[webkit-gtk] WebKitGTK+ 1.8.0 released

[Martin Robinson]

WebKitGTK+ 1.8.0 is available for download at:

http://webkitgtk.org/releases/webkit-1.8.0.tar.xz (7.7MB)
 md5sum: 52b2feb0fae01e68432b547bd85e8d74
 sha256sum:
8cebd53b412ae9eb192493ad8e41fa8739a7b1a00f74c6b5a69d367709a801bc
 GPG detached signature:
http://webkitgtk.org/releases/webkit-1.8.0.tar.xz.asc

This is the first stable release in the 1.8 series.

What's new since the last WebKitGTK+ 1.6 release?
============================================
 Performance improvements:
 - Rendering and scrolling performance has improved significantly
   with the addition of a backing store that makes scrolling
   complicated pages such as the Facebook timeline much more
   responsive.

 - The DFG ("data-flow graph") JIT has been activated for x86 and
   x86_64 CPUs, leading to significant JavaScript performance gains.

 New features:
 - WebKitGTK+ 1.8.0 arrives with a preliminary implementation of a
   WebKit2 API. WebKit2 is the next generation API for WebKit2 which
   separates the rendering and UI of the engine into two processes.
   This increases both responsiveness and security. WebKit2 is not
   yet enabled by default and the API is still undergoing a lot of
   changes, so it's not encouraged to ship WebKit2 applications yet.
   We've also ported Devhelp to WebKit2 as a demonstration of the
   current API. To enable WebKit2 configure with --enable-webkit2.

 - WebGL is now built by default. WebGL allows embedding 3D
   canvases into page content for the creation of powerful web
   applications. Currently we only support GLX configurations, but
   we're working hard on adding support for EGL and OpenGL ES.
   Embedders must still explicitly enable WebGL via WebKitWebSettings.

 - Experimental support for WebAudio is added, though does not build by
   default. WebAudio is a new API for synthesizing and processing
   audio signals. Enable it by configuring with --enable-web-audio.

 - HTML5 history APIs are now fully supported. The history API allows
   the page content to have greater control over the behavior of the
   back and forward buttons, resulting in fewer hacks and a nicer
   experience.

 - Support for requestAnimationFrame and geolocation APIs are now
   built by default. requestAnimationFrames allows page content to
   produce smoother animations with less jitter, while geolocation
   will allow web applications to show dynamic content based on
   your physical location. Both of these features can be disabled
   at run time and build time.

 - New API additions:
     * New signals to track resource loading:

http://webkitgtk.org/reference/webkitgtk/stable/WebKitWebResource.html

     * A fully functional favicon database which makes displaying page
       icons in your interface a snap:

http://webkitgtk.org/reference/webkitgtk/stable/WebKitFaviconDatabase.html

 Bug fixes:
 As with every release, the WebKitGTK+ developers have worked
 diligently, shed sweat and tears, went to bed at 4AM to find and
 eradicate bugs. As a result this release comes with hundreds of
 crash and bug fixes.


What is WebKitGTK+?
===================

WebKitGTK+ is the GNOME platform port of the WebKit rendering engine.
Offering WebKit's full functionality through a set of GObject-based
APIs, it is suitable for projects requiring any kind of web
integration, from hybrid HTML/CSS applications to full-fledged web
browsers.

Requirements
============

gtk+ >= 2.10
gail >= 1.8
glib >= 2.31.2
libsoup >= 2.37.2.1
cairo >= 1.10
libxml >= 2.6
fontconfig >= 2.4
FreeType2 >= 9.0

Depending on your configuration options WebKitGTK+ may also depend on:

gtk+ >= 3.0
gail >= 3.0
libxslt >= 1.1.7
SQLite >= 3.0
gstreamer >= 0.10
gstreamer-plugin-base >= 0.10.30
enchant >= 0.22

More information
================

If you want to know more about the project or get in touch with us
you may:

 - Visit our website at http://www.webkitgtk.org, or the upstream
   site at http://www.webkit.org. People interested in contributing
   should read: http://www.webkit.org/coding/contributing.html.

 - Browse the bug list at http://bugs.webkit.org, WebKitGTK+ bugs are
   typically prefixed by "[GTK]." A bug report with a minimal,
   reproducible test case is often just as valuable as a patch.

 - Join the #webkit and #webkitgtk+ IRC channels at irc.freenode.net.

 - Subscribe to the WebKitGTK+ mailing list,
   http://lists.webkit.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/webkit-gtk, or the
   WebKit's development mailing list,
   http://lists.webkit.org/mailman/listinfo.cgi/webkit-dev

Thanks
======

Thanks to all the contributors who made possible this release, they
are far too many to list!

The WebKitGTK+ team,
March 27, 2012
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