Download Gnome 3.12

Version 3.12 of Gnome has been released. This comprehensive, easy-to-use, open source desktop environment is available for operating systems belonging to the Unix family, such as Linux and the various BSD variants. The name is short for GNU Network Object Model Environment. Gnome consists of a desktop environment and a development platform for creating other applications, which can be integrated into the desktop environment. It is similar to the KDE Software Compilation in that regard. Below is a brief overview of the major improvements made in this release.

Welcome to GNOME 3.12

3.12 is the latest GNOME release, and the result of six months’ work by the GNOME project. It includes new features and a large number of smaller improvements and enhancements. The release contains 34236 changes by approximately 1140 contributors. New features and improvements being introduced in GNOME 3.12 include:

Software Has Grown Up
GNOME’s new Software application was first introduced six months ago, in version 3.10. Since then it has grown up in a serious way. Performance has been improved across the board, so that common operations like browsing, searching and installing are fast and responsive. The new version also includes a long list of new features, including:

• Screenshots of applications, to make it easier to decide if you want to install them. Most applications now have screenshots, and new screenshots are being added every day.
• Automatic rating of applications indicate their quality and help you select the best ones.
• The ability to install individual software packages, such as those that you have downloaded.
• Packages containing software repositories can be installed, and you can now review and remove third party repositories that are in use.

Checking for and installing software updates has also been improved for 3.12. It is now possible to choose to have your computer power off after updates have been installed, and you can also install updates from the system power off button. Software also indicates when the last update check was performed, and allows you to manually check for updates.

All New Videos
GNOME 3.12 includes a reimagined Videos application. Modern in style, the new version allows you to browse videos that are on your computer, as well as online video channels. Channels in this release include Rai.tv, The Guardian Videos channel, blip.tv and Apple Movie Trailers. Developers can easily add their own video channels, and we expect the list of channels to grow in the future. Additionally, integration with the popular pocket service provides an easy way to watch videos that you have saved for later.

Videos also includes a redesigned playback view. This provides a more streamlined experience than the previous version: floating playback controls hide when you don’t need them, so that nothing gets in the way of your viewing, and the fullscreen playback view also has a new more refined look.

A New Look for gedit
The gedit text editor has had a major update for this release. The new design incorporates all of gedit’s previous features into a more compact interface, which gives more space for your work. Use of popovers for selecting the document format and tab width is more efficient than the previous use of dialogs and menus, and consolidated sidebar controls also give more space for content while retaining the original functionality.

Other notable improvements include new shortcuts for opening the last closed tab with Ctrl+Shift+T and for changing case.

Rounding Things Out
For 3.12 we have worked with our users to round out the GNOME 3 experience. An emphasis on filling in requested functionality has resulted in a number of changes, including the addition of wired networking to the system status area and the creation of user-configurable application folders. Many of the improvements to the software updates experience have also come about through dialog with users.

This release also includes many smaller changes that result in a much more polished, high-quality experience. Dialogs are now displayed in the Activities Overview. The visual theme and icons have had many small updates, animations have been refined so they are more subtle and informative, and tabs and many dialogs have been restyled to give them a consistent and more beautiful appearance. 3.12 also contains a number of performance improvements, including faster startup times and lower memory usage.

Improved High Resolution Display Support
High-resolution display support was first introduced in 3.10. This provided high-resolution display support for much of GNOME 3. Since then, this feature has been extended to include all the key aspects of the core GNOME 3 experience, including the Activities Overview, top bar, lock screen and system dialogs.

Create Your Own Application Folders
Application folders are a new way to organize your applications in GNOME 3. They make it possible for you to personalize your setup and make it easier to find the applications that you are interested in. GNOME 3 has included several automatic application folders in the past, which contain Utilities and Sundry items. With 3.12, it is now possible to create your own folders in the Activities Overview. Controls for this can be found in the Software application: simply go to the Installed view, select some applications, and choose which folder you want them to belong to.

Gnome 3.10 screenshot, click on the image for a larger version.