OpenSuSE Schedule
While we won't go as far as saying the OpenSuSE v10.1 fiasco has been a disaster for Novell, this version of SuSE 10.1 has certainly seen its share of problems. BETA releases of OpenSuSE v10.1 has been available this entire year and Alpha versions last year, while many of these releases have been plagued by significant problems and globs of bugs. However, we have just noted that the SuSE roadmap has been updated. While the sixth SuSE v10.1 beta had occurred on March 3, the seventh BETA will not be mastered and made available for the public (this release would have likely occurred today). The next release to come will be on March 17 with BETA 8. Presently scheduled after the final BETA is a single release candidate on March 31, followed by the intended OpenSuSE release to occur on April 13 of 2006. This is coming about two months later than their original expected target date.
On the topic of the SuSE roadmap, they have already posted the preliminary v10.2 schedule with its Alpha releases. The OpenSuSE v10.2 Alpha builds should start to appear around June 16, while the fifth Alpha will come out in October. With all of the development issues that have faced SuSE v10.1 we certainly wish its developers the best of luck.