= List of new features in GRASS GIS 7.8 =

GRASS GIS 7.8 is actively developed and maintained with a first 7.8.0 stable release in Sep. 2019. In total, it comes with '''more than [https://github.com/OSGeo/grass/compare/releasebranch_7_6...releasebranch_7_8 840 fixes and improvements]''' with respect to the previous [wiki:Grass7/NewFeatures76 stable releases 7.6.x]. This page summarizes the manifold new features which have been added to GRASS 7.8.

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=== What's new in a nutshell ===

After more than 1 year of development the **new stable release GRASS GIS 7.8** is available. Efforts have concentrated on making the user experience even better, providing many new useful additional functionalities to modules and further improving the graphical user interface.

**Breaking news: Python 3, PROJ 6 and GDAL 3 compatibility**

This re-established compatibility with QGIS and other connected software packages.

=== Releases ===

 * See list here:
   * [wiki:Release/7.8.1-News] (9 Nov 2019)
   * [wiki:Release/7.8.0-News] (6 Sep 2019)
 * The release development was officially moved to a dedicated release branch on Aug 4, 2019: https://github.com/OSGeo/grass/tree/releasebranch_7_8

== Graphical User Interface ==

GRASS GIS 7.8 graphical user interface comes with many fixed for Python 3 and wxpython4.

== Modules (commands) ==

A series of relevant improvements has been done (selection):

=== General modules ===

 * G78:g.search.modules: support for installed addons added

=== Raster modules ===

 * G78:r.compress: ZLIB is no longer the default compression method but [http://facebook.github.io/zstd/ ZSTD] compression
 * G78:r.mapcalc.simple: former r.mapcalculator as now as r.mapcalc.simple

=== Vector modules ===

The following vector modules have been significantly improved with new options, flags, fixes and other enhancements:
 * G78:v.in.pdal: use PDAL streaming instead of !PointView
 * G78:v.overlay: speed-up for large, complex input areas
 * G78:v.patch: automagic cleaning of boundaries if areas have been patched

=== Imagery modules ===

 * G78:i.pansharpen: updated i.pansharpen to handle pixel depths from 2-30 bits, and quashed some bugs

=== Temporal GIS modules ===

 * ...

=== Scripting ===

Major efforts have been done to port all Python scripts to Python 3.

=== Python 3 support ===

The deprecated shebang `#!/usr/bin/env python` has been changed to `#!/usr/bin/env python3`

== User Manuals - Documentation ==

=== Translations ===

Translations are managed in Transifex (please join and translate messages): https://www.transifex.com/grass-gis/grass7

=== User manual pages improvements ===

Many user manual pages have received major or minor improvements.

== GRASS GIS 7 Library changes ==

 * libsegment: the all-in-memory cache has been improved

== PROJ support ==

In addition to PROJ 4 and PROJ 5 now also PROJ 6 compatibility implemented.

== GDAL support ==

GDAL 3 compatibility added.

== Source Code Portability ==

 * Python-3 support implemented across the tree 

== GRASS GIS 7.8 Addons ==

There are numerous new addons which enlarge the already impressive list of addons available (see http://grass.osgeo.org/grass7/manuals/addons/):

 * G7A:i.sar.speckle - Remove speckle from SAR image
 * G7A:r.fill.category - Replaces the values of pixels of a given category with values of the surrounding pixels
 * G7A:r.object.thickness - Evaluates minimum, maximum and mean thickness of objects of a given category on a raster map
 * G7A:r.out.kde - Exports raster with variable transparency into an image file
 * G7A:r.out.legend - Create an image file showing the legend of a raster map
 * G7A:r.random.weight - Generates a binary raster layer with a random selection of raster cells depending on the weight of each cell in the input weight layer.
 * G7A:r.sample.category - Create sampling points from each category in a raster map
 * G7A:r.series.diversity - Compute diversity indici over input layers

== Migrating from GRASS GIS 6 to version 7.x ==

If you are still using GRASS GIS 6, here details upgrade instructions for own scripts:
 * see [wiki:Grass7/NewFeatures#Optionschanges here] for changes in parameter names and changed flags
 * see [wiki:Grass7/NewFeatures#Replacedandremovedmodules here] for removed modules and renamed modules
 * see [wiki:Grass7/NewFeatures#Optionschanges here] for renamed options