Linux NewsTiling Shell 17.3 adds flexible āAdaptiveā mode, touchscreen support
The Tiling Shell 17.3 GNOME extension update introduces new āAdaptiveā and āGranularā edge-tiling modes, Wacom and touchscreen support, and layout reordering.
Ubuntu 26.04 Snapshot 3 is Available to Download
The third Ubuntu 26.04 snapshot is out, giving you an easy way to test the 'Resolute Raccoon' ahead of its stable release in April. Details and links inside.
Microsoft PowerToys Proposal Adds Linux-style UI to Windows
Microsoft appears to be taking a cue from Linux with a new Command Palette Dock proposal for PowerToys. This would let Windows users add a second panel to their desktop with widgets, flexible positioning, and custom theming. Functionality that is standard across most Linux desktop environments (for decades), and a reminder of how inflexible Windows and its Taskbar are by default. The idea, posted by Microsoft designer Niels Laute on GitHub, is to add a Command Palette Dock in PowerToys to compliment the (popular) Command Palette. Command Palette is a newer PowerToys feature that provides a keyboard-driven launcher for extensions [ā¦]
Free Up Disk Space by Removing Old Snap Versions
Running out of disk space on Ubuntu? Before you start uninstalling applications or clearing caches, you might want to check your snap revisions. Iāve been getting low disk space warnings on a 40GB Ubuntu partition. The usual tips to free space on Ubuntu werenāt enough, so I opened Disk Usage Analyser and found nearly 8GB was eaten up by old snap versions (you can run sudo du -sh /var/lib/snapd too). Not active versions of Snaps I have installed; backups of every snap I have installed. There, idle, in the snapd folder consuming several gigabytes ājust in caseā I need to [ā¦]
Transmission 4.1.0 Released with Big Updates
Transmission 4.1 adds support for IPv6 and dual-stack UDP trackers, sequential downloading, and improved ĀµTP (Micro Transport Protocol) performance.
COSMIC Desktop āFrosted Glassā UI Effect Previewed
COSMIC, the Linux desktop that can look and work however you dang well like, is adding more bling. System76 co-founder Carl Richell has given us our first look at the āFrosted Glassā effect coming to the COSMIC desktop in Epoch 2 (as the desktop releases are named): System76ās engineering team is opting to use a āmore performantā Dual Kawase blur, commonly used in gaming, to handle the dynamic effect. This apparently offers a āclose approximationā of Gaussian blur, but is not as resource intensive. Thatās important. Flashy UI effects often involve a performance hit and, more keenly, a knock-on effect [ā¦]
Unofficial AppImage Lets You Run Canvaās Affinity on Ubuntu
Linux lacks native versions of industry-grade creative tools like Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, and while open-source options are capable, not everyone is willing to relearn and adapt to different tools. Thankfully, the gap in commercial design software is plugged with workarounds involving Wine, the Windows compatibility layer ā which is how you can run Affinity v3 on Linux. Affinity, acquired by Canva in 2024, moved to a freemium model in 2025. Photo, Designer and Publisher tools were merged into a unified app and made free to download and use on Windows and macOS (generative AI features cost, but are optional). [ā¦]
Mecha Comet ā Modular Linux Handheld with Snap-On Modules
Linux handhelds are having a moment of late, yet few wear their geek cred as proudly as the Mecha Comet, a new open source, palm-sized computer crowdfunding on Kickstarter. The Mecha Comet is not a phone and it isnāt aiming to replace your your laptop. Instead, itās a modular Linux device designed to beā¦ Well, Whatever you need it to be, when you need it to be: adaptability is the USP [thatās enough āeeesā ā ed]. Three magnetic snap-on attachments change how the device functions. A gamepad panel provides familiar gaming input. A 40-pin GPIO header with I/O breakout caters [ā¦]
Add Custom Command Toggles to GNOME Shellās Quick Settings Menu
A new GNOME extension lets you add your own custom toggles to the Quick Settings menu, making it easier to run commands, scripts or service actions when you want. Custom Command Toggle lets you add up to 6 bespoke triggers to the Quick Settings menu, where they sit alongside regular system toggles. You can assign custom labels and icons, the latter pulled from the Adwaita or Yaru icon sets, for each button you add. The extensionās preferences provide plenty of control. You can define separate commands to run when toggling on and off, and choose whether an indicator icon appears when [ā¦]
FOSDEM 2026 Tackles Funding and Politics in Open Source
FOSDEM 2026 takes place at the end of this month (January 31 to February 1), as a flock of FOSS enthusiasts, engineers and established companies descend on Brussels, Belgium to chat about all things open-source and Linux. Running annually since 2000, FOSDEM (āFree and Open Source Software Developersā European Meetingā) seems to grow in popularity each year. This year sees over 1000 speakers, 1000s, 100s of stands and as many 10,000 attendees. FOSDEM is free to attend, you just turn up as no registration is required, an open approach for an event thatās all about open collaboration. Talks at FOSDEM [ā¦]
Tonearm, New Unofficial TIDAL Client for Linux, Hits Beta
Tonearm is a new GTK4/libadwaita TIDAL client that delivers what the streaming service itself doesnāt: a native Linux app with solid desktop integration ā albeit unofficially, of course. Itās the third unofficial client for Linux Iāve covered, joining High Tide and the Electron-based Tidal-Hifi. All exist as TIDAL doesnāt provide a Linux app itself, leaving users with the option of the web player. The web app works fine, but it means keeping a browser tab open and losing out on system-side niceties like media controls and keyboard shortcuts. Thankfully, TIDAL offer a robust API that, with a bit of open-source [ā¦]
Firefoxās Tab Notes Feature Feels Genuinely Useful (For Me, At Least)
Something has changed in my browsing habits of late, and Iām not sure I like it. I used to be a āif I donāt need it, close itā guy. Now? 25 tabs open ā a mix of news articles, code repos, drafts and random stuff I swore Iād revisitā¦ only I donāt remember why. But it seems Firefox has a fix for my forgetfulness in the works: Tab Notes. As the name suggests, Tab Notes are small text notes you can attach to any tab. This should act as an alibi for my intent, surfacing much needed answers for the all-too-frequent [ā¦]
14 Years Later than Planned the NexPhone Goes Up for PreOrder
The NexPhone is finally available for pre-order, some 14 years after it was first announced (but āavailableā is be a tad generous since manufacturing is yet to begin). Created by Nex Computer, the company behind the NexDock laptop shells (think a premium version of the terrific CrowView Note devices), the NexPhone aims to deliver what Canonicalās Ubuntu Phone ultimately didnāt: convergence. The tech scene has changed dramatically since the NexPhoneās 2012 crowdfunder pitch. Back then, this phone was aiming to run Ubuntu Phone as its primary OS. As that didnāt last long, the 2026 NexPhone runs Android, Debian and Windows [ā¦]
Window Shadows Finally Arrive on COSMIC Desktop
System76 has updated the COSMIC Desktop with window shadows and consistent corner sizing across all applications, a change available on Pop!_OS 24.04 LTS right now and coming to users on other Linux distributions soon. Both features apply the effects consistently, meaning that apps in different toolkits (Qt, GTK, Iced, etc) match better (if not perfectly) than they did before. Controls for applying roundness and shadowing in floating and tiled modes is userāadjustable. Prior, only GTK windows running on COSMIC had drop shadows. Native COSMIC apps, and Qt ones, appeared flat. This often made it hard(er) to tell which app was [ā¦]
Will Intelās Core 3 Replicate the N100ās Budget Mini-PC Success?
Intelās Core 3 (Wildcat Lake) chips are on the way aiming to replace the Intel N100 ā but to be the next budget computing champ theyāll need to match it on price, not just beat it on performance. At CES in January, Intel barely mentioned its budget chips. This was presumably so all attention and headlines were given to its powerful and pricey āPanther Lakeā chips, like the ones powering the revived Dell XPS 14 with Ubuntu (also announced as CES). Of course, the N100ās popularity was a happy accident anyway, and hawking decently performing budget chips that are as [ā¦]