KDE Plasma 5

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KDE Plasma 5
Plasma coloured logo.svg
KDE Plasma 5.21 Breeze Twilight screenshot.png
The KDE Plasma 5 desktop
Developer(s)KDE
Initial release15 July 2014; 6 years ago (2014-07-15)[1]
Stable release5.22.1 (15 June 2021; 0 days ago (2021-06-15)) [±][2]
Preview release5.22 Beta (13 May 2021; 33 days ago (2021-05-13)) [±][3]
Repository
Edit this at Wikidata
Written inC++, QML
Operating systemUnix-like
PlatformFreeBSD and Linux
PredecessorKDE Plasma 4
TypeDesktop environment
LicenseGPL 2.0 or later[4]
Websitekde.org/plasma-desktop

KDE Plasma 5 is the fifth and current generation of the graphical workspaces environment created by KDE primarily for Linux systems. KDE Plasma 5 is the successor of KDE Plasma 4 and was first released on 15 July 2014.[1][5][6]

It includes a new default theme, known as "Breeze", as well as increased convergence across different devices. The graphical interface was fully migrated to QML, which uses OpenGL for hardware acceleration, which resulted in better performance and reduced power consumption.[1][5]

Plasma Mobile is a Plasma 5 variant for Linux-based smartphones.

Overview

KDE's mascot Konqi and Plasma desktop

Software architecture

KDE Plasma 5 is built using Qt 5 and KDE Frameworks 5,[7] predominantly plasma-framework.[8]

It improves support for HiDPI displays and ships a convergable graphical shell, which can adjust itself according to the device in use. 5.0 also includes a new default theme, dubbed Breeze. Qt 5's QtQuick 2 uses a hardware-accelerated OpenGL(ES) scene graph (canvas) to compose and render graphics on the screen, which allows for the offloading of computationally expensive graphics rendering tasks onto the GPU, freeing up resources on the system's main CPU.[1]

Windowing systems

KDE Plasma 5 running under Wayland

KDE Plasma 5.0 uses the X Window System. Support for Wayland was prepared in the compositor and planned for a later release.[1] It was made initially available in the 5.4 release.[9] Stable support for a basic Wayland session was provided in the 5.5 release (December 2015).[10]

Support for NVIDIA proprietary driver for Plasma on Wayland was added in the 5.16 release (June 2019).[11]

Development

Since the split of the KDE Software Compilation into KDE Plasma, KDE Frameworks and KDE Applications, each subproject can develop at its own pace.[12] KDE Plasma 5 is on its own release schedule, with feature releases every three-to-four months, and bugfix releases in the intervening months.

Desktop features

KDE Plasma with the Breeze Dark theme, with Konsole and Dolphin, core KDE applications.
  • KRunner – Search feature with several available plugins. In addition to quick launching apps, it searches files and folders, and performs numerous other tasks such as foreign currency conversion and measurement conversion. It also functions as a calculator.[13]
  • Activities – "virtual desktops", which have their own layouts and wallpapers. They can be named and navigated through the Activities menu.
  • Customize desktops, layouts and panels on multiple monitors
  • Widgets, called "Plasmoids", can be added to the panel or desktop
  • Dolphin file manager – bulk rename files, can be customized through "service menus" that add new functions to the context menu[14]
  • Session Management
  • Spectacle – for making screenshots

Linux distributions using Plasma

Plasma 5 is a default desktop environment (or one of the defaults) on Linux distributions, such as:

  • Fedora – Fedora KDE Plasma Desktop Edition is an official Fedora spin distributed by the project,[15]
  • KDE neon,[16][17]
  • KaOS,[18]
  • Kubuntu,
  • Manjaro – as Manjaro KDE edition,[19][20]
  • Netrunner,
  • PCLinuxOS,
  • openSUSE,[21]
  • Solus Plasma,[22]
  • Feren OS Modern[23] – Feren OS Classic uses Cinnamon,
  • Slackware Current[24]

History

The first Technology Preview of Plasma 5 (at that time called Plasma 2) was released on 13 December 2013.[25] On 15 July 2014, the first release version – Plasma 5.0 – saw the light of day.[1] In spring 2015, Plasma 5 replaced Plasma 4 in many popular distributions, such as Fedora 22,[26]Kubuntu 15.04,[27] and openSUSE Tumbleweed.[28]

Releases

See also: KDE Software Compilation § Release cycle

Feature releases are released every four months (up to 5.8 every three months) and bugfix releases in the intervening months.[12] Following version 5.8 LTS KDE plans to support each new LTS version for 18 months with bug fixes, while new regular releases will see feature improvements.[29]

Plasma 5 releases
Version Date Key features
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.0[1] 15 Jul 2014 First release.
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.1[30] 15 Oct 2014 Ported missing features from Plasma 4.
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.2[31] 27 Jan 2015 New components:
  • BlueDevil – integrates Bluetooth technology within Plasma and KDE Applications
  • KSSHAskPass – front-end for ssh-add which stores the password of the ssh key in KWallet
  • Muon – a collection of package management tools for Debian-based systems, using the apt-xapian index and the Synaptic search algorithm
  • sddm-kcm – config module for SDDM themes
  • KScreen – screen management software[32] Hooks into KDE System Settings, makes use of KDE Daemon and KGlobalAccel
  • kde-gtk-config – GTK 2 and 3 style configurator
  • KDecoration – a plugin-based library to create window decorations. These window decorations can be used by window manager which re-parents a client window to a window decoration frame.
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.3[33] 28 Apr 2015 Tech preview of Plasma Media Center. New Bluetooth and touchpad applets. Enhanced power management.
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.4[34] 25 Aug 2015 Initial Wayland session,[9] new QML-based audio volume applet, and alternative full-screen application launcher.[35]
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.5[36] 8 Dec 2015 Improved Wayland support.[37][38]
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.6[39] 22 Mar 2016 Increased security.[40]
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.7[41] 5 Jul 2016 Wayland: "basic workflows now fully functional". Automatic virtual keyboard.[41]
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.8 LTS[42] 4 Oct 2016 Long Term Support version.[43][44]
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.9[45] 31 Jan 2017 Wayland improvements,[46] global menu support.[47]
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.10[48] 30 May 2017 Performance improvements.[49]
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.11[50] 7 Nov 2017 System Settings redesign.[50] Notification history.[50] Added Plasma Vaults.[51] Wayland improvements.[52]
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.12 LTS[53] 6 Feb 2018 Increased stability and speed. Wayland improvements.[53]
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.13[54] 12 Jun 2018 Integration with non-KDE web browsers; new lock and login screens; improved Discover appearance; new screen layout selection dialog upon connection of a new screen.[55]
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.14[56] 9 Oct 2018 GTK global menu integration. Wayland improvements.[56]
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.15[57] 12 Feb 2019 Wayland now supports virtual desktops, touch drag-and-drop; and foundations: XdgStable, XdgPopups and XdgDecoration protocols are now fully implemented.[57]
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.16[11] 11 Jun 2019 Revamped notification system with Do Not Disturb, grouping in history, critical notifications in fullscreen apps, and better file transfer progress notifications; support for the NVIDIA proprietary driver on Wayland; full support for WireGuard VPNs; full touchpad configurability on X11 with Libinput; modernized login, lock, and logout screens; UI improvements throughout Plasma and Discover[11]
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.17[58] 15 Oct 2019 Night Color available for X11. Plasma now recognizes when a program is running in full-screen mode and prevents pop-ups. Wayland: Plasma now comes with fractional scaling.[58]
Older version, yet still maintained: 5.18 LTS[59] 11 Feb 2020 Easier system settings. Interactive notifications. Emojis. New wallpapers. Improved GTK app integration.
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.19[60] 9 Jun 2020 New system monitoring widgets. New Info Center app. Improved System Tray visuals and interaction. Timezones visible in clock pop-up. Inline reply function for notifications from supported apps. Global animation speed setting.
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.20[61] 13 Oct 2020 S.M.A.R.T. disk monitoring. "Highlight changed settings" feature in System Settings. Icons-Only Task Manager and clock shows date by default. Redesigned status OSDs. More options and improvements for switching between grouped Task Manager tasks. Window corner-tiling shortcuts. Adjustable per-channel audio balance. Middle-click on notifications icon to enter Do Not Disturb mode. Wayland: support for screencasting, shared clipboard, middle-click paste, window thumbnails, and adjusting the scrolling speed.
Old version, no longer maintained: 5.21[62] 16 Feb 2021 New application launcher. Applications theme improvements (unified headerbar). Breeze Twilight, a new variant of Breeze with a mix of dark and light scheme. New Plasma System Monitor. Code refactor for KWin and Wayland with support for virtual keyboard on GTK applications. New Plasma Firewall menu and improved System Settings. Media Player widget’s layout has been improved and now includes the list of applications currently playing music in the header as a tab bar.
Current stable version: 5.22[63] 8 Jun 2021 Adaptive Transparency to the panel, improved applets and widgets, improvements to KRunner, Plasma Wayland sessions improved.
Future release: 5.23
Legend:
Old version
Older version, still maintained
Latest version
Latest preview version
Future release

Future Planning

Plasma 6: According to the official schedule,[64] "Following 5.18 LTS, our next Plasma 5 LTS will likely be at the same time as the first Plasma 6 release, no date has been set yet".

Gallery

  • Default lock screen of Plasma 5

  • Plasma 5 showing KRunner and display management

  • Power management and keyboard brightness OSD

  • Shutdown screen of Plasma 5

  • Login screen of Plasma 5

  • Plasma System Settings

References

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  2. ^ "Plasma 5.22.1, Bugfix Release for June". KDE.org.
  3. ^ "Plasma 5.22 Beta". KDE.
  4. ^ "COPYING of Plasma Workspace". KDE Invent.
  5. ^ a b Sneddon, Joey-Elijah (July 15, 2014). "KDE Plasma 5 Arrives with Fresh New Look, True Convergence". OMG! Ubuntu!. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  6. ^ Gilbertson, Scott (August 18, 2014). "KDE Plasma 5—For those Linux users undecided on the kernel's future". Ars Technica. Retrieved June 14, 2019.
  7. ^ Jos Poortvliet (2013-12-17). "Qt 5.2 - Foundation for KDE Frameworks 5". Dot.kde.org. Retrieved 2014-03-10.
  8. ^ "plasma-framework readme".
  9. ^ a b Grässlin, Martin (2015-06-29). "Four years later". blog.martin-graesslin.com. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
  10. ^ Riddell, Jonathan (2015-12-08). "Plasma 5.5 With Beautiful New Artwork". KDE.news. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
  11. ^ a b c "Plasma 5.16 Release Announcement". KDE.
  12. ^ a b "Release schedule for Plasma 5". KDE.
  13. ^ "How to Use KDE Plasma Desktop Like a Pro". Linux.com. 2015-02-22. Retrieved 2017-12-22.
  14. ^ "Build Your Own Linux Productivity Machine With KDE Service Menus". MakeUseOf. Retrieved 2017-12-22.
  15. ^ "Fedora Spins". spins.fedoraproject.org. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
  16. ^ "KDE Neon 5.16 Now Available to Download, Features Plasma 5.16". OMG! Ubuntu!. 2019-06-11. Retrieved 2019-08-09.
  17. ^ Das, Ankush (2020-10-23). "KDE Neon Review: Latest KDE With Simplicity of Ubuntu". It's FOSS. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
  18. ^ Kumar, Sarvottam (2020-11-23). "KaOS 2020.11 Linux Distro Released With KDE Plasma 5.20". Fossbytes. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
  19. ^ Kumar, Sarvottam (2020-12-04). "Manjaro Linux 20.2 "Nibia" Is Out With Pop Shell And Material Shell". Fossbytes. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
  20. ^ "Manjaro 20.2 Brings the Latest Kernel, GNOME, KDE, and Xfce". debugpoint.com. 2020-12-04. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
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  27. ^ "Kubuntu 15.04 Release Announcement". 2015-04-22. Retrieved 2015-07-21.
  28. ^ Nestor, Marius (2015-05-16). "openSUSE Tumbleweed Now Uses KDE Plasma 5.3 as Default Desktop". Softpedia. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
  29. ^ Bhartiya, Swapnil. "KDE celebrates 20th birthday and goes LTS". CIO. Retrieved 16 February 2019.
  30. ^ "KDE - Plasma 5.1 Brings Back Many Popular Features". kde.org. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  31. ^ "KDE - KDE Ships Plasma 5.2". kde.org. Retrieved 23 August 2015.
  32. ^ "Kscreen 1.0 soll Monitorkonfiguration von KDE verbessern".
  33. ^ "KDE Ships Plasma 5.3, New Feature Release". KDE. 2015-04-28.
  34. ^ "KDE Ships Plasma 5.4.0, Feature Release for August". KDE. 25 August 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
  35. ^ "KDE Ships Plasma 5.4 Beta Release". KDE. 2015-08-11.
  36. ^ "KDE Ships Plasma 5.5 Release". KDE. 8 December 2015. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
  37. ^ "September update for Plasma's Wayland porting". Martin's Blog.
  38. ^ "KWin On Wayland Making Progress, Now Has A Virtual Backend". Phoronix.
  39. ^ "KDE Plasma 5.6 Release". KDE. 22 March 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2016.
  40. ^ Nestor, Marius (24 November 2015). "KDE Developers Work on Improving the Security of KDE Plasma 5 on Wayland". Softpedia. Retrieved 28 April 2019.
  41. ^ a b "KDE - KDE Plasma 5.7 Release".
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  43. ^ Jonathan Riddell. "Plasma 5.8 LTS Kickerd Off for Stability and Performance".
  44. ^ "Plasma 5.8 will be an LTS release".
  45. ^ "Plasma 5.9 Kicks off 2017 in Style". KDE. 31 January 2017.
  46. ^ Martin Grässlin (2016-10-19). "Wayland improvements since Plasma 5.8 release".
  47. ^ "KDE Ships Plasma 5.9". 2017-01-31. Retrieved 2017-01-31.
  48. ^ "Plasma 5.10". KDE. 30 May 2017.
  49. ^ https://blogs.kde.org/2017/01/31/plasma-510-spring-loading-folder-view-performance-work
  50. ^ a b c "Plasma 5.11". KDE. 10 October 2017.
  51. ^ "Plasma 5.11 – Keep the momentum going". OCS-Mag. 2017-10-18. Retrieved 2019-04-28.
  52. ^ "KDE Plasma 5.11 Officially Released With Vault, Better Wayland & More - Phoronix". Retrieved 2017-12-21.
  53. ^ a b "Plasma 5.12 Release Announcement". KDE.
  54. ^ "Plasma 5.13 Release Announcement". KDE.
  55. ^ "KDE Plasma 5.13 Beta: Fast, Lightweight, and Full Featured". 2018-05-17.
  56. ^ a b "Plasma 5.14 Release Announcement". KDE.
  57. ^ a b "Plasma 5.15 Release Announcement". KDE.
  58. ^ a b "KDE Plasma 5.17: Thunderbolt, X11 Night Color and Redesigned Settings". KDE.org.
  59. ^ "KDE Plasma 5.18: More Convenient and with Long Term Stability". KDE. Retrieved 12 February 2020.
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  64. ^ "Schedules/Plasma 5". KDE. Retrieved 7 February 2020.

By: Wikipedia.org
Edited: 2021-06-18 18:49:40
Source: Wikipedia.org

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