Beta 8.10 released

[Lisi Reisz]

On Tuesday 07 October 2008 19:10:06 Art Alexion wrote:
> Thinking of Linux users as all beta testers plays into the fears of
> those who cling to the commercial OSs, that Linux is a toy for the
> hobbyist, and not usable by the masses or ready to support the
> enterprise.  While that isn't true today and hasn't been for a while, I
> fear that those who force the adoption of a work in progress as the
> default, and those who say that all Linux users are beta testers, feed
> that misconception.

I frequently use Linux *because* it is stable and reliable where Windows, in 
my perception, is not.  For myself I use Debian Lenny, but KDE 3.5.9.  In 
other words, for myself I can tolerate a limited amount of instability and 
sort out my problems. 

For my dependants, however, I need stability.  My granddaughter has Kubuntu 
8.04 on her laptop and PCLinuxOS 2007 on her desktop.  My husband has 
PCLinuxOS 2008 Minime on his desktop.  Stability is crucial for both of them.  
My granddaughter's laptop will not be dist-upgraded at the end of the month.  
She has no desire to be, nor should she be forced to be, a Beta tester.  My 
husband, if faced by beta testing, would probably run screaming from the 
room.

They both like Linux precisely because it is stable.  Are we to send them and 
others packing?  Are we to tell Asus and Acer and HP and... to stop putting 
Linux on their mini notebooks because Linux is not intended for the general 
public, but only for testers and developers?

I think it is obvious which side of this divide I fall.

Lisi