Category: News

Ubuntu Studio Development Meeting: April 7, 2018

in News
Apr
07
2018
On April 7, 2018, the Ubuntu Studio Development Team met. Among the items discussed were the following:
  • Looking into changing or adding wallpaper for 18.04
  • Install-time package selection bug fixed, request for testers.
  • ubuntustudio-controls to be updated for 18.10 to add the following features:
    • set cpu governor, turn on/off Intel Boost
    • choose audio device
    • run jack from session start (or not)
    • hotplugging USB mics selecting a non-standard set of outputs for pulse-jack bridging
    • Using more than one audio device even if internal
    • bridging ALSA midi to jack midi
    • a “Safely remove USB Audio Device” button
    • Future improvements to include tabs for video use or graphics setups.
  • Change in default Desktop Environment, or adding a Desktop Environment selection at install time is being considered for 18.10. Those discussed included
    • Gnome Shell
    • KDE Plasma
    • MATE
  • Adaptation of Ubuntu MATE welcome app for Ubuntu Studio is being considered for 18.10, would replace “ubuntustudio-installer”.
Anyone who can, please install the latest Daily ISO to test the install-time package selection. This is our final push to the RC on April 19th, so we need to find the bugs and get them gone.
A special thanks to all those who have tested and filed bug reports so far! We couldn’t do this without you!

18.04 Beta Release

in Development, News, Planet Ubuntu, Release Notes, Testing
Apr
06
2018

Ubuntu Studio 18.04 Bionic Beaver Beta is released!

The beta of the upcoming release of Ubuntu Studio 18.04 is ready for testing.

You may find the images at cdimage.ubuntu.com/ubuntustudio/releases/bionic/beta-2/. More information can be found in the Beta Release Notes.

Reporting Bugs

If you find any bugs with this release, please report them, and take your time in making the bug report as well formulated as possible. You’ll need an account at launchpad.net. Making a bug report can be done from the terminal with the command: ubuntu-bug [package_name] (replace [package_name] with the name of the package you’re reporting the bug against).

Tagging the bugs with “bionic” and “ubuntustudio-beta” will also help us find them, but a mail to our mailing list with the link to the bug will also help!

Read more about bug reporting here help.ubuntu.com/community/ReportingBugs#How_to_report_bugs

Introducing the potential new Ubuntu Studio Council

in News, Planet Ubuntu
Feb
24
2018

Back in 2016, Set Hallström was elected as the new Team Lead for Ubuntu Studio, just in time for the 16.04 Xenial Long Term Support (LTS) release. It was intended that Ubuntu Studio would be able to utilise Set’s leadership skills at least up until the next LTS release in April 2018. Unfortunately, as happens occasionally in the world of volunteer work, Set’s personal circumstances changed and he is no longer able to devote as much time to Ubuntu Studio as he would like. Therefore, an IRC meeting was held between interested Ubuntu Studio contributors on 21st May 2017 to agree on how to fill the void. We decided to follow the lead of Xubuntu and create a Council to take care of Ubuntu Studio, rather than continuing to place the burden of leadership on the shoulder of one particular person. Unfortunately, although the result was an agreement to form the first Ubuntu Studio Council from the meeting participants, we all got busy and the council was never set up.

Who was willing to be in the Ubuntu Studio Council?

The attendees of the IRC Meeting that were to form the Ubuntu Studio Council are:

  • Set Hallström (sakrecoer)
  • Eylul (eylul)
  • Len Ovens (len-ovenwerks)
  • Ross Gammon** (rosco2)

Now times have changed, and Eylul and Ross have also become very busy. We are also aware that some regular contributors to Ubuntu Studio (I can think of Krytarik for example) were not present for the IRC meeting. So, now we are considering expanding the size of that original proposed Council to try and bring in some new blood to Ubuntu Studio, and keep the project going. In particular, we really need someone to step up help with some leadership and direction, and build up the Ubuntu Studio teams.

How would the Ubuntu Studio Council Work?

The Ubuntu Studio Council would exist to provide security and stability for the Ubuntu Studio project, and to spread the workload of administering the project. However, the actual work of producing and maintaining each release of Ubuntu Studio would not done by the Council. The actual work and decision making would be carried out, through the various existing teams (e.g. Artwork, Development, Testing, Website etc.). The council will of course help with agreeing the long term direction of Ubuntu Studio and resolving disputes as required. The exact details of the working of the Ubuntu Studio Council need to be documented on our wiki, but the following points were discussed and are the likely way of working:

  • A Council Chair will be elected from within the Council with a minimum term of one release of Ubuntu Studio.
  • Elections to the Council will be carried out yearly to encourage participation, and generate fresh ideas.
  • Council membership terms will be set to expire at overlapping intervals for stability, and re-election is allowed.
  • The size of the council is preferably between 3 and 5 members.

What do you think? Want to help out and keep Ubuntu Studio going?

If you have any questions about this, please make contact on the #ubuntustudio-devel IRC channel on irc.freenode.net, or the developer mailing list https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-studio-devel.

If this has inspired you to help out, we are always after more people to help. Help to write and improve documentation, add new features, test and fix Ubuntu Studio applications, help users solve problems, is always welcome. Get in touch!

Please state whether you would like to join one of the teams and help out.

Please also state whether you would be willing to join the council and be the chair/leader for a release cycle (or more).

Ubuntu Studio 17.10 Released

in News, Planet Ubuntu, Release Notes
Oct
19
2017

We are happy to announce the release of our latest version, Ubuntu Studio 17.10 Artful Aardvark! As a regular version, it will be supported for 9 months. Since it’s just out, you may experience some issues, so you might want to wait a bit before upgrading. Please see the release notes for a complete list of changes and known issues.

Changes in this Release

General

The Ubuntu Studio Controls package has been updated to provide an experimental option to set the CPU governor to performance mode. This is important for recording. At the moment, the setting is not persistent, and needs to be reset at every reboot. BIOS settings may need to be changed for this setting to take effect.

Audio

  • Removed zynjacku as this software is no longer maintained by the original developer.

You can get the installation images at our download page!

Want to help out?

Ubuntu Studio is maintained by a very small team and we are actively seeking new contributors. We are looking for developers, packagers and testers. Even if you are interested in contributing outside these areas, please do not hesitate to reach out. Your contribution is precious regardless of your field of activity. We are open to volunteers with all expertise levels. Just head over to our contribute page to find out how to get started.

Found a bug?

Taking the time to report bugs makes a huge difference; it’s the first step towards improvement! Clear and specific bug reports is the best way to get attention to a problem that needs fixing. The easiest way to create a bug report is with the terminal.

Open one up and type: ubuntu-bug <package>

Read more about this at https://help.ubuntu.com/community/ReportingBugs

17.10 Beta 1 Release

in News, Planet Ubuntu, Release Notes, Testing
Sep
07
2017

Ubuntu Studio 17.10 Artful Aardvark Beta 1 is released!

It’s that time of the release cycle again. The first beta of the upcoming release of Ubuntu Studio 17.10 is here and ready for testing.

You may find the images at cdimage.ubuntu.com/ubuntustudio/releases/artful/beta-1/. More information can be found in the Beta 1 Release Notes.

Reporting Bugs

If you find any bugs with this release, please report them, and take your time in making the bug report as well formulated as possible. You’ll need an account at launchpad.net. Making a bug report can be done from the terminal with the command: ubuntu-bug [package_name] (replace [package_name] with the name of the package you’re reporting the bug against).

Tagging the bugs with “artful” and “ubuntustudio-beta” will also help us find them, but a mail to our mailing list with the link to the bug will also help!

Read more about bug reporting here help.ubuntu.com/community/ReportingBugs#How_to_report_bugs

Ubuntu Studio 17.04 Released

in News, Planet Ubuntu, Release Notes
Apr
13
2017

We are happy to announce the release of our latest version, Ubuntu Studio 17.04 Zesty Zapus! As a regular version, it will be supported for 9 months. Since it’s just out, you may experience some issues, so you might want to wait a bit before upgrading. Please see the release notes for a complete list of changes and known issues.

Changes in this Release

General

  • system-config-printer-gnome replaced with system-config-printer
  • Added pm-utils

Graphics

  • Krita has been added back
  • Darktable is removed from 32bit ISO due to lack of upstream support

You can get the installation images at our download page!

Want to help out?

Ubuntu Studio is maintained by a very small team and we are actively seeking new contributors. We are looking for developers, packagers and testers. Even if you are interested in contributing outside these areas, please do not hesitate to reach out. Your contribution is precious regardless of your field of activity. We are open to volunteers with all expertise levels. Just head over to our contribute page to find out how to get started.

Found a bug?

Taking the time to report bugs makes a huge difference; it’s the first step towards improvement! Clear and specific bug reports is the best way to get attention to a problem that needs fixing. The easiest way to create a bug report is with the terminal.

Open one up and type: ubuntu-bug <package>

Read more about this at https://help.ubuntu.com/community/ReportingBugs

Ubuntu Studio 16.10 Released

in News, Planet Ubuntu, Release Notes
Oct
14
2016

We are happy to announce the release of our latest version, Ubuntu Studio 16.10 Yakkety Yak! As a regular version, it will be supported for 9 months. Since it’s just out, you may experience some issues, so you might want to wait a bit before upgrading. Please see the release notes for a complete list of changes and known issues.

Changes in this Release

Desktop

  • New default Numix Blue theme

Audio

  • Added dgedit
  • Added drumgizmo

Video

  • Replaced recordmydesktop with vokoscreen

Graphics

  • Replaced gnome-color-manager with dispcalgui
  • Added gpick

Publishing

  • Added calibre
  • Added pdf-shuffler
  • Added plume-creator

Notice: Krita has been temporarily removed from Yakkety Yak 16.10 due to build issues, but should be brought back as an updated version soon, and be installed automatically when upgrading your packages.

You can get the installation images at our download page!

Small but resilient team

In January 2016 we had an election for a new project lead, only one person answered. And while the number of contributors saw a positive increase during the cycle, it barely made up for the ones who have left; yes, Ubuntu Studio is a flavour menaced by extinction! The road to this release was bumpy and hard. But we made it.

Want to help out?

We are desperate for contributors. Especially if you have developing skills, but your contribution is precious regardless of your field of activity. All you need is a genuine desire to learn, and we will do our best to teach you. Just head over to our contribute page to find out how to get started.

Found a bug?

Taking the time to report bugs makes a huge difference; it’s the first step towards improvement! Clear and specific bug reports is the best way to get attention to a problem that needs fixing. The easiest way to create a bug report is with the terminal.

Open one up and type: ubuntu-bug <package>

Read more about this at https://help.ubuntu.com/community/ReportingBugs

Ubuntu Studio 16.04.1 Released

in News, Release Notes
Jul
24
2016

A new point release of the Xenial Xerus LTS has been released. As usual, this point release includes many updates, and updated installation media has been provided so that fewer updates will need to be downloaded after installation. These include security updates and corrections for other high-impact bugs. Please see the 16.04.1 change summary for more information.

Users of Ubuntu Studio 14.04 will soon be offered an automatic upgrade to 16.04.1 via Update Manager. For further information about upgrading, see: https://help.ubuntu.com/community/XenialUpgrades

Backports, the benefits and the consequences.

in Development, News, Planet Ubuntu
Jul
07
2016

Ubuntu Studio is happy to announce that backports are going to be rolling out soon and the first one will be Ardour. Backports are newer versions of applications, ported back to stable versions of the system.

For example in the case of Ardour, Ubuntu Studio users running 14.04 or 16.04 will be able to have the latest version, available in 16.10 (development), without upgrading the entire system.

This is a great thing, and with great power comes great responsibility: Backports have to be manually installed by the user, and the user will be required to carefully think about the possible consequences.

The new version may be better, but it could also have some new bugs not found yet, and sometimes the new version might use a newer data format that is not backwards compatible.

This means that if you are in the middle of a project, backporting your tools can potentially compromise your projects deadline, or worse.

Whatever mistake you make, you can of course always roll back, but remember: Better safe than sorry – always back up your project data before installing a backport.

In order to be able to provide you with backports for other pieces of software shipped with Ubuntu Studio, the development team could need a hand. If you have a little spare time that you can share with the community, here is how you can help out.

You will find a list of the status of the work here:
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbuntuStudio/BackportsList

Here are instructions on how to get set up to backport with generic details of the process:
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbuntuStudio/BackportsHowToHelp

And here is the Ubuntu Studio specific process:
https://wiki.ubuntu.com/UbuntuStudio/Backports

Please feel welcome and invited to ask the Ubuntu Studio development team for more details, help, instructions, or suggest a package for backporting by stopping by our IRC channel #ubuntustudio-devel on Freenode:
https://help.ubuntu.com/community/UbuntuStudio/IRC

…or by dropping an email on our mailing list:
https://lists.ubuntu.com/mailman/listinfo/ubuntu-studio-devel

Help Us Put Some Polish on Ubuntu Studio

in Development, News, Planet Ubuntu
May
05
2016

We are proud to have Ubuntu Studio 16.04 out in the wild. And the next release can and should be better. It WILL be better if you help!

Are there specific packages that should be included or removed? Are there features you would like to see? We cannot promise to do everything you ask, but we will give all ideas consideration!

Write your suggestions and / or contributions in the comments or send them to improve [AT] ubuntustudio [DOT] org

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