Hello,
About two weeks ago, I posted a suggestion (and some copy) for a
possible press release for Linux 2.4. Since then, I've received
numerous suggestions from people that read this list and Kernel
Traffic. So, I've put together a second draft of my press release
proposal. This draft is pretty similar to the last one. Wording has
been changed in a number of cases to add stress on certain features,
but most of the actual content remains the same. (It's hard to mention a lot of things in very little space.) I'm going to
continue to refine the document somewhat, please feel free to email
me with any suggestions.
I'd also like to answer some quick questions that I've received about
this idea:
1) Why do we need a press release?
Good question. Maybe we do and maybe we don't. Certainly, no previous
release of Linux actually had an "press" announcement. Did it hurt
us? Well, no. A press release was started for Linux 2.2, but never
actually finished. I believe that a clear press release will provide
the media a starting point for reporting about the new release and
maybe reduce the amount of (accidental) misinformation about it. (Remember that Linux 2.2 was the first release to support
SMP. :) )
2) What makes a Linux press release "official"?
I don't quite know the answer to this one. I'm going to just continue
working on drafts (in addition to maintaining WWoL and some other
projects) and hope that, in a revision or two, I'll get some
confirmation one way or another from Linus, Alan, etc. That would
make it "official", I think.
3) What do we do when it's done?
Again, I'm not sure. :) If someone on this list is familiar with
the "marketing" side of things and knows the Proper way to get press
releases released, please let me know.
(Because so many people complained about my mail program mangling my
previous one, I've put this draft online:
http://www.angelfire.com/ma3/jpranevich/linux/press.txt)
Joe Pranevich
jpranevich@lycos.com | jpranevich@linuxtoday.com
--LINUX KERNEL 2.4 (DRAFT II!) The Internet, August XX, 2000
Linus Torvalds and the kernel development team would like to announce the immediate availability of Linux 2.4, the latest revision of the popular open source operating system kernel. This update brings increased scalability and performance to all Linux users, in addition to new hardware support.
Noteworthy Features:
* Linux 2.4 offers better support for Enterprise-level applications. This new revision supports up to 64 gigabytes of RAM, allows files to be larger than 2 gigabytes, supports many more simultaneous processes, and has been improved to take better advantage of systems with multiple processors.
* Linux now supports Itanium, the 64-bit processor soon to be released by Intel, as well as the S/390, an IBM mainframe, and SuperH, often used in WindowsCE handhelds. Linux 2.4 improves support for Intel and Apple desktop and server hardware, in addition to Compaq servers based on the Alpha processor, Sun Sparc systems, MIPs systems, and other platforms.
* USB and Firewire are both supported, updating Linux to make use of the latest peripherals. Additionally, legacy "Plug-and-Play" and PC Card (PCMCIA) support has been improved. * Linux's new network layer provides a level of flexibility and power formerly only available with expensive routing hardware. In addition, Linux 2.4 features a faster and more stable network subsystem that features optimizations for multi-processor hardware.
* The new kernel includes support for version 3 of the popular NFS filesystem for sharing files in UNIX-like environments.
* Linux 2.4 includes special enhancements for webservers including a kernel-level web server and "wake one" support for faster page serving with all popular web servers, including Apache.
* Logical Volume Manager for easy administration of disk space, including adding, deleting, and resizing disk slices on the fly.
This update is already available to users through multiple kernel mirrors (ftp.kernel.org) although a manual upgrade is only recommended for advanced users. All major distribution vendors are expected to be offering upgrades to this kernel revision within the next several months.
The Linux kernel is developed online by a team of programmers headed by Linus Torvalds, a resident of Santa Clara, CA. Linux was an early adopter of the open source methodology which provides for source code and peer review at all stages of development. It is because of this system of openness that Linux has grown to be the most successful non-corporate operating system to date.
For more information, please consult www.linux.org for a list of other Linux-related websites. More information on the new features in Linux 2.4 can be found in the "Wonderful World of Linux 2.4" document, available ...
Linux is a trademark of Linus Torvalds.
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