Ceci est une ancienne révision du document !
Out on 25 April, 2024, Ubuntu Budgie 24.04 LTS is the latest long term support version of this Ubuntu-based Linux distribution. This release marks the 17th Ubuntu Budgie version and, as an LTS, it comes with three years of support until April 2027.
While this release does not introduce a lot new over the last one, Ubuntu Budgie 23.10, it is the culmination of a release cycle that had some ambitious aims set by the team, all of which seem to have been realized.
Installation
I got the ISO file for Ubuntu Budgie 24.04 LTS from the official website via BitTorrent and carried out a SHA256 checksum on it from the command line to make sure the download was good.
This ISO file was a 4.1 GB download which is 200 MB bigger than Ubuntu Budgie 23.10.
I dropped the ISO file onto a USB stick equipped with Ventoy 1.0.98 and booted it up from there. Ubuntu Budgie is listed as officially supported by Ventoy and, unsurprisingly, it worked just fine.
System requirements
The recommended minimum system requirements for Ubuntu Budgie 24.04 LTS have changed since the last release and are now up to: Processor speed: 2.4 GHz RAM: 4 GB Hard Disk space: 60 GB
Given today’s realities, 8 GB of RAM is probably a better minimum, especially for web browsing use.
New
There is not a lot new from Ubuntu Budgie 23.10 which is actually what you want to see in an LTS release. An LTS should feature stability, not innovations. That said, this release does bring an updated Budgie Desktop, bumped from version 10.8 to 10.9.
Most of the changes since the last LTS were introduced earlier in the developmental cycle. Cumulatively, these now include improvements to several of the desktop applets, the window shuffler, the default user indicator, a new status notifier applet, updated hot corners, a new Budgie control center, a progressively updated Budgie Desktop with many interface improvements, the introduction of the Magpie window manager (which was forked from Mutter), redesigned Bluetooth and trash applets, privilege escalation dialog improvements, better performance and power modes in the battery status applet, a new Budgie welcome, updated and additional themes. In addition, the audio controller changed from Pulseaudio to Pipewire, changes to the list of default applications provided, a new Flutter-based installer was added, and there were many more small, detailed improvements.
In general, the movement in the default applications mix has been away from GNOME applications to avoid the GNOME use of libadwaita and its associated adwaita theme. So over this development cycle, many of the previously included GNOME applications have either been dropped entirely or replaced with others, often from the MATE desktop.
As in the recent past, this release's default wallpaper is a modified version of the standard Budgie spacey-looking wallpaper that has been standard since Ubuntu Budgie 19.04. For recent releases, the designers have been adding a motif representing the release’s code name and so for this Noble Numbat, the Ubuntu numbat crown has been added to the spacey wallpaper. This release has 28 wallpapers, down from 35 included in the last release. There is a second one with a numbat theme included although it may be a bit garish for some tastes.
Settings
This release only brings a few minor theme updates and changes over 23.10.
As in past releases of Ubuntu Budgie, there is a small dock at the bottom of the screen called Plank. It works fine if you like docks. It will hide if a window touches it. Settings for it can be accessed by right-clicking on the dock itself. One of the settings is “quit” which closes it, but then closing it also means you have no list of open applications or access to minimized applications unless you use “alt-tab”. It can be turned on again by just opening Plank Preferences and, bing, it is back!
The Budgie main menu can be set to either show application tiles in alphanumerical order or icons by category. The menu is not resizable.
As has been the case for a while with Ubuntu Budgie, the user settings are widely scattered in many different places, are quite hard to find and also confusing. This is the one area where Ubuntu Budgie could really use some serious developmental work. Putting the settings all in one place would make life a lot easier for the users, especially new users who are trying to figure out where everything is.
So, let’s go over where everything is.
Budgie Desktop Settings is where you will find the window themes, oddly under Style - Widgets. There are 14 window themes provided, with the default one still Pocillo-dark, named for the unsweetened coffee drink. There are also some nice light themes provided including Pocillo-light. Also found here are styling preferences (light or dark); ten icon styles, with Pocillo as the default; three cursor styles and four notification screen positions, one in each corner with “top right” as the default.
Budgie Makeovers & Layouts is where you find complete “one button” wallpaper, window theme and icon packages (this time with ten to choose from, one more than in the last release). It is worth noting that only three of these are installed with the remaining ones available for download. I am guessing that this is an effort to keep the ISO file download size smaller. There are also eight desktop layouts. These include launchers and menus that mimic most desktop set-ups. They are named Ubuntu Budgie, Classic Ubuntu Budgie, Redmond, Eleven, Chrome, Traditional Budgie, The One and Cupertino. They seriously change how the Budgie desktop looks and works.
The desktop applets are hidden away in Budgie Extras. This time around, there are 38 applets included, three more than in the last release. These programs add clocks, calendars, weather and other functions to the desktop. It seems we lack a common language, even in the Ubuntu world, as in Kubuntu these same sorts of programs are called “widgets”.
The Budgie Control Center is a modified version of GNOME Settings. Here you can configure such features as WiFi, wallpaper, sound and power settings.
For any Budgie user, I would recommend you write your settings down when you find a combination you like so that you can duplicate them in future installations!
Applications
Some of the applications included with Ubuntu Budgie 24.04 LTS are: Archive Manager (File Roller) 44.1 archiver Atril 1.26.2 PDF viewer Budgie Screenshot Applet screenshot tool CUPS 2.4.7 printing system Deja Dup 45.2 back-up tool Document Scanner (Simple Scan) 46.0 optical scanner Drawing 1.0.2 image editor* Firefox 125.0.2 web browser Gdebi 0.9.5.7* Goodvibes 0.7.9 internet radio GNOME Disks 46.0 disk manager GNOME Software 46.0 package management system Gparted 1.5.0 partition editor* Gpodder 3.11.3 podcast player gThumb 3.12.6 image viewer Guvcview 2.0.8 webcam application* LibreOffice 24.2.2 office suite Lollypop 1.4.37 music player* Magpie 0.9.3 window manager* MATE Calculator 1.26.0 Mate System Monitor 1.26.3 system resource monitor Nemo 6.0.2 file manager Parole 4.18.1 movie player Pipewire 1.0.5 audio controller Plank 0.11.89 desktop dock* Text Editor (gedit) 46.2 text editor Thunderbird 115.10.1 email client Tilix 1.9.6 terminal emulator Transmission 4.0.5 BitTorrent client Ubuntu App Center 1.0.0 package management system * indicates same application version as used in Ubuntu Budgie 23.10 supplied as a snap, so version depends on the upstream package manager
Once again in this release, there are no changes to the suite of default applications provided, just some updated versions, so it looks like the developers’ applications switchover plan outlined in April 2022 has been completed.
At one time, Ubuntu Budgie was basically a new, menu-driven interface for GNOME but, as can be seen, that is no longer the case and the applications are now a real mix from the GNOME 46, MATE 1.26, and Cinnamon 6.0.2 desktops, plus independent projects such as Guvcview and Mozilla's Thunderbird and Firefox.
Ubuntu Budgie 24.04 LTS continues to use the Cinnamon desktop's Nemo file manager. Nemo looks good and it works really well ,with many user choices available, but in Budgie's implementation it has no integral bulk file renaming. Adding a stand-alone bulk file renamer like GPRename is a good way to address that.
This release includes the LibreOffice 24.2.2 office suite which is complete except for LibreOffice Base, the database program. It is probably the least-used part of LibreOffice and can be installed if needed.
Conclusions
Ubuntu Budgie 24.04 LTS is a good solid release with no obvious vices, which should keep Budgie fans happy for the next three supported years.
The new developmental cycle starts with the next interim release, Ubuntu Budgie 24.10, due out on 10 October, 2024.
External links
Official website: https://ubuntubudgie.org/