December 05, 2024

Danielle Foré, the Founder and CEO of the Elementary OS project, announced the release of Elementary OS 8 on November 26, 2024. This new version introduces a secure session feature powered by Wayland, significantly enhancing user privacy. When an application attempts to listen for keystrokes in the background, take screenshots, record the screen, or even capture the color from a single pixel, users will be prompted to grant permission. Although this feature is still in development, users can test it by selecting "Secure Sessions" on the lock screen.

Additionally, the AppCenter now includes Flathub by default, providing access to a broader range of applications. Finally, the Pantheon desktop environment has undergone significant upgrades, giving it a more modern appearance.

Here are the new features and improvements in elementary OS 8:

• The latest version of the Pantheon desktop is included..
• A Quick Settings Menu has been added for easy access to common actions, such as enabling dark mode, managing sessions, and controlling accessibility features.
• The default sound server is now PipeWire, which enhances latency and improves Bluetooth audio quality.
• This version is based on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS and utilizes the Linux kernel 6.8..

For a complete list of improvements, please visit their release announcement page at https://blog.elementary.io/os-8-available-now/.

How to download?

To download Elementary OS 8 from the Elementary Project website (https://elementary.io/), you need to enter a 'pay what you want' amount. If you wish to download it for free, simply enter '0' as the custom amount.

Website:

https://elementary.io/