App Launcher Menu and Task Manager received improvements

Sep 14, 2017 15:50 GMT  ·  By

Today, the KDE project launched the Beta version of its upcoming Plasma 5.11 desktop environment for personal computers, giving the KDE community the first glimpse of what to expect from the final release later this fall.

Development on KDE Plasma 5.11 started not long ago, and the team already has a Beta version for us to test on our favorite GNU/Linux distributions and discover the new features it ship with, starting with the revamped System Settings, notification history, as well as various improvements to the App Launcher Menu and Task Manager.

KDE Plasma 5.11 will also be the first release of the popular desktop environment to ship with a new privacy-focused tool called Plasma Vault, which promises to let you encrypt your most precious documents and files is a secure, user-friendly manner that will make KDE Plasma a more safe place for workplace and home offices alike.

"For users who often deal with sensitive, confidential and private information, the new Plasma Vault offers strong encryption features presented in a user-friendly way," reads today's announcement. "Plasma Vault allows to lock and encrypt sets of documents and hide them from prying eyes even when the user is logged in. These 'vaults' can be decrypted and opened easily."

KDE Plasma 5.11 launches officially on October 10, 2017

While you can test drive the Beta version right now, you'll have to wait one more month for the final release of the KDE Plasma 5.11 desktop environment, which is expected to launch officially on October 10, 2017. A complete changelog is available here if you're curious to know what exactly was implemented in this version.

Like KDE Plasma 5.10, which reached end of life last month with the Plasma 5.10.5 maintenance update, the upcoming Plasma 5.11 update will also have a short-lived release cycle and will receive a total of five point releases that should address critical bugs and crashes among its core components. It will reached end of life on January 2, 2018.

System Settings' new design
System Settings' new design
Plasma Vault stores your files securely
Plasma Vault stores your files securely
One app window, two monitors, two DPIs
One app window, two monitors, two DPIs

KDE Plasma 5.11 Beta (8 Images)

KDE Plasma 5.11 Beta
System Settings' new designPlasma Vault stores your files securely
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