Linux

Linux Mint has long held a cherished place in the hearts of Linux users seeking a balance between elegance, ease of use, and rock-solid stability. In 2025, that reputation is only strengthened with the release of Linux Mint 22, a version that brings not just incremental updates, but substantial improvements — particularly in the form of the latest Cinnamon 6.x desktop environment. Sleeker visuals, faster performance, and thoughtful refinements mark this release as one of the most polished in Mint’s history.

In this article, we’ll take a look into what makes Linux Mint 22 with Cinnamon a standout — from under-the-hood performance boosts to user-facing enhancements that elevate daily computing.

The Legacy of Linux Mint and Cinnamon

Linux Mint has consistently been among the most recommended distributions for both newcomers and seasoned Linux users. Its mission: to deliver a desktop experience that “just works” out of the box, with sensible defaults and a traditional desktop metaphor.

At the heart of this experience is Cinnamon, Mint’s flagship desktop environment born as a fork of GNOME Shell over a decade ago. Cinnamon has matured into an independent, cohesive environment that champions:

• Simplicity.

• Customizability.

• Consistency.

Linux Mint 22’s release continues this tradition while embracing modern UI trends and leveraging powerful performance optimizations.

Cinnamon 6.x: A New Standard of Sleekness

Cinnamon 6.x introduces a suite of visual and functional improvements designed to make Mint 22 feel both contemporary and familiar:

• Refined Visuals: The theming engine has received significant attention. The default theme sports cleaner lines, flatter icons, and subtle gradients that provide depth without visual clutter.

• Polished Animations: Transitions between windows, workspaces, and menus are noticeably smoother, thanks to improved animation handling that feels natural without being distracting.

• Modernized Panels and Applets: Applets now integrate better with the system theme, and their configuration interfaces have been streamlined. The panel is slimmer, with better spacing for multi-resolution icons.

These changes might seem small on paper, but together they give Cinnamon 6.x an air of maturity and refinement, reducing visual noise while enhancing usability.

Performance Improvements: Speed Where It Counts

Where Linux Mint 22 truly shines is in its performance optimizations:

The Fedora Project has long stood at the forefront of Linux innovation, often acting as a proving ground for transformative technologies later adopted by the wider Linux ecosystem. With the release of Fedora 41, the project takes another major leap into the future by fully embracing immutable desktops through its newly unified and rebranded initiative: Fedora Atomic.

This bold shift represents more than a technical update — it signals a philosophical evolution in how Linux desktops are built, managed, and secured. Fedora Atomic is not just a feature of Fedora 41; it's the flagship identity for a new kind of Linux desktop. In this article, we explore the origins, architecture, benefits, and implications of Fedora Atomic as it makes its debut in Fedora 41.

What Are Immutable Desktops? A Paradigm Shift in OS Architecture

An immutable desktop is a system whose core filesystem is read-only, meaning the foundational components of the operating system cannot be altered during regular use. This design flips traditional Linux system management on its head.

In mutable systems — like the standard Fedora Workstation or most desktop Linux distributions — the root filesystem is writable, allowing users or software to modify system libraries, configurations, and services at will. While this provides flexibility, it introduces risks of accidental misconfiguration, malware persistence, or system instability.

Immutable desktops tackle these issues with several key principles:

• Read-Only Root Filesystem: Ensures the core system is consistent and protected.

• Atomic Updates: System updates are applied as a whole, transactional unit. If something breaks, you can simply roll back to the previous working version.

• Separation of Concerns: Applications are isolated in containers (e.g., Flatpaks), and development environments run in dedicated containers (e.g., Toolbox).

• Reproducibility and Consistency: Identical environments across systems, ideal for testing and deployment pipelines.

Fedora Atomic is the embodiment of these principles — and Fedora 41 is the foundation upon which it stands.

From Silverblue to Atomic: The Evolution of Fedora's Immutable Desktop Vision

Fedora Atomic is not built from scratch. It is the evolution of Fedora Silverblue, Kinoite, and Sericea, which previously offered immutable desktop environments with GNOME, KDE Plasma, and Sway respectively. In Fedora 41, these projects are now rebranded and unified under the Fedora Atomic name, creating a streamlined identity and experience for users.

In the realm of Linux desktop distributions, few names stand out as prominently as Pop!_OS, the custom-built operating system from System76. Known for its user-centric design, seamless hardware integration, and a progressive attitude toward Linux usability, Pop!_OS has earned a special place in the hearts of developers, engineers, gamers, and power users alike.

With the release of Pop!_OS 24.04, System76 boldly pushes the limits of what Linux desktops can do—particularly in the domain of hybrid graphics. This version introduces a host of under-the-hood improvements and user-facing enhancements aimed at solving a long-standing pain point for Linux laptop users: managing systems that have both integrated and dedicated GPUs.

This article dives into what makes Pop!_OS 24.04 a game-changer, focusing especially on its sophisticated, yet user-friendly approach to hybrid graphics.

A Leap Forward: What’s New in Pop!_OS 24.04

Pop!_OS 24.04 is based on Ubuntu 24.04 LTS, meaning it inherits long-term support, stability, and updated software packages. But Pop!_OS never simply repackages Ubuntu; it transforms it. Here are some of the standout features introduced in this release:

• COSMIC Desktop Enhancements: System76’s in-house desktop environment has matured, delivering better window management, smoother animations, and more customization options. COSMIC is designed from the ground up using Rust, and this release brings faster performance and reduced resource consumption.

• Kernel and Driver Upgrades: Linux kernel 6.8+ ensures better hardware compatibility and performance, especially for newer CPUs and GPUs. The latest NVIDIA and Mesa drivers are pre-integrated and optimized.

• Refined Installer and Recovery: The Pop!_OS installer now includes better detection for hybrid graphics setups and offers system recovery options right from the boot menu.

However, the crown jewel of 24.04 is undoubtedly its radical improvements in hybrid graphics support.

Understanding Hybrid Graphics and Why It Matters

Most modern laptops come with two GPUs:

1. Integrated GPU (iGPU) – Built into the CPU (e.g., Intel Iris Xe, AMD Radeon Graphics), offering energy-efficient graphics rendering.

2. Discrete GPU (dGPU) – A powerful standalone GPU (e.g., NVIDIA RTX, AMD Radeon), ideal for gaming, 3D modeling, and heavy computation.

This setup, known as hybrid graphics, allows users to conserve battery power when performance isn’t needed and tap into powerful hardware when it is.

Ubuntu has long stood as a bastion of accessibility, polish, and power in the Linux ecosystem. With the arrival of Ubuntu 25.04, codenamed “Plucky Puffin”, Canonical has once again demonstrated its commitment to delivering a modern, forward-thinking operating system. This release isn’t just a routine update — it’s a confident stride into a future where Linux desktops are visually stunning, developer-friendly, and brimming with potential.

From the sleek new GNOME 48 desktop environment to the long-awaited HDR (High Dynamic Range) support, Ubuntu 25.04 introduces meaningful innovations for casual users, creative professionals, and hardcore enthusiasts alike. Let’s explore this release in depth.

The Spirit of “Plucky Puffin”

Ubuntu releases are known for their quirky animal-themed codenames, but “Plucky Puffin” feels particularly fitting. The word plucky denotes courage and determination — a nod to the OS’s bold push into new visual territories and its refined user experience. The puffin, a resilient seabird, suggests adaptability and elegance — both apt descriptors for Ubuntu’s trajectory in 2025.

Canonical has positioned Ubuntu 25.04 as a springboard for technological maturity ahead of the next long-term support (LTS) release. While it’s a standard, short-term release with 9 months of support, it packs significant under-the-hood improvements and user-facing features that elevate it beyond expectations.

GNOME 48: The Best Desktop Yet

One of the crown jewels of Ubuntu 25.04 is GNOME 48, the latest iteration of the popular desktop environment. GNOME 48 continues to refine the modern, minimalist ethos that has become its signature — but this time, with more responsiveness, better gesture support, and improved multitasking.

• The Activities Overview is smoother and now integrates multitouch gestures on laptops and touchscreens. Swipe-based workspace switching feels intuitive and immediate.

• New settings panels have been reorganized for clarity, especially in areas like display, accessibility, and power management.

• The Files (Nautilus) app has received subtle UI updates and performance boosts, with quicker load times and enhanced file indexing.

• GNOME 48 is noticeably lighter on RAM, thanks to backend improvements in Mutter (the window manager) and GTK 4 refinements.

• Accessibility tools like screen readers and magnifiers now offer smoother integration for users with visual or physical impairments.

Linux is a treasure trove of powerful tools, many of which remain undiscovered by casual users. While staples like grep, awk, sed, and top dominate tutorials and guides, there's a second layer of utilities—lesser-known yet immensely powerful—that can dramatically improve your daily efficiency and control over your system.

In this article, we dive into 10 underrated Linux tools that can help you streamline your workflow, improve productivity, and unlock new levels of system mastery. Whether you’re a developer, sysadmin, or Linux hobbyist, these tools deserve a place in your arsenal.

1. fd: Find Files Fast with Simplicity

The traditional find command is incredibly powerful but notoriously verbose and complex. Enter fd, a modern, user-friendly alternative.

• Cleaner syntax (fd pattern instead of find . -name pattern)

• Recursive by default

• Colorized output

• Ignores .gitignore files for cleaner results

fd ".conf"

Finds all files containing .conf in the name, starting from the current directory.

Quickly locate configuration files, scripts, or assets without navigating nested directories or crafting complex expressions.

2. bat: cat on Steroids

bat is a drop-in replacement for cat with superpowers. It adds syntax highlighting, Git integration, and line numbers to your file viewing experience.

• Syntax highlighting for dozens of languages

• Git blame annotations

• Works as a pager with automatic line wrapping

bat /etc/ssh/sshd_config

You’ll get a beautifully highlighted and numbered output, much easier to parse than with cat.

Perfect for reading scripts, configs, and logs with visual clarity—especially helpful during debugging or code reviews.

3. ripgrep: Blazing-Fast Text Search

Also known as rg, ripgrep is a command-line search tool that recursively searches your current directory for a regex pattern, similar to grep—but much faster and more intuitive.

Introduction: The Rise of the Maker Revolution

Over the last decade, the open-source movement has not only transformed the world of software, but also catalyzed a sweeping revolution in hardware tinkering. At the heart of this shift lies a convergence of accessible microcomputers like the Raspberry Pi and microcontrollers like Arduino—each supercharged by the robust ecosystem of Linux. This combination offers hobbyists, engineers, and creators a versatile, low-cost, and endlessly customizable toolkit for automating their homes, collecting environmental data, and even experimenting with artificial intelligence at the edge.

This article serves as your dive into the world of Linux-based DIY automation. Whether you're looking to build a smart garden, a weather station, or simply learn how to use Bash scripts to control physical components, you're in for a journey that fuses digital logic with real-world interaction.

Understanding the Core Platforms

The Raspberry Pi is a credit card-sized computer capable of running full-fledged Linux distributions such as Raspberry Pi OS, Ubuntu, or even lightweight server OSes like DietPi. It features a Broadcom SoC, USB ports, HDMI output, Ethernet, Wi-Fi, and a 40-pin GPIO header for interfacing with sensors, relays, and other peripherals.

Key Features:

• Runs full Linux OSes.

• Offers Python, C/C++, and shell scripting environments.

• Suitable for tasks requiring networking, databases, file systems, and multimedia.

Use Cases:

• Home automation hub.

• Data logging and processing.

• Media streaming and game emulation.

Arduino, by contrast, is not a full computer but a microcontroller. Devices like the Arduino Uno or Nano excel at reading analog sensors, controlling motors, and maintaining precise timing. They are programmed using the Arduino IDE, which runs on Linux, Windows, and macOS.

Key Features:

• Real-time control of electronic components.

• Lightweight and low-power.

• Supports C/C++ with a vast array of libraries.

Use Cases:

• Reading temperature, humidity, motion sensors.

• Driving LEDs, motors, and servos.

• Reliable execution of small, repeatable tasks.

Setting Up a DIY Linux Development Environment

1. Download Raspberry Pi Imager from raspberrypi.com.

In an era where cyber threats are evolving rapidly, securing Linux systems goes far beyond basic user permissions. Traditional security mechanisms like Discretionary Access Control (DAC) offer limited safeguards against privilege escalation, compromised applications, and insider threats. To address these limitations, Security-Enhanced Linux (SELinux) offers a powerful, fine-grained framework for Mandatory Access Control (MAC) — and it's not just for Red Hat-based distributions anymore.

In this article, we'll explore how to integrate SELinux into Debian, one of the most widely used and respected GNU/Linux distributions. We'll break down its architecture, setup procedures, policy management, and troubleshooting techniques. Whether you're running a mission-critical server or seeking to harden your desktop environment, this guide will show you how SELinux can elevate your system security to enterprise-grade standards.

Understanding the Foundations of SELinux

SELinux is a kernel security module initially developed by the United States National Security Agency (NSA) in collaboration with the open-source community. It introduces the concept of mandatory access controls by enforcing policy-based rules that strictly define how processes and users can interact with files, directories, sockets, and devices.

Unlike DAC, where file owners control access, MAC policies are imposed by the system administrator and enforced by the kernel, regardless of user ownership or permissions.

• Subjects: Active entities (usually processes).

• Objects: Passive entities (like files, directories, devices).

• Contexts: Security labels assigned to subjects and objects.

• Types/Domains: Used to define access rules and behavior.

• Policies: Written rulesets that determine access control logic.

• Enforcing: SELinux policies are applied and violations are blocked.

• Permissive: Policies are not enforced, but violations are logged.

• Disabled: SELinux is turned off entirely.

SELinux on Debian: A Reality Check

Debian has traditionally favored AppArmor for its simplicity and ease of integration. However, SELinux support is fully present in Debian’s repositories. As of Debian 12 (Bookworm) and later, integrating SELinux is more streamlined and better documented than ever.

Introduction

In today's fast-paced IT environments, performance, reliability, and scalability are critical factors that determine the effectiveness of a network. Advanced Linux networking techniques such as VLAN trunking, interface bonding, and Quality of Service (QoS) are key tools in the hands of system administrators and network engineers who aim to build robust and efficient systems. Whether you're managing a data center, configuring high-availability clusters, or optimizing bandwidth for critical services, these technologies provide the foundation for high-performance networking on Linux.

This article explores each of these advanced networking capabilities, explaining their benefits, configurations, and practical use cases. By the end, you will have a comprehensive understanding of how to implement VLANs, bonding, and QoS effectively on your Linux systems.

Understanding VLAN Trunking in Linux

Virtual LANs (VLANs) allow the segmentation of a physical network into multiple logical networks. VLAN trunking is the process of transporting multiple VLANs over a single network link—typically between switches or between a switch and a server. This allows a single network interface card (NIC) to handle traffic for multiple VLANs, optimizing resource usage and simplifying cabling.

Trunking is crucial in virtualized environments where multiple virtual machines (VMs) or containers need to reside in separate VLANs for security or organizational reasons.

• Isolation: Separates traffic for security and compliance.

• Efficiency: Reduces the number of physical interfaces needed.

• Scalability: Makes it easy to add or modify VLANs without physical changes.

Linux supports VLANs natively via the kernel module 8021q. The modern toolset uses the ip command from the iproute2 package for configuration. Older systems may use the vconfig utility, though it's now deprecated.

Ensure the module is loaded:

sudo modprobe 8021q

Use the ip command:

sudo ip link add link eth0 name eth0.10 type vlan id 10 sudo ip addr add 192.168.10.1/24 dev eth0.10 sudo ip link set dev eth0.10 up

On Ubuntu (netplan):

Bash scripting is often seen as a convenient tool for automating repetitive tasks, managing simple file operations, or orchestrating basic system utilities. But beneath its surface lies a trove of powerful features that allow for complex logic, high-performance workflows, and robust script behavior. In this article, we’ll explore the lesser-known but incredibly powerful techniques that take your Bash scripting from basic automation to professional-grade tooling.

Mastering Arrays for Structured Data

Bash supports both indexed arrays (traditional, numeric indexes) and associative arrays (key-value pairs), which are ideal for structured data manipulation.

# Indexed array fruits=("apple" "banana" "cherry") # Associative array declare -A user_info user_info[name]="Alice" user_info[role]="admin"

# Indexed for fruit in "${fruits[@]}"; do echo "Fruit: $fruit" done # Associative for key in "${!user_info[@]}"; do echo "$key: ${user_info[$key]}" done

Use Case: Managing dynamic options or storing configuration mappings, such as service port numbers or user roles.

Indirect Expansion and Parameter Indirection

Ever needed to reference a variable whose name is stored in another variable? Bash allows this with indirect expansion using the ${!var} syntax.

user1="Alice" user2="Bob" var="user1" echo "User: ${!var}" # Outputs: Alice

Use Case: When parsing dynamically named variables from a configuration or runtime-generated context.

Process Substitution: Piping Like a Pro

Process substitution enables a command’s output to be treated as a file input for another command.

diff <(ls /etc) <(ls /var)

Instead of creating temporary files, this technique allows on-the-fly data streaming into commands that expect filenames.

Use Case: Comparing outputs of two commands, feeding multiple inputs to grep, diff, or custom processors.

Using Traps for Cleanup and Signal Handling

Traps let you capture signals (like script termination or interruption) and execute custom handlers.

temp_file=$(mktemp) trap "rm -f $temp_file" EXIT # Do something with $temp_file

Common signals:

• EXIT: Always triggered when the script ends

• ERR: Triggered on any command failure (with set -e)

• INT: Triggered by Ctrl+C

Use Case: Cleaning up temporary files, resetting terminal states, or notifying external systems on exit.