What's coming in Apache Kafka 0.8.2 | Confluent

Introduces a new Java producer client that unifies sync and async behavior, improves batching with `linger.ms`, and enhances parallel network communication. Adds a delete topic feature and moves offset management from ZooKeeper to a compacted Kafka topic (__consumer_offsets) for improved scalability. Operational improvements include automated leader rebalancing, controlled shutdown, stronger durability guarantees with `unclean.leader.election` and `min.isr` settings, and connection quotas (`max.connections.per.ip`).