Zorin OS 17.1 Released, Debuts New Education Edition
A new version of Zorin OS is available for download. Zorin OS 17.1, which is based on Ubuntu 22.04.4 LTS, brings a wealth of improvements to its (nifty) Windows app support, as well as a new Education Edition that “pairs the latest improvements to Zorin OS with educational software that makes learning better and more impactful”. The new Wine 9.0 release comes paired with the Bottles utility in Zorin OS 17.1 in an effort to makes its already user-friendly Windows app support even more powerful. “We’ve expanded our built-in database to detect installer files for popular Windows apps and games. 
#News #DistroRelease #ZorinOs
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/03/zorin-os-17-1-released-debuts-new-education-edition
Classic Google Chrome Theme for Mozilla Firefox ESR
A new open-source nostalgia project lets you turn back time in web browser aesthetics. Silverfox is a custom theme for Mozilla Firefox ESR that recreates the look of Google Chrome in its early days. We’re talking trapezoid tabs, parallelogram new tab button, pared back speed dial, and a custom-made hamburger menu (with option to use classic wrench icon). “Browsers age, good design doesn’t”, say the developers of the theme. This theme is real labour of love and, speaking as someone who blogged obsessively about those early days of Google Chrome/ium on Linux, trying this out took me on a real
#News #EyeCandy #Firefox #GoogleChrome
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/03/silverfox-classic-google-chrome-firefox-theme
Use Varia Download Manager? Install the Official Browser Extension
Avid users of Varia, a modern download manager for Linux desktops, may want to check out official browser extensions. By installing the official Varia browser extension in Google Chrome/Chromium or Mozilla Firefox you no longer have to copy and paste download links from the browser into the app: just click an icon to punt the link to the app directly, where it can then download. “When the extension is enabled, it will route all started downloads to Varia. In order to route the downloads to Varia, make sure to flip the switch in the extension, and make sure Varia is
#News #BrowserExtensions #DownloadManager #Libadwaita #Varia
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/03/varia-download-manager-browser-extensions
Canonical Has Given Launchpad’s Homepage a Facelift
Next time you stop by Launchpad.net you’ll notice it has a new look. Canonical’s designers have given Launchpad’s landing page a lithe new look that allows text to breathe and is more in-keeping with Canonical’s other websites. It’s the first major redesign to the project hosting site since 2016, and (to save you a visit) this is what the new homepage looks like: Launched in 2004, Launchpad serves as the linchpin in Ubuntu development. It’s the hub through which developers collaborate, commit code, plan releases, file bugs, add translations, and tackle other tasks related to thrashing out a new release.
#News #Canonical #Launchpad
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/03/canonical-launchpad-redesigned-homepage
The Odd-Looking ‘App Center’ Icon in Ubuntu 23.10 is Being Fixed
About a week ago I noticed the icon for App Center (the Flutter-based software store-front that replaced Ubuntu Software in 23.10) had changed — and not for the better! At first I assumed it was a snafu caused by me. See, I only noticed the change when I was playing around with scaling options (I was seeing whether 200% scaling on my 2K laptop screen was as bad as I remembered, or if it was just me being a fop for fractional scaling). Anyway, it wasn’t a “me” thing. As App Center is a snap (snap-store ) it gets updated
#News #AppCenter #Ubuntu23_10
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/03/ubuntu-app-center-wrong-icon-fix
It’s Game Over for Solitaire, Soduku et al in Ubuntu 24.04 LTS
Ubuntu developers have decided to drop games from the default installation image. Although Ubuntu 23.10 defaults to a minimal install with only core software essentials like a terminal and web browser, users are able to opt for a “full installation” which preinstalls more software, including a handful of basic GNOME games. In Ubuntu 23.10 the following four games are included: But in Ubuntu 24.04 LTS none are. For the Noble Numbat those games are no longer included in the full installation or present in the ISO (which includes all of the software used in a full install so that people
#News #Gaming #Ubuntu24_04Lts
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/02/ubuntu-24-04-drops-games
KDE Plasma 6.0 Has Arrived, This is What’s New
KDE Plasma 6 has arrived. The first stable release in an all-new series of the phenomenally popular Linux desktop environment is available to download. KDE Plasma 6 improves security, performance, usability, and hardware support Naturally, a major milestone such as this includes scores of changes, enhancements, and new features, the best of which I look at in this post. But I want to touch on the “intangible” changes too as KDE Plasma 6.0 upgrades its underlying application framework, Qt, to a major new version, and fully embraces the Wayland display server. “These under-the-hood upgrades benefit Plasma’s security, efficiency, and performance,
#News #KdeNeon #KdePlasma #QtApps
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/02/kde-plasma-6-0-new-features
This GNOME Extension Shows AirPods Battery Levels in Ubuntu
Do you use Apple AirPods or Beats wireless headphones with Ubuntu (or any Linux distribution using GNOME Shell) and want to be able to check battery levels on your desktop? Well, now you can! The new Airpod Battery Monitor GNOME Shell extension makes it easy to check the battery levels of your AirPods or Beats bluetooth headsets. Don’t See AirPods Battery Levels in Ubuntu? Apple’s wireless audio devices (including Beats, an Apple subsidiary) work “out of the box” in Ubuntu and other Linux distros) using the regular Bluetooth stack you won’t see any indication of their battery level. Not seeing
#News #Airpods #Apple #Bluetooth #GnomeExtensions
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/02/see-airpods-battery-levels-in-ubuntu
Warp, Rust-Based Terminal with AI, is Now Available on Linux
Linux developers have a new toy to play with, Warp. Warp is a closed-source terminal emulator built using the Rust programming language. It offers hardware acceleration, integrated AI, collaborative capabilities, and adopts a “blocks” based approach to commands that help set it apart from traditional terminal tools. Plus, when it comes to text input Warp functions more like an IDE or text editor, offering filtering and selections, cursor positioning (including multiple cursors), auto-complete, syntax highlighting, and a fair bit more. Previously a Mac-only app, Warp is now available for Linux distributions, including Ubuntu. At launch, Warp’s Linux app already offers
#News #Ai/Ml #DevTools #Rust #TerminalApps #Warp
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/02/warp-terminal-official-linux-release
CrossOver 24 Released with UI Buffs, Office 365 Installer Fixes
A new version of CrossOver is available that builds out on last month’s Wine 9.0 release. Created by CodeWeavers, a major contributor to Wine’s ongoing development, CrossOver is a commercial build of Wine with extra “goodies” included that make running Windows games and apps on Linux, Chrome OS and macOS that little bit sweeter. CrossOver 24 is the latest release, and the first based on Wine 9.0 (a huge release with over 7,000 changes). It also ship with Wine Mono 8.1.0, vkd3d 1.10, and MoltenVK 1.2.5 to ensure solid performance across multiple different operating systems. Additionally, CodeWeavers devs spent some
#News #AppUpdates #Crossover #Wine
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/02/crossover-24-released-run-office-365-linux
Ubuntu 22.04.4 LTS is Available to Download
A new point release of Ubuntu 22.04 LTS is available to download. Ubuntu 22.04.4 LTS is the fourth point release and results in a brand-new installation image (ISO) that integrates all of the security patches, bug fixes, and software updates released since last August’s Ubuntu 22.04.3 image. Additionally, Ubuntu 22.04.4 ships atop a new hardware enablement stack (HWE) composed of Linux kernel 6.5 (bringing support for newer hardware, file system tweaks, and security updates) and Mesa 23.2.1 (offering improved graphics support). Package updates include Thunderbird 115.6, and Mozilla Firefox 122 (which will auto-update to the most recent release at the
#News #PointReleases #Ubuntu22_04Lts
Firefox 123 Delivers Better Linux Gamepad Support + More
A new stable version of the Mozilla Firefox web browser is available to download. Mozilla Firefox 123 buffs the browser’s privacy-respecting translation. When translating a web page the browser now also translates text shown in tooltips (i.e. titles) and placeholder text shown in form controls/fields/search boxes. A clutch of address bar settings are now listed in the Settings > Search section. From there, you can choose what kinds of results the address bar ‘suggests’ for queries, you enter, e.g., browsing history, bookmarks, open tabs, shortcuts, and search engines. Linux gamer? You’ll be pleased to hear Firefox 123 adopts evdev for
#News #AppUpdates #Firefox
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/02/mozilla-firefox-123-features
Miracle-WM: New Tiling Wayland Compositor Based on Mir
Fans of tiling window managers like i3, Sway, and Hyprland will be interested to hear there’s a new option in town called Miracle-WM. Created by Canonical engineer Matthew Kosarek, Miracle-WM is notable for being a Wayland compositor that is based on Mir. For those with long memories, Mir began life as a replacement for X. It was intended to become the default display server in Ubuntu desktop instead of Wayland. Controversy and acrimony ensued, then Canonical’s plans for Ubuntu changed, and so did the scope and purpose of Mir. Development on Mir continued and the project matured as it focused
#News #Mir #Tiling #Wayland
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/02/miracle-wm-tiling-wayland-compositor-mir
Leading Open-Source IRC Client Announces Final Release
Open-source, cross-platform IRC client HexChat has announced its final release. HexChat 2.16.2 arrives with a small selection of bug fixes and new features for its long-standing fans to enjoy, rounding out a near 12 years of continued development since starting life as a fork of XChat. “This will be the last release I make of HexChat,” app maintainer TingPing says in a blog post announcement. “The project has largely been unmaintained for years now and nobody else stepped up to do that work.” HexChat’s previous release was back in 2021, accompanied by a call for help to keep development of
#News #AppUpdates #Irc
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/02/hexchat-irc-client-final-release
elementary OS 8 Enters Early Access – Here’s What’s Planned
Sponsors of elementary OS now have early access to the next major version of the Ubuntu-based desktop Linux operating system. elementary OS 8 is the next major update, following on from this year’s elementary OS 7.x series. It is based on the packages from the Ubuntu 24.04 repositories, but as that release isn’t out until April a final release of elementary OS 8 will likely be early summer at the soonest. But as ever with elementary: there is no fixed release date until a release date is ready to be fixed in. With early access builds out, let’s look a
#News #Elementary
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/02/elementary-os-8-plans-early-access
Ubuntu 24.04 Refreshes the Desktop Installer [First Look]
As part of work on the upcoming Ubuntu 24.04 release Canonical’s engineers have been working on improving the Ubuntu installer — with “provisioning” a key aim. Now the Ubuntu desktop installer uses the same backend technology as Ubuntu Server Canonical would like to bring features coming used in server deployments to regular desktop users. It says it realised its “focus was too much” on the installer, and not on the “broader perspective”. Hence “evolving from installation to provisioning” Doing so is going to streamline their development process and make life easier for OEMs and others installing Ubuntu in managed environments.
#News #Development #Ubuntu24_04Lts
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/02/ubuntu-24-04-installer-redesign
First Look at Ubuntu’s New ‘Desktop Security Center’
Ubuntu is working on a new Desktop Security Center tool that will make it easier for users to access many of the distro’s underlying security features. An early version of the Flutter-based app was made available to install from the Canonical Snap Store this week — but before anyone gets too excited I must stress it’s very much a WIP! Read on for a bit more detail on what this app is, the features Canonical plans to add, and how to install a preview version to try it out for yourself. Ubuntu Desktop Security Center Ubuntu offers a variety of
#News #Security #Snaps #Ubuntu24_04Lts
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/02/first-look-at-ubuntus-new-desktop-security-center
Firefox Devs Working on Tab Hover Previews
Tab previews are in the works for Mozilla Firefox. In current versions of the browser, hovering your mouse over a non-focused browser tab shows a small tooltip that displays the web page title — and that’s it. While this is handy, especially if you have a ton of open tabs (including many from the same site) and are able to read enough of the tab title to distinguish which tab is for which page, you may be more visually-orientated. Enter tab previews. In the latest Firefox 123 beta builds Mozilla devs have added a new flag. When this is enabled
#News #Firefox
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/02/firefox-devs-working-on-tab-hover-previews
Ubuntu Core Desktop Delayed, Won’t Be Released in April
Ubuntu Core Desktop will not be released alongside Ubuntu 24.04 LTS in April, as originally hoped. For those thinking “wait, what?!” — last year Canonical announced it was building an all-snap, immutable version of Ubuntu for home users called Ubuntu Core Desktop. Further, it was aiming to make the first version available to download in April of this year, alongside the regular Ubuntu 24.04 LTS release. It wasn’t going to be default, more of a formal, public preview release. But those plans have changed: [Ubuntu Core Desktop] won’t be released by 24.04, and unfortunately, I can’t provide a date until
#News #Snaps #Ubuntu24_04Lts #UbuntuCoreDesktop
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/02/ubuntu-core-desktop-delayed
Desktop YouTube Music App ‘Musictube’ Gets ‘Major Overhaul’
A new version of Musictube, a Qt-based desktop app that lets you stream music from YouTube, is available for download for Windows, macOS and Linux. Musictube 2 is described as a “major overhaul” offering an improved search algorithm that now supports genres in addition to artists, albums and song titles. The user interface has been refreshed, sporting a “more modern, flatter and generally cleaner” look — a look matching the revamped UI Flavio’s local music player app Minitunes received a few months back. Other changes in Musictube 2 include lighter resource usage by only streaming audio when videos are hidden;
#News #AppUpdates #Musictube
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2024/02/musictube-2-released-youtube-music-streaming
