Fedora Workstation 35 is now available to download.
Yes, I know: this is not technically Ubuntu related, but I do like to report on events from outside the orange bubble from time to time — heck, I ought to do something with omglinux.com! Plus, I use Fedora regularly in order to keep tabs on GNOME development, so I’m a bit more familiar with than before.
So what’s new in Fedora 35?
Quite a bit!
The recent GNOME 41 desktop release is included in full. This introduces a slew of enhancements, ranging from new multi-tasking options in the Settings hub through to easy-to-access power mode controls in the Status Menu.
Fedora 35 ships GNOME 41 more or less unmodified so it’s a fantastic way to try ‘GNOME experience’ the way GNOME developers intend.
Having switched its default audio system to PipeWire in an earlier release, Fedora devs felt able to introduce a new session manager in this one. Called WirePlumber, Fedora’s own Matthew Miller says the new tool “allows for more customization of the policy and rules for audio and video [and provides] a richer development experience and adds bindings for most languages.”
In addition, the latest version of PipeWire improves handling of Bluetooth devices, and gains support for pass-through of S/PDIF signals over optical and HDMI connections.
All pretty, neat.
Other changes in Fedora 35 include improvements around third-party repositories, parental control integrations, better Fedora Wayland support on NVIDIA’s proprietary driver, and high-resolution scrolling with mouse wheels.
Developers get access to Python 3.10, Perl 5.34, PHP 8.0, plus a ton of updated software through the Fedora repos.
As an Ubuntu user, I find GNOME Software a fascinating revelation on Fedora. Ubuntu ships an older fork of this app and, to be blunt, it is an absolute memory suck even when it’s not open or obviously doing anything.
On Fedora however, not only is GNOME Software fast and responsive, but it’s way more useful as it handles most updates, repo, Flatpak, and system, all from within the one app.
It’s also refreshing to be able to search for apps and get the results I expect, and not a group of poorly-related Snap app results taking precedence.