Linux 4.0: little fanfare for a tiny new release

Linux 4.0 is here. Linux head honcho Linus Torvalds sent out an update to the Linux Kernel Mailing List on Sunday that explained the “pretty small” release fits in with an earlier agreed schedule as opposed to there being any big changes to the Linux Kernel.

“Feature-wise, 4.0 doesn’t have all that much special. Much has been made of the new kernel patching infrastructure, but realistically that wasn’t the only reason for the version number change. We’ve had much bigger changes in other versions. So this is very much a ‘solid code progress’ release,” explained Linus Torvalds in the update.

What’s been improved?

Even so, there are still upwards of 10,000 non-merge commits included, yet this number pales compared to past “bigger releases,” according to Torvalds and linux-next v4.1 is expected to be the next whopper to come out of the Linux camp.

Among the improvements in Linux 4.0 is the addition of support for Intel’s Quark SoCs, increased support for the Z13 that powers IBM mainframes, non-disruptive patching, various ARM chips are now supported and the usual tweaks to graphics and sounds are along for the ride.