14 DAY TRIAL // Xubuntu 14.04 Beta 2 LTS (Trusty Tahr) is now available for download, just like the other flavors that also got a Beta release, but the developers have been rather shy about sharing the changes with the community.
The Xubuntu developers haven't abandoned the old release schedule, with all the interim versions that are made available during the development cycle. Therefore, a new Xubuntu Beta build is now available for download.
Instead of providing specific details about the release of the second Beta in the 14.04 LTS branch, the Xubuntu devs chose to reiterate some of the major features that will eventually make it into the final version.
For example, the Light Locker has replaced xscreensaver for screen locking (the Ubuntu devs promoted a similar choice) and the users even have settings editing GUI, the panel layout has been updated and the Whiskermenu has been added as the default menu, the Mugshot has been added and allows users to easily edit their personal preferences, and the MenuLibre is now being used for menu editing, with full Xfce support, and it has replaced Alacarte.
Also, a community wallpapers package has been implemented and it includes work from the five winners of the wallpaper contest, the GTK Theme Config is now being used to customize the desktop theme colors, and the artwork has been updated, which includes numerous enhancements to themes.
This being a Beta version, a number of bugs is still present. Not all of them are major and they will be fixed in time for the launch. The Thunar file manager doesn’t automatically mount removable devices and media, network shares aren’t shown on the desktop, the wallpaper selection dialog is sometimes empty, and the keyboard layout changes after reboot.
Users have been encouraged to install and test this version and report any problems that they encounter.
“Thanks to everybody contributing to Xubuntu! As always, new contributors are always welcome to join us. There are various different tasks to do, from testing daily ISOs and new package versions to writing and translating documentation to fixing bugs,” reads the official announcement.
Download Xubuntu 14.04 Beta 2 (Trusty Tahr) right now from Softpedia. Remember that this is a development version and it should NOT be installed on production machines. It is intended for testing purposes only.
Xubuntu 14.04 Beta 2 (Trusty Tahr) is scheduled to be released on April 17 and will feature three years of support.