April 2007

Riverbank Computing has announced a minor update to PyQt 3, version 3.17.2, which fixes a regression introduced in v3.17.1. The changelog reads "Backed out the recent change to remove the /ReleaseGIL/ from QApplication.postEvent() as it turns out it avoids a potential deadlock". Download here (dual licence applies). There is also now a French translation of the PyQt documentation.

Trolltech today announced the release of the final beta version of Qt Jambi, its Java bindings for Qt. Changes include improvements to the Jambi version of Qt Designer and JUIC, feature and stability improvements to the Eclipse integration, support for Qt Linguist and cleanups and usability improvements to the API itself. Downloads are available here. The beta is available under the GPL for open-source developers, and a preview licence for commercial developers. (See the labs blog for some inside details.)

Trolltech has announced the release of version 4.2.2 of Qtopia, its embedded Qt applications platform. Changes:

• Bluetooth: Bluetooth support is provided in this release only as a technology preview. When building Qtopia, Bluetooth is disabled by default, but may be enabled by specifying the -bluetooth configure switch.
• Clock: The Clock application has been made consistent with other Qtopia applications by using a tabbed window to present the three different screens rather than using entries in the context menu to switch between the three screens.
• Greenphone: The Greenphone now displays information about its progress during startup and shutdown.
• Telephony: The signal strength indicator can now be used to indicate the signal strength of any communications medium, not just GSM signal strength. This is done by writing appropriate values to the Qtopia Valuespace.

This release also contains a substantial number of bug fixes to several of the toolkit's modules (see release notes). Open source downloads (without the Safe Execution Environment, DRM or telephony) are available here

From KDE Apps:

Version 3.3.0 of Syntext Serna, a WYSIWYG XML content editor, has been released. Changes:

• Fixed a number of stability issues
• Optimized GUI: much faster switching between documents
• Simplified, transparent Save View/Restore View functionality
• When browsing from dialogs, paths to images and resources are relative wherever possible
• DITA enhancements, including localization identical to DITA OT, "metadata" element shown in editing window, "xref" displaying the title of the referred element

Screenshots here, downloads, pricing and licence information here. This is a commercial application; prices start from $89 for a single-user licence for the personal/home version.

From KDE Apps:

Version 3.9.4 3.9.5 of eric3, the Python IDE written with PyQt, has been released. This version contains bug fixes and improved Subversion v1.4 and PyLint compatibility. Screenshots here, downloads (source packages only; it's all Python) here. Requires Qt v3.1 and Python v2.3 (for other requirements, see downloads page).

Version 7.04 of Kubuntu, the version of the Ubuntu Linux OS based on Debian which has KDE as its desktop, has been released. Significant features:

• KDE 3.5.6
• Restructured system settings (the KDE control centre with a Mac-like menu)
• Special GUI tool for Hewlett-Packard printer configuration
• Improved Guidance power management
• K3b v1.0 (note: version 1.0.1 has just been released)
• New topic-based help system
• Facelift for OEM installer
• Kernel 2.6.20, glibc v2.5, Python v2.5

Screenshots at the announcement page and here; downloads here, available in straight ISO images or as BitTorrent downloads, or upgrade with the distribution's APT front tools. Canonical will ship CDs for you free of charge through their Shipit scheme, or you can buy them and get them quicker. Note that Ubuntu, the GNOME version, has also been released; you can obtain either first and use APT (or Adept/Synaptic) to install the other.

From KDE Apps:

Version 1.0.1 of K3b, the CD and DVD ripping and burning application for KDE, has been released. Changelog:

• Fixed crash when using the Device menu without a selected device.
• Fixed DVD copy when reading from a DVD+RW.
• Fixed --without-alsa configure check
• Fixed a crash in Video DVD ripping when the title does not contain an audio stream
• Only use the mkisofs parameters -biblio, -copyright, and -abstract if they have been set. Using them
  with invalid values (empty) seems to result in broken iso images sometimes.
• Better compatibility with recent transcode development branch
• Fixed Multisession import size handling.
• Fixed Lame quality preset handling.
• Made libk3bdevice really thread-safe. This fixes the disabled DMA bug!
• New configure check --without-cdrecord-suid-root to disable K3b's check for cdrecord permissions.
  Although not recommended it is requested by many distributors.
• Changed the order of the buttons in the tool dialogs to match the KDE order.
• Added handling of the newly introduced genisoimage parameter -allow-limited-size
• Make the K3b Sox audio encoder plugin work with newer sox versions (Thanks, Stephan.)

Screenshots here, downloads (source, links to various distro binaries) here. Requires KDE 3.2.

A German book on K3b called "K3b kompakt", by Markus Priemer, has also been released. The 130-page book costs €16.80 and is available from Bomots Verlag.

Trolltech today announced a new development contest, involving developing an app for its Qtopia Phone Edition platform. Entries are accepted in five categories (best original app, best improvement to a QPE app, best end to end service, best user interface experience and "Best in the Impossible to Classify Category"). 25 Greenphones are to be given away in phase one; the two winners of phase two are to win US$5,000, professional QPE licences, and air fare to the Munich or LA Trolltech Developer Days. The project website, with rules and application forms, is here. The phase one registration and submission deadline is 29th July this year. Qt desktop developers are reminded that the Qt Centre Programming Contest is still open until the end of May.

From KDE Apps:

A release candidate of version 3.3 of Syntext Serna, a WYSIWYG XSLT-driven XML content editor, has been released. Changes:

• A number of stability issues fixed
• Optimised GUI, providing for faster document switching
• Simplified, transparent Save View/Restore View functionality
• When browsing from dialogs, paths to images and resources are relative wherever possible
• DITA enhancements, including localization identical to DITA OT, "metadata" element shown in editing window, "xref" displaying the title of the referred element

Screenshots here. This is a commercial application, although a time-limited free trial is available. Which Qt version is used is not stated.