The final pre-production code for Ubuntu 9.04, codenamed Jaunty Jackalope, was released this week.

"The Ubuntu team behind it has reported that the release candidate is 'complete, stable, and suitable for testing by any user,' but that it does provide the caveat that there are still a few known bugs," writes The Register's Rik Myslewski. "They have promised to squash the bugs before the final release, scheduled for a week from now — April 23."

"For this release, the project has focused on bringing faster boot speeds to users and a new desktop notification system," writes ZDNet's Renai LeMay. "The server version of Ubuntu 9.04 has focused on integration with cloud computing (for example, integration with Amazon services) and a more integrated mail server stack based on the postfix and packages.
The 9.04 release of Ubuntu also integrates the Netbook Remix software, which makes Ubuntu easier to use on the popular low-powered laptops that have come to be known as netbooks."

"I've been running Ubuntu 9.04 prereleases on my main desktop computer since the beginning of March," writes Ars Technica's Ryan Paul. "It's a major improvement over its predecessors and it delivers a level of robustness (on my hardware, at least) that was lacking in the Hardy and Intrepid releases."

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