Countdown to Eight-ten

 

The month is flying by quickly and it won't be long before the next version of Ubuntu will be released.
It's currently available as a beta, and I did test out Ubuntu when it was still in alpha release.
Currently, I have the Kubuntu 8.10 amd64 beta running on my laptop.
I've never been too fond of Kubuntu or KDE in the past, but I've got some new respect for this new and updated version of KDE. It really makes me seriously consider switching over to Kubuntu for the next release.
I never felt completely comfortable with previous versions of Kubuntu. Maybe at the time, I expected it to look and run more like Windows. I was told that it was more "Windows-like" than Gnome.
The new version using KDE 4.1 really impresses on first bootup. Although still in beta, the interface is very pleasing and is easily navigated. I would have prefered to see Firefox as the default browser rather than Konqueror and Thunderbird rather than Kmail, but those are personal options and easily installable.
I suspect that there will be many Ubuntu users making a permanent switch to Kubuntu once the word starts spreading about this release.