The release of the first alpha version of Gnome 40 in which initial changes are presented in the presentation of virtual desktops, as well as the GPU rendering for shaders, the support for the two factor authentication and also the update of various packages in the environment.
Recall that the project has changed to a new version numbering, according to which se will release version 40.0 instead of 3.40, which will make it possible to get rid of the first digit «3», which has lost its relevance during the current development process.
Interim corrective versions will be shipped as 40.1, 40.2, 40.3, while the major versions will continue to be formed every 6 months, that is, GNOME 41.0 will be released in the fall of 2021.
Odd numbers are no longer associated with the trial versions, which are now called alpha, beta and rc, with it the Gnome developers mention that:
"We decided not to use version 4.x to avoid confusion and overlap with GTK 4.0."
Main new features of Gnome 40 alpha
Among the changes in Gnome 40 initially we can find that the transition to the GTK 4 branch is highlighted and significant changes in the organization of work in the interface.
For example, vertical orientation replaced by horizontal and navigation in overview mode and application selection interface was changed.
Virtual desktops in overview mode now are arranged horizontally and appear as a continuous loop from left to right, plus a seamless transition between program list and virtual desktops is provided.
Gnome Shell also includes GPU rendering for shaders, updated avatar styling, and additional support for three-touch screen gestures.
We may also find that the ability to filter the output was added in the companion installation app.
The file manager Nautilus adds support for file creation times and use the xdg-desktop-portal component to set the desktop background.
Added support for two-factor authentication and connection mux for sftp to gvfs. XWayland compatibility in the Mutter composition manager has been improved.
In the Epiphany browser, due to changes in the rules for accessing the Google API, la protection against phishing is disabled by default, which was implemented through the use of Google's secure browsing technology.
Another change that stands out is the improved support for the flatpak package format, as well as the dModified dialogues to select search engines and data synchronization, as well as context menus.
As for the packages that are updated with the release of this alpha version, the most prominent ones:
- at-spi2-core (2.38.0 => 2.39.1)
- atkmm (2.28.0 => 2.28.1)
- cantarell-fonts (0.201 => 0.301)
- eog (3.38.0 => 40.alpha)
- epiphany (3.38.0 => 40.alpha)
- evince (3.38.0 => 3.39.1)
- evolution-data-server (3.38.0 => 3.39.1)
- gcr (3.36.0 => 3.38.1)
- gdm (3.38.0 => 3.38.2.1)
- gedit (3.38.0 => 3.38.1)
- glib (2.66.0 => 2.67.2)
- gnome-bluetooth (3.34.1 => 3.34.3)
- gnome-boxes (3.38.0 => 3.38.2)
- gnome-calculator (3.38.0 => 40.alpha)
- gnome-calendar (3.38.0 => 40.alpha)
- gnome-contacts (3.37.2 => 3.38.1) (*)
- gnome-control-center (3.38.0 => 3.38.3)
- gnome-desktop (3.38.0 => 40.alpha.0)
- gnome-disk-utility (3.38.0 => 40.alpha)
- gnome-getting-started-docs (3.36.2 => 3.38.0)
- gnome-initial-setup (3.38.0 => 40.alpha)
- gnome-maps (3.38.0 => 40.alpha)
- gnome-music (3.38.0 => 3.38.2)
- gnome-online-accounts (3.37.90 => 3.38.0)
- gnome-photos (3.37.91.1 => 3.38.0)
- gnome-settings-daemon (3.38.0 => 40.alpha.1)
- gnome-shell (3.38.0 => 40.alpha.1.1)
- gnome-shell-extensions (3.38.0 => 40.alpha.1)
- gnome-system-monitor (3.38.0 => 40.alpha)
- gnome-terminal (3.38.0 => 3.38.2) (*)
- gnome-user-docs (3.38.0 => 3.38.2)
- gnome-weather (3.36.1 => 40.alpha)
- gspell (1.8.4 => 1.9.1)
- gtk (3.99.1 => 4.0.2)
- gtk + (3.24.23 => 3.24.24)
- libgweather (3.36.1 => 40.alpha.1)
- libhandy (1.0.0 => 1.0.3)
- libsigc ++ (2.10.3 => 2.10.6)
- mm-common (1.0.1 => 1.0.2)
- mutter (3.38.0 => 40.alpha.1.1)
- nautilus (3.38.0 => 40.alpha)
- killer whale (3.38.0 => 3.38.2)
- pango (1.46.1 => 1.48.1)
- pangomm (2.42.1 => 2.42.2)
- simple-scan (3.38.0 => 3.38.2)
Finally the developers mention the following about this release:
This version is a snapshot of the development code. Although it is buildable and usable, it is primarily intended for testing. GNOME uses odd minor version numbers to indicate development state.
For more information on 3.38, the full schedule, the official module lists and lists of proposed modules, see our wiki page 3.38.
Si you want to know more about it, you can check the details In the following link.
Download and test Gnome 40 alpha
For those who are interested in being able to test this first alpha version of what will be the next version of Gnome 40, they should know that at the time of making this publication only eThe source code is available for compilation.
The code can be downloaded from this link.
On the other hand, for those interested in some specific packages, you can get the source codes separately from this link.