Lubuntu 10.04 Lucid Lynx Beta 3 is available for download. The status of this final release is not determined yet ("beta stable", "rc final"), that's why its a beta and not a RC like other *buntu. However, final release is still planned for the end of this month, or in very early May.

The first beta version of what will become Ubuntu 12.04, Precise Pangolin, has just been released. The final, stable version will be released by the end of April. This beta release, as with all pre-stable distribution releases, is an invitation for bug hunters to get busy.

The third and final beta edition of Mageia 2, a desktop Linux distribution derived from Mandriva Desktop, has been released. The first and only Release Candidate is expected on May 2, with the final, stable edition slated for release on May 15.

So, what does this release has to offer? Aside from the usual new features and bugfixes, Mageia 2 beta 3 features a new desktop design.

Just a few days to go until The Jackalope arrives. We got Beta now and a Release Candidate shortly then the final vesion. For those who can’t wait the final version and want to taste the Beta, here are ways to have 9.04 on your desktop. Me? I’ll wait for the stable one.

Julien Lavergne has released the next Alpha 3 of lubuntu. lubuntu is a faster, more lightweight and energy saving variant of Ubuntu using LXDE, the Lightweight X11 Desktop Environment. The lubuntu team aims to earn official endorsement from Canonical. Lubuntu 10.04 Alpha 3 Screenshots at My SEO Company

The popular Linux distribution, Fedora 13, has been released to its final beta and is chock full of features for enterprise use. Code-named Goddard, the beta version was released on Tuesday with the final version slated for May 18.

With Ubuntu 14.04 closing in to the release date, which is set for April 17th, I took Lubuntu for a spin from the daily live ISO image. Lubuntu is the most lightweight distribution in the Ubuntu family (the other one being Xubuntu which uses Xfce), using LXDE (Lightweight X Desktop Environment), as well as a set of applications intended to be low on resources.

Fedora 17 GNOME beta, as well as the beta of the KDE, LXDE and Xfce Spins, were released yesterday – almost two weeks past due date. This, however, is not highly unusual for the Fedora project. Unlike Ubuntu, their release schedule is not cast in concrete. They are more interested in getting stuff that works out the door, instead of shoving something out to meet a set deadline.

The first beta release of Mageia 2 was made available for download yesterday (February 21). The final stable release is not due until May 3, but from test installations of this first beta, in both real hardware and virtual environment, I can tell you that Mageia 2 may very well turn out to be the best desktop distribution of 2012.