Ubuntu is adding a trash icon to the desktop by default.
With no (easy) way to add a trash icon to the new Ubuntu Dock a la Unity, Ubuntu’s devs have instead opted to add a trash icon to the Ubuntu desktop by default.
The trash shortcut makes it easier to access and manage their deleted files and folders on the GNOME Shell desktop.
Weirdly — and I did double check — this will be the first time the Ubuntu has put a trash can shortcut on the desktop itself. Previous versions of the distro, even back in the GNOME 2 days, have instead used a trash can panel applet of one description or another:
The standard upstream GNOME Shell desktop doesn’t include a trash can shortcut. In fact, it ships with no icons enabled on the desktop by default, a setting that Ubuntu is (thankfully) choosing to override.
So as well as putting a recycle bin¹ in easy reach Ubuntu 17.10 is letting you cluttered up your work surface with as many apps shortcuts and other files and fluff over your desktop as you want.
Many popular Linux desktop environments and distributions include a trash can on the desktop (such as Xubuntu), so Ubuntu isn’t breaking new ground here. Plus, for many users, Microsoft Windows has conditioned them to expect one to be on show and in reach.
Will you make trashing the trash can shortcut one of your first tasks after upgrading? Or are you happy to hear that you’ll have this shortcut to hand?