All articles by Joey Sneddon

Joey Sneddon is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of OMG! Ubuntu. Since 2009, he has reported on Ubuntu and the wider open-source ecosystem, documenting every major Ubuntu release since 9.04 to the present. With over 16 years of hands-on experience in Linux desktops, distros and apps, Joey's insights and reporting have been cited by leading technology outlets including Ars Technica, The Verge, Engadget and Forbes.

Fix HEIC images not loading in Ubuntu 26.04 LTS

If your HEIC photos show a “Could not load image” error in Ubuntu 26.04’s Image Viewer, you’re not alone – it’s an intentional breakage, albeit one that’s easy to fix. HEIC files are a variant […]

23 hours ago

Ubuntu’s app permission prompting has got a lot better

If you haven’t check in with Ubuntu’s app prompting feature for a while, there’s more reason to do so in the latest release. Recent improvements to the snap-focused security feature, which Canonical’s Oliver Calder has […]

Thursday
Unity desktop doorframe graphic.

Ubuntu’s old Unity desktop remade in Wayfire and Libadwaita

If Canonical hadn’t burned through cash and goodwill during its smartphone detour in the mid-2010s, Ubuntu would likely still ship with the Unity desktop today – albeit in an evolved form. What would that form […]

Wednesday

Orion for Linux adds a content blocker and download manager

A new beta build of Orion for Linux is available, with the v0.3 update ready for ‘broader, real-world use and feedback’, according to Kagi, the company behind it. Orion for Linux is a native GTK4/libadwaita […]

5 May 2026
gThumb comparison showing GTK3 interface and GTK4 interface.

gThumb is barely recognisable in its GTK4/libadwaita port

gThumb, the open-source image viewer and organiser, has been rewritten in Vala and ported to GTK4/libadwaita – and compared to the old UI, it’s barely recognisable. An alpha build of gThumb 4.0 is available for […]

3 May 2026

Attack knocks Ubuntu websites, services and Snap store offline

If you’re having trouble accessing the Ubuntu website, the Snap store or Launchpad then you’re not alone: Canonical’s websites are currently facing a “sustained, cross-border” attack. The company says it is “working to address” the […]

1 May 2026

Linux App Release Roundup (April 2026)

April 2026 has been and gone, but not before delivering an array of Linux software updates, including new versions of popular FOSS video editor Kdenlive and Oracle’s virtualisation offering VirtualBox. We also got Firefox 150 […]

1 May 2026
A laptop showing the Linux Mint desktop.

Linux Mint’s new HWE ISOs improve hardware support

Linux Mint’s switch to a longer development cycle – the next release is coming at Christmas – has a knock on effect for people trying to install it on newer hardware that requires a newer […]

30 April 2026
PS5 with Linux on the monitor.

Someone got Ubuntu running on a PS5 – and played Steam

A newly launched project lets you boot Ubuntu on a PlayStation 5 to play Steam games, though only if your console is on old enough firmware. The hack is the work of security engineer Andy […]

30 April 2026

Enabling Ubuntu Pro in Security Center is super easy

Ubuntu 26.04 LTS dropped the Software & Updates utility from default installs and added Ubuntu Pro settings to the Security Center app. But is the setup experience any better? The short answer is yes, mostly. The range of […]

29 April 2026
xenial topper

Ubuntu 16.04 LTS security support has ended – unless you pay

If you’re still running Ubuntu 16.04 LTS (Xenial Xerus), heads up: Extended Security Maintenance (ESM) ended this month and your system is no longer receiving security updates. Having debuted in April 2016, Ubuntu 16.04 LTS […]

28 April 2026
Ubuntu AI

Canonical is ‘ramping up’ AI in Ubuntu this year

AI features are coming to Ubuntu in 2026, though Canonical has made clear that the distro is not becoming an AI product. In a community post, Jon Seager, VP of engineering at Canonical, says the […]

27 April 2026