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The KDE Project released today KDE Frameworks 5.73, a new major version of its open-source software suite for the KDE Plasma desktop environment that adds numerous new features and improvements.
KDE Frameworks 5.73 is a monthly update to the open-source software suite, but it packs a lot of interesting changes. For example, the Kirigami UI builder received a new FlexColumn component and now supports action visibility in the GlobalDrawer, along with optimizations to the mobile layout and to the accessibility of the Kirigami input fields.
The Breeze icon theme saw a lot of changes too during the development cycle of KDE Frameworks 5.73, and it now comes with a bunch of new icons for Kontrast, kirigami-gallery, snap-angle, document-replace, SMART status, task-recurring, appointment-recurring, Overwrite action/button, and applications/pkcs12 mime type.
KNewStuff, the tool used for downloading and sharing additional application data, also received a lots of improvements, starting with a slightly revamped layout to look more balanced, various tweaks to the welcome screen, fixes for a few visual glitches when downloading items, the ability to delete upgradable entries, and tooltips for different view modes in the QML dialog.
Among other noteworthy improvements in KDE Frameworks 5.73, there’s support for the file overwrite dialog to inform users if the two files are identical, the ability for Dolphin file manager to locate extra actions for opening other apps in the base level of its context menu instead of a sub-menu, as well as support for the Properties Dialog to display SHA512 checksums for files.
Moreover, KRunner has been improved to no longer crash when the user types anything while the PIM Contact Search plugin is active, the URL navigator in the Dolphin file manager, the file dialogs and various other KDE apps now features an improved auto-complete behavior, and the Plasma widget pop-ups no longer appear in the Task Switcher.
Also worth mentioning is the fact that filename extensions are now appended to the file type list in open/save dialogs when there are multiple entries with the same name. Numerous Plasma crashes were fixed as well in KDE Frameworks 5.73, especially for the Thermal Monitor widget, and you can study all the changes included in this release by visiting the full changelog.
The KDE Frameworks 5.73 is not something you can download and install on your computer. It’s a massive software suite that’s usually distributed through the software repositories of your GNU/Linux distribution, so look for the new packages in the coming days and update as soon as possible, especially if you’re using the latest KDE Plasma desktop environment.
Images: Nate Graham
Last updated 4 years ago
