Most Linux users have heard by now of the release of version 2.4 of the kernel, an event sure to trigger a flood of new versions of all of the major Linux distributions.
Actually, to the hard core Linux user, the release of 2.4 as a "stable" kernel has little practical significance. After all, numerous 2.4 "test" releases have been usable for most purposes for months while obscure bugs were being tracked down; and there are sure to be more minor bugs found in the 2.4 tree over time.
In the closed-source world, releases are a big deal because they are seen very seldom and usually contain major feature additions. By contrast, an open-source software release is essentially a milestone -- a declaration that what was already available is now stable.
Thus, it's amusing to read uninformed opinions about how 2.4 was "vaporware" and "behind schedule." In reality, the latest Linux is always constantly available! Get this: open-source projects just don't have formal schedules in the sense that closed, commercial projects do.
Still, the occasion of the release of 2.4 seems a good time to summarize the improvements that have been made in Linux since the release of 2.2.
What's in it for me?
For the average desktop or laptop Linux user, the features added by 2.4 are modest. For example . . .
- USB -- Linux now has support for USB, enabling use of a wide variety of newer mice, keyboards, printers, and other peripheral devices.
- PCMCIA -- PCMCIA devices are now supported directly within the kernel; previously they were supported by an external package.
- ISA PnP -- ISA bus plug-and-play ("PnP") functionality is now supported by the kernel -- just in time for ISA itself to disappear from everyone's desktop computer!
So, should you download 2.4.0 and upgrade your desktop or laptop?
There's probably no point, unless you have a specific need for one of its new features. Performance and size are roughly a wash with 2.2 -- a fact which is in itself impressive, considering the new capabilities that have been added.
You may wish to wait until your favorite distribution is released with a 2.4 kernel, which is likely to happen soon. Plus, the new distributions will probably include some useful new non-kernel features and programs that make use of 2.4's capabilities.
