Skype Hangs Up (For Good) on May 5 – Export Data Before Then!
Skype, one of the best-known video chat/calling apps, is shutting down forever on May 5, Microsoft has announced today. Nothing gold can stay, and neither can VoIP services shorn their cultural zeitgeist it seems. Replacing Skype will be a free version of Microsoft Teams. Active Skype users can log in to the Microsoft Teams app and instantly see their Skype message history, group chats, and contacts without needing to create a(nother) account. Teams will no support ‘telephony’, i.e., Skype’s one remaining USP, after the transition period, meaning you won’t be able to make domestic or international calls to real numbers
#News #Microsoft #Skype
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/skype-hangs-up-for-good-on-may-5
Linux App Release Roundup (Feb 2025)
February was a bumper month for Linux app updates, bringing new releases of Mozilla Firefox, LibreOffice, ONLYOFFICE and more — as well as a slew of smaller app updates that didn’t get a full-length article on this blog. Rather than skip over them entirely I thought I’d resurrect my Linux Release Roundup thread1 to provide a monthly (perhaps twice-monthly, if there’s a lot) run-through of some of them. After all, for those of us on fixed-release Linux distribution like Ubuntu may find one of these smaller updates fixes a flaw or fleshes out a feature to make it worth upgrading
#News #Amarok #AppUpdates #Fastfetch #Gthumb #Handbrake #Lrr #Peazip
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/linux-app-release-roundup-feb-2025
Mozilla Introducing ‘Terms of Use’ to Firefox
Hot off the back of its recent leadership rejig, Mozilla has announced users of Firefox will soon be subject to a ‘Terms of Use’ policy — a first for the iconic open source web browser. “Although we’ve historically relied on our open source license for Firefox and public commitments to you, we are building in a much different technology landscape today. We want to make these commitments abundantly clear and accessible,” say Mozilla. This official Terms of Use will, Mozilla argues, offers users greater transparency over their “rights and permissions” as they use Firefox to browse the information superhighway1, as
#News
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/mozilla-introducing-terms-of-use-to-firefox
App Grid Wizard Puts GNOME Shell Shortcuts into Folders
The application picker (aka app grid) in GNOME Shell is pretty perfect as it comes, showing launchers for installed apps plus the ability to rearrange them using drag and drop and create custom folders to group apps together. Some folks prefer a little more order. I’ve spotlighted a few Ubuntu app grid tweaks over the years, from one that puts app shortcuts in alphabetical order to ones which restores ‘missing’ shortcuts for apps pinned to the Ubuntu Dock. And now a new app grid helper has appeared – one sure to appeal to those with a preference for keeping things
#News #GnomeExtensions
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/app-grid-wizard-auto-groups-software-into-folders-in-gnome-shell
Plank Reloaded is a Desktop Dock App for Cinnamon
At one time, Linux dock apps were a plentiful species, with innovative ‘panel painters’ like GNOME Do/Docky to unashamed bling-kings AWN, DockBarX and Cairo Dock. Yet it was the modest Plank which stayed the course and outlived them. Thing is, the Plank dock hasn’t seen any major development for years, and though it still (just about) works, there’s scope for improvement, right? One developer doesn’t just think so: they’ve decided to do something about it. Plank Reloaded: Plank Fork Plank Reloaded is a new fork of the original Plank Linux dock, albeit with a twist: it’s focused on improving compatibility
#News #AppUpdates #Cinnamon #Docks #EyeCandy #Plank
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/plank-reloaded-linux-dock-cinnamon
4 New Effects Added to ‘Burn My Windows’ GNOME Extension
A set of four cool new window opening and closing animations got added to gaudy GNOME Shell extension Burn My Windows this weekend. A veritable Linux eye-candy essential, Burn My Windows makes it easy to apply a variety of visual effects to Ubuntu when opening and/or closing app windows, dialogs, and modals. Its sole purpose is to make using Linux a bit more entertaining. Burn My Windows v45 is the latest update. It adds support for the upcoming GNOME 48 release (which will ship in Ubuntu 25.04 this April), fine-tunes effect filtering in Preferences, and improves its Incinerate effect with
#News #BurnMyWindows #EyeCandy #GnomeExtensions
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/4-new-visual-effects-added-to-burn-my-windows-gnome-extensions
Ubuntu 24.04.2 LTS is Available to Download
The Ubuntu 24.04.2 LTS release is now available to download, albeit one week later than initially planned. Serving as the second point release in the current Ubuntu 24.04 LTS series, Ubuntu 24.04.2 compacts the slew of security, bug, and software updates pushed out to the Noble Numbat since the last point release ISO was spun in August 2024. Ubuntu 24.04.2 LTS also brings an updated hardware enablement stack (HWE). This is composed of a newer Linux kernel and updated graphics drivers—Linux 6.11 and Mesa 24.2.8 respectively—back-ported from Ubuntu 24.10. Why do point releases exist? Ubuntu LTS versions are supported for a
#News #DistroRelease #PointReleases #Ubuntu24_04Lts
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/ubuntu-24-04-2-lts-is-now-available-to-download
Mozilla Announces Leadership Changes in an Effort to ‘Diversify’
Mozilla Corporation’s president, Mark Surman, has announced plans to tackle the ‘major headwinds’ facing the company’s efforts to make money and remain relevant. “Mozilla’s impact and survival depend on us simultaneously strengthening Firefox AND finding new sources of revenue AND manifesting our mission in fresh ways,” says Surman. To do this, Mozilla plans—no groaning—to ‘diversify’ its efforts. It will invest (more) in privacy-respecting advertising, develop open-source AI features1 to retain ‘product relevance’, and go all-out on fundraising initiatives to er, get us all to chip in and pay for it, I guess! A new Mozilla Leadership Council is being launched,
#News
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/mozilla-announces-leadership-changes-in-an-effort-to-diversify
Mesa 25.0 Released with Support for Vulkan 1.4 & OpenGL 4.6
A new version of the Mesa graphics library has been released. Mesa 25.0 features Vulkan 1.4 support, which the team bill as the ‘flashiest addition’ in this new development release as it spans Anv (Intel), Asahi (Apple), Lavapipe (software), NVK (NVIDIA), PanVK (Mali), RADV (AMD), and Turnip (Qualcomm). The OpenGL 4.6 API also sees implementation in Mesa 25.0 though the version reported will depend on the hardware driver in use since not all drivers support all features OpenGL 4.6 requires. AMD RDNA4 graphics sees initial support in the RadeonSI Gallium3D (OpenGL) and RADV (Vulkan) drivers is present, the former worked
#News #Amd #GraphicsDrivers #Mesa #Vulkan
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/mesa-25-0-vulkan-1-4-amd-rdna4
Power Profiles Daemon 0.30 Preps Support for Linux 6.14
A new version of the Power Profiles Daemon (PPD) was uploaded to the Plucky archives today, and should soon make its way out to Ubuntu 25.04 daily builds —but what’s changed? The power-profiles-daemon is what those of who run Ubuntu (or Linux Mint 22.1, which finally added PPD) interact with when we switch power mode on the fly, be it using a GUI button, setting, or toggle, or the command line. The latest 0.30 release adds a couple of notable changes, though nothing as substantive (to end-users) as the various AMD-targeted tune-ups the previous release delivered. Still, improvements are improvements. Some
#News #Battery&Power #PowerProfiles #Ubuntu25_04
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/power-profiles-daemon-0-30-preps-support-for-linux-6-14
Ubuntu LTS Users Could Get Intel GPU Updates More Frequently
This week sees the (belated) release of Ubuntu 24.04.2 LTS, the first point release update in the noble series to deliver an updated hardware enablement (HWE) stack. Ubuntu’s HWE backports newer Linux kernel and Mesa GPU drivers to LTS users in an effort to ensure the latest LTS works well with the latest hardware. But it could soon include a lot more. This week, Canonical engineer Shane McKee put forward a proposal to expand Ubuntu HWE updates so they loop in a broader range of graphics driver packages for Intel hardware. —the entire point of the HWE, after all. The
#News #GraphicsDrivers #Hwe #Intel
How to Disable (or Change) Login Sound in Ubuntu 24.10
When you log in to Ubuntu 24.10 an audio clip plays to greet you — a lengthy audio clip that slowly builds to a plinky-plonky crescendo that you—or those around you—may tire of having to sit through! But you can turn Ubuntu’s startup sound off, or swap it for an audio clip more to your tastes. Startup and login sounds were a staple part of Ubuntu during its formative years, but the distro decided to disable them in Ubuntu 12.04 LTS after getting feedback that, actually, they could be a bit annoying. Some 12 years Ubuntu 24.10 added a startup
#HowTo #Customization #Loginsounds #Ubuntu24_10
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/disable-or-change-ubuntu-login-sound
Tiling Shell Update Adds Window Suggestions for Screen Edge Snapping
A new version of Tiling Shell, the flexible window snapping assistant for GNOME Shell, is available. Tiling Shell v16.2 now surfaces nifty ‘Window Suggestions’, a feature introduced in last month’s v16.0 release, when using edge tiling. Edge Tiling (as no doubt you well know) is triggered by dragging a window to the sides of the screen. Window Suggestions for Edge Tiling is not enabled by default, so be sure to head to the extension’s Preferences panel to toggle it on (where you can also enable it for the key-drag tiling system method as well, if you like). Elsewhere, the extension
#News #GnomeExtensions #TilingShell
Ubuntu’s Icon Theme Fixing Its Not-So-Obvious ‘Bug’
Ever looked at Ubuntu’s default icon theme Yaru and found yourself thinking: “Eh, some of those icons look too big”? —No, can’t say I had either! But it turns out some of the icons are indeed oversized. The Yaru icon theme in Ubuntu uses 4 different shapes for its app, folder and mimetype (file) icons, with a shape picked based on what works best for the design motif being used. Those shapes are: Of those, the most common icon shape used in Yaru is ‘square’ (with rounded corners, but don’t call it a squircle cos that’s so 2014, y’all). It’s
#News #Design #Icons #Ubuntu25_04 #Yaru
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/ubuntus-icon-theme-resized
‘Unfortunate Incident’ Means Ubuntu 24.04.2 LTS Won’t Be Released This Week
Bad news for anyone expecting Ubuntu 24.04.2 LTS to drop tomorrow – the release has been delayed by a week. An ‘unfortunate incident’ caused some Ubuntu 24.04.2 images to be built without the HWE kernel on board (Linux 6.11), Canonical’s Utkarsh Gupta reports. Since including a new kernel version is a key part of new point release media, it needs to be there. Building a new Ubuntu installer image is only one part of the task given that, once built, each ISO also needs to undergo testing. There’s not enough time to do all of that and still meet the
#News #Canonical #PointReleases #Ubuntu24_04Lts
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/ubuntu-24-04-second-point-release-delay
GNOME’s Website Just Got a Major Redesign
GNOME rolled out a huge revamp to its official website today, and I have to say: it’s a solid improvement over the old one. The official GNOME website has an important role, serving as both showcase and springboard for those looking to learn more about the desktop environment, the app ecosystem, developer documentation, or how to get involved and support the project. Arranging, presenting, and meeting all of those needs on a single landing page—and doing it in an engaging, encouraging way? Difficult to pull off—but GNOME has. The new design looks flashy and modern. It’s more spacious and vibrant,
#News #Design #Gnome
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/gnome-website-revamp-goes-live
Clapper Media Player Adds New Features, Official Windows Build
A new version of the slick Clapper media player is out with several neat improvements Not newly new, I should say. I hadn’t run a flatpak update in Ubuntu I an age so I only jus noticed an update pending for this nifty little media player. But I figured I’d write about it since it’s been around 10 months since its last major release (save a bug fix release last summer). So what’s new? Well, Clapper 0.8.0 intros a new libpeas-based plugin system in its underlying Clapper library (which other apps can make use of to playback media, as Mastodon client
#News #AppUpdates #Clapper #MediaPlayers
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/clapper-update-adds-official-windows-builds
KDE Plasma 6.3 Released, This is What’s New
A new version of KDE Plasma is out and, as you’d expect, the update is packed with new features, user experience enhancements, and performance tweaks. KDE Plasma 6.3 is the fourth big update in the KDE Plasma 6.x series and it marks the one-year anniversary of the KDE Plasma 6.0 debut, as KDE notes in its 6.3 announcement: One year on, with the teething problems a major new release inevitably brings firmly behind us, Plasma’s developers have worked on fine-tuning, squashing bugs and adding features to Plasma 6 — turning it into the best desktop environment for everyone!” KDE As
#News #DesktopEnvironments #Kde #KdePlasma6
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/kde-plasma-6-3-released-this-is-whats-new
ONLYOFFICE 8.3 Released with Support for Apple iWork Files
A new version of ONLYOFFICE Desktop Editors, a free, open-source office suite for Windows, macOS, and Linux, is now available to download. ONLYOFFICE 8.3 brings a bunch of new features and nimble enhancements spread throughout the full suite, which is composed of word processor, spreadsheet, presentation, form, and PDF editing apps. The ‘headline’ new feature is the ability to open Apple iWork (.pages, .numbers, .key) and Hancom Office files (.hwp, .hwpx) to convert them to OOXML for editing – you can’t export/save edits back to the original file format, though. iWork support is a fairly big feature addition, despite the fact that
#News #AppUpdates #Office&ProductivityApps #Onlyoffice
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/onlyoffice-8-3-released-new-features
How to Disable ‘App is Ready’ Notifications in Ubuntu
Finding yourself annoyed at those ‘window is ready’ notifications which pop-up when you open some apps in GNOME Shell on Ubuntu? If so, you can disable them by installing a GNOME Shell extension. Now, notifications are helpful—heck, vital when they inform, alert, or indicate that something requires our immediate attention or actioning. But “app is ready” notifications? I don’t find them anything other than obvious. I’m not amnesic; I know the app is ready – I just opened it! They aren’t predictable either. Some apps show them, others don’t. It depends on the app’s metadata, how fast app initialisation is (you’ll see them more
#HowTo #GnomeExtensions #GnomeShell
https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2025/02/disable-window-is-ready-notifications-gnome-shell