Today it’s time to talk about Linux, because the distribution I use on my laptop has been updated to version 45. I haven’t been able to install it yet because it isn’t available in the Discover updater, but while I wait, and just to pass the time, let’s see what’s new.
But Goguma, you barely use your laptop. You won’t even notice.
It’s true that lately I don’t have time to use my laptop, and I usually write these articles on my phone in my spare time. Still, I like installing new versions and seeing what they bring. Maybe that’s partly why I stopped using openSUSE Tumbleweed: I wanted new versions every now and then. Anyway, I’m going off on a tangent. What’s new?
What’s new in Fedora 45 KDE?
Okay, I know there are many Fedora editions, but I’m going to talk about the one I have installed. KDE is my favorite desktop, but well, that’s personal.
Honestly, there are a lot of things, but also not that many, since they’re mostly small changes that make life a little easier. They include the latest version of Plasma 6.8.2, which brings a bunch of small improvements.
Looking at the changelog on Fedora Magazine, a couple of small things caught my attention.
First, when you print something, it will now show you the number of pending documents. It seems like a small thing, but I’m sure people who print a lot will find it handy.
Another addition is a small shortcut to switch on dark mode from the system tray. I’m sure more than one person has been blinded by their screen when using the computer at night, and this will help soften the blow.
They also say they’ve added an app to test your microphone, which is useful if you often have meetings or stream. I’ve never used my laptop’s microphone, but I understand it can be useful for a lot of people.
Another nice change is that you can now have a separate virtual desktop on each screen. If you use several monitors, until now switching virtual desktops switched all of them at once. Now you can keep one fixed. That’s handy if, for example, you want a document open on one monitor and take notes on the other.
One last interesting thing, especially for people who live abroad in a different time zone: the digital clock widget will now let you add several time zones and compare them. Very useful when I need to message my family in Spain without waking them up at 3 in the morning.
Anything else, Goguma?
Well, besides better compatibility with more hardware and peripherals, they’ve updated the themes and some of the protocols for VPNs. They also say they’ve greatly improved the performance of virtual desktop connections, although I don’t use that.
I know there are more changes, and more technical users can probably go into much more detail than I have, but I wanted to focus on what users will notice most in their day-to-day.
What do you think of the new version? Couldn’t you wait and did a fresh install? Which change do you like most? Do you like the default wallpaper? I’ll read you in the comments.
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Information and downloads: fedoraproject.org/kde
Image source: Wikimedia Commons