Desktop

GNOME 3.32

The default Fedora desktop environment for installations with a graphical interface - GNOME - has been updated to version 3.32. Notable changes include:

  • The interface has received a refreshed visual style, including the UI, icons, and the desktop itself

  • Core GNOME applications have removed the "application menu" and its contents have been moved into a primary menu located in the application window where appropriate

  • GNOME now supports fractional scaling as an experimental option. Its experimental nature means it must be enabled manually by adding the scale-monitor-framebuffer option to the org.gnome.mutter.experimental-features gsettings key

  • Improvements to the foundation data structures of the GNOME desktop provide better framerates

  • The on-screen keyboard now has an emoji picker

  • The Web browser now has a new automation mode, allowing it to be controlled by WebDriver

  • There is now an Applications panel in Settings, showing resources and permissions of various installed applications

  • Sound settings have been redesigned

  • Boxes will now attempt to enable 3D acceleration for virtual machines if both the host and guest support it

  • Software has received improved handling of apps from multiple sources (e.g. Flatpak and distribution repositories)

For more information about this GNOME release, see the upstream Release Notes.

Deepin desktop environment

The Deepin desktop environment is now available in Fedora 30 repositories.

The Deepin DE is a new environment developed by Deepin Technology Co., Ltd. that aims to be easy to use and elegant. It also comes with a set of applications such as a calendar, image viewer, system monitor and file browser.

To install this environment, use the Software tool to locate the package or run sudo dnf install deepin-desktop in a terminal, log out when the installation finishes, and select Deepin as your environment on the login screen.

For more information about Deepin, see the official project website. Those interested in contributing to Deepin in Fedora are encouraged to contact the Deepin Special Interest Group.

Pantheon desktop

Pantheon is the desktop environment used by default on elementaryOS. It builds on GNOME technologies, but utilizes components that were written from scratch in vala, using the GTK+3 toolkit. In Fedora 30, Pantheon is provided by Fedora as an alternative desktop environment.

Note that some of the Pantheon packages have been available in earlier Fedora versions. However, Fedora 30 is the first release that provides the whole desktop environment as a package group.

To try out Pantheon, install the "Pantheon Desktop" package group, log out, and choose a Pantheon session during login.