If you’re looking forward to the upcoming Linux Mint 22 release you’ll be pleased to hear that the Cinnamon 6.2 desktop environment was “released” this weekend.
Quote marks because we’re talking a tarball release rather than “it’s rolling out to all existing users”.
Indeed, Cinnamon 6.2 will, as I’m sure you’re aware, ship as the default desktop in Linux Mint 22, which is expected to be released sometime this summer — maybe next month? — and will be first version based on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS.
From a glance over the Github change-log, Cinnamon 6.2 looks like a modest refinement to the more substantive Cinnamon 6.0 update we got last year — I speak only in terms of ‘visible’ new features, code refinement and bug fixes are obviously present too.
Arguably the standout addition is one previously signposted by Linux Mint team: a new XApp named ‘GNOME Online Accounts GTK’. This wraps the latest GOA functionality from GNOME 46 in a vanilla GTK 4 user-interface to better match the rest of the Cinnamon desktop.
Other improvements in Cinnamon 6.2:
- Cinnamon sessions now have greeter badges
- Search bar shows by default when adding to Startup Applications
- New screen lock delay options: 5 & 10 seconds
- Workspace Switcher supports removing workspace with middle click
- Cinnamon Spices now support configurable keybindings
- Keybindings now searchable (in keyboard shortcuts editor)
- User applet supports showing user profile pic on panel
- Mint Menu gains a ‘Science’ category
- Cornerbar applet makes click actions configurable
- OSK picks up a toggle to disable the OSK
- Active VPN connections append padlock to network icons
That’s just a cherry-picked summary; see the aforelinked change log for a more comprehensive rundown of the changes.
Cinnamon 6.2 includes plenty of bug fixes, including a patch to ensure the window order in the window-list applet isn’t randomised when disconnecting and reconnecting a monitor, and the usual, necessary support for newer tech/standards.
Although Cinnamon 6.2 is out now (not that most people can try it) Linux Mint 22 isn’t, so there’s a good chance the intervening weeks will see a handful of additional fixes and features added in the form of a maintenance update.
Plus, if this list doesn’t excite you, don’t forget that Cinnamon is only the desktop!
Linux Mint 22 features a myriad of other changes, including a new kernel cadence, a new Matrix web app, and changes to how Flathub search results are returned. Plus, we’re sure to hear of improvements to many of the distros core apps, like the Nemo file manager.
So watch this space!