[Sugar-devel] [NETWORK] Sugar Network 0.8 beta release

[Aleksey Lim]

== General ==

With this release, Sugar Network reaches its beta stage. That
should mean that functionality is settled down and won't be changed
until v1.0 release. Interested in people are welcome to test
Sugar Network 0.8 (see "Try the release" section below).

* Switch to production time Sugar Network sites:

    http://node.sugarlabs.org/ for API
    http://network.sugarlabs.org/ for Web hosted Web UI
    http://network.sugarlabs.org/hub/ for Web hosted Contributor Hub
  
* Switch to production time Sweets Distribution repository
  (Factory repository will be used only for testing):

    http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Platform_Team/Sweets_Distribution/0.94:SugarNetwork


== Sugar Network ==

* Node statistics.
  Sugar Network nodes can collect unpersonalized and common server statistics [2].
  See API changes for ways how it can be used.

* Complete synchronization between Sugar Network nodes:

    http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Deployment_Platform/Gateway
    http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Deployment_Platform/Sneakernet

* Simplify local Sugar Network usage.
  Instead of treating local Sugar Network storage as a separate unit,
  it will be used only as a transition place to keep offline entered
  data before committing to online Sugar Network node.

* Silently reconnect to Sugar Network node if subscription was dropped
  on server due to timeout expired.

* Switch to c-ares, library for asynchronous name resolves.

* While launching Sugar Activities from the Sugar Network, support
  Sugar API compatibility ranges to run activities that don't have
  up-to-date sugar versions on Activity Library.

* Embed python dependencies that are not packages


== API ==

Read the actual API status on the wiki:

    http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Platform_Team/Sugar_Network/API

* New command for getting node statistics:

    GET /?cmd=stats&start=SECONDS&end=SECONDS&resolution=SECONDS&source=STATS-NAME


== Web UI ==

See Hexoquinasa V0.9 release notes [1].


== Contributor Hub ==

* Settings button in toolbar to select Sugar version range to show
  Sugar Activity versions for.


== Sugar Shell plugin ==

* Switch back to Mozilla Gecko to display Sugar Network content
  It was done because the major deployment of Sugar Network will happen
  on Fedora 14 where WebKit behaves unstable in some cases.
  WebKit option will be reverted in further versions.
  

== Try the release ==

Follow the "Try it" wiki page:

    http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Sugar_Network#Try_it

or, try images [1] from Hexoquinasa project.

See Sugar Network usage tutorial created by Thomas C Gilliard:

    http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Sugar_Network/Tutorial


== Credits ==

* People in the field for exposing the need in such kind projects and
  interest in testing.

* World wide community members who donated funds to make full time
  working possible.

* People on wiki, mailing lists, and, IRC channels who are helping in
  development process.


[1] http://thread.gmane.org/gmane.comp.education.sugar.discuss/13713
[2] http://wiki.sugarlabs.org/go/Platform_Team/Sugar_Network_Statistics