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In February 2021, Xfce, one of the lightweight desktop environments for GNU/Linux distributions, received a bunch of updates for its apps and core components.
The star of this month is Xfce’s Task Manager, which received two updates for its stable 1.4.x series up to version 1.4.2, to implement better color that works well with both light and dark themes, as well as to fix various bugs.
In addition, development kicked off on the next major Task Manager series, which introduces many changes and improvements, including support for Client-side decorations (CSD), the migration of all of its settings to the Settings dialog, port to xfconf, and much more.
Thunar, Xfce’s awesome file manager, also received an update this month to version 4.16.3, which introduces the ability to display all available volumes by default, increases the minimum size of the text field in the bulk renamer, and fixes three regressions, one of which is for toggling the visibility of the menu on F10 if its hidden.
Also updated this month is the Xfce Panel, to version 4.16.2, which adds icons to the Help and About items in panel menu, more modern documentation, and various translation updates.
Moreover, the panel profiles received three new layouts, including the Xfce 4.16 layout, as well as the Cupertino and Redmond 7 layouts to make your transition from macOS or Windows operating systems to Linux easier.
Xfce 4.16 
Cupertino 
Redmond 7
Several plugins were updated as well, such as the CpuFreq plugin which now displays governors even if they differ among CPU cores and enables fixed units in the frequency text box, and the Weather plugin which features an improved forecast window and many bug fixes.
The CPUGraph plugin now records CPU load data even if the chart is currently disabled, supports per-core history graphs, enumerate CPU cores from 0 instead of 1 to match Linux command-line tools, and offers improved performance of current CPU usage bars, LED rendering, and grid rendering.
Arriving late on the 28th, the Mousepad 0.5.3 text editor switched to the old style menu alignment and added a new keyboard shortcut for resetting the font size. Same goes for the Timeout plugin, which helps you take periodical breaks from your computer, with various bug fixes and translation updates.
That’s it for Xfce’s apps update in February. If you’re using the Xfce desktop environment on your GNU/Linux distribution, please update your installation to receive the new apps and plugins for a better experience.
Images courtesy of XFCE Nation and Sean Davis.
Last updated 3 years ago
