initially planned for KDE SC 4.5.0, the KDE PIM team have decided to delay the release of the Akonadi-based KMail for one month. The new version of KMail will be delivered as part of one of KDE's monthly bugfix updates. In the meantime, the stable version of KMail from KDE SC 4.4 will be maintained. Akonadi will centralize syncing and caching of PIM data, deliver wider support for groupware servers and makes handling PIM data, such as contacts, calendaring and email more efficient by sharing it across applications.
To find out more about the KDE Plasma desktop and applications, please also refer to the 4.4.0, 4.3.0, 4.2.0, 4.1.0 and 4.0.0 release notes.
KDE, including all its libraries and its applications, is available for free under Open Source licenses. KDE can be obtained in source and various binary formats from http://download.kde.org and can also be obtained on CD-ROM or with any of the major GNU/Linux and UNIX systems shipping today.
Packages. Some Linux/UNIX OS vendors have kindly provided binary packages of KDE SC 4.5 Beta2 for some versions of their distribution, and in other cases community volunteers have done so. Some of these binary packages are available for free download from KDE's http://download.kde.org. Additional binary packages, as well as updates to the packages now available, may become available over the coming weeks.
Package Locations. For a current list of available binary packages of which the KDE Project has been informed, please visit the KDE SC 4.5 Beta2 Info Page.
The complete source code for KDE SC 4.5 Beta2 may be freely downloaded. Instructions on compiling and installing KDE SC 4.5 Beta2 are available from the KDE SC 4.5 Beta2 Info Page.
KDE is a Free Software community that exists and grows only because of the help of many volunteers that donate their time and effort. KDE is always looking for new volunteers and contributions, whether it is help with coding, bug fixing or reporting, writing documentation, translations, promotion, money, etc. All contributions are gratefully appreciated and eagerly accepted. Please read through the Supporting KDE page for further information.