14 DAY TRIAL // The development of Ubuntu 14.10 (Utopic Unicorn) started a few weeks ago and now the developers have made the first major change to it by adding a new Linux kernel.
Usually, the development of a new version of Ubuntu begins by basing it on the latest release, in this case Ubuntu 14.04 LTS. The team starts adding new packages to the distribution, usually stuff that didn't have a chance to make it into the previous one. One of the key components for a Linux distribution is the Linux kernel, and this package has been updated as well.
Ubuntu 14.04 LTS shipped with Linux kernel 3.13 and the developers didn't get a chance to add the 3.14 branch into the mix. It shipped too late and there wasn't enough time to test it. Until now, the Ubuntu team didn't say what kernel they were targeting for the final release, but they have implemented the 3.15 build, even if it's still under development.
“We have uploaded our first v3.15 based kernel, 3.15.0-1.5, to the Utopic archive. It is currently based on the v3.15-rc5 upstream kernel,” said Joseph Salisbury in the regular Ubuntu Kernel Team meeting.
It's very likely that at least another version of Linux kernel, 3.16, will have already been released by the time Ubuntu 14.10 hits the kernel freeze (past this point the kernel can no longer be updated), so this might be the one that will get implemented by October.
If nothing out of the ordinary happens with the kernel development, each cycle usually features eight to ten Release Candidates, but this number can vary. Linus Torvalds usually releases a new RC every week, but it's not set in stone. For example, it's been almost two weeks since the last RC in the 3.15 series.
Canonical has to consider that Ubuntu 12.04.5 LTS and Ubuntu 14.04.1 will also be released in the coming months and the kernel freeze for this version is only 5 weeks away.
Ubuntu 14.10 (Utopic Unicorn) promises to be a very interesting version and there is already talk about a new flavor, featuring Unity 8 and Mir, that could be launched in parallel with the regular one.
If you really want to see what is happening on the Ubuntu 14.10 front you can always download the daily image and give it a spin. For now it's almost identical with Ubuntu 14.04 LTS, but that will soon change.