FOSS Weekly #26.46: Mint 27 Features, Kora OS, de-Googled Life, Passbolt, Package Manager and More Linux Stuff

First a quick appeal. If you use Google, please add It's FOSS as a preferred source. This way, you won't miss the reliable and trusting tutorials and news from It's FOSS in the noise of AI-generated content.

Speaking of AI, Asahi Linux, the project behind Linux on Apple Silicon Macs, is moving every repository from MIT to GPL v2 or later. The team says people were lifting unreleased code and rewriting it with AI to hide its origin. That hints at Omarchy but DHH told us in an interview that he really doesn't care about this license move.

Linux Mint 27 “Adrien,” due around Christmas. We have created a roundup of its main features so that you can see all the new stuff it will be offering.

Firefox 160 can send a full tab, or just a box you draw around part of a page, into a Mini Window. We tested it and shared this new feature.

Closing a kitty session no longer means losing your layout. The 0.50 release can save every window, tab, and scrollback at logout and restore them at the next launch, once you enable the setting.

Hate Chromium? Domicile is a Rust-based Wayland compositor that draws your entire desktop as a web page using a patched Chromium build ☠️. It only runs on x86_64 machines for now.

Nautilus, or Files, GNOME's file manager, may soon get a neater way to browse long folders. Developers are testing optional section headers that sort files into groups, though this is an early build, so things could change.

Synaptics has sent a cease-and-desist to developer Mike Lothian over Vino, his open source DisplayLink driver. The letters claim patent infringement, and Mike has had to pull the repository from public view.

The company behind GameOS, Playtron, is now KORA Systems. Its new desktop OS, also called KORA, puts AI models and agents right into a Linux base, with a launch planned for later in 2027.

This edition of FOSS Weekly is supported by LabEx.

🧠 What We’re Thinking About

Is de-googling your life worth it? This is the topic of discussion in the It's FOSS Community.

Is de-Googling your life worth it?

I was asked this question in response to the one of the de-google article I had written. So I am curious about you folks. Do you use Google and Google products or have you tried to become an ant-Google in everything? What’s your stance on all this?

It's FOSS Communityabhishek

🧮 Linux Tips, Tutorials, and Learnings

Not sure which backup tool to pick? Déjà Dup suits GNOME desktops with almost no setup, while Kopia and Restic handle cloud storage for those who want more control. UrBackup covers fleets of machines.

If you ever wanted to look for a way to help Linux grow, I give you ten 😄

Package manager and repositories are some of the most common terms you will come across as a Linux user. Learn the concept in this article.

What is a Package Manager in Linux?

Learn about packaging system and package managers in Linux. You'll learn how do they work and what kind of package managers available.

It's FOSSAbhishek Prakash

👷 Homelab and Hardware Corner

If you want to start homelab without too much hassle, ZimaBoard is a good starting point. The device is 20% off on Amazon for Black Friday early deal.

Initial Impressions of the ZimaBoard 2 Homelab Device

Apart from the silver exterior, I have nothing to complain about in ZimaBoard 2 even if it is a prototype at this stage.

It's FOSSAbhishek Prakash

✨ Apps and Projects Highlights

Teams looking for a password management solution can host Passbolt themselves for free, with no user cap or use its managed cloud.

Passbolt is an Open Source Password Manager Built Specially For Teams

Passbolt offers both a free self-hosted edition and a managed cloud version of its team focused password management solution.

It's FOSSSourav Rudra

Helix ships with language server support and tree-sitter ready to go. Just know there’s no plugin system yet, so you’re working with what ships.

📽️ Videos for You

Did you miss the Fedora 45 release? It was a loaded one with many changes.

💡 Quick Handy Tip

On GNOME, you can:

• Open the notification panel using Super + V
• Access the quick settings panel using Super + S
• Get into Activities Overview using the Super key

🎋 Fun in the FOSSverse

There's no dearth of shells in the world of Linux; do you know them all?

Guess the Shell Crossword

There is a shell, there is a way.

It's FOSSAbhishek Prakash

📆 Trivia Bit: Firefox 1.0 arrived on November 9, 2004, as Mozilla’s open source alternative to Internet Explorer. It came with tabbed browsing, a built-in pop-up blocker, and phishing protection, and was released for Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux.

Keep on Linux-ing 😄