ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARES

Avast Free Antivirus

Avast Free Antivirus includes a DynaGen-powered intelligent antivirus. You can update it in real time. You can fix various problems without uninstalling previous antivirus. It has Remote Assistance also. It has Anti-malware Protection plus anti-spyware & anti-rootkit too. It Protects your PC against the latest viruses and spywares. It has an improved firewall for network or internet protection.

AVG Free Antivirus

AVG AntiVirus is a free antivirus that gives you the antivirus protection and various security features. It has a smart scanning technology that reduces scan times. It has privacy features that keep your personal information safe both online and on your PC. It has an integrated File Shredder that permanently deletes sensitive files. It has Anti-Spyware Technology and WiFi Guard also.

Ad-Aware Free Antivirus +

Ad-Aware Free Antivirus provides core protection against internet threats. It has real-time antivirus and anti-spyware engines, rootkit protection, download protection and web filters for safe browsing. It provides complete anti-malware protection. You can uninstall all third-party toolbars installed in browsers like Chrome, Firefox, IE easily. It is easy to download, install and use.

Avira Free Antivirus

Avira Free Antivirus is a free antivirus and it eliminates many forms of malware including worms, rootkits, and dialers. It has various features including system scanner that prevents infection from viruses, worms, and Trojans. It blocks new viruses before they run and halts unknown code that looks suspicious.

Microsoft Security Essentials

Microsoft Security Essentials is a free antivirus software for your PC. This freeware protects your computer against malwares, spywares and viruses through real time protection. It lets you run various types of scans such as Quick scan, Full scan and Custom scan. Microsoft Security Essentials has a new technology called Dynamic signature service which automatically updates when it detects a threat. When the icon of this freeware is green, then your PC is protected.

Panda Cloud Antivirus

Panda Cloud Antivirus is a free and handy antivirus software. It is connected to Panda Lab’s online collective intelligence servers in real-time. This freeware is specially developed and designed to protect your computer against the latest malware, spyware and viruses. It updates automatically in the background. It lets you offer quick and custom scan for specific drives, files and folder. Panda Cloud Antivirus gives you a report of threats removed and detected from your PC for: last month, last week, last 24 hours and all.

HerdProtect

HerdProtect is a free online malware scanner for your computer. It scans for the malicious software in your PC using the search algorithms of 68 popular and effective anti-virus software through the cloud. It basically makes a secure tunnel and connects to the online cloud server to scan each file in your PC and provides you the latest results from different anti-malware software.

Kingsoft Antivirus

Kingsoft Antivirus is a free antivirus software having various features such as cloud scanning, system vulnerability detection, virus infection prevention and scanning etc. This freeware will scan different areas of the system for detection of viruses. It will check various parts of the system such as browser plug-ins and add-ons, system services and drivers, currently running processes, startup programs and applications and boot sector of the hard disk.

VirCleaner

VirCleaner is a free tool for removal of virus from your PC. If your PC is not fully safe from viruses, then it will not run well and its gives rise to serious issues. Therefore a virus removal tool is must for every PC. It protects your PC from suspicious files, viruses and threats. It provides real-time protection to your computer. Installation is not required for this freeware.

Baidu Antivirus

Baidu Antivirus is a free antivirus application. It includes three antivirus engines: Baidu Cloud, Baidu and Avira. Baidu Antivirus will reduce phishing attacks and various other scams. It provides real-time protection to your computer. Baidu Antivirus updates quickly and provides latest antivirus definitions for your PC. This freeware protects your computer against viruses, Trojans and worms.

Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition

Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition is a free antivirus software for your computer. Its main features are virus shield and auto scan. It will uses famous Bitdefender technology to protect your PC from viruses, Trojans and worms. It is a lightweight application. Bitdefender Antivirus Free Edition will only scan your PC when the system resources of your PC are ideal.

ZoneAlarm Free Antivirus Plus Firewall

ZoneAlarm Free Antivirus Plus Firewall is a free antivirus cum firewall software for your computer. It protects your PC from internet threats, hackers, phishers, worms, Trojan horses, spyware and viruses. This freeware automatically scans your PC once a week. But you will also perform the manual scan by configuring its settings.

Roboscan

Roboscan is a free antivirus software. It offers antivirus and antispyware protection to you in real time. To scan your PC with this freeware you can choose from three types of scans. Quick scan, basic scan and advanced scan. It also includes system status scanner, privacy scanner, self protection and firewall protection.

ClamWin

ClamWin is a free antivirus application to protect your PC from malicious threats, malware, Trojans and viruses through on demand file scanning process. This freeware comes with virus database, scanner and scheduler. The main disadvantage of this free tool is that it does not provide URL scanning or access scanning option. It will regularly update its virus database.

Immunet Free Antivirus

Immunet Free Antivirus is a handy and free antivirus software to protect your computer from viruses, malware and online threats without downloading another virus removing application on your PC. It provides real-time protection to your PC. Immunet Free Antivirus is a lightweight application. To update virus definitions you need to connect to Immunet Cloud.

Comodo Antivirus

Comodo Antivirus is a free antivirus software to remove internet threats, hackers, worms, Trojans, malware and viruses from your PC. It is an intelligent virus protection system that offers hi-tech protection against various known and unknown threats. Comodo Antivirus updates automatically in the background and provides real-time protection to your computer.

X-Ray

X-Ray is a free virus scanner software to let you analyse virus effected files by 35 antivirus companies (ViRobot, Vipre, VBA32, TrendMicro, TotalDefense, Symantec, Superantisypware, Sophos, Rising, PC Tools, Panda, nProtect, Norman, Microsoft, McAfee, Kingsoft, Kaspersky, K7antivirus, Ikaurs, Hacksoft, Fortinent, F-secure, F-prot, ESET, Emsisoft, Dr. Web, Comodo, ClamAV, QuickHeal, Bitdefender, Avira, AVG, Avast, Antiy Labs, Agnitum). All these companies send you the reports based upon the analysis of these virus effected files.

VIPRE Rescue

VIPRE Rescue is a free antivirus software to clean and remove viruses from your computer. It will automatically scan your PC and does rootkit scanning as well. If you are not able to boot into windows due to virus problem then in that case boot your computer into safe mode and run this utility from command prompt. And it will effectively remove viruses from your computer.

Zillya! Antivirus

Zillya Antivirus is a freeware to remove and detect all kinds of malware, rootkits, Trojans, worms and viruses that cause errors in your computer, make your computer fail, decrease performance and access to 3rd parties user’s data. This freeware also detects and eliminates adware and spyware software. Zillya Antivirus also cleans and scans your email attachments to ensure virus free mail.

 To read more about the different anti-viruses, visit the website http://listoffreeware.com/list-best-free-antivirus-software/, for more information.












Source: http://listoffreeware.com/list-best-free-antivirus-software/

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Bayanihan  Linux OS

Bayanihan Linux OS is a Filipino-made Linux operating system.
It is a complete open source-based desktop solution for office and school use. It is a package that includes an operating system, a word processor, spreadsheet program, presentation software, email facility, an internet browser, and a graphics editor.

The Bayanihan Project began in 2001 as the pioneer initiative towards the creation of an alternative and open source desktop solution by the Advanced Science and Technology Institute (ASTI), an attached agency of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) committed to the research on and development of Philippine microelectronics as well as information and communication technologies. Throughout the years, the Bayanihan Team has yielded several products including Bayanihan Desktop, BLTCM, and BL Server.

Since the project's launch, the Bayanihan Team has also conducted trainings and lectures on their products as well as on the Free/Open Source Software (F/OSS) philosophy, basic Linux concepts, F/OSS applications such as OpenOffice.org, among others. Bayanihan has been and will continue to be promoted primarily for use in the education sector, government, and SME's.

Kahel Linux

A proof that Linux on the desktop is very much alive and is growing in popularity here in the Philippines is the birth of yet another distro named Kahel. In English, the word "kahel" means orange, which explains the orange t-shirt, beak, and feet of its Tux mascot found on the distro logo.

Unlike AMA Desktop and Bayanihan that are both derived from Debian, Kahel is proudly based on Arch Linux and utilizes GNOME for its desktop environment. Kahel adapted the rolling-release model to give its users the most up-to-date FOSS applications without having to rely on a new version of the OS.

At present, here are some of Kahel's features:

* uses the most recent Linux Kernel (2.6.30)
* support for NILFS2 and BTRFS by default
* utilizes Pacman and Package Kit
* GNOME Applications for Office, Multi-Media and Web- Browsing
* applications are optimized for i686 and x86-64

Here's an interesting note from Kahel's project website:

"Kahel OS is not just an Operating System so to speak. IT is not just a Technology Product on a Linux and Open Source Platform added to the thousands of FREE Distros already available in the community. IT does not explicitly want to be different or to be set apart from the rest. However, among others, we simply would like Kahel OS (just like our team) to be the embodiment of our IT Values and Philosophy.

It is also a gift and a manifestation of the collaborating Filipino spirit that believes in the competence of the Global IT Community."

Some screenshots:

AMA Desktop Linux

Another Pinoy Linux Distribution: AMA Desktop Linux - A new Philippine-made Linux distribution is waiting to be included in the official list of distros and Distrowatch.com. Its name is AMA Desktop Linux (ADL), and it is made ​​by AMA Computer University , considered as one of the best and largest computer schools in the country.

The main aspiration of AMA Desktop Linux project is to provide an operating system interface that is comfortable to existing Microsoft Windows users. The OS will also be used on more than 300+ University Campuses around the world, and will be delivered in classrooms where over 1 million students are enrolled.

AMA Desktop Linux 2007 has many different applications and exclusive patches designed to make everything work seamlessly. It's a designer's Linux with a goal to make everything easy to use, attractive, innovative, powerful and above all, simple. It also uses the latest GNOME Desktop . Most of the applications included are:

Welcome Center - aims to provide a brief introduction of the basics of AMA Desktop 2007.
· Personal Proxy Wizard - Set up personal squid proxy server, to make Internet surfing faster.
· Windows Compatibility Tool - a tool to configure Wine and everything related like Windows NTFS and msttcorefonts.
· Consolidators - Those are the applications that consolidates all other applications into a single window. It aims to make the simple menus. (Ie, File Sharing, Network Browsers and Tools, Encryption, Mobile Devices)
· File System Preferences - Make the root file system easy to navigate. This tool offers an option to hide all other directories in the root and provide a symbolic links for them.
· Heat-Desktop - This provides the user with the default directories for AMA Desktop 2007 Face randomly choose a picture if it's not available, and emblemize the default directories.
· Resource Manager - A tool that detects the memory system and disables some services via gconf if the memory is not met.
· Live Chat Support - An interface to create an account in Freenode and to communicate with other users AMA Desktop 2007.
· Local Network Messenger - An interface that helps the user to create Bonjour IM service and provide an option to load them automatically upon boot.
· Draw Anywhere - An interface for Gromit, that provides annotation capabilities even without Compiz. This is intended for presentations.
· Multicast Filesharing - An interface for udpcast, that sends files to a multitude of computers within the network.

To be accepted in Distrowatch, the developers of AMA Desktop Linux must stay focused, as there is a minimum of a 90-day waiting period for new distributions to be listed. This is to discourage the submission of new projects that start with great enthusiasm only to vanish in a few short months. I think this will not be a problem for the ADL as AMA University is overflowing with talented computer programmers to keep it going.

Sources:

•  http://filipinoinventionsanddiscoveries.blogspot.com/2013/06/bayanihan-linux-os.html
• http://www.junauza.com/2009/09/kahel-linux-yet-another-philippine-made.html
• http://www.junauza.com/2007/11/another-pinoy-linux-distribution.html

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COMPUTER VIRUSES

Computer Virus

○ A short computer program, hidden within another, that makes copies of it and spreads them, disrupting the operation of a computer that receives one.

○ It usually does nasty things to the computer or program which it infects.

○ Its effects could be just plain annoying or extremely malicious.

Most common symptoms that indicates your computer has been infected:

1. Files and data is deleted
2. The computer takes longer to load programs/applications
3. Items and images on your screen are distorted and unusual images and text appears
4. Unusual noises come from your keyboard, hard disk.
5. Hard disk operates excessively or is inaccessible
6. Disk space and file names change for no reason
7. System tools such as Scandisk return incorrect vlaues

Common Types of Computer Viruses

○ Logic Bombs
They are not considered  viruses because they do not replicate. They are not even programs in their own right but rather camouflaged segments of other segments.

Their objective is to destroy data on the computer once certain conditions have been met. Logic bombs go undetected until launched, and the results can be destructive.

○ Stealth Viruses
Hides the modifications made to files and boot records by modifying and forging the results of calls to functions, therefore programs believe they are reading the original file and not the modified file. A good anti-virus software will probably detect a stealth virus due to the fact that a stealth virus attempts to hide itself in memory when an anti-virus software is launched.

○ Slow Virus
A difficult virus to detect due to the fact that it only modifies and infects files when they have been modified or copied. Therefore the original file will not be infected by the actual copied file. A good way to protect yourself against slow viruses is by using an integrity checker or shell.

○ Retro Viruses
Attacks the anti-virus software designed to delete it. The retro virus usually attempts to attack the anti-virus data files such as the virus signature store which disables the ability of the anti-virus software to detect and delete viruses. Otherwise the retro virus attempts to alter the operation of the anti-virus software.

○ Multipartite Viruses
 Attempts to attack and infect both the boot sector and executable files at the same time.

○ Armored Viruses
Attempts to protect itself from anti-virus software by trying to make anti-virus believe it is located somewhere else. Therefore the armored virus has made itself more difficult to trace, disassemble and understand.

○ Companion Viruses
Creates a companion file for each executable files the virus infects. Therefore a companion virus may save itself as scandisk.com and every time a user executes a scandisk.exe, the computer wil load scandisk.com and therefore infect the system.

○ Phage Viruses
A very destructive virus that re-writes an executable program with its own code, rather than just attaching itself to a file. Therefore a Phage virus will usually attempt to delete or destroy every program it infects.

○ Revisiting Viruses
 A worm virus and attempts to copy itself within the computer's memory and then copy itself to another linked computer using TCP/IP protocols. The Morris worm virus in the late 1980's was the first major virus threat to hit the internet.

○ Resident Virus
A permanent which dwells in the RAM memory. From there it can overcome and interrupt all of the operations executed by the system: corrupting files and programs that are opened, closed, copied, renamed etc.


○ Direct Action Viruses
The main purpose of this virus is to replicate and take action when it is executed. When a specific condition is met, the virus will go into action and infect files in the directory or folder that it is in and in directories that are specified in the AUTOEXEC.BAT file path. This batch file is always located in the root directory of the hard disk and carries out certain operations when the computer is booted.

○ Overwrite Viruses
Virus of this kind is characterized by the fact that it deletes the information contained in the files that it infects, rendering them partially or totally useless once they have been infected.

○ Boot Virus
Affects the boot sector of a floppy or hard disk. This is a crucial part of the disk in which information on the disk itself is stored together with a program that makes it possible to boot (start) the computer from the disk.

○ Macro Virus
Infects files that are created  using certain applications or programs that contain macros. These mini-programs make it possible to automate series of operations so that they are performed as a single action, thereby saving the user from having to carry them out one by one.

○ Directory Virus
Change the paths that indicates the location of a file. By executing a program (file with extension .EXE or .COM) which has been infected by a virus, you are unknowingly running the virus program, while the original file and program have been previously moved by the virus.

○ Polymorphic Virus
Encrypt or encode themselves in a different way (using different algorithms and encryption keys) every time they infect a system.

○ File Infectors
Infects programs or executable files. When one of this programs is run, directly or indirectly, the virus is activated, producing the damaging effects it is programmed to carry out. The majority of existing viruses belong to this category, and can be classified depending on the action sthey carry out.

○ FAT Virus
The file allocation table or FAT is the part of a disk used to connect information and is a vital part of the normal functioning of the computer. This type of virus attack can be especially dangerous, by preventing access to certain sections of the disk where important files are stored. Damage caused can result in information losses from individual files or even entire directories.

Virus Prevention

☺ Installing anti-virus software on your computer.
A good anti-virus sytem will scan your machine regularly to clean it from any infected files.

☺ Update your anti-virus software regularly.
NOTE: It is advised NOT to connect to the internet without AV protection.

☺ When in doubt, Throw it out
Always use caution and do not open, download or execute any suspicious files or email attachments.

☺ Delete chain emails and junk mail
Do not forward or reply to any of them. These types of emails are considered spam, which is unsolicited, intrusive mail that clogs up the network.

☺ Use caution when downloading files from the internet
Ensure that the source is a legitimate and reputable one. Verify that an anti-virus program checks the files on the download site. If you're uncertain, don't download file at all.

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COMPUTER MAINTENANCE

Do's and Don'ts in using Computer

1. Don't click on short links

    At least, don't click without doing proper research first. When it comes to bit links, the problem is the final destination is unknown.           

       
2. Don't fill your Hard Drive to capacity

    It is recommended to keep at least 20 percent of the hard drive free. If you are doing a gazillion   things at once on your computer, chances are that you have used up your entire RAM. Once your RAM is used, your computer uses your hard drive as additional RAM. But if your Hard Drive is  full to the brim, this will end up crushing your computer.             

        

3. Don't store anything on your Desktop

    The desktop is not typically backed up, so if the computer crashes then anything on the desktop is   lost.     

4. Do routinely reinstall your operating system

    The nature of the operating system is after 12 to 18 months, Windows is going to slow down and  its going to become less and less efficient. The solution? Reinstalling the operating system.

        

5. Do use the cloud

    The famous cloud is really just the Internet. Storing backup information or files on the internet allows you them from anywhere. So if, worst case scenario, your house burns down, your digital  photos will be safe even though your computer and external hard drive are fried.      
          

6. Do get a solid state drive

    If you want to invest in your computer, considering getting a solid state drive, an alternative to the   traditional spinning had drive. They are expensive but they will make your computer run about   several times faster.          

  

7. Do backup

    Make sure that you either save your files in an area that is backed up or that you back up (copy to    some other PC/media) your files regularly, so that if there is a crash, or theft, you have current   copies of your document.          

   

Other Information:

Disk Defragmentation - Defragmentation is the process of locating the noncontigupous fragments of data into which a computer file may be divided as it is stored on a hard disk, and rearranging the fragments and restoring them into fewer fragments or into the whole file. Defragmentation reduces data access time and allows storage to be used more efficiently.

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OTHER OPERATING SYSTEMS

Below are only a few samples of other Operating System you might want to know.

 AMIGAOS 4.1 

Although AmigaOS is a veteran in the field (many have fond memories of
the original Amiga (computer), its current version is a fully modern OS.
It only runs on specific PowerPC-based hardware platforms. The
company ACube is currently marketing and distributing AmigaOS
and is going to bundle the OS with their motherboards.

HAIKU

Haiku is an open source project aimed at recreating and continuing the 

development of the BeOS operating system (which Palm Inc. bought and 

then discontinued). Haiku was initially known as OpenBeOS but changed 

its name in 2004. Haiku is compatible with software written for BeOS.

REACTOS

ReactOS is an operating system designed to be compatible with Microsoft
Windows software. The project started in 1998 and today it can run many
Windows programs well. The ReactOS kernel has been written from scratch
 but the OS makes use of Wine to be able to run Windows applications.

SYLLABLE

Syllable is a free and open source operating system that was forked in
 2002 from AtheOS, an AmigaOS clone. It’s intended as a lightweight
 and fast OS suitable for home and small office users.

SKYOS

SkyOS is a closed source project written by Robert Szeleney and volunteers.
 It originally started as an experiment in OS design. It’s intended to be an
 easy-to-use desktop OS for average computer users. Well-known applications
 such as Firefox have been ported to run on SkyOS.

MORPHOS

MorphOS is a lightweight, media-centric OS build to run on PowerPC
processors. It is inspired by AmigaOS and also includes emulation to be
able to run Amiga applications.

AROS 

AROS is a lightweight open source OS designed to be compatible with
AmigaOS 3.1 but also improve on it. The project was started in 1995 and
can today be run on both PowerPC and IBM PC compatible hardware.
It also includes an emulator that makes it possible to run old Amiga applications.

MENUETOS

MenuetOS, also known as MeOS, is an operating system written entirely
in assembly language which makes it very small and fast. Even though it
 includes a graphical desktop, networking and many other features it still
fits on a single 1.44 MB floppy disk (for our younger readers, that was
the USB stick of the 80s and early 90s 😉 ).

DEXOS

DexOS is an open source operating system designed to work like the
minimalistic ones on gaming consoles, but for PCs. Its user interface
is inspired by video game consoles and the system itself is very small
 (supposedly this one also fits on a floppy disk, like MenuetOS) and
 the OS can be booted from several different devices. Its creators have
 tried to make it as fast as possible.

VISOPSYS

Visopsys is a one-man hobby project by programmer Andy McLaughlin.
The development began in 1997 and the OS is both open source and free.
 Visopsys stands for VISual Operating SYStem.

Chrome OS

Google’s Chrome OS is built on the Linux kernel, but it replaces the desktop
and user-level software with a specialized desktop that can only run the Chrome
 browser and Chrome apps.

Chrome OS isn’t really a general-purpose PC operating system — instead,
it’s designed to be preinstalled on specialized laptops, known as Chromebooks.
However, there are ways to install Chrome OS on your own PC.

SteamOS

Valve’s SteamOS is currently in beta. Technically, Steam OS is just a Linux
distribution and includes much of the standard Linux software. However,
SteamOS is being positioned as a new PC gaming operating system.
The old Linux desktop is there underneath, but the computer boots to
a Steam interface designed for living rooms.

In 2015, you’ll be able to buy PCs that come with SteamOS preinstalled,
 known as Steam Machines. Valve will support you installing SteamOS
on any PC you like — it’s just not anywhere near complete yet.

eComStation

OS/2 was an operating system originally created by Microsoft and IBM.
IBM continued development after Microsoft left it and OS/2 competed
with MS-DOS and the original versions of Windows. Microsoft eventually
won, but there are still old ATMs, PCs, and other systems using OS/2.
IBM once marketed this operating system as OS/2 Warp, so you may
 know it by that name.

IBM no longer develops OS/2, but a company named Serenity Systems
 has the rights to continue distributing it. They call their operating system
 eComStation. It’s based on IBM’s OS/2 and adds additional applications,
drivers, and other enhancements.
This is the only paid operating system on this list aside from Mac OS X.
 You can still download a free demo CD to check it out.

Fedora

Fedora  is an operating system based on the Linux kernel, developed by
the community-supported Fedora Project and sponsored by Red Hat.
 Fedora contains software distributed under a free and open-source
license and aims to be on the leading edge of such technologies.

Debian

Debian  is a Unix-like computer operating system that is composed entirely of
free software, most of which is under the GNU General Public License,
and packaged by a group of individuals called the Debian Project.
Three main branches are offered: Stable, Testing, and Unstable.

The Debian Stable Linux distribution is one of the most popular for
 personal computers and network servers, and has been used as a base
 for several other distributions. The Debian Testing and Unstable branches
 are rolling release and eventually become the Stable distribution after
development and testing. Packages are first uploaded to Unstable, from
which they migrate to Testing. When Testing is mature enough it becomes Stable.

Debian was first announced in 1993 by Ian Murdock, Debian 0.01 was
released in August 1993, and the first stable release was made in 1996.
 The development is carried out over the Internet by a team of volunteers
guided by the Debian Project Leader and three foundational documents:
 the Debian Social Contract, the Debian Constitution, and the Debian
Free Software Guidelines. New distributions are updated continually,
 and the next candidate is released after a time-based freeze.

CentOS

CentOS (abbreviated from Community Enterprise Operating System)
 is a Linux distribution that attempts to provide a free, enterprise-class,
community-supported computing platform which aims to be functionally
 compatible with its upstream source, Red Hat Enterprise Linux (RHEL).

References:

• http://royal.pingdom.com/2008/09/26/10-amazingly-alternative-

          operating-systems-and-what-they-could-mean-for-the-future/

• http://www.howtogeek.com/190217/10-alternative-pc-operating-

          systems-you-can-install/

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

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HISTORY OF UBUNTU

Ubuntu  is a Debian-based Linux operating system
 and distribution for personal computers,
smartphones  and network servers. It uses Unity
as its default user  interface. It is based on free
software and named after the Southern African
 philosophy of ubuntu  (literally, 'human-ness'),
which Canonical Ltd suggests can be loosely
translated as "humanity to
 others" or "I am what I am because of who
we all are".

Development of Ubuntu is led by UK-based
Canonical Ltd,a company owned by South African
entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth. Canonical generates
 revenue through the sale of technical support and
other services related to Ubuntu.The Ubuntu
 project is publicly committed to the principles
 of open-source software development; people
 are encouraged to use free software, study how
it works, improve upon it, and distribute it.

A Brief History of Ubuntu
A new version of Ubuntu is released every 6 months like clockwork, and as of
Oct 2015, a grand total of 23 stable releases has been delivered. Each release
also has a specific code name which are made using an adjective and an animal
with the same first letter (e.g. Hardy Heron, Wily Werewolf). We will do a brief
overview of each one of them below. A walk back through the history of Ubuntu.
Read on.

Ubuntu 4.10 (Warty Warthog)

          -  Ubuntu 4.10 (Warty Warthog), released on 20 October 2004, was
Canonical's first release of Ubuntu, building upon Debian, with plans for a new
release every six months and eighteen months of support thereafter. Ubuntu
4.10's support ended on 30 April 2006. Ubuntu 4.10 was offered as a free
 download and, through Canonical's ShipIt service, was also mailed to users
free of charge in CD format.

        

Ubuntu 5.04 (Hoary Hedgehog)

         - Ubuntu 5.04 (Hoary Hedgehog), released on 8 April 2005,was Canonical's
second release of Ubuntu. Ubuntu 5.04's support ended on 31 October 2006.
Ubuntu 5.04 added many new features including an update manager,upgrade
notifier, readahead and grepmap, suspend, hibernate and standby support,
dynamic frequency scaling for processors, ubuntu hardware database, Kickstart
installation, and APT authentication. Ubuntu 5.04 allowed installation from USB
devices. Beginning with Ubuntu 5.04, UTF-8 became the default character encoding.

Ubuntu 5.10 (Breezy Badger)

         - Ubuntu 5.10 (Breezy Badger), released on 12 October 2005, was Canonical's
third release of Ubuntu. Ubuntu 5.10's support ended on 13 April 2007. Ubuntu
5.10  added several new features including a graphical bootloader (Usplash), an
Add/Remove Applications tool, a menu editor (Alacarte), an easy language
selector, logical volume management support, full Hewlett-Packard printer
support, OEM installer support, a new Ubuntu logo in the top-left, and Launchpad
integration for bug reporting and software development.

Ubuntu 6.06 (Dapper Drake)

          - Ubuntu 6.06 (Dapper Drake), released on 1 June 2006,was Canonical's
fourth release, and the first long-term support (LTS) release. Ubuntu 6.06
was released behind schedule, having been intended as 6.04. It is sometimes
jokingly described as their first 'Late To Ship' (LTS) release. Development was
 not complete in April 2006 and Mark Shuttleworth approved slipping the
 release date to June, making it 6.06 instead. Ubuntu 6.06's support ended
 on 14 July 2009 for desktops and ended in June 2011 for servers. Ubuntu 6.06
 included several new features, including having the Live CD and Install CD
merged onto one disc, a graphical installer on Live CD (Ubiquity), Usplash
on shutdown as well as startup, a network manager for easy switching of
multiple wired and wireless connections, Humanlooks theme implemented
 using Tango guidelines, based on Clearlooks and featuring orange colors
 instead of brown, and GDebi graphical installer for package files.Ubuntu
6.06 did not include a means to install from a USB device, but did for the first
time allow installation directly onto removable USB devices.

Ubuntu 6.10 (Edgy Eft)

          - Ubuntu 6.10 (Edgy Eft), released on 26 October 2006, was Canonical's
fifth release of Ubuntu. Ubuntu 6.10's support ended on 25 April 2008. Ubuntu
 6.10 added several new features including a heavily modified Human theme,
 Upstart init daemon, automated crash reports (Apport), Tomboy note taking
application, and F-Spot photo manager. EasyUbuntu, a third party program
designed to make Ubuntu easier to use, was included in Ubuntu 6.10 as a
meta-package.

Ubuntu 7.04 (Feisty Fawn)

          - Ubuntu 7.04 (Feisty Fawn), released on 19 April 2007, was Canonical's
sixth release of Ubuntu. Ubuntu 7.04's support ended on 19 October 2008.
Ubuntu 7.04 included several new features, among them a migration assistant
to help former Microsoft Windows users transition to Ubuntu, support for
Kernel-based Virtual Machine, assisted codec and restricted drivers installation
including Adobe Flash, Java, MP3 support, easier installation of Nvidia and
 ATI drivers, Compiz desktop effects, support for Wi-Fi Protected Access, the
 addition of Sudoku and chess, a disk usage analyzer (baobab), GNOME
Control Center, and Zeroconf support for many devices. Ubuntu 7.04 dropped
 support for PowerPC architecture.

Ubuntu 7.10 (Gutsy Gibbon)

          - Ubuntu 7.10 (Gutsy Gibbon), released on 18 October 2007, was
Canonical's seventh release of Ubuntu. Ubuntu 7.10's support ended on
18 April 2009. Ubuntu 7.10 included several new features, among
them AppArmor security framework, fast desktop search, a Firefox
plug-in manager (Ubufox), a graphical configuration tool for X.Org,
full NTFS support (read/write) via NTFS-3G, and a revamped printing
system with PDF printing by default. Compiz Fusion was enabled as
default in Ubuntu 7.10 and Fast user switching was added.

Ubuntu 8.04 LTS (Hardy Heron)

          - Ubuntu 8.04 (Hardy Heron), released on 24 April 2008,was
Canonical's eighth release of Ubuntu and the second Long Term Support
(LTS) release. Ubuntu 8.04's support ended on 12 May 2011 for desktops
and ended in April 2013 for servers. Ubuntu 8.04 included several new features,
among them Tracker desktop search integration, Brasero disk burner,
Transmission BitTorrent client, Vinagre VNC client, system sound through
PulseAudio, and Active Directory authentication and login using Likewise
Open. In addition Ubuntu 8.04 included updates for better Tango compliance,
various Compiz usability improvements, automatic grabbing and releasing of the
mouse cursor when running on a VMware virtual machine, and an easier
method to remove Ubuntu. Ubuntu 8.04 was the first version of Ubuntu to
include the Wubi installer on the Live CD that allows Ubuntu to be installed
as a single file on a Windows hard drive without the need to repartition the disk.
The first version of the Ubuntu Netbook Remix was also introduced.
Support for Ubuntu Hardy Heron was officially ended on 9 May 2013.

Ubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex)  

         - Ubuntu 8.10 (Intrepid Ibex), released on 30 October 2008, was Canonical's
 ninth release of Ubuntu. Support ended on 30 April 2010. Ubuntu 8.10
introduced several new features including improvements to mobile computing
and desktop scalability, increased flexibility for Internet connectivity, an Ubuntu
Live USB creator and a guest account, which allowed others to use a computer
allowing very limited user rights (e.g. accessing the Internet, using software
and checking e-mail).The guest account had its own home folder and nothing
done on it was stored permanently on the computer's hard disk. Intrepid
Ibex also included an encrypted private directory for users,the inclusion of
Dynamic Kernel Module Support, a tool that allows kernel drivers to be
automatically rebuilt when new kernels are released and support for creating
USB flash drive images.

Ubuntu 9.04 (Jaunty Jackalope)

     - Ubuntu 9.04 (Jaunty Jackalope), released on 23 April 2009, was
Canonical's tenth release of Ubuntu. Support ended on 23 October 2010.
New features included faster boot time, integration of web services and
applications into the desktop interface. Because of that, they named
it after mythical animal Jackalope. It was the first release named after a
mythical animal, the second being Utopic Unicorn. It had a new usplash
screen, a new login screen and also support for both Wacom (hotplugging)
and netbooks. It also included a new notification system, Notify OSD, and
themes. It marked the first time that all of Ubuntu's core development
moved to the Bazaar distributed revision control system.

Ubuntu 9.10 (Karmic Koala)

        - Ubuntu 9.10 (Karmic Koala), released on 29 October 2009, was
Canonical's 11th release of Ubuntu. It was supported until April 2011.
From this release onwards, Ubuntu slowly started to shift gears. A slew
of changes started to flood Ubuntu. During Ubuntu Karmic's release cycle,
Canonical introduced the One Hundred Paper Cuts project, focusing developers
to fix minor usability issues. This was a major move and it helped bring a lot of
polish for Ubuntu in the latter releases. This release also introduced Ubuntu
Software Center.

Ubuntu 10.04 LTS (Lucid Lynx)

       - Shuttleworth first announced Ubuntu 10.04 (Lucid Lynx) on 19 September
2009 at the Atlanta Linux Fest; Canonical released it on 29 April 2010. It is
Canonical's 12th release of Ubuntu and the third Long Term Support (LTS)
release. Canonical provided support for the desktop version of Ubuntu 10.04
until 9 May 2013 and the server version until 30 April 2015.The new release
includes, among other things, improved support for Nvidia proprietary
graphics drivers, while switching to the open source Nvidia graphics driver,
Nouveau, by default. Plymouth was also introduced allowing boot animations.

Ubuntu 10.10 (Maverick Meerkat)

      - Ubuntu 10.10 codenamed "Maverick Meerkat" was released on 10 October
2010 (10.10.10) at around 10:10 UTC. Close to the heels of Ubuntu Lucid release,
Ubuntu Maverick was also packed with new features and improvements.
Ubuntu Software Center became one of the applications that received maximum
amount of attention. Canonical's attention to detail started showing up big time
during Ubuntu 10.10 release cycle.

Ubuntu 11.04 (Natty Narwhal)

        - Ubuntu 11.04 Natty Narwhal was released on 28 April 2011. It is
Canonical's 14th release of Ubuntu. Ubuntu 11.04 used the Unity user interface
instead of GNOME Shell as default. The move to Unity was controversial
as some GNOME developers feared it would fracture the community and
marginalize GNOME Shell. The GNOME desktop environment is still available in
Ubuntu 11.04 under the title Ubuntu Classic as a fallback to Unity. Ubuntu 11.04
employed Banshee as the default music player, replacing Rhythmbox. Other new
applications included Mozilla Firefox 4 and LibreOffice, which replaced
OpenOffice.org. The OpenStack cloud computing platform was added in this release.

Ubuntu 11.10 (Oneiric Ocelot)

     - The naming of Ubuntu 11.10 (Oneiric Ocelot) was announced on 7
March 2011 by Mark Shuttleworth. He explained that Oneiric means
"dreamy". In April 2011 Shuttleworth announced that Ubuntu 11.10 would
not include the classic GNOME desktop as a fall back to Unity, unlike Ubuntu
11.04 Natty Narwhal. Instead, 11.10 included a 2D version of Unity as a fallback
for computers that lacked the hardware resources for the Compiz-based 3D
version. However, the classic GNOME desktop remained available in
Ubuntu 11.10 through a package in the Ubuntu repositories.

Ubuntu 12.04 (Precise Pangolin)

       - Ubuntu 12.04 LTS (Precise Pangolin) is Canonical's sixteenth release
of Ubuntu and its fourth Long Term Support (LTS) release, made available
on schedule on 26 April 2012. It is named after the pangolin anteater.
Previous LTS releases have been supported for three years for the desktop
version and five years for the server version; this release will be supported
for five years for both versions. Changes in this release include a much
faster startup time for the Ubuntu Software Center and refinements to
Unity. This release also replaced the Banshee media player with Rhythmbox
as the default media player and dropped the Tomboy note-taking application
and the supporting Mono framework as well. Also, the window dodge feature
has been removed from the Unity launcher starting with Ubuntu 12.04.

Ubuntu 12.10 (Quantal Quetzal)

        - On 23 April 2012 Shuttleworth announced that Ubuntu 12.10
would be named Quantal Quetzal. As this will be the first of a series of
three releases before the next LTS release, Shuttleworth indicated that it
will include a refreshed look, with work to be done on typography and
iconography. The release takes its name from the quetzal, a species of
Central American birds.Ubuntu 12.10 was released on schedule
on 18 October 2012 and is Canonical's seventeenth release of the operating system.

Ubuntu 13.04 (Raring Ringtail)

      - Though Unity was improved leaps and bounds by now, it lacked the
polishness and finesse it deserved. With the help of recently joined designer
known for his gorgeous works including Faenza theme, Ubuntu 13.04 look
and feel got some much needed attention. The new shutdown menu and core
app icons were a class apart. The new "spinning" Unity dash icon and
Software Updater icon set benchmarks in branding. Also, Wubi installer
was dropped during this release owing to compatibility issues with
Windows 8. And more importantly, it was decided that non-LTS Ubuntu
releases will see their support periods halved (9 months instead of 18) from
Ubuntu 13.04 onwards.

Ubuntu 13.10 (Saucy Salamander)

      - Ubuntu 13.10 is named Saucy Salamander. It was released on schedule
on 17 October 2013. Consideration was given to changing the default browser
from Mozilla Firefox to Chromium, but problems with timely updates to
Ubuntu's Chromium package caused developers to retain Firefox for this release.

Ubuntu 14.04 LTS (Trusty Tahr)

      - This version was released on 17 April 2014, and is the 20th release of
Ubuntu. Shuttleworth indicated that the focus in this development cycle
would be a release characterized by "performance, refinement, maintainability,
technical debt" and encouraged the developers to make "conservative choices".
Technical debt refers to catching up and refining supporting work for
earlier changes. The development cycle for this release focused on the tablet
interface, specifically for the Nexus 7 and Nexus 10 tablets. There were few
changes to the desktop as 14.04 used the existing mature Unity 7 interface.
Ubuntu 14.04 included the ability to turn off the global menu system and
used locally integrated menus instead for individual applications. Other features
were the retention of Xorg and not Mir or XMir, a Unity 8 developers'
preview, new mobile applications, a redesigned USB Start-Up Disk Creator
tool, a new forked version of the GNOME Control Center, called the Unity
Control Center and default SSD TRIM support. GNOME 3.10 is installed by default.

Ubuntu 14.10 (Utopic Unicorn)

     - Version 14.10 was released on 23 October, having only minor updates
to the kernel, Unity Desktop, and included packages such as LibreOffice and
Mozilla Firefox and Thunderbird. The kernel was updated to 3.16 for
hardware support (e.g. graphics) and has for security, full kernel address space
layout randomization applied to the kernel and its modules, plus the closure
of a number of information leaks in /proc. This version is the 21st release.
Ubuntu 14.10 was officially characterized as a release that addressed
"bug fixes and incremental quality improvements" and so it incorporated
very few new features.

Ubuntu 15.04 (Vivid Vervet)

        - Ubuntu 15.04 used systemd instead of Upstart by default. This release
also featured locally integrated menus by default, replacing the previous default
global menus. Silviu Stahie, writing for Softpedia, said about this release
while it was in beta, "Ubuntu 15.04 is not an exciting release, but that it's only
a surface impression. The truth is that it's an important upgrade because some
very important changes have been made, including the adoption of systemd.
Users will notice that not too many visual changes have been implemented in
Ubuntu 15.04, but that was to be expected. The team is transitioning to a new
Unity version that is still not ready for general use, so it's easy to understand
why Ubuntu 15.04 is not all that different from Ubuntu 14.10. This
release included modest improvements in Intel Haswell graphics
performance and bigger improvements for AMD Radeon graphics cards
using the open-source Radeon R600 and RadeonSI Gallium3D drivers.

Ubuntu 15.10 (Wily Werewolf)

     - It was the 23rd release of Ubuntu. Ubuntu 15.10 eliminated the
disappearing window edge scrollbars in favour of the upstream GNOME
scrollbars, a move designed to save developer time in creating patches and updates.

Ubuntu 16.04 LTS (Xenial Xerus)

        - It was released on 21 April 2016.The default desktop environment
continues to be Unity 7, with an option for Unity 8. In May 2015, Shuttleworth
indicated that Ubuntu 16.04 LTS would include Unity 8 and Mir, but that users
have a choice of that or Unity 7 and X.org. He said, "Unity 8 will be an option
for 16.04 and we'll let the community decide the default for 16.04."

Ubuntu 16.10 (Yakkety Yak)

       - Mark Shuttleworth announced on 21 April 2016 that Ubuntu 16.10
would be called Yakkety Yak. It is to be released on 20 October 2016.

 For more information, click the link below:

http://www.ubuntu.com/

References:

• http://www.techdrivein.com/2011/01/evolution-of-ubuntu-over-years-brief.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Ubuntu_releases

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