We are pleased to announce the release of GRASS GIS 6.4.0, the first
in the new line of 6.4 stable releases. As a stable release 6.4 will
enjoy long-term support. The next release (6.4.1) will introduce a few
new features which are still undergoing final testing, but after that
all further 6.4 releases will be bugfix-only. Due to our highly
conservative stabilization policy this is the first official version
of GRASS to introduce new features since October 2006 and supersedes
the previous stable line of GRASS 6.2. As such the floodgates are open
and there are many new features to explore and many new structural
improvements to be found in the software.
GRASS 6.4 brings a number of exciting enhancements to the GIS. Our new
wxPython graphical user interface (wxGUI) is debuted, Python is now a
fully supported scripting language, and for the first time since its
inception with a port from the VAX 11/780 in 1983, GRASS will now run
natively on a non-UNIX based platform: MS-Windows! In addition to
bringing the software to a host of new users, the ability to run GRASS
on any common computer platform furthers our goal of open access to
the software. We hope you will enjoy the ability to use this program
on the systems that are most convenient to you and your work.
Due to the freshness of WinGrass there may still be a few rough edges
yet to discover, but after more than a year of dedicated testing and
quality-assurance review we are very pleased with the results. Users
can be confident to use this version for their day to day work, indeed
due to the open development model many already do. Existing UNIX and
Mac users will be happy to know that these new features do not disrupt
the base GIS which remains as solid as ever and fully backwards
compatible with earlier GRASS 6.0 and 6.2 releases. The venerable
Tcl/Tk GUIs are also still available if you prefer to use them.
The GRASS software including over 400 built-in analysis modules and
100 community supplied add-on modules and toolboxes can be downloaded
for free from the main GRASS website at http://grass.osgeo.org/, or
from many local mirrors worldwide. In addition to the extensive
documentation which comes with the software, our Wiki help system
contains a wealth of user supplied tips and tricks, tutorials, and
guides.
Since 6.4 entered the testing phase work has begun on GRASS 7 and is
progressing rapidly, including many new wxGUI improvements and tools
which we hope to bring over for the upcoming 6.4.1 release.
More complete information on the new features of GRASS 6.4.0 are available at:
http://grass.osgeo.org/announces/announce_grass640.html