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What’s New in Beta Counter Strike 2: How To and Play Early Access?

Published on 03/23/2023 at 8:25 p.m

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It was the little bombshell (pun intended) last night, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive will soon be entitled to a “sequel”! And if you don’t want to wait for the release to test it, it’s already possible, of course under certain conditions…

A major update for the boss of competitive FPS

For more than 10 years, demanding FPS enthusiasts have been able to merrily kill each other in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. Of course, if he has been entitled to several improvements for some time, the one that for a long time we called only by his initials was beginning to show its age and some rumors were already starting to point their noses at a possible sequel. As of last night it’s official, CS:GO will evolve well enough to turn into Counter-Strike 2much like Overwatch had done before.

Rest assured that you will be more careful: you will not have to relearn how to play the game once this famous sequel has been released. Planned as a major improvement to CS:GO, the latter promises, for example, a graphical overhaul of the most iconic maps of the FPS without changing the technical aspects. So you can expect better lights and improved textures for a more enjoyable and legible visual experience without breaking new ground. But beware, the developers have nevertheless announced that some maps have been “overhauled from the top down”.

As far as gameplay goes, if it doesn’t change drastically, it should also be up to date in many respects. For example, we learn that there will be no more latency between the click and the shot, and that the smoke grenades have been completely modified to benefit from better realism.

If this new version of the game seems promising to you, or, on the contrary, you are afraid of the result, now you can try it yourself. Be careful though, you have to meet some criteria and you may have to be patient. As a matter of fact, You can’t sign up for the beta directly, but you can definitely be chosen by the developers to participate. To find out if this is already the case, all you have to do is launch CS:GO on Steam and check directly from the game’s main menu that you’ve received your little invitation card.

If you’re not among the lucky ones yet, don’t panic, there’s still hope! In fact, the Counter-Strike 2 development team has announced that they plan to expand their base of testers as development progresses until the game’s release this summer. In order to be able to hope for your invitation, you must observe a few criteria:

• Your playtime on the official CS:GO servers
• Your VAC status on Steam
• Your integrity as a player

In other words, in order to participate in the Counter-Strike 2 beta, you must have played a certain number of hours on the official CS:GO servers and never been banned from the game. To ensure this last criterion, you can now open the Steam Settings, then go to the “Account” section and observe the “VAC Status” line. If you have not registered any bans for your account, you will be informed about this in the window.

If we know that the developers are planning to release Counter-Strike 2 this summer, it’s still too early for a more precise date. In the meantime, don’t hesitate to connect regularly to CS:GO and keep playing on the official servers to hope to be among the beta testers. For more information on the Counter-Strike 2 trial period, we refer you to the official FAQ, as well as to the website dedicated to this famous suite.

About Counter-Strike: Global Offensive

Framework passes the second by announcing major developments on its first laptop, including the ability to choose an Intel or AMD CPU. The very young PC manufacturer also announces the Laptop 16, which goes even further in terms of modularity.

Framework Laptop 13 // Source: Framework

As a reminder, the Framework laptop is surprisingly easy to put together and fun to customize. This PC is designed to be upgradeable and durable at the same time, so you can buy and replace almost every single component if one stops working properly or if you want to upgrade specific parts. After unboxing and assembling the Framework laptop and then testing the machine, we even upgraded its CPU to a 12th Gen Intel Core CPU.

While Framework’s modular laptops are not yet widely available, they have garnered a lot of interest in the industry. The company continues its development by offering regular updates to improve its offer. Today Framework announces several novelties.

Improvements for the laptop 13

As a first innovation Framework announced the integration of processors 13th Gen Intel Core and AMD Ryzen processors (Ryzen 7040 in Ryzen 5 or Ryzen 7) in its laptop 13. Users can choose between the two brands, which responds to one of the reviews of the first users. Although Framework promises similar prices between Intel and AMD, the port configuration will be different. This is because Intel cards support Thunderbolt 4 throughout, while the AMD model offers two USB 4.0 ports, one USB 3.2 with DisplayPort, and one regular USB 3.2 port.

Framework Laptop 13 // Source: Framework

If you want to switch from Intel to AMD, you have to buy the mainboard package with CPU. But that’s not all: it will also require new RAM (DDR5-5600 instead of DDR4) and a new Wi-Fi card. However, these AMD chips combine a Zen 4 CPU and an integrated GPU with the latest generation of the RDNA 3 architecture. which should give the Framework Laptop 13 a noticeable boost in graphics performance.

Framework Laptop 13 // Source: Framework

The American manufacturer also presented a new battery with a capacity of 61 Wh (only on the Core i7 and Ryzen 7 versions), accompanied by firmware updates intended to increase the autonomy of its laptops by 20-30%. Framework meets the needs of its customers by offering a matte screen instead of a glossy one. In addition, according to the Framework, the speakers are now more powerful with a total of 80 dB and with better audio quality.

Framework takes the opportunity to offer official support for two new GNU/Linux distributions, Fedora 38 and Ubuntu 22.04. As a reminder, there is also a framework that comes with Chrome OS.

The Cooler Master Case // Source: Framework

You can also buy a Cooler Master case (45 euros) to give a second life to your old CPU motherboard. Until now, you had to 3D print a compatible box. This box is compact (297mm x 133mm x 14.9mm), you can of course use the expansion cards on the USB4.

A 16-inch format that goes even further when it comes to customization

The Framework Laptop 16 is a laptop that complements the range of products offered. As the name suggests, it features a 16-inch screen, thus offering users a larger viewing area. Just like its predecessor, the Framework Laptop 13, the Framework Laptop 16 is characterized by its modularity and sustainable approach.

Framework Laptop 16 // Source: Framework

The Framework Laptop 16 is built around three key elements: an input module system, an expansion bay system, and the Framework expansion card system.

The Laptop 16 features a user-replaceable modular keyboard composed of various modules of different sizes (small, medium, and large) developed by Framework. Small modules are designed for specific functions, such as B. Color adjustments or haptic systems. Middle modules can contain number pads or even a secondary screen. Large modules can be full keyboards adding RGB keys to the machine (for those who like that).

Framework Laptop 16 // Source: Framework

These modules are all hot-swappable and work with a Raspberry Pi RP2040 microcontroller. Framework has announced its goal of opening up microcontroller firmware to allow developers to create their own modules. As long as it stays within the height limit of 3.7 mm, you can put together your desired module. Everything is possible.

Framework Laptop 16 // Source: Framework

Perhaps the highlight of the Framework Laptop 16 is its expansion bay system. It is a configurable PCIe x8 interface that can accommodate various expansion cards. Framework gave several examples, such as B. a dual M.2 SSD with up to 16 TB of additional storage space, video capture cards and dedicated graphics cards. This last point is very interesting. Other companies, like Alienware, tried to build a laptop with an upgradeable GPU but always failed. There were even MXM graphics cards, but it remained very confidential.

Framework Laptop 16 // Source: Framework

Finally, there is the system that allows users to plug small cards into the USB4 ports located on the sides (3 on each side, for a total of 6). This corresponds to what Framework 13 offers.

Pricing and availability for the Framework Laptop 16 have yet to be announced, although Framework has hinted at the second half of 2023 for first deliveries.

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This third failure follows two previous attempts that were canceled at the last minute due to technical problems.

This mission, titled “Good Luck, Have Fun,” will be closely followed as 3D printed rockets could represent a small revolution in the launch vehicle industry.

California startup Relativity Space’s Terran 1 rocket was designed to collect data and show that a 3D-printed rocket could withstand the rigors of launch and spaceflight.

Overall, 85% of the rocket’s mass was 3D printed, and the company is ultimately targeting 95%.

The main advantage of the technique is that it greatly simplifies the manufacturing process and therefore reduces costs.

With its large 3D printing robots, the company claims to be able to divide the number of parts needed by 100 compared to a conventional rocket. It also highlights the speed of the process: 60 days from raw material to finished product.

Terran 1 measures 33.5 meters in height and just over 2 meters in diameter. Its first stage has nine engines, also 3D printed.

Its goal: to be able to bring 1250 kg into a low earth orbit (e.g. small satellites), which makes it a light launch vehicle. However, this first flight contained no payload.

The rocket should have reached the point where the aerodynamic force exerted on the machine is greatest (max Q, in technical jargon) 80 seconds after launch. According to the young boss of Relativity Space, this is the crucial phase of the flight.

What we want to prove in flight, we have already proven on the ground: Tim Ellis chatted at the beginning of March that the 3D-printed structures can withstand these forces when the dynamic pressure and the stress on the vehicle are at their highest.

Unprecedented

After the rocket’s first stage separated, the second should have continued its journey until it reached Earth orbit eight minutes after launch.

Achieving that step on first flight would have been unprecedented, said Tim Ellis.

In fact, the rocket uses Methalox as fuel, a mixture of liquid oxygen and liquefied natural gas (essentially methane). If it had managed to reach orbit, it would have been the first rocket to use this fuel to do so.

Relativity Space, which promotes the long-term vision of a multi-planet humanity, argues that it is the fuel of the future that is easiest to produce on Mars.

United Launch Alliance’s (ULA) Vulcan and SpaceX’s Starship rockets under development must also use this fuel.

A first attempt to launch Terran 1 was aborted on March 8 due to a fuel temperature problem.

Then, on March 11, the launch was twice aborted in the last seconds of the countdown, first because of an automation problem, then because of a fuel pressure problem.

booming demand

Regardless of the success of Terran 1’s first flight, the data collected will also be used for the development of its big sister: Terran R.

This larger rocket, also developed by Relativity Space, must be able to carry 20,000 kg into low orbit.

According to Tim Ellis, the company has already signed $1.65 billion worth of deals, most of them for Terran R.

One of them was passed with the company OneWeb, whose constellation of satellites has to provide Internet from space.

This type of medium rocket clearly offers the biggest market opportunity for the rest of the decade as there is currently a major shortage in this payload class, Tim Ellis tweeted.

A satellite operator can wait years before getting a seat on the big Arianespace or SpaceX rockets.

Dozens of up-and-coming companies have therefore been founded in recent years to meet the booming demand.

According to the specialist company Euroconsult, the number of satellites launched each year has risen from around 120 in 2012 to over 2,700 in 2022.

As part of the Discovery Grant Program 2022 from the ALS Society of Canada and the Brain Canada Foundation, with support from the Fund Dr. Jean-Pierre Canuel – ALS Québec selected three research projects conducted by the University of Montreal School of Medicine to advance knowledge that will improve the diagnosis of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and the treatment of people living with the disease.

A total of nine Discovery Grants worth more than $1.4 million were awarded to multidisciplinary research teams from across Canada.

Here are the three UdeM Faculty of Medicine projects funded by the 2022 Discovery Grants.

Project: Could the study of neuromuscular synapse proteins contribute to the development of essential biomarkers?

dr Richard Robitaille, Full Professor at the Department of Neuroscience at UdeM, in collaboration with Drs. Danielle Arbor and Roberta Piovesana from the same department and Dr. Robert Bowser of the Barrow Neurological Institute for $300,000 in funding.

Project: Could axon protection represent a promising treatment strategy for ALS?

dr Alex Parker, full professor at the Department of Neurosciences at UdeM and researcher at the CHUM Research Center, in collaboration with Dr. Gary Armstrong of McGill University for a $300,000 grant.

Project: What role does its sister protein play in restoring G3BP1 levels as a potential ALS treatment strategy?

dr Christine Vande Velde, full professor in the Department of Neurosciences at UdeM and researcher at the CHUM Research Center, in collaboration with Dr. Marlene Oeffinger, an associate professor in the University’s Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine and a researcher at the Montreal Clinical Research Institute, will receive $125,000 in funding.

Source: ALS Canada.

To equip yourself today at a reduced price, the Lenovo Ideapad 5 15ALC05 laptop pc is the right offer on Cdiscount. It offers a solid technical sheet, all for less than 500 euros thanks to a promo code.

Lenovo IdeaPad 5 15ALC05

If you are looking for a powerful and affordable laptop, the Lenovo Ideapad 5 (15ALC05) will meet your expectations. It uses a Ryzen 7 chip to offer excellent performance on a daily basis and today it improves its value for money thanks to a promo code that brings its price below 500 euros.

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5 15ALC05 in brief

• A neat design with a 15.6 inch FHD screen
• The performance of the AMD Ryzen 7 5700U chip
• 512GB RAM + 8GB SSD

With a strikethrough price of €589, the Lenovo Ideapad 5 15ALC05 laptop PC is currently shown at €549.99, but with the code STAR50LEN it drops to €499.99 on the Cdiscount website.

If the offer mentioned in this article is no longer available after that, please find more promotions for the Lenovo IdeaPad 5 (15ALC05) below. The table is updated automatically.

Where can you buy that
Lenovo IdeaPad 5 (15ALC05) at the best price?

A neat laptop that’s easy to carry

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5 (15ALC05) offers a successful design and is suitable for everyday use, between leisure and work. Its panel measures 15.6 inches and offers a respectable FHD resolution (1920×1080 pixels). It is well made, has fairly thin bezels and will be comfortable to use in everyday life, be it for office work or watching movies and series.

We’re entitled to beautiful finishes with an all-aluminum chassis. Despite its large diagonal, the Ultrabook is designed to be compact for travel, weighing 1.66 kg and being 18 mm thick.

With a beautiful interior

To power its machine, Lenovo integrates an AMD Ryzen 7 (5700U) chip clocked at 1.8 GHz (Turbo Boost at 4.3 GHz) and 8 GB of RAM into its laptop. Solid equipment that allows you to both work and surf the Internet without slowing down, or carry out creative work such as photo editing without too much slowdown. In addition, with its 512 GB SSD, it offers an absolutely smooth experience on Windows 11 with optimized loading times. Be aware that this model also has a Radeon graphics card to play a little only if the game is not too greedy.

In terms of autonomy, this model can count on its battery with a capacity of 70 Wh. According to the manufacturer, the laptop should last up to 17 hours with conventional use. This makes it the ideal companion for your meetings or lectures in the amphitheater. Finally, on the connectivity side, this laptop is equipped with a USB Type-C port, two USB 3.2 Type-A ports, an HDMI 1.4 port, a microSD slot, and a headphone/microphone jack.

To compare the Lenovo laptop with other models available in the same price range, we invite you to consult our guide to the best laptops under 500 euros in 2023.

Would you like to join a community of enthusiasts? Our discord welcomes you, it’s a place of mutual help and passion for technology.

Which wireless headphones to buy? Here are our recommendations for the best Bluetooth headphones so you can enjoy your music, podcasts, movies and video games to the fullest. Sony, Sennheiser, Bose, Jabra, Apple, Bowers & Wilkins see which are the best brands and models.

Do you want to buy a new Bluetooth headset to enjoy your music, but are you confused by all the offers on the market?

Here we offer our recommendations of the best headphone options to consider along with the strengths and weaknesses of each.

This headphone selection is of course subjective and is based on a mixture of our own impressions, those of other users and other specialist sites. In short, we’ve done all the research for you!

If you are not interested in this selection of Bluetooth headphones, you can always consult our column with the discounts of the week. You might find the ideal model for your ears and above all for less money!

This column contains affiliate links. Learn more.

Sony WH-1000XM5

Undoubtedly the king of Bluetooth headsets on the market. This is the 5th version of Sony’s WH-1000XM range and once again we claim to have a quality product.

Look no further, this is the headset that offers the best ANC (Ambient Noise Cancellation) technology. Putting on these headphones means immersing ourselves in our music.

The sound quality is also excellent with many possible configurations via the application.

The only downside is that they are expensive at close to $500, but we’re talking top of the range here!

Highlights of the Sony WH-1000XM5

• super comfy
• Outstanding sound quality
• Excellent battery life (30h)
• Better cancellation of ambient noise
• Simple headset setup app

Weaknesses of the Sony WH-1000XM5

• Bulky as they cannot fold back on themselves

Sony WH-1000XM5

Sony WH-1000XM5

Sennheiser momentum 4

Sennheiser is not a leader in the audio world for nothing and the Momentum 4 Bluetooth headphones are a good example.

Here we find an excellent headset for music lovers as the sound is rich as desired. We can also configure the sound to our liking via a series of AB tests in the mobile application.

Where the Momentum 4 headphones undeniably stand out from the competition is in battery life. We’re entitled to 60 hours of ambient noise cancellation (ANC) technology. This ANC technology, while effective, isn’t the best out there.

Highlights of the Sennheiser Momentum 4

• super comfy
• Outstanding sound quality
• Crazy battery life (60h)
• Good ambient noise canceling technology…

Sennheiser Momentum 4 weaknesses

• …but not the best on the market
• Bulky as they cannot fold back on themselves

Sennheiser momentum 4

Sennheiser momentum 4

Bose 700

Bose is another company that needs no introduction, and their Bose 700 headphones are at the pinnacle of their craftsmanship.

These headphones honor the brand’s reputation by offering a rich and round sound that can be personalized through the mobile application.

But where the Bose 700 headphones excel is in their ambient noise canceling technology. This is used in particular when making phone calls, making it one of the best models for this particular use.

Bose 700 highlights

• super comfy
• Excellent audio quality
• Clarity on the phone
• Very good suppression of ambient noise

Bose 700 weaknesses

• Lower battery life (20h)
• Bulky as they cannot fold back on themselves

Bose 700

Bose 700

Bose Quiet Comfort 45

Another alternative on the part of Bose would be the QuietComfort 45 headphones. Especially if we are someone who often travels with our headphones.

It’s that unlike the three previous Bluetooth headsets, this one can fold back on itself. It is therefore more compact and easier to carry.

Sonically, this time we are swept away by the fullness that Bose offers. Combined with excellent ambient noise cancellation technology, here we have an ideal headset to immerse ourselves in our music even in the noisiest transport!

Highlights of the Bose QuietComfort 45

• Comfortable
• Compact and foldable
• Battery life (24h)
• Good sound quality (middle and bass)
• Good noise cancellation…

Weaknesses of the Bose QuietComfort 45

• … but impossible to disable
• Almost as expensive as the Bose 700s

Bose Quiet Comfort 45

Bose Quiet Comfort 45

Bowers & Wilkins PX8

Without a doubt, the Bowers & Wilkins PX8 Bluetooth headphones provide wow effects in all categories.

Wow for the beauty of the helmet which is superb in looks, has a superb finish and is super comfortable.

Wow for the sound quality which is rich and enveloping thanks to the ambient noise cancellation technology.

And wow for the price… it hurts the wallet!

Bowers & Wilkins PX8 highlights

• Outstanding design
• Ultra comfortable
• Excellent finish
• Battery life (30h)
• Very good sound quality, especially in the mids

Bowers & Wilkins PX8 weaknesses

• very expensive
• Good ambient noise canceling technology, but not the best either.

Bowers & Wilkins PX8

Apple Airpods max

For the die-hard fans of Apple products, we cannot ignore the Airpods Max.

We have here a product along the lines of Apple, that is, luxurious. It catches the eye right from the start with its polished aluminum design and finish.

The headphones are super comfortable to wear, the ambient noise cancellation doesn’t have to be ashamed of the competition and the sound quality is there. Especially with Audio Spatial technology!

The catch is that it only unleashes its full potential when paired with another Apple device, and then there’s the price, which is a bit far-fetched.

Airpods Max Highlights

• Comfortable
• Excellent looks and finish
• Very good sound quality
• Spatial audio compatibility
• Multiple colors available
• Excellent rejection of ambient noise

Airpods Max weaknesses

• No 3.5mm jack connection
• Battery life (20h)
• Bulky as they cannot fold back on themselves
• High price where you have to accept paying too much to have an Apple product
• All functions are reserved for pairing with an Apple device

Airpods max

Airpods max

Jabra Elite 45 hrs

A cheaper alternative to the aforementioned headphones would be the Jabra Elite 45h. Still, we have to like headphones that rest on our ears instead of covering them up.

The fact remains that the Jabra Elite 45h are surprisingly comfortable with their faux leather upholstery that doesn’t put too much pressure on the ears.

In terms of sound, the helmet stands out above all at the level of the mids and the more prominent bass. The Jabra application also asks us to calibrate the sound according to our preferences.

Highlights of the Jabra Elite 45h

• Comfortable design…
• Compact and robust
• Outstanding battery life (50h)

Weaknesses of the Jabra Elite 45h

• No 3.5mm jack connection
• Manipulation of controls not obvious
• … but it doesn’t offer the best soundproofing

Jabra Elite 45 hrs

Jabra Elite 45 hrs

Scientists have revealed that the interstellar object named “Oumuamua” seen by a telescope in Hawaii in 2017 was actually a comet.

The thesis of an extraterrestrial spaceship rejected. In a report published Wednesday, March 22, in the journal Nature, scientists have determined that the interstellar object Oumuamua, first seen by a telescope in Hawaii in 2017, was actually a comet.

Nearly 400 meters long and 100 meters wide, ‘Oumuamua’ (meaning ‘scout’ in Hawaiian) had raised many questions in the scientific community about its nature. In fact, former Harvard University astronomy director Abraham, known as “Avi” Loeb, had largely supported the explanation of an extraterrestrial spacecraft in his 2021 book, The first sign of intelligent life extraterrestrial.

However, three years earlier, the research team from the University of Maryland’s Department of Astronomy announced that the first interstellar object to enter our solar system was entirely natural. “The alien spacecraft hypothesis is amusing, but our analysis suggests that a variety of natural phenomena may explain ‘Oumuamua,” said Matthew Knight, the study’s co-director at the time.

questions about its shape

Unlike more “traditional” comets, “Oumuamua” didn’t have a glowing trail made up of gas and dust. This characteristic had, of course, provided material for the skeptics and the defenders of the thesis of an extraterrestrial ship.

In the journal Nature, Jennifer Bergner, a chemist at the University of California, Berkeley, who led the recently published work, explains that the lack of a “tail,” or luminous trail, is entirely due to the comet’s composition.

“As Oumuamua neared the Sun, it released hydrogen, which remains less massive than the carbon monoxide or carbon dioxide emitted in typical comets, and would not have had the momentum to launch much dust with it, which explains the lack of a comma or a.” Tail”, specified the author of the study.

‘Weird acting’

Jennifer Bergner also specifies that this “evacuation of hydrogen” thus makes it possible to explain the strange behavior of the comet, which, after entering the solar system, deviated from its orbit and came out of it.

“We report here that the acceleration of Oumuamua is due to the release of trapped molecular hydrogen formed by the energetic treatment of an O-rich ice body H2,” reads the statement of the most recent study.

The report’s co-author Darryl Seligman, who works for him at Cornell University, New York state, argues that “trapped hydrogen is simply the most general explanation” for scientifically translating the acceleration experienced by the comet.

Codenamed “Kuala Lumpur” in recognition of the work of the organizers of the GNOME.Asia Summit 2022 conference, GNOME 44 introduces an Epihaphy Web Browser (GNOME Web) GTK4 portal, a grid file picker for applications using the standard GTK Use file chooser, as well as support for adding a WireGuard VPN directly from the network panel. GNOME 44 further improves on the Quick Settings feature introduced in GNOME 43 by implementing a Bluetooth button submenu to connect or disconnect devices more easily and quickly, adding descriptions to buttons to easily see their status, and a new feature called Background Apps is implemented through a new background monitoring service in XDG Portals 1.16.0.”

After 6 months of hard work, the GNOME project is proud to present version 44 of GNOME. This latest version includes major improvements with new features, improvements and numerous bug fixes. Highlights include major improvements to the Settings app, a better quick settings menu, and a streamlined software app. More details are included in the release notes below.

GNOME 44 is codenamed Kuala Lumpur in recognition of the work of the organizers of GNOME.Asia 2022.

File selection grid

GNOME’s file selection dialogs have only ever had a list view, which is great if you want to select a file based on its name, but not so great if you want to select files based on their thumbnails. So, over the years, GNOME users have repeatedly asked for a grid view to be added to the file picker.

With GNOME 44, that wish has finally come true. This is one of the most welcomed changes. The new grid is available in file viewers that use GTK4. Some applications may be using the old GTK3 version of the file picker, which doesn’t include the new grid view.

Updated control panels

GNOME 44 is a major release for the GNOME Settings application with four settings windows that have been redesigned for the new release.

device security

Device Security was introduced to the Settings application in the last release in GNOME 43. Since then, they’ve received a number of important updates.

The new version displays the security status of the device as a description, such as “scan failed”, “scan passed” or “protected”. This makes the panel easier to understand.

For those who want to delve deeper into technical details or report an issue with their device’s security, a new feature lets you generate a full device security report. This report provides an overview of what’s going on under the hood and can be easily copied into problem reports and support requests.

Accessibility

GNOME accessibility settings have been overhauled for GNOME 44. The different sections of the settings are now separated for easier navigation. The design of each parameter has also been improved to be clearer and more consistent with the rest of the parameters. Also, descriptions have been added to many parameters.

The new accessibility settings also include new features:

• A Boost parameter has been added to increase the volume above the usual maximum threshold.
• Added an option in the Writing section to enable accessibility features using the keyboard.
• There is now a test box for the cursor blink setting.
• A new setting has been added to the View pane to make scrollbars always visible.

sound

GNOME’s sound settings have also been improved since the last version, making it much easier to use:

• The volume control has been moved to a separate window, making the most commonly used input and output controls more accessible.
• It’s now possible to turn off the alert tone, and a new alert tone window makes it easier to browse the available tones.
• The Sound Test window has been redesigned, eliminating scaling issues experienced with many outputs and providing a more attractive user interface.

The sound settings have also been improved, including new volume indicators and a better representation of missing devices.

mouse and touchpad

The final revised control panel for GNOME 44 is Mouse and Touchpad. The most notable change is the addition of videos demonstrating the different options available. These videos not only look great, but also make the different settings easier to understand.

Other mouse and touchpad settings improvements include a new test window, a new mouse acceleration setting, and checkmarks in various cursors.

Improved quick settings

The quick settings menu was a new feature in the latest version that has been further improved:

• The Bluetooth quick settings button now has a menu. This shows the connected devices and enables them to be connected and disconnected.
• The menu now lists applications that have been detected as running without a window open. This feature helps to check if a specific application is running in the background. Currently only Flatpak apps are included in the background apps list.
• Descriptions have been added to each Quick Settings toggle. They allow you to learn more about the status of each parameter.

Simplified software

The software in GNOME 44 offers a smoother and faster experience. Pages for each software category now display faster so you can browse without interruption. Page reloads have also been reduced.

The application also offers better support for next-gen software formats: Flatpak runtimes are now automatically removed when not needed to save disk space, and system updates are now image-based Exploits now have progress information and descriptions.

Finally, version 44 of the software includes a number of user interface improvements, including better rendering of comments and error messages.

queue improvements

Files comes with a collection of improvements for GNOME 44:

• When converting files to GTK4, it lost its option to expand folders in list view. With GNOME 44, this option is back. When enabled in settings, it allows viewing the contents of a folder without navigating to it, which can be particularly useful for quickly browsing nested folders.
• Tabs now have additional options, including the ability to move them to new windows. It is also possible to drag items onto a tab.
• Finally, the number of grid display sizes has been increased.

Even more settings improvements

In addition to the many overhauled preference panes in GNOME 44, there is also a good collection of smaller preference tweaks. These include:

• In the WiFi settings it is now possible to share a WiFi password via a QR code.
• The About section now includes kernel and firmware versions.
• Thunderbolt settings are now only displayed when Thunderbolt hardware is present.
• In the network settings it is now possible to add and configure Wireguard VPNs.

There are many other small improvements in GNOME 44, including:

• GNOME low battery notifications have been revamped, with new icons and updated text.
• In Contacts it is now possible to share a contact via a QR code.
• Web, the GNOME browser, has been converted from GTK4. This is part of an ongoing effort to convert GNOME applications to the latest version of GTK, which offers improvements in performance and user experience.
• Search results in settings can now be disabled.
• Web has new save password pop-up windows. They replace the previously used information bars.
• In Maps, more places have images thanks to fetching images from Wikidata and Wikipedia. Maps also includes a number of small improvements, including the ability to navigate search results using the keyboard.
• Improved drag and drop in the application grid.
• Console, the terminal app, now has a tab preview option that shows open tabs in a grid.
• Weather now has a smooth temperature chart and a redesigned header.
• Added several missing keyboard shortcuts to Contacts, including Ctrl+F, Ctrl+, and Ctrl+Return. Other bugfixes were also made.
• The GNOME wallpaper collection includes four new backgrounds

Source: GNOME

And you ?

What is your opinion on the topic?

What do you think of the changes introduced by GNOME 44?

See also:

GNOME 43 comes with a new device security panel and continues the transition to GTK 4, it also brings improvements to the file manager

Fedora Linux 37 beta is available with GNOME 43 and Raspberry 4 support and adds new editions for specific user needs



GTK 4.0 is available. Toolkit for creating GUIs brings improvements in data transfer and integrated support for media playback