Continuing the movement of the recently released 2.6 kernel into the mainstream of the open-source world, Novell Thursday rolled out its SUSE Linux 9.1 operating system.
The recently released 2.6 version of the Linux kernel moved further into the open-source mainstream this week. On Thursday, Novell unveiled the SUSE Linux 9.1 operating system, with a ship date set for early May.
Novell unveiled the operating system at CeBit 2004, the major European trade show held annually in Hanover, Germany.
Two spins of the operating system were released — a personal and a professional version. Both are based on the 2.6 kernel and come equipped with the latest GNOME 2.4.2 and KDE 3.2.1 open-source desktops. The operating systems will also ship with Samba, the open-source file sharing packing that enables Linux hosts to interact in Windows domains.
SUSE’s new 9.1 professional edition is aimed at end users who require network or server functionality or who want to use Linux as a development platform. The personal edition is aimed at stand-alone desktop users.
By rapidly adopting the 2.6 kernel, which was unveiled late last year, Novell is hoping to continue its impressive adoption rate among Linux users. According to a recent Netcraft survey, SUSE Linux was the third most popular Linux distribution with a 23 percent growth rate resulting in 296,217 installations in the six month period from July 2003 through January 2004.
Novell will ship the software in early May. The 9.1 personal release will sell for $29.95. A complete install of Linux 9.1 Professional will cost $89.95; and the upgrade edition will be $59.95.
In addition to support for Intel-based systems, SUSE has ported the professional release of the operating system to run on AMD’s 64-bit Athlon processors
SUSE Linux 9.1 brings the latest open source technology into a single, easy-to-use package for beginners and experienced Linux users, said Markus Rex, Novell’s general manager for SUSE Linux.
This article was originally published on InternetNews.com.