Kera Desktop, a web-based cross-platform desktop environment

In Linux, hearing about the term "desktop environment" is quite common., since we have a portfolio of environments to choose from within our favorite Linux distribution and with which, above all, each one of them gives it that little distinctive touch from the others.

In the case of Windows and MacOS things change a bit, since being proprietary systems (closed) the customization options revolve around the graphical environment that is offered, since basically the customization is based on themes, color changes, icons and if we want to obtain something else, it is to resort to applications from third parties.

This is where it comes in Today's topic, which is Kera Desktop, which is already 10 years old since it was launched, but at that time its proof of concept was a disaster, according to the words of its developer, but now with more experience and knowledge it has decided to launch the first alpha version of the environment.

Kera Desktop, is an environment that handles a rather interesting concept and that distinguishes it entirely different from other environments we know of is that this It is developed with web technologies and that it is a multiplatform environment, that is to say that it is not only for Linux, but also for Windows, MacOS and even ChromeOS.

The environment provides generic capabilities of windows, panels, menus and virtual desktops. the first version is limited to support for running web applications (PWAs), but in the future they plan to add the ability to run regular programs and create a specialized Kera desktop distribution based on the Fedora Linux base package.

Of the characteristics key highlights of Kera Desktop:

• A menu in the style of an icon grid, actively using the color division of different categories.
• When opening applications in full screen, it is possible to combine the application bar and the system bar in one line
• Drop-down sidebars make it easy to group applications, files, and web pages and provide access to integrated web applications.
• Support for virtual desktops with the ability to quickly switch between applications.
• Support for collapsing the panel, leaving only an indicator to expand it.
• A notification delivery system designed with the idea that toast notifications should not overlap with other content whenever possible.
• Window management and the ability to arrange windows side by side in a tile style. Support for docking windows in the foreground.
• Automatic placement of new windows, taking into account the presence of areas on the screen that are not occupied by other windows.
• Ability to navigate through applications and desktop items in the form of search and control commands.

About the release of the first alpha version, it is mentioned that the concept of rooms has been implemented, in which tasks of a certain subject can be grouped (work, learning, games, etc). To visually separate the rooms, you can assign a different color and different wallpaper to each room.

In addition to this, it is worth mentioning that Kera Desktop supports synchronization of desktop state with an account in a cloud environment or on the user's own server. The environment is developed without being tied to certain platforms and allows to obtain the same interface, regardless of the operating system used.

Finally, it should be mentioned that a Linux distribution of the project, "Kera OS" is in development which is basically Fedora with Kera Desktop pre-installed. An easy way for those who want a fresh installation with Kera Desktop.

For interested in knowing more about it, they should know that the project code is written in JavaScript, does not use third-party frameworks, is distributed under the GPLv3 license, and can learn about development In the following link.

Download and install Kera Desktop

For those interested in being able to test the project, they should know that the ready compilations are prepared for both Linux, Chrome OS, macOS and Windows and are can be obtained from the following link.