Both all those who are already accustomed to using an open source Linux operating system, as well as those who are entering this world, surely they know GNOME.
To give you a more approximate idea, here we refer to one of the most popular desktop environments for Linux systems and it has been used for many years. For example, this is the environment that is used in the popular Ubuntu, or Fedora, among other desktop distributions. Well, we are telling you all this because the next big version, GNOME 45, is already officially in beta testing before its official arrival in Linux distributions.
For example, this desktop environment will be part of Ubuntu 23.10 and other operating systems. As you will remember, GNOME 44 was launched in March of this year with some interesting new features. It integrated a reorganized Settings app, updates to the Files app, a GTK4 overhaul for the default web browser, and more.
Now GNOME 45 seems to follow this same line with some changes in the main applications that will be part of it. A clear example of all this is that the Loupe application is the new default image viewer in GNOME, replacing the Eye of GNOME viewer that had been with us for years. The new app will still be called Image Viewer on the desktop environment to avoid confusion.
At this point it’s also worth noting that here’s a new camera app that replaces the veteran Cheese tool: Snapshot. In order not to complicate ourselves too much, this mind will receive the nomenclature of Chamber.
Other new features of the Linux GNOME 45 environment
On the other hand, it must be taken into account that the new GNOME 45 eliminates the Photos application for which there is currently no replacement. Its developers explain to us in this sense that this application has been eliminated mainly due to the lack of volunteers interested in maintaining its development, a decision that probably will not sit well with users who usually work with this type of multimedia content by eliminating the possibility of quickly edit any image we have on our computer.
The Photo Viewer app is still available, but only to perform that function, not to do any editing work. If we want to edit them, we have no choice but to reinstall the application from a repository and start using GIMP, the free Photoshop for Linux.
GNOME 45 also includes a new background image, or an improved configuration process to try to make these tasks easier for us. We will also find a new preferences window in the Console application and general performance improvements.
At this time we have the possibility to test all this in a virtual machine or on a PC with the official ISO image. We can also wait for it to be included in Linux distributions like Ubuntu 23.10 or Fedora 39. Keep in mind that many Linux distributions change the default theme or the included applications. This means that we may not get the experience of the new GNOME desktop that we have told you about in these lines.
