Below is a list of exciting projects happening in the Linux ecosystem. This is a list I’ve compiled over time from reading Phoronix.com, the “distro planets”, and developer blogs. Not all of these things have arrived yet – many are a work in progress. For each project, I’ve provided short summaries and links for further reading. Don’t forget to leave a comment! ;-]
The Popular Stuff:
- Gnome3.0 – GnomeLive
- a new 3D-accelerated UI for the Gnome Desktop.
- Compiz++ – smspillaz
- a “better suited” C++ rewrite. Its future is uncertain – it may become a WM in future because of Gnome Shell.
The Low-Level Jungle:
- Btrfs – BtrfsWiki
- what will be the most modern and featureful filesystem to date.
- Kernel ModeSetting – KernelNewbies
- a new way of managing video cards that provides a Flicker-Free & native resolution gfx experience. Makes running X non-root possible and thus, safer.
- Gallium3D – TungstenGraphics
- a new driver development model/core that is based on modern hardware; will provide for simpler, smaller drivers that can run multiple graphics APIs.
The Inter-Distro *Kits of Unity:
- DeviceKit – Creator’s Blog
- a cleaner hal reimplementation that will leave device management to udev.
- PolicyKit – Creator’s Blog
- a dbus-like privilege-escalation model to replace apps running as root.
- ConsoleKit – Fedora[FUSA]
- an common framework for handling FUSA and session management.
- PackageKit – Creator’s Blog
- an interdistro package manager that works on multiple backends.
And if these weren’t cool enough, just take a peak at the F11 feature list.
