The release of the Linux distribution Solus 4.5 has been announced, which is not based on packages from other distributions and develops its installer, package manager, and configurator. Previously, the Budgie desktop was part of the distribution, but it is now a standalone project. The next branch, Solus 5, will be developed using technologies from the SerpentOS distribution. The project code is distributed under the GPLv2 license, and development uses the C and Vala programming languages. Builds are provided with Budgie, GNOME, KDE Plasma, and Xfce desktops. The size of the ISO images is 2.7 GB (x86_64).
The package manager eopkg (a fork of PiSi from Pardus Linux) is used to manage packages, providing familiar tools for installing/removing packages, searching the repository, and managing repositories. Packages can be categorized into thematic components, which in turn create categories and subcategories. For example, Firefox is categorized under component network.web.browser, which belongs to the network applications category and the Web applications subcategory. More than 2000 packages are available for installation from the repository.
The distribution adheres to a hybrid development model, according to which significant releases are periodically issued, offering new technologies and substantial improvements, while in between the major releases, the distribution is developed using a rolling model for package updates.
The Budgie environment is based on GNOME technologies and its own implementation of the GNOME Shell (in the next Budgie 11 branch, they plan to separate the desktop functionality from the layer responsible for visualization and information output). The Budgie Window Manager (BWM), an enhanced modification of the base Mutter plugin, is used for window management. Budgie's core consists of a panel similar in functioning to classic desktop panels. All panel elements are applets, allowing flexible configuration of the content, repositioning, and replacing implementations of basic panel elements to personal preference.
Among the available applets, one can note the classic application menu, task switcher, area with a list of open windows, and preview. virtual desktops, power management indicator, volume control applet, system status indicator, and clock. For music playback in the Budgie and GNOME desktop editions, the Rhythmbox player is suggested with the Alternate Toolbar extension, offering a compact panel interface implemented using client-side window decoration (CSD). For video playback in the Budgie and GNOME editions, Celluloid is utilized. In the KDE edition, Elisa is available for music playback, while Haruna is used for video.
Key Changes:
- A new build with the Xfce 4.18 desktop environment is proposed. For audio and video playback by default in the new build, the Parole player is employed. The package also includes Mousepad 0.6.1, Ristretto 0.13.1, Thunar 4.18.6, and Whiskermenu 2.8.0.
- A new installer based on the Calamares framework is used for installing the distribution, supporting Btrfs filesystem and allowing the creation of custom disk partition layouts. Transitioning to Calamares has eliminated the dependency on Python 2, which was used for the old installer.
- For managing multimedia streams, the Pipewire media server is used by default instead of PulseAudio and JACK. Support for Bluetooth audio devices has been significantly improved.
- Updated software versions include Firefox 121.0, LibreOffice 7.6.4.1, and Thunderbird 115.6.0. The graphics stack has been migrated to Mesa 23.3.2.
- The Linux kernel has been updated to the 6.6 branch. The BORE task scheduler is enabled by default, optimized to reduce latency on the desktop and enhance the priority of interactive processes. An option for installing the LTS kernel 5.15.145 is also available.
- The AMD ROCm 5.5 stack is included for utilizing hardware acceleration on AMD GPUs in applications such as Blender, as well as for accelerating machine learning systems based on PyTorch, llama.cpp, and stable diffusion.
- The Budgie desktop has been updated to version 10.8.2. The dark theme settings have been changed. The Budgie Trash applet has been included. The system tray applet has been revamped. The application menu has been modernized.
- The GNOME desktop has been updated to release 45.2. Instead of Impatience for speeding up animations in GNOME Shell, the Speedinator extension is now used. By default, the adw-gtk3-dark GTK theme is offered, allowing for a unified appearance of applications based on GTK3 and GTK4. Center-aligned window output is enabled by default. The timeout for detecting hung applications has been increased to 10 seconds.
- The build based on KDE Plasma has been updated to Plasma Desktop 5.27.10, KDE Gear 23.08.4, Qt 5.15.11, and sddm 0.20.0. The use of double-clicking with the mouse to open files is enabled by default. New directories opened from external applications now open in a new Dolphin tab.
- The decision has been made to discontinue building with the MATE environment due to the transition to PipeWire and Wayland. Instead of MATE, builds with the Xfce desktop are provided.
Source: opennet.ru
