KaOS Linux is solely dedicated to the KDE Plasma desktop. So, unlike most other Linux distros, KaOS does not provide various installation images with GNOME, Xfce, LXQt, or any other desktop. Moreover, the packages for other desktops are not even included in the KaOS repositories.
The distro was influenced by Arch Linux, uses Pacman as its package manager, but does not rely on software repositories developed and maintained by Arch Linux.
Instead, KaOS Linux labels itself as a built-from-scratch Linux distro since all packages in each of its repositories are compiled by the project for the distro.
The developers recently released KaOS 2022.04 as an incremental update to the previous release, so let’s briefly look at what’s new.
KaOS 2022,04 Highlights
We’ll start with the Calamares installer, which got a new feature in the latest version of KaOS. During the installation, you can now choose to view a slideshow with distribution information or monitor what the installer Calamares is doing by selecting the Log View.
This is an excellent opportunity for more advanced Linux users to look under the hood at what happens during installation.
We continue with the most important new feature to note in KaOS 2022.04, including the latest and greatest KDE Gear 22.04 applications set. If you’re not familiar with KDE Gear, it is a collection of programs and software developed and maintained by the KDE Community.
Konsole, the KDE terminal app, has been given a whole new capability in the form of Quick Commands.
In other words, you can now create your own set of predefined commands, save them, and integrate them into the Konsole app so that they are always at hand for quick execution when you need them. In other words, you get an alternative to aliases in Linux.
Open a quick commands window from Plugins -> Show Quick Commands, and you’ll be able to construct small scripts that you’ll use regularly. Then, to run them, all you need to do is just double-click on the name of the saved command.
The Ocular app, a KDE universal document viewer, based on the code of the KPDF app, also got an upgrade. It now notifies you instantly if you attempt to sign a document but do not have any valid digital certificates.
Furthermore, you may now share scanned documents with the new Skanpage app via KDE’s general sharing system, which allows you to send documents to instant messaging programs, online cloud services, social services, and other devices over Bluetooth.
Kdenlive, a free and open-source video editing software, also got two new features to stand out. First, you may design unique profiles to adjust your rendered video perfectly to your demands. Moreover, you can now render by zones, using the timeline guidelines as references.
Continuing with the desktop applications, one of the most significant changes is that the LibreOffice 7.3.2 defaults as an office suite instead of Calligra in KaOS 2022.04. This is because it is now possible to provide this as a pure Qt5/kf5 application.
The Croeso app that greets users after a new installation has also undergone minor changes. It will run on the freshly installed system and allow you to change 15 widely used settings and contain a custom Wallpaper picker, distribution information, and the ability to install packages from six distinct groups.
KaOS 2022.02 comes with the latest KDE Plasma Desktop 5.24.4 and KDE Gear 21.12; all built on Qt 5.15.3.
Apart from those mentioned above, KaOS 2022.04 ships with Linux kernel 5.17, Glib2 2.72, Systemd 250.4, Boost 1.78, DBus 1.14, Mesa 22.0.2, Vulkan packages 1.3.212, Util-linux 2.38, Coreutils 9.1, and Libusb 1.0.26.
You can refer to the official announcement for detailed information about all changes.
Download
KaOS Linux is a rolling distribution, so keeping up with the updates is enough to get you the latest packages. The command shown below will always give you the latest.
sudo pacman -SyuThe official ISO is also updated every few months to keep it up to date with all the latest changes for new installations, so you are not presented with a sizeable first update.
The latest KaOS 2022.04 installation ISO image can be downloaded from the project’s website for those wishing to carry out a new installation.
