When is the 2.8 version release?

Since 2.8 just hit beta, could be in the next one to two weeks.

Why not install 2.7.1 and then it will be very easy to ugprade to 2.8 when it is released.

Well, I want to start with a fresh press, if you know what I mean. It just feels clean.
I don’t want any residue files lingering in my space, just clean code. Maybe it sounds weird, but that’s how I see it.
I have a question- can I remove prior zipped files from ftp from previous upgrades of WordPress and not affect my blog? Same relates to plugin upgrades- in time they accumulate and increase the amount of space.
What happens if those files are removed from previous upgrades?
As you see I am a lackey in these matters, but would like to find answers to.

Yes you can typically remove zip files of previous versions, including plugins, without harming your installation.

But your question makes me think I need to recommend you read and follow the WordPress Backups instructions. Then if you have good backups, you can’t HURT yourself if you accidently delete something that shouldn’t be deleted.

Thank you MichaelH.
I noticed that when I upgrade to a new plugin version the previous files are removed automatically as well, so the problem is solved here.
But what is strange is that the newest version of WordPress appears twice in my ftp- in the folder where it is installed and in the upgrades folder as well. If I remove the latter folder, is anything going to go wrong? Both are the latest version.
The biggest reason I am waiting for the new release (which I’m happy to hear it’s very soon now) is to also use a new database along with the fresh WordPress version. With my other blogs I noticed that even though I remove certain plugins, some files remain in the database.
I found a plugin that cleans databases, but have not had the courage to use it. Can you recommend a way to clean “stuffed” databases using a plugin or a way that a person who is not a coder can use safely without damaging anything?

Thanks for your time.

This discussion assumes you have a backup of files and database…

Don’t know of a plugin that ‘deletes’ unused database tables, though you can at times recognize a table as belonging to a deactivated plugin and if you don’t want the table delete it. Database Descritpion lists the ‘native’ WordPress tables.

There’s also a plugin, WP-Options-Manager that can help clean junk from the wp_options table.

I haven’t tried WP-Options-Manager (also hadn’t heard of it before now) but I notice the version on it is very low. I’ve been using Clean Options for awhile and like it very much. It looks like they both do about the same thing, I wonder about that…

I also wanted to mention that you can safely delete the entire ‘upgrade’ folder from your wp-content folder in your WordPress install without causing any damage, and furthermore I recommend doing so after every upgrade. I’ve done this many times and in fact, if I neglect to do so before attempting to upgrade again (especially for a core upgrade), the upgrade will generally fail! I assume this is because I do not set any of my file/folder permissions to world-writeable??? I’ve had sites hacked a few times and as such will not allow my files/folders to have world-writeable permissions.

On a side note, the Clean Options plugin lets you preview what’s in your options before deleting them, lets you exclude ‘known core wordpress options’ from the options it finds for you, and also lets you search the options on google with a simple click (if you are unsure about them). It will find unused options for you (some of the options it finds are also still in use, but usually it won’t make a difference to delete those, as they are automatically regenerated by WordPress).

Anyway, you shouldn’t have any trouble upgrading from 2.7.1 to 2.8. But if you want to start fresh with 2.8, 2.8-beta2 was just released this evening and, having used 2.8 since pre-beta1 status, I haven’t run into any major bugs yet (though I’m not using it on any production blogs yet). You can grab the 2.8-beta2 from here.

peace~

Thank you so much guys, you’ve answered my worries thoroughly, and I appreciate your time.
??

Is it just me or do others long for the good-old-days when you could count down the days to a new WordPress release?

Start counting–release date is scheduled for June 10.

I am looking forward to seeing what the new theme / plugin editor looks like;

So! 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 …

Well, it’s June 10th!! Tada!
Where is WordPress 2.8???

??

I echo sustainorder’s question “Where is WordPress 2.8.0” after all it is the afternoon of 6/10/2009 and still it is not here.

Hope WordPress 2.8 should be released today…Waiting to deploy fresh asap. ??

Guys, I’m looking forward too… but the announce said also:

“If you don’t uncover any bad bugs, 2.8 will be released on Wednesday the 10th.”

So, reading this forum, I think there were things that still to be fixed before official 2.8 release. ??

Time to sleep, better be ready when I wake up! ??