Ubuntu 14.10 Desktop Targets Developers As PC Market ‘Stabilises’

Ubuntu 14.10 for desktop has been made available to users, complete with improved graphics, CPU and audio support as well as new developer tools as Canonical hopes to capitalise on what it views as a “stabilising” PC market.

The new version runs the 3.16 kernel, which improves support for Power8 and ARM64 architectures, NVIDIA and ARM graphics and Intel’s Haswell, Broadwell, Merrifield processors as well as the upcoming Cherryview chips.

The kernel also supports the Radeon H.264 video encoder, which should result in better playback and audio quality. Printing should be easier thanks to compatibility with IPP Everywhere, which allows Ubuntu to automatically recognise networked and USB printers without the need for any additional software.

Ubuntu 14.10 Desktop

Applications like LibreOffice, Mozilla Firefox, Chromium and RhythmBox have been updated to take full advantage of the new release, and entertainment fans will be delighted to learn they can now stream TV shows and movies through Netflix using the Google Chrome browser.

Canonical says more than 30 million computers preinstalled with Ubuntu have shipped globally over the past two years and says sales are growing. It believes the industry has arrested falling sales of PC and belives its partners can take advantage of growing demand from a number of sectors.

One demographic that the firm is courting in particular is developers. It says Ubuntu is a popular choice for software creators making cloud and mobile apps because it is easy to use and is secure. Ubuntu 14.10 hopes to entice more to make the jump with the first version of the Ubuntu Developer Tools Centre, which downloads all Android toolkits and their dependnecies and integrates them with the launcher in a single command.

“The continued development and quality of Ubuntu on the desktop is creating more demand from government, education, business, developers and consumers alike,” Jane Silber, CEO of Canonical. “Downloads of Ubuntu are consistently strong and we are experiencing rapid growth of our OEM business.”

Earlier this year, Canonical made Ubuntu 14.04 available in a bid to attract those left out in the cold following Microsoft’s ending of support for Windows XP.

The new version is available to download immediately, alongside Ubuntu 14.10 for cloud and servers, which is targeted at businesses running large, complex deployments of cloud applications, either in the private or public cloud.

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