Enlarge / Behold, the default desktop for the newest Canonical launch: Ubuntu 19.04, gloriously nicknamed “Disco Dingo.”
Scott Gilbertson
Canonical just lately launched Ubuntu 19.04, the newest model of its flagship GNOME-based Linux desktop. However when you’re a desktop person, you could be feeling a little bit not noted.
The large factors of emphasis on this newest launch are on Ubuntu as a software for infrastructure growth, server deployment, and the great outdated Web of Issues. For the server model of Ubuntu, the OS ships with all the newest cloud computing instruments. The truth is, that is already obtainable in optimized builds on the main cloud providers.
Elsewhere, the newest model of the venerable Ubuntu desktop packs fairly a couple of extra, tempting causes to improve for Linux players. Ubuntu 19.04 makes the leap to the Linux kernel 5.x collection, as an example, which affords a lot improved graphics help.
Regardless of all of the speak of developer instruments and enterprise deployment stacks—Canonical has even taken to calling Ubuntu the “main OS for cloud operations” recently—Ubuntu 19.04 is finally a worthwhile improve for all. After spending a while with it just lately, we discovered some good updates to the desktop, too. So regardless of your Ubuntu use case, 19.04 appears to supply customers a quicker, extra polished desktop than its predecessors.
The brand new icon theme in Ubuntu 19.04.
Scott Gilbertson
Ubuntu 19.04’s barely tweaked “yaru” theme.
Scott Gilbertson
GNOME
The default desktop for 19.04 appears to be like, except for the brand new wallpaper, kind of like earlier releases. There are not any main adjustments to be seen, however there are lots to be felt.
Due to work each within the upstream GNOME venture together with some contributions from downstream, Ubuntu 19.04 is the snappiest model of GNOME I’ve ever used. The truth is, Ubuntu’s GNOME desktop lastly feels prefer it’s about on par with the outdated Unity, at the very least when it comes to pace and responsiveness.
A lot of the credit score right here goes to the GNOME venture, which has been onerous at work rushing issues up. To be utterly honest to GNOME, the venture has truly made much more pace enhancements that did not make it into Ubuntu 19.04; Ubuntu is trying to incorporate some extra of these enhancements down the street. It is also value noting that just about all of the enhancements to GNOME in 19.04 have been patched into 18.10 and can ultimately make it to the 18.04 LTS launch as nicely.
Suffice it to say that when you’re a GNOME person, the massive, very noticeable pace increase in Ubuntu 19.04 will make you very glad.
One other trickle-down win from the upstream pace enhancements is the inclusion of GNOME’s indexing software, Tracker, which is put in by default in Ubuntu 19.04. Beforehand, Tracker was thought of too sluggish to ship with Ubuntu. You’ve got most likely by no means heard of Tracker, because it runs behind the scenes and indexes and shops metadata to be used in searches all through GNOME, however including Tracker permits some new options for 19.04. Tracker means you should utilize the batch rename software with metadata tags and that looking out within the Recordsdata app is now full-text, for instance.
Enlarge / The Recordsdata app in Ubuntu 19.04 could make higher use of metadata, because of GNOME Tracker.
Scott Gilbertson
Whereas Ubuntu 19.04 does not make any radical adjustments to the essential GNOME person expertise, there are a few visible enhancements value noting. The brand new default theme for Ubuntu (often known as Yaru) has been additional refined and features a new icon theme that appears extra unified—almost all the pieces will get a rounded sq. icon now (besides, in fact, any functions you put in that are not a part of the icon set).
One other instantly noticeable change to the person expertise is that alt-tab now switches home windows by default. You possibly can cycle by way of your functions with super-tab. Naturally, you may change this utilizing the settings app.
However as with all issues GNOME, the various steps ahead include a backward step as nicely. You possibly can now not put icons on the desktop in GNOME three.32. Ubuntu has labored round this variation by together with a brand new GNOME Shell extension aptly named “Desktop Icons.” Up to now, so good, however there is a catch: the extension does not will let you drag and drop recordsdata or apps onto the Desktop. As a substitute, you will have to do this utilizing the Nautilus file supervisor. Drag and drop your file into the desktop folder and you may see it present up on the desktop. It is a small annoyance simply labored round, but it surely’s an annoyance nonetheless.
One much-requested new function in GNOME three.32 is help for fractional UI scaling, which is the flexibility to set the interface to one thing apart from 100 p.c (1080p and smaller screens) or 200 p.c (for HiDPI screens). With GNOME three.32, you may scale in 25 p.c increments—not arbitrary, but it surely’s definitely higher than earlier releases. The catch is that it actually solely works (in my testing) operating underneath Wayland.
There may be some experimental help for Xorg classes, however you will must allow it your self. Directions could be discovered on the Ubuntu Group website, however in my testing it was fairly buggy, particularly with GIMP. My suggestion is to make use of Wayland. In spite of everything, in case your hardware features a HiDPI display screen, it is most likely completely able to operating Wayland.
A number of releases in the past, Canonical started gathering metrics from prepared customers (it nonetheless does; you may decide out after set up), and one of many bits of information the corporate talked about it has discovered from that collected knowledge is how usually Ubuntu is put in as a digital machine. Lo and behold, Ubuntu 19.04 will now mechanically set up the open-vm-tools bundle (to enhance VM integration) when it sees its being put in nearly. It is a small factor, however one that actually helps when you spin up a variety of VMs since this protects you the trouble of including these instruments by hand after the actual fact. With Ubuntu 19.04, you may simply begin up a digital machine and when it is executed putting in, your clipboard will work contained in the visitor. You possibly can simply share folders. And you will get a much-improved graphics expertise, all with out doing something further.
Flavors
After I mentioned earlier that Ubuntu 19.04 is the snappiest model of GNOME I’ve ever used, the emphasis there may be on GNOME. Within the broader scheme of Ubuntu desktops, there’s actually nothing notably snappy about GNOME. The truth is, in my expertise, it is the slowest of the bunch. Fortuitously, when you’re in search of a quicker desktop that makes use of fewer system sources and affords a extra ‘”conventional'” expertise, Ubuntu’s numerous flavors have you ever lined.
All the under-the-hood enhancements apply to the flavors in addition to the principle launch, so once I say that little or no has modified, I imply little or no in that taste’s desktop. However the reality is that little or no has modified for many desktops with this launch. There are many enhancements within the Ubuntu base packages that each one these flavors are constructed upon, however the person expertise most often stays largely unchanged.
After the GNOME-based model, the largest adjustments to an Ubuntu taste are available in Ubuntu Budgie. Budgie 19.04 is notable for changing the Nautilus file supervisor with Nemo, the file supervisor present in Linux Mint. This transformation is Budgie’s approach of coping with the lack to point out icons on the desktop in GNOME three.32. Having examined each Ubuntu and Ubuntu Budgie’s strategies of fixing this function removing, I would have to offer the sting to Budgie.
Nemo is solely a greater file supervisor. Not solely do you get desktop icons, however you additionally get some helpful options GNOME way back ripped out like a split-screen view and tree view.
Ubuntu MATE 19.04, which might be considered one of my prime picks within the Ubuntu flavors world, appears to be like to be a comparatively minor replace with some bug fixes and a pair new options. It is most likely most notable for what’s not included—the newest model of MATE.
Ubuntu MATE 19.04 ships with MATE Desktop 1.20 relatively than the just lately launched 1.22. The MATE weblog notes that that is for stability causes. MATE 1.22 introduces some API adjustments that some third get together functions haven’t but integrated, making them unstable. Search for MATE Desktop 1.22 to land in 19.10 later this yr.
As you’ll anticipate from an Xfce-based taste, Xubuntu is kind of the identical because the earlier launch. Certainly the dearth of change is among the greatest causes to make use of Xfce. Now there are some adjustments on this launch that must be welcome information to Xfce-users’ ears: extra GTK three apps particularly. Xubuntu 19.04 ships with GTK three variations of the Xfce file supervisor and app finder. Xubuntu’s transition to GTK three continues to progress and will even be completed by subsequent yr’s Xubuntu 20.04 LTS.
Different Ubuntu flavors like Lubuntu (LXDE-based), Kubuntu (KDE-based), and the oft-overlooked Ubuntu Studio have updates for 19.04. The latter deserves particular point out for 19.04 because it’s now potential to put in Ubuntu Studio’s configuration and metapackages on prime of an present Ubuntu set up. Which means you may have your inventory Ubuntu (or different taste) desktop and get all of the Studio goodness as nicely. Should you’ve ever needed an entire audio/video Linux workstation with out the ache of configuring low degree audio and video settings, Ubuntu Studio is the best way to go.
