Updated May 30, 2023
Definition of Gnome Version
Gnome version has brought radical change in the desktop environment of Linux based distributions like Ubuntu, Debian and applications like Rythmbox, Banshee, Tomboy, and Tomboy; Features of its version have made Gnome an automatic choice for many users as their desktop environment when they decide to install Linux OS in their system; Latest versions of Gnome has graphical formats for input commands for all the OS operations, display of the results by OS, status display and interface for other operations; Due to Graphical display/ interfaces Gnome Administrators don’t have to remember any command resulting in significant improvement in their productivity.
Brief on Gnome
Initial expansion for Gnome was GNU Network Object Model Environment, but it lost this meaning because it had not reflected the intention of the project undertaken by Gnome. Volunteers and paid professionals developed this product as part of the Gnome project sponsored by RedHat. It brought in plenty of innovations in the desktop environment to simplify the Administrator job simple and interesting. Gnome was the most preferred desktop option for Unix/Linux based systems.
This product has four major versions; let’s study them in detail.
Top 4 Gnome Version
Following are the 4 types of gnome versions explained in details:
1. Gnome 1
During the Late 1990s, K Desktop was the most popular desktop environment built on a licensed, propriety software QT widget toolkit. Market was looking for cheaper solutions, and in August 1997, Miguel de Icaza and Federico Mena came out with GNOME replacing QT with Gnome Toolkit. Licence of Gnome libraries was included in the Lesser General Public License (LGPL), which had another propriety set of licenses. Application licenses of Gnome were part of the GNU general public license.
Initial intention of the Gnome project was to develop a distributed object framework product like Microsoft’s Object linking & Embedding Technology by being part of GNU. But the intent shifted to Helix code, and Genome got delinked from GNU. Californian Eazel startup company re-developed Applications and Infrastructure of Gnome. As part of this project, Gnome released the first version of its office product, and though there were plans to upgrade, its office products had not materialized. Gnome office products did not do well and started supporting other products.
2. Gnome 2
Transitioning to Version 2 started in the year 2001. It offered a free, simple to use Desktop environment and a formidable application development environment for developers. Development framework includes accessibility, embedding, and internationalisation.
Gnome 2 platform uses libraries needed for applications and deploys utilities for routine computing activities like file manager and weather monitor. Gnome is perfectly compatible with other platforms like Solaris, BSD, Unix, and GNU/Linux.
New Features of Gnome2
New Features of Gnome includes the following:
a. Enhanced Graphics and enriched fonts
- New Icons
- Trouble free GTK apps
- We minimize visual defects in fonts when displaying high-resolution images in a lower-resolution environment.
- Better clarity of images
b. Better usability
Gnome 2 focussed more on streamlining the clutters, increasing the consistency, and making the modules coherent:
- We achieve streamlining by removing unwanted and least used features, and providing only what is most useful.
- We fine-tuned the interfaces to achieve consistency patterns among applications and to ensure a uniform user experience.
- Coherent modules from the entry point into the system to the exit point make the operation smooth and seamless.
Other User specific improvements:
- Menus made smarter allowing diagonal movements
- Scrollable menu if it becomes big
- Dragging of Windows across workspaces
- Font selectors and colour patterns revamped
- New look for dialog box
- Better management of dialog box functionality
- Improved screen design with new icons
- Search tool was revamped and made easier
- User friendly help functionalities
- Configuration system is centralized
- Better compliance with set standards
- Revamped applications to enhance user experience
c. Performance
- Gnome 2 performance is much superior when compared to the earlier version
d. Improved keyboard navigation features
3. Gnome 3
Growing concern among Gnome users right from 2008 on the future of Gnome and its road map made Gnome announce this version 3 in 2011. Gnome introduced the Shell concept, a new user interface with attractive functions like an Application launcher, switching between windows and notifications display. This was a major change for the users from the traditional desktop to a new generation desktop.
Gnome Shell brought innovations in user-computer interface with contemporary graphics display and increased front end response. The shell has the following:
- Top bar that has access to basic functions, status, and other menus
- System menu to change settings, view system status, and operation buttons
- Overview screen to run the application and switch between windows
New features of Gnome 3
The core software was also rejigged to improve user experience, and new features of Gnome 3 are:
- Multiple choices are available in this version for the users to pick from. Example: Classic, Wayland, Xorg
- Availability of tutorial to help the users
- Clutter free desktop with a minimum fill
- Notifications on the status of new applications
- Compatibility with other desktops on Gnome
4. Gnome 40
We are following a new scheme of versioning from this release. Official release date for this version Mar 2021. Alpha, Beta, and RC versions were released in the Jan-21 to Mar-21 period.
New Features of Gnome 40
Features of this release are as follows:
- During mouse hover on the icon, the applications with longer names display their full names. Otherwise, a limited no of characters are only shown
- Horizontal scroll option is provided
- Search facility in the native extension app
- More intuitive workspace movement improving productivity
- Autocompleting facility for the file names and folders while typing in the address bar with the possible name from the list available
- Extensions enable default options setting
- Display of Wi-fi connections in a desired sorted order
- Events Remainder and general calendar facility
Conclusion
While removing clutter on the desktop and introducing easy-to-use options during version migration, the removal of some basic features faced resistance from users and attracted criticism. Many users remained with old versions for as long as possible before migrating to the new version.
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