Desktop – Linux.com

Desktop Linux: Why open source is heading for a new breakthrough

Mon, 18 May 2020 18:20:39 +0000

It’s been a long time since anyone thought Linux could seriously challenge Windows for domination as a desktop operating system. But that doesn’t mean that interest in having Linux on your laptop has entirely vanished. “It’s very exciting,” Matthew Miller, project lead for Fedora, tells TechRepublic.

With coronavirus forcing us to work from home, SUSE suggests the Linux desktop

Wed, 15 Apr 2020 20:59:25 +0000

Thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, companies with little in the way of resources need to keep their businesses running with what their IT department and users already have at hand. SUSE has a suggestion: Switch them to the SUSE Linux Enterprise Desktop (SLED).

Firefox 72 Released with Improved Tracking Protection + More

Fri, 10 Jan 2020 03:40:08 +0000

Mozilla Firefox 72 is now available to download, the latest in the web browser’s new monthly release cycle. The headline change in Firefox 72 for Linux and macOS users is out-of-the-box support for picture-in-picture video support on sites like YouTube and Netflix.
[Source: OMG! Ubuntu]

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How Chrome is helping enterprises still using Windows 7

Fri, 10 Jan 2020 00:14:48 +0000

Running an OS outside of official support can leave organizations vulnerable to potential security threats. On Windows 7, Chrome will continue to provide built-in security capabilities that help keep users safe while on the web. With Safe Browsing, Site Isolation and new advanced password and phishing protections, Chrome proactively helps protect users working in the cloud. With policy management, IT teams can tighten controls as they see fit. And our fast update cycles mean better protection from vulnerabilities, especially for enterprises taking advantage of automatic updates.
[Source: Google Blog]

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Dell XPS 13 7390 Review: The Best Laptop For Desktop Linux Users

Wed, 04 Dec 2019 20:16:19 +0000

Gone are the days when we had to do a lot of research and read a lot of reviews to find a machine that would work with the least amount of trouble with the desktop Linux distribution of choice. Today, almost every machine out there can run Linux. The kernel community has done an incredible job with device driver support to make everything work out of the box.

Still, there are machines that can run Linux, and then there are machines that run Linux. Dell machines fall in the latter category. Five years ago, Barton George started a program within Dell to bring desktop Linux to consumer grade, high-end Dell systems. What started as one machine is now an entire line of high-end laptops and desktops.

Among these machines, XPS 13 is my favorite. While I need a really powerful desktop to handle my 4K UHD, multicam video production, I also need an ultra-portable laptop that I can bring with me anywhere without having to worry about a bulky backpack and charger. XPS 13 was also my very first laptop, which lasted me more than 7 years. So, yes, there is that nostalgic factor, too.

Dell updates the XPS line almost every year and the latest rollout was announced in October (link to video interview). XPS 13 (7390) is an incremental update to the series, and Dell was kind enough to send me a review unit.

It is powered by a 6-core, Core i7-10710U CPU. It comes with 16GB of memory and 1TB SSD. At the base frequency of 1.10 GHz, which can boost to 4.1 GHz, this is a great machine for average workloads. It doesn’t have any dedicated GPU, so it’s not meant for gaming or compiling from source for Gentoo Linux or Arch Linux. However, I did manage to run some Steam games on it.

If you are looking to run your Kubernetes clusters, AI frameworks or Virtual Reality, then there are more powerful machines from the Precision line, which are certified to run Red Hat Enterprise Linux and Ubuntu.

The machine’s chassis is identical to the previous generation. The bezels remains as thin as they were in the previous generation, still thinner than MacBook and Microsoft’s Surface Pro.

It has three ports, two of which are USB-C Thunderbolt 3, which can be used to connect to 4K monitors, USB accessories, and high-speed data transfer between machines with peer-to-peer networking.

It also has a microSD slot. As a video journalist, a slot for an SD card would have been more useful. Heavy users of Raspberry Pis would also love this card.

It has 4 microphones and an improved camera, which is now located at the top (goodbye, nosecam!).

XPS 13 (7390) is sleek and slim. At 2.7 lbs, it is certainly comparable to Apple’s MacBook Air. This machine is meant to be your travel companion and for everyday tasks like checking emails, browsing the web, and writing.

Its 4K UHD screen supports HDR, which means you will be able to enjoy Mandalorian in all its full glory. That said, the on-board speakers are not that great and sound muffled. They are OK for video chats or casual YouTube viewing, but if you want to enjoy the The Witcher later this year, or if you want to enjoy music from Amazon, Apple Music or YouTube Music, you need headphones or external speakers.

But how much fun can you get out of this machine before you reach for charging cable? It gave me around 7-8 hours of battery life with average workload: browsing the web with a few tabs, just watching a movie or listening to music. Multi-tasking, especially any kind of web activity, will drain the battery. Some fine-tuning on Linux may give you even more life. On Windows 10, I was able to get more than 10 hours!

As a video journalist who is still doing a fair amount of writing, I really like the keyboard. However, the trackpad is the same story that we have been hearing on desktop Linux for ages: it’s nowhere near the quality on MacBook or Windows machines. Maybe one day. To Dell’s credit, they do release drivers for the trackpad that enhances the experience, but I am not running the stock Ubuntu 18.04 LTS that came with this system. I did a fresh install of Ubuntu 19.10 because Gnome is painfully slow in 18.04. I tried openSUSE Tumbleweed, Zorin OS, elementary OS, Fedora, KDE’s neon and Arch Linux. All worked, although some needed extra effort to run.

So, who is this system for? It’s certainly for professionals who want a well designed, high-end machine from a brand they can trust. It’s for those who like a MacBook Air, but prefer the desktop Linux ecosystem. It’s for those who want to use Linux for work, instead of working on it to make it work.

Spending a week with this machine reinforced why I love Dell’s XPS series so much. They are the best Linux laptops out there. And this XPS 13 (7390) packs a punch.

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System76 Will Start Designing And Building Its Own Linux Laptops Beginning January 2020

Fri, 22 Nov 2019 15:22:04 +0000

Denver-based PC manufacturer and Pop!_OS Linux developer System76 plans to follow-up its custom Thelio desktop PC with an in-house laptop beginning next year according to founder and CEO Carl Richell. During a recent interview, Richell was quick to emphasize that the entire process of designing, prototyping and iterating the final product could take two to three years. But the company is eager to break into this market and put the same signature “stamp” on its laptop hardware that graces its custom-built Thelio desktop.

[Source: Forbes]

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KDE Plasma 5.17.3 Desktop Environment Released

Tue, 12 Nov 2019 15:45:40 +0000

The KDE Project released today the third maintenance update to its latest KDE Plasma 5.17 desktop environment series to address more issues and update translations.

Coming two weeks after KDE Plasma 5.17.2, KDE Plasma 5.17.3 is here as yet another bugfix release that addresses a total of 43 issues across various core components and apps, including Plasma Workspace, Plasma Desktop, System Settings, KWin, KScreen, Plasma Addons, Plasma Discover, Breeze GTK, Dr Konqi, KDE GTK Config, and xdg-desktop-portal-kde.
Source: Softpedia

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Shadow of the Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition Released for Linux

Mon, 11 Nov 2019 21:59:42 +0000

Shadow of the Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition is now available on Linux and macOS. The third entry in the rebooted Tomb Raider ‘origins’ series, Shadow pits Lara Croft against the “impenetrable jungles of Central America”, sees her explore underwater environments, and take on a rogue paramilitary organisation known as Trinity. The Linux and macOS ports of the game, which received fairly decent reviews on its console debut, is handled by Feral Interactive.
Source: OMG! Ubuntu

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Red Hat Advances Java on Kubernetes Project

Thu, 07 Nov 2019 14:16:53 +0000

Red Hat today achieved a 1.0 milestone in its efforts to make an instance of Java available for Kubernetes via the open source Quarkus project. Mark Little, vice president of engineering for Red Hat, says Quarkus 1.0 advances an effort to create a more efficient means for building and deploying Java applications on Kubernetes by reducing the size of the Java virtual machine (JVM). The JVM used today assumed that the JVM would include the code required to write once and deploy anywhere. However, in a container environment, portability issues are addressed by Docker containers and Kubernetes. That creates an opportunity to shrink the JVM in a way that will make Java applications running on Kubernetes run faster, notes Little.
Source: Container Journal

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Red Hat Enterprise Linux 8.1 adds live Linux kernel patching

Wed, 06 Nov 2019 21:14:24 +0000

RHEL 8.1 8.1 now has full support for live kernel patching. You can now update your Linux kernel for Critical or Important Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVEs) without needing to go to the trouble of a system reboot. This keeps your system up and running even serious security bugs are patched behind the scenes.
Source: ZDNet

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