Dynamic Music Pill adds word-by-word lyrics highlighting
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/08/dynamic-music-pill-update-lyrics
An updated version of Dynamic Music Pill, the GNOME Shell extension to put #Now_Playing track info and lyrics in your panel or dock with animated flourishes, is out. If you’re prone some desk-side crooning, Dynamic Music Pill v1.3.0 brings two new lyrics provider APIs, BetterLyrics and BiniLyrics, with TTML parsing to provide word-by-word karaoke-style highlighting. If there’s word-level synced lyrics for the track being played, the extension shows them in the applet controller (click on the album art inside of to access the lyrics view) or the panel, depending on how you’ve configured it: Dynamic Music Pill can show […] You’re reading Dynamic Music Pill adds word-by-word lyrics highlighting, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#News #GNOME_Extensions
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/output2.webm
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/word-highlighting-in-lyrics-gnome-extensions.webm
#Calibre 9.13 fixes broken ebook search in the content server
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/08/calibre-9-13-bug-fix-update
A new bug-fix release of Calibre, the open-source e-book manger, view and converter, is available for download. Calibre 9.13 fixes a number of PDF-related issues, including a conversion error that could occur on Linux distributions shipping an ‘ancient’ version of the libxml2 library, which is mainly older Debian installs. The cause was a clash between Qt’s GPU detection and Calibre’s PDF parser, which both need different versions of libxml2. Calibre now preloads the version it needs before Qt’s check can interfere, per the commit message. A regression in the Calibre 9.x series was causing internal links in PDF documents to […] You’re reading Calibre 9.13 fixes broken ebook search in the content server, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#Resources beta adds #powerpc temp, AMD NPU stats
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/08/resources-51-beta-npu-powerpc-temps
Resources 51 beta, the system monitor Ubuntu now uses, adds AMD NPU stats, PowerPC CPU temps and alternative memory-usage metrics. You’re reading Resources beta adds PowerPC temp, AMD NPU stats, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#News #App_Updates #NPUs
]]>#Rhythmbox 3.5 lets you sync your podcast listening across apps
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/08/rhythmbox-3-5-podcast-sync
Rhythmbox 3.5.0 is out and it now lets you sync podcast subscriptions and listening progress across apps – the standout feature in the music player’s first major release in nine months You’re reading Rhythmbox 3.5 lets you sync your podcast listening across apps, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
Paprius icon set gets first update in a over year with 80+ new #Icons
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/08/paprius-icon-pack-sees-first-update-in-a-year-with-80-new-icons
Fan of the the Papirus icon theme will be pleased to hear there a new update – the first since May 2025. For #papirus’s first update in 2026 (the tardiness of which its maintainer, Serhii Yeremenko, apologises) brings over 80 new icons or updated icons spanning apps, games and user-interface icons, plus new file mimetypes and revised symlinks. Frequent updates are why Papirus icons are popular with Linux users, and have been for such a long time. Often, Linux icon packs debut with a big bang, the momentum fuels a few revisions but then things go quiet as people and maintainers move […] You’re reading Paprius icon set gets first update in a over year with 80+ new icons, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#Dropbeat is yet another flashy music controller for GNOME Shell
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/08/dropbeat-music-controller-gnome-extension
Dropbeat is a new riff on an old tune, a panel-based music applet for GNOME Shell that gives you an alternate way to pause, play and skip tracks in MPRIS-friendly Linux media players. Applets of this ilk are legion, and this panel applet doesn’t do anything that different to ones you may have tried in the past or currently use (for all the bells and whistles, try the Dynamic Music Pill extension instead). But it does do some things differently. When installed, it adds a button to your panel that, when clicked, “shows a cool card to control your media […] You’re reading Dropbeat is yet another flashy music controller for GNOME Shell, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
Ubuntu’s turning another system Deb package into a snap
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/08/ubuntu-hwctl-deb-to-snap-transition
Ubuntu is moving #hwctl from Deb package to snap-only distribution, a change Canonical says improves security and desktop integration. You’re reading Ubuntu’s turning another system Deb package into a snap, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#News #Bug_Fixes #Ubuntu_26.04_LTS #Ubuntu_26.10 #Ubuntu_Certified
]]>Curl dropped from Ubuntu 26.04 minimal server images by mistake
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/08/ubuntu-2604-server-cloud-minimal-curl-missing
Ubuntu 26.04 LTS’s minimal #cloud images have been missing curl – accidentally, it turns out, so Canonical has put it back. Curl is a commonly-used command-line tool for fetching files from remote servers. It’s called on in countless install scripts, CI pipelines and one-liners you’ve no doubt pasted into your terminal without thinking twice about. But the package has been missing from the server-cloud-minimal images of 26.04 to date. That caught those running pared-back cloud installs unawares, breaking expected workflows, has it had been available in previous versions. The manual fix is to install curl from the repos which, in […] You’re reading Curl dropped from Ubuntu 26.04 minimal server images by mistake, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
Linux App Release Roundup (July 2026)
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/08/linux-app-release-roundup-july-2026
Check in for a roundup of the hottest Linux app release that landed in July 2026 (and not just hot because of the temperatures last month). Major updates last month included the Firefox 153 release, with container tabs confusing those who’ve had them for ages. It also finally rounded window bottom corners on GTK-based Linux desktops, Ubuntu included. But the slick system monitor Mission Center also dropped a big update. I recommend checking that out, especially if you’ve longed for a way to swot over power stats. Anthropic delivered a Linux beta of its Claude Desktop app, easily installed on […] You’re reading Linux App Release Roundup (July 2026), a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#News #App_Updates #blender #LRR #typhoon #VirtualBox
]]>Ubuntu’s ready for Alberta and Morocco’s time zone changes
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/08/ubuntu-alberta-morocco-time-change
Times are changing, and Ubuntu’s keeping pace. In November, most of Canada will turn its clocks back an hour, but the Western Canadian province of Alberta won’t. It’s decided to stay on daylight saving time permanently rather than fall back to standard time as usual. Meanwhile, in September, Morocco is doing the reverse: after eight years of running an hour ahead of Greenwich Mean Time, it’s going back to GMT. Ubuntu users in either location – or travelling to them – need their systems to be in sync time-wise, which is what a new update to the tzdata package does. It refreshes […] You’re reading Ubuntu’s ready for Alberta and Morocco’s time zone changes, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#News
]]>Starling is a new Linux desktop built using AI in six months
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/starling-ai-built-linux-desktop
Some Linux #desktop_environments were developed over decades, others in just a few years. Starling, which made the rounds online this week, claims to have been built by just one person in six months using AI coding tools. What’s more, a preview build is available as a .deb to install on Ubuntu 26.04 LTS. Yup, this isn’t a ChatGPT mockup but a real working demo. According to the project’s GitHub and website, a developer used AI to rewrite Flutter’s framework layer from Dart to Swift, and left its C++ rendering engine unchanged. A traditional desktop uses a windowing system but […] You’re reading Starling is a new Linux desktop built using AI in six months, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
Mosaic is an i3-style auto-tiling extension for GNOME Shell
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/mosaic-automatic-window-tiling-gnome-shell
Mosaic brings i3-style automatic tiling to GNOME Shell without asking you to choose it permanently. Turn it on when you want windows to arrange themselves, turn it off when you want floating windows back. The extension works with GNOME 45 and up, adding a toggle to Quick Settings to enable the auto-tiling mode. When off, you’re in floating mode (which still has tiling features). Expand the toggle to access more options or get at Mosaic’s settings. It’s the on-demand nature that makes Mosaic more interesting as a tool. When the auto-tiling mode is active (the toggle is turned on) all […] You’re reading Mosaic is an i3-style auto-tiling extension for GNOME Shell, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
We finally revived our #Firefox add-on (10 years late)
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/omgubuntu-firefox-addon-notifier
The official OMG! Ubuntu add-on for Firefox is back – albeit far later than planned (sorry about that). If you’ve used our Chrome extension over the last decade, this add-on will be familiar as it’s the same thing, just in Firefox. Same look and (almost) the same features because it’s the same code (albeit with API name swaps and manifest tweaks). This isn’t the first time this blog has offered a Firefox add-on. Our old one broke in 2017 and though we intended to fix it, a decade happened to fly straight past us. Like the Chrome version, it provides […] You’re reading We finally revived our Firefox add-on (10 years late), a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
Ubuntu 26.04 virtualization #HWE stack offers newer #QEMU & libvirt
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/ubuntu-26-04-virtualization-hwe-stack
Ubuntu’s hardware enablement (HWE) effort has expanded to include backports of newer virtualisation tech to users of the current LTS release. The virtualization HWE stack from #Canonical will let users benefit from newer versions of QEMU, libvirt and related firmware on top of their exiting LTS install, refreshed every 6 months for 2 years, without the need to seek out via third-party repos. Or, to quote Canonical’s Ijlal Loutfi, it gives companies “the operational confidence of an LTS release, with a path to newer virtualization capabilities when they need them”. If you’re not familiar with the HWE, it’s what brings newer […] You’re reading Ubuntu 26.04 virtualization HWE stack offers newer QEMU & libvirt, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#Mission_center update adds battery, partition and power draw stats
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/mission-center-battery-power-draw-reporting
A new version of Linux system monitoring app Mission Center is available for download, adding new hardware stats, first-run setup prompt and bug fixes. Mission Center 1.2.0 adds a new Battery page in the Performance tab, surfaces per-partition usage details on the Disk page with free and used space and adds a graph to the bottom of the CPU page that can optionally show temperature, power draw or CPU frequency. The Memory page now shows compression (zRAM/zswap) stats, while the GPU page lets you switch the middle graph between Encode/Decode activity, power draw, clock speeds or temperature (depending on what […] You’re reading Mission Center update adds battery, partition and power draw stats, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
Chrome finally arrives on Arm64 Linux, Widevine DRM included
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/chrome-arm64-linux-available
You can now install an official #Google_Chrome build on Arm64 Linux devices, including the Raspberry Pi. Back in March, Google promised Chrome for Arm64 Linux in “Q2 2026” so users on SBCs, AI desktops and the growing-fleet of Snapdragon laptops out there, could use the flagship browser and benefit from the handful of extras it offers over a vanilla Chromium build. The search giant has said a whole lot about that effort since, but Arm64 builds of Chrome has recently been added to the browser’s official Linux repos for Debian and RPM-based Linux distributions – thanks Steven H. However, when I went […] You’re reading Chrome finally arrives on Arm64 Linux, Widevine DRM included, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#News
]]>#Firefox’s new tab page adds AI-powered daily crossword widget
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/firefox-new-widgets-crossword
More widgets are coming to Firefox’s New Tab page, including an interactive crossword puzzle powered by the AI #News reader Particle. The mini crossword game is updated daily, with puzzles based around recent content Particle‘s AI has ingested and summarised that day, and links to articles you can read to help deduce crossword answers. You click on a square to activate the row or column (clicking on it again switches between “Across” and “Down”). You read the clue at the bottom, and then you type in your answer. Use the hint button if you get stuck. If you just want […] You’re reading Firefox’s new tab page adds AI-powered daily crossword widget, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#codeberg bans hosting ‘mostly’ AI-generated code
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/codeberg-bans-ai-generated-code
Codeberg, the nonprofit alternative to GitHub used to host FLOSS projects, will no longer host software that’s “mostly” AI-generated. A vote closed yesterday (22 July, 2026), passing 358 to 144 with 14 abstentions on roughly 50% turnout to stop hosting software that’s largely vibe-coded. A second motion, also passed, commits Codeberg to never training AI models on hosted code or user data. Not that it was ever likely to. A Terms of Use amendment now prohibits projects that “mostly consist of code written by” generative AI tools. In a blog post, Codeberg explains the economic need for a ban, explaining […] You’re reading Codeberg bans hosting ‘mostly’ AI-generated code, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
Here’s why your Ubuntu 26.04 install is quiet about updates
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/ubuntu-26-04-update-notifications-disabled
If #Ubuntu_26.04_LTS hasn’t nagged you about pending updates in a while, there’s a reason for that. A Launchpad bug report and related discussion on the Ubuntu Discourse noticed that the distro’s update-manager no longer notifies when updates are pending unless the update notification tray icon is enabled. The rub? That tray icon as turned off in Ubuntu 26.04 (with no toggle in Settings to turn it back on). This is not as “risky” as it might sound, though. Ubuntu ships with unattended-upgrades enabled by default, which installs security updates in the background – you’re just not told about […] You’re reading Here’s why your Ubuntu 26.04 install is quiet about updates, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#Raspberry_Pi launch 10-inch Touch Display 2 for $80
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/raspberry-pi-10-inch-touch-display
Raspberry Pi has launched a 10-inch version of its Touch Display 2 with a 1200×1920 resolution and 10-point captive #touchscreen for $80/£77. 5-inch and 7-inch variants of the Touch Display 2 have been available for a while, but Raspberry Pi’s Gordon Hollingworth says the new version gives makers a larger, higher resolution screen to use in their projects. Like the smaller versions, the 10.1″ Touch Display 2 uses a portrait orientation by default, where the displays are often used for home automation dashboards, kiosks, digital signage, control panels, etc. It can be used in landscape by changing the orientation in […] You’re reading Raspberry Pi launch 10-inch Touch Display 2 for $80, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#Ubuntu_26.10 will add #Ubuntu_Certified checking to Settings
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/ubuntu-2610-certified-hardware-check
Wondering if your laptop or desktop PC is Ubuntu Certified? Ubuntu 26.10 is adding a new way to check from the Settings app. A new row in Settings > System > About reads “check if this computer is Ubuntu Certified”. Clicking it opens a new page that will read the local/cached status from the com.ubuntu.hwctl service (the Canonical hardware API introduced in 2025). Ubuntu’s has had a command-line way to check certification for a while, using hwlib. In 26.10 (Stonking Stingray), you’ll be able to check it via Settings rather than through terminal command. The statuses which can be shown: There’s also an […] You’re reading Ubuntu 26.10 will add Ubuntu Certified checking to Settings, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#News
]]>#Firefox 153 offers built-in container tabs, rounded corners + more
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/firefox-153-new-containers-feature
Mozilla has released Firefox 153 with built-in #Containers, QR code generation and more quick actions in the address bar. This is the final “monthly” stable release before #Mozilla moves to a faster release cadence, putting out new stable versions of Firefox every two weeks. On an unrelated note, Firefox has resumed activity on X (formerly Twitter) after a year of no activity. Like all updates, you can get this one for Windows, macOS and Linux, as well as for Android and iOS (mobile versions have different features and are not covered in this post). Firefox gets built-in Containers Containers are […] You’re reading Firefox 153 offers built-in container tabs, rounded corners + more, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#News
]]>Ubuntu’s #desktop_icons extension completes its GTK4 port
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/ubuntu-desktop-icons-extension-gtk4-port
The Desktop Icons NG (aka DING) GNOME Shell extension Ubuntu uses to put icons on your literal desktop, has been busy – it finished its port to GTK4, patched memory leaks and improved a few of its lesser-known features. The GTK4 port landed in v51.0.0, released this month, alongside early support for GNOME 51 (since that’s the GNOME version #Ubuntu_26.10 will ship with in October). Prior to that, there were other, smaller in June with fixes for memory leaks and buffs to usability. DING’s GTK4 port – not to be confused with a separate GTK4 fork I covered back in […] You’re reading Ubuntu’s desktop icons extension completes its GTK4 port, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#News #GNOME_Extensions
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/desktop-icons-ng-gtk4-stacks.webm
This theme makes #discord look more at home on Ubuntu
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/discord-gnome-theme-adwaita-vesktop
The official Discord desktop app supports Linux but it doesn’t make much effort to fit in, which is why alternative clients are popular – not least because they can be themed. Discord GNOME Theme by developer ~ricewind012, is so named because, basically, that’s what it is: a custom theme that restyles Discord to look more like #adwaita and follow the GNOME HIG (well, as close as Discord’s CSS allows). A reminder: Ubuntu’s Yaru theme is based (heavily) on upstream Adwaita, so while this theme won’t give an exact match on Ubuntu, it’s closer than stock. As it’s all CSS, it […] You’re reading This theme makes Discord look more at home on Ubuntu, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.
#flathub’s AI slop ban looks like it was the right call
▻https://www.omgubuntu.co.uk/2026/07/flathub-ai-slop-ban-data
When Flathub banned AI-coded app submissions last month, some critics warned the platform was denying the future by dismissing a new wave of “vibe-coded” software as out-and-out “slop”. Well, new data suggests otherwise, as nearly three-quarters of the rejected apps are already dead, existing only a few months. Linux developer Evangelos Paterakis, developer of Tuba, Turntable and others, did the digging, looking at 120 code repositories whose pull requests for inclusion on Flathub were rejected because of their heavy AI usage and given an “AI Slop” tag. Of those rejected, 88 are no longer under active development, many having deleted their […] You’re reading Flathub’s AI slop ban looks like it was the right call, a blog post from OMG! Ubuntu. Do not reproduce elsewhere without permission.