Read the release notes here. What do you think about the new features?

Many thanks for the heads up!

The new features look great but it's slow as heck on my computer. Previous versions of Blender opened in seconds, this one takes up to 40 seconds to open and every bit of the interface is laggy. I don't like the fact that they seem to have gotten rid of zip downloads too - all I was able to find was the .msi installer.

Also - how lazy have I become, that 40 seconds seems like forever. My first PC back in the early 80's could take 3-4 minutes to start up, now 40 seconds is frustrating. :)

That's interesting, since I've always downloaded MSI installers. I didn't even know they had zip downloads.

I agree with you about software that's laggy, so I may just hold off on this update for now, because I'm in the middle of taking a Blender course, and don't want the software acting strange while I don't have the time to "play" with it..

MDO2010 posted at 4:23PM Fri, 15 September 2017 - #4314168

The new features look great but it's slow as heck on my computer. Previous versions of Blender opened in seconds, this one takes up to 40 seconds to open and every bit of the interface is laggy. I don't like the fact that they seem to have gotten rid of zip downloads too - all I was able to find was the .msi installer.

Also - how lazy have I become, that 40 seconds seems like forever. My first PC back in the early 80's could take 3-4 minutes to start up, now 40 seconds is frustrating. :)

If you click on the link underneath the download you will find the zip versions and versions for MAC and Linux Also I already heard that there might be a bug when using the node editor where it freezes up and or crashes so if working on something save often

Lobo3433 posted at 12:27PM Sat, 16 September 2017 - #4314204

I already heard that there might be a bug when using the node editor where it freezes up and or crashes so if working on something save often

Thanks for the heads-up about the Node Editor bug Logo. I don't use it much, as I'm still trying to learn it (actually comparing it to Poser).

I was working in it yesterday just fiddling around and experienced no issue but as fast as Blender development is and the fact that work on 2.8 is already in the pipeling wont be surprised that if there is an issue with node editor and crashing they will get a bug fix released relatively soon.

I would think so as well.

I think I ran into that crash. I was plugging an object info node into a color ramp to add some random color to some particles and it froze and crashed. Fortunately I am kind of psychotic about saving frequently and only lost about five minutes of work. The problem didn't recur though so maybe it's not actually the bug.

Also, I think the slow load time and laggy interface must have been because of some add-on, or combination of them. I restored back to factory defaults and then reinstalled just the half dozen or so add-ons I actually use on regular basis and both problems went away.

Oh that's good to know. I'll have to check which add-ons I usually use in 2.78C, and then make sure it's only those that are active in 2.79 when I install it.