This amusing question seems to pretty bother some users in forums/story comment sections and fanboys of distros are fast with answering their distro will for sure be it. 
It's amusing for several reasons: Any question about KDE4 is faulty by concept. Next, how can a distribution be "first" or significant earlier than all other when all get the source code at the same time, which is not earlier than when the release happens (or rather about a week before when the supposed release state got tagged)? And what do they mean with "ship"? One not serious answer I read was "Debian testing". Let us assume distro release including it is meant. I don't think that any distribution will adopt their regular release schedule to the KDE 4.0.0 release (also caused by ever moving release date). And if a distribution would do, would it do its users or the KDE project a favor?
My prediction is that on the release day of KDE 4.0.0 we will see a whole bunch of distributions providing packages either in their development tree or in separate repositories for older distro releases which should satisfy very early adopters of KDE4 now asking this question. And that we will see several distro releases in first half of 2008 containing a later KDE 4.0.x bugfix release for early adopters of KDE4.
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Mepis and openSUSE will do.
Mepis and openSUSE will do. They showed interest in KDE 4 first.
But Mepis line is to release only stable release.
Maybe the 4.0.0 will be present only in a alpha-beta release.
As I wrote in my blog I
As I wrote in my blog I think some will offer as soon as possible and others not, depending if they are Desktop oriented or Server (Stable) oriented.
Debian
I don't think that Debian will be behind considering that they have KDE 4.0 RC 1 packages.
That sounds great! I am
That sounds great!
I am really happy to read that.
$DISTRO
I disagree with kkrizka, most the distros will be ready the day(if not, the week) KDE4 is released. Why? Because they are already tinkering with KDE4 SVN, Betas and RCs, integrating all the stuff.
Although, when I mean "ready" I mean "KDE4 is available in unstable package repositories". Perhaps I'm being too liberal with "ready".
Answering the question... the first distros will be the more vanilla ones (/me hears a 'Duhhh' from the crowd), the ones that don't integrate at all, the most they do is patchbomb a thing or twenty. Source-based distros come to my mind, Gentoo specially.
Speaking of the devil: http://forums.gentoo.org/viewtopic-t-597872.html
Gentoo is a special case, they might a bit later in the release scene since they take their time do "split ebuilds" in addition to the usual monolithic ones, meaning you can choose one single app from the whole KDE portfolio to build instead of compiling everything and the KitchenSync (*rim shot*).
That's godlike customization.
Re: $DISTRO
> Answering the question... the first distros will be the more vanilla ones
No, now you define different two "ready" states: one with integration and one without. Why shouldn't distributions, which usually do integration and will do for sure later, not release KDE 4.0 packages without first?
> Gentoo is a special case, they might a bit later in the release scene
Why? As you said and even linked they are already tinkering with KDE SVN, Betas and RCs.
> Why shouldn't
> Why shouldn't distributions, which usually do integration and will do for sure later, not release KDE 4.0 packages without first?
Nothing stops them from doing that. I'm inferring that distros that favor integration are more likable to release integrated packages in their stable releases. testing/unstable releases are another matter.
> Why? As you said and even linked they are already tinkering with KDE SVN, Betas and RCs.
In Gentoo's case, first because the tinkering is being done only in monolithic packages, second because of historical reasons (http://forums.gentoo.org/viewtopic-t-598412.html).
I really will pity the KDE team when 4.0 is released ^_^ (imagine a rather big group of 5-year olds whining because they WANT x thing) oh boy
I agree with you, it will
I agree with you, it will take some time for the distros to integrate it fully with their system due to the new changes. I've been using the SVN version for soem time, and there is still a lot of work left for it to fully catch up to some of the KDE3 functionality.
Cheers,
Karol Krizka
http://www.krizka.net