Here’s some of the skinny on openSUSE 11.2 from the community announcement  — many thanks to all the contributors who took time to add to and improve the announcement!

You can find a bevy of screenshots and more on the openSUSE wiki, and a lengthy list of packages and version numbers on DistroWatch.

Let’s take a look at some of the more interesting features of openSUSE 11.2!

openSUSE Desktop

As always, openSUSE provides everything you need to get started with Linux on the desktop.

openSUSE 11.2 includes KDE 4.3 as the “default” desktop. If you install from DVD without changing anything, you’ll have the KDE desktop by default. However, we still provide GNOME as an equal choice, and Xfce and other window managers as alternative desktops too!

KDE 4.3 is a major update to the KDE platform. It includes improved networking support, and work to make Firefox and OpenOffice.org better integrated with the KDE enviroment. The openSUSE Project also worked closely with the KDE Project on theming and branding to provide a look and feel that meshes both projects nicely.

You’ll also find plenty of GNOME greatness in openSUSE 11.2 as well. GNOME 2.28, the latest release of the popular GNOME desktop, is included with 11.2. This release includes a brand new theme, improved software update application, improvements in GNOME’s Webcam and video application, and many other enhancements and improvements to prepare the GNOME platform for GNOME 3.0 in 2010.

OpenOffice.org 3.1 is a complete office productivity suite compatible with Microsoft Office. This release includes improvements in change tracking and collaboration in Writer, and major improvements to the drawing application.

Social networking gets a boost in 11.2 with the addition of GNOME and KDE microblogging clients that handle multiple social network sites, Gwibber, and Choqok.

With openSUSE 11.2, you have the ability to install GNOME or KDE live media from USB, and numerous improvements to make openSUSE 11.2 much better on netbooks.

Under the Hood

The desktop improvements are the most noticeable, but there’s plenty going on under the hood as well in openSUSE 11.2.

Storage improvements include the ability to encrypt the entire hard disk, for users concerned about data security. Users can also take advantage of the next generation of filesystems for Linux with Ext4 or btrfs. In case you’d like to learn more about the new kernel features you can go at KernelNewbies.org and have a look at the “cool stuff” part.

Want to manage remote openSUSE servers with a Web interface? That day is coming soon! openSUSE 11.2 users can install the first technology preview of WebYaST: a Web-based remote administration tool for openSUSE systems.

Finally, you can upgrade in-place using Zypper! Though it’s been possible to do an upgrade in place for some time, with caution, it’s finally a “recommended” method of upgrade with openSUSE 11.2. For users who want to move from 11.1 to 11.2 using “zypper dup,” see Andreas Jaeger’s post on Lizards about the process. It’s quick, it’s easy, and almost competely painless.

Linux for Education

The openSUSE Build Service provides thousands of applications as 1-click packages to enhance your experience on openSUSE 11.2. The openSUSE Education Community provides hundreds of Educational applications suitable for students of all ages, parents, teachers and IT administrators of educational institutions via the Build Service.

The 11.2 release will be followed closely by a very special spin, Li-f-e: Linux for Education. Li-f-e contains GNOME, KDE as well the the award-winning Sugar learning environment for children. With packages from the Packman repository, Li-f-e provides everything required to get rich multimedia experience too.

Media and Download

openSUSE is now available for immediate download! You have several choices of installation media and live CDs (which are also installable).

• openSUSE 11.2 Installable DVD 32-bit
• openSUSE 11.2 Installable DVD 64-bit
• openSUSE 11.2 GNOME 32-bit Live CD
• openSUSE 11.2 GNOME 64-bit Live CD
• openSUSE 11.2 KDE 32-bit Live CD
• openSUSE 11.2 KDE 64-bit Live CD

Booting openSUSE 11.2 from a USB key: get one of the Live CDs available above, and can copy it to a USB key with the following command:

dd if=image.iso of=/dev/sdX bs=4M

Replace “image.iso” with the name of the ISO image that you have downloaded, and replace “sdX” with the actual device name of your USB drive. Be careful! This will erase the target device, so make sure you have the correct device name and have any vital data backed up!

We want to hear from you!

The openSUSE Project has many channels of communication! Whether you prefer forums, email, or IRC, there are plenty of ways to communicate about openSUSE.

• The official openSUSE forums.
• Mailing Lists: be sure to sign up for the mailing lists that fit your interests!
• IRC: #opensuse on irc.freenode.net and other channels.
• Jabber, usenet, and more.

To keep up to date with openSUSE, be sure to keep an eye on openSUSE News and watch Planet SUSE for blog posts from the openSUSE community. We also update the @opensuse account on Twitter and Identi.ca regularly with news about the project.

Want to help the openSUSE Project? To get involved with openSUSE see the How to Participate page on the openSUSE wiki. We can use lots of different skills to help the project, so feel free to jump in!

Thanks!

openSUSE 11.2 represents the combined effort of hundreds of developers who participate in openSUSE, and thousands of developers in upstream projects that are shipped in openSUSE. The contributors, inside and outside the openSUSE Project, should be proud of this release, and they deserve a major “thank you” for all of the hard work and care that have gone into 11.2.

When we say “contributor,” we don’t mean only developers and packagers. This includes translators, openSUSE Ambassadors, the openSUSE Board, and the users who help power our forums and support users who are taking their first steps into Linux.

We are confident that openSUSE 11.2 is the best openSUSE release yet, and that it will help to encourage the use of Linux everywhere! We hope that you have a lot of fun while you use openSUSE 11.2!

I’ve been running openSUSE 11.2 RC’s and betas on various machines. Today I wiped all that from my main workstation (dual Xeon 3.2 GHz, 8GB RAM, Nvidia Quadro FX 1400) and installed the openSUSE GNOME live CD 64-bit.

After that, I whipped the Nvidia drivers on so I could enjoy maximum dual-screen goodness. Here’s the result:

I love having tons of screen real estate! I remember back when configuring multiple monitors on Linux was a royal pain… things have gotten so much better in that regard.

The full process is outlined on the openSUSE wiki. Basically:

• Make sure you have the prerequisite packages installed:

  gcc, make, kernel-source, kernel-syms, kernel-desktop-devel

• Prep the kernel source:
  cd /usr/src/linux ; make cloneconfig ; make prepare
• Download the Nvidia drivers for your card.
• Switch to init level 3 and run the script you got from the Nvidia Web site.
• Then use nvidia-xconfig and sax2 to configure. (You may not need to use the nvidia-xconfig for some versions of the driver.)

It looks like it’s more work than it actually is. The easy way to do it is to just grab it from the Nvidia repos, but they don’t have 11.2 available just yet.

The last release candidate hit the mirrors on schedule today, with lots of goodies for Linux enthusiasts and new Linux users alike. You have your choice of desktop: KDE 4.3 or GNOME 2.28, a rock-solid Linux kernel (2.6.31.5), a technology preview of WebYaST, and much, much more.

This release has been pretty long in the making. We unleashed 11.1 nearly 11 months ago in mid-December. Then the project had some time for self-reflection and consideration about what the best release cycle would be, and that pushed this release to November.

But if you give it a shot, I think you’ll find that the added time has been well used and that 11.2 is going to be very well worth the wait. Don’t take my word for it, though: Grab it yourself on the developer download page and give it a spin! You can choose from the full DVD or the GNOME or KDE live CDs. All the CDs are available in 32-bit and 64-bit flavors.