Ding – users of Ubuntu 20.04 and 22.04 LTS just got new e-mail …client updates to install. Yes, Thunderbird 115 has finally hit the Ubuntu repos, allowing users to upgrade from Thunderbird 102 to 115 without needing PPAs, Flatpaks, or Snaps. And upgrade they’ll want to. The recen … | Continue reading
Here’s a tip for those of you who want to use a custom icon for a specific folder in Ubuntu. — And no, you don’t need to install a new icon set. While there are tons of great icon themes for Ubuntu (and other Linux distros) replacing ALL icons to change the look of a single folde … | Continue reading
PreSonus’ digital audio workstation Studio One is now available on Linux — for the first time, ever! Studio One is a (closed-source) all-in-one DAW toy can use create music from scratch using virtual instruments, loops, and composers; record music, instruments, and other types of … | Continue reading
If you’ve had issues getting Linux Mint 21.2 to run well on your laptop or PC, a new Edge ISO is available to download. The Linux Mint 21.2 Edge ISO differs from the regular ISO is 2 ways: 1) it ships with a newer Linux kernel (Linux kernel 6.2) and 2) it re-enables support for s … | Continue reading
Here’s some awesome news: Ubuntu 23.10 will support the Raspberry Pi 5. So if you’re among the hundreds-of-thousands to pre-order a new model you may be pleased — I only say ‘may’ as chances are someone out there won’t be — to know the latest version of Ubuntu will work on it, on … | Continue reading
Canonical is enacting manual reviews for all newly registered uploads to its Snap Store following what it describes as a ‘potential security incident’. It’s responding to reports that a number of recently published crypto-related snaps were acting in malicious manner (the apps in … | Continue reading
The wait is over: the Raspberry Pi 5 has been officially unveiled! The new model of this super-successful single-board computer has been a long time cooking. The Raspberry Pi 4 was released (aptly) 4 years ago. But a full-size successor is now coming — and what a successor it is! … | Continue reading
Linux Mint Debian Edition (LMDE) 6 is now available to download. This official stable release follows a couple weeks of diligent testing on a beta build. There are no major changes compared to that beta so if you downloaded and installed it you can “upgrade” to the final formatio … | Continue reading
Reading websites written in other languages is made MUCH easier in the latest version of Mozilla Firefox, which rolls out across all supported platforms today. You no longer need to copy and paste text in another language into an online translator to find out what it says as Mozi … | Continue reading
The popular ddterm GNOME extension has finally been updated to support GNOME 44 — and GNOME 45, which is included in Ubuntu 23.10. This drop down terminal (hence the name ‘ddterm’) for GNOME Shell is my go-to terminal on Ubuntu (and Fedora). It’s responsive, has tabs, works nativ … | Continue reading
A new version of Linux RSS client NewsFlash is out – and newsflash: it’s looking good! I’ve written about this app in more detail in the past so I’m going to skim over what it does suffice to say: it’s a desktop RSS reader that can connect to a number of cloud services (including … | Continue reading
A beta build of Ubuntu 23.10 is now available to download. This development milestone is intended for testing and feedback. It comes ahead of the scheduled stable release of Ubuntu 23.10 on October 12 – a mere 3 weeks away! It’s aim is to allow you and I to kick the proverbial ty … | Continue reading
In Ubuntu 23.10 the default Yaru theme uses a light style for GNOME Shell elements — but there’s a new GNOME extension that lets you change this without affecting the rest of your desktop. Upstream GNOME Shell uses Adwaita, and Adwaita gives the Quick Settings menu, the calendar … | Continue reading
Most of us using Ubuntu use the Mozilla Firefox Snap preinstalled by default — and in Ubuntu 23.10 that package comes with a big below-the-surface change. Canonical has announced that it is configured the Firefox Snap in Ubuntu 23.10 to run in Wayland mode by default. “But I alre … | Continue reading
The upcoming GNOME 45 release is attracting a lot of hype already, and I’m pleased to say it comes provided out-of-the-box in Ubuntu 23.10, which is out next month. But I figured I’d whet your appetite before then. In this post I list improvements, changes and new features in GNO … | Continue reading
A beta version of LMDE 6 “Faye” is now available to download. The next major update in the LMDE series (LMDE stands for ‘Linux Mint Debian Edition’) is based on Debian 12 Bookworm, which offers a significantly fresher stack of software than available to users of LMDE 5 (meaning a … | Continue reading
Do you own and use Nanoleaf lights and want to control them from your Linux desktop rather than a mobile app? If so, you’re in luck as there’s a plucky little GNOME extension that lets you do exactly that. The creator of the Nano Lights GNOME extension says their add-on “…control … | Continue reading
Ubuntu’s new “App Center” app has arrived in Ubuntu 23.10 daily builds – no Snap channel commands required to test it out. The new front-end for installing Snap and Deb package is built using Flutter. Ubuntu made Flutter its ‘default choice’ for app making in 2021. Yet despite be … | Continue reading
Mozilla Firefox is bringing rounded bottom corners to its Linux builds. Getting official support means you’ll no longer need to use a third-party GNOME extension to force rounded corners in the browser. The change will help Firefox look more ‘at home’ when run windowed on Ubuntu … | Continue reading
The default wallpaper set to greet those who install Ubuntu 23.10 ‘Mantic Minotaur’ next month has been unveiled. Ubuntu 23.10’s default wallpaper draws heavily on the motifs afforded by its mythological moniker, perhaps more so than many of us had expected. The ‘mascot’ – typica … | Continue reading
Good news for those looking forward to the upcoming GNOME 45 release – it’s arrived in the Ubuntu 23.10 daily builds! The next stable update to the world’s most-used Linux desktop environment isn’t due to be released until later this month, so what’s made it in Mantic shouldn’t b … | Continue reading
A major update to the phenomenally popular Paprius icon set for Linux desktops is now available. Papirus’ September 2023 update adds a bunch of new and updated glyphs, including redesigned icons for LibreOffice that riff on the suite’s own recent icon revamp. Among the newly adde … | Continue reading
The next version of the world’s most popular desktop Linux operating system (that’s Ubuntu, for those of you playing dumb) will come with less software available out-of-the-box. Current daily builds of Ubuntu 23.10 instead ship a minimal platform pre-populated with just a handful … | Continue reading
Regolith Desktop 3.0 has been released for Ubuntu 20.04 LTS, 22.04 LTS, 23.10, and both Debian Bullseye and Bookworm. This update to the keyboard-driven, tiling desktop environment also introduces an alpha-quality Wayland-based session based on the Sway compositor (though this is … | Continue reading
Mozilla Firefox 117 is now rolling out to users across Windows, macOS, and Linux. But don’t get too excited about its arrival, okay? Given the rapid release cadence this browser uses, the days of blockbuster, feature-packed Firefox updates are long gone. We still get ace new feat … | Continue reading
I made a little joke — which some people didn’t find funny, alas — about the super bright, glaring white default wallpaper Ubuntu devs added to the Mantic Minotaur daily builds last week. That joke is now even flatter as, following respectable™ consternation (i.e. a bug report) a … | Continue reading
Helping round off August with aplomb is the official release of Linux kernel 6.5 — which arrives days after the kernel celebrated its 32nd birthday. Linus Torvalds announced Linux 6.5’s arrival on the official Linux Kernel Mailing List (LKML) as he always does, where he says that … | Continue reading
Turns out that installing the Steam client from the Ubuntu repos on a new Ubuntu 23.04 install doesn’t work – and barely anyone noticed. Which is kind of surprising given the popularity of Steam, but also kind of not (I’ll get to why in a second). So what’s the rub? This (uninten … | Continue reading
Ubuntu was planning to ship the CUPS printing stack as a Snap in 23.10 — but after several months of testing its changed its mind. Accordingly, a DEB-based printing stack will feature in Ubuntu 23.10 “Mantic Minotaur” and in Ubuntu 24.04 LTS. Switching to the CUPS Snap will now t … | Continue reading
There’s a new way to install stable mainline Linux kernel builds on Ubuntu — all thanks to a former Canonical employee and Ubuntu developer. Stéphane Graber has been running mainline Linux kernels on his Ubuntu systems for a while (having found the quality of Ubuntu’s generic ker … | Continue reading
A new temporary wallpaper is being introduced in Ubuntu 23.10 “Mantic Minotaur”, which is currently under active development. The aim of the background is to make it “more obvious when testing the mantic daily that it is not lunar anymore”. There’s precedent for this; Ubuntu 23.0 … | Continue reading
Intel’s open-source monospace font (imaginatively titled ‘Intel One Mono’) has been updated. “You’re blogging about a frickin’ font update?!”, you scoff (justifiably perhaps). But hey: indulge me (if only so I can continue using words beginning with ‘I’). Font updates aren’t that … | Continue reading
Lovers of Linux distros that run well on lower-end hardware rejoice for Bodhi Linux 7.0 has been released and is now available to download. Bodhi Linux 7.0 is based on Ubuntu 22.04 LTS, and uses the Enlightenment-based desktop and Moksha window manager by default. The distro is n … | Continue reading
LibreOffice 7.6 is available to download. This update lands exactly on schedule, some 6 months after the LibreOffice 7.5 release (which included visual tweaks, major PDF export enhancements, and other changes). LibreOffice 7.6 sees its devs build out further to deliver fixes, fin … | Continue reading
I ain’t much of a modern gamer — as evidenced by the lack of hardcore gaming content on this blog! But CodeWeavers sent over a press release to tell me about CrossOver 23, the latest update to their commercial version of Wine for Linux, ChromeOS & macOS (don’t read “commercial ve … | Continue reading
A new version to the free (but not open-source) WPS Office is available for Linux. It’s been an age since I last mentioned WPS Office on this blog. The main reason for this is I don’t use office software (and if I even need to, LibreOffice suffices). But I am not everyone; WPS Of … | Continue reading
Grab your crayons, Krita, or whatever else you use to create stunning artwork because KDE devs are looking for a new desktop wallpaper and there are prizes to be won! “Prizes?”, you ask – yes, prizes plural: a 13-inch Framework laptop and your work being used as the default wallp … | Continue reading
Want to play an improved version of famed futuristic racing game wipEout on Ubuntu? Chances are you do as this game is considered something of a classic. A bona-fide hit on PlayStation when released (it also came to DOS and the Sega Saturn) its success spawned a slew of sequels a … | Continue reading
Ubuntu 22.04.3 LTS release has been made available to download. The 3rd point release in the Ubuntu 22.04 LTS series, this update rolls together all of the security patches, bug fixes, and software updates issued to the Jammy Jellyfish since the previous point release, into a shi … | Continue reading
Web page translations are available in the latest beta builds of Mozilla Firefox. Google Chrome’s built-in translation capabilities are something I find useful. Whenever I load a web page not in my native tongue (which is English, despite what my typos may suggest) the browser as … | Continue reading
Keen to kick the tyres on the next wave of KDE software? If so, check out a revamped experimental archive KDE neon developers recently announced. Unstable builds of the Ubuntu-based KDE neon now include KDE Plasma 6 (which is under active development) but apps retooled/built usin … | Continue reading
The first formal release of Rhino Linux is available to download. Rhino Linux is a rolling-release Linux distro based on Ubuntu. It is a community-based project and not an official Ubuntu flavour. I’m not sure if there’s any linage to the “Rolling Rhino” project ex-Ubuntu desktop … | Continue reading
Here’s a quick tutorial for those of you looking to change the lock screen background used in Ubuntu 22.04 LTS through the most recent release, Ubuntu 23.04. Out-of-the-box (as this is the same for any Linux distribution using a modern version of GNOME Shell) the lock screen back … | Continue reading
Ubuntu 22.04 LTS users can now upgrade to Linux kernel 6.2 using the Software Updater tool. Ahead of the formal Ubuntu 22.04.3 point release due next week (August 10) Canonical has issued an updated kernel to existing LTS existing users to install. It back-ports the Linux 6.2 ker … | Continue reading
When I run apt update on my Ubuntu laptop it prints a stream of errors about target packages/repos/DEP-11 being ‘configured multiple times’. These errors do not prevent apt from working (so it’s not an issue in that sense) but the lengthy printout looks messy, is annoying to see, … | Continue reading
The recent release of Thunderbird 115 (aka “Supernova”) seems to have gone down well with users of all shades, across all platforms — which is always nice to see. To keep things ticking over nicely a scheduled update to the open source email client is rolling out. The update brin … | Continue reading
With Linux Mint 21.2 release out, development attention turns toward its successor, Linux Mint 21.3, which Mint today confirmed will be released in December. We don’t have a codename for the release (though we do have one of the upcoming Debian-based version of Linux Mint: ‘Faye’ … | Continue reading
I’ve never been tempted to use a mechanical keyboard — but 8bitdo’s new NES-styled one might change that. It’s beautiful to look at, has programmable buttons, volume dials, works both wired and wirelessly (200 hour battery life), is an 80% width (i.e. compact but not cramped), ha … | Continue reading