KDE Applications 19.12 Now Available Packed With Highlights

As we are used to, almost like a Swiss watch, KDE Community has fulfilled what it had programmed and a few moments ago it launched KDE Applications 19.12.0. This is the third major update of their suite of applications, the twelfth if we count the minor updates they release to polish the software. As a major update, the new KDE applications come with outstanding news, but we will have to be patient if we want to use them even if we have added the project's Backports repository.

As of this writing, the release is official, but the only way we can use KDE Applications 19.12.0 is by using their code. In fact, KDE Community says that the release is available for general consumption, but the version intended for the public will be that of January 9, coinciding with v19.12.1 of its suite of applications. Below you have a list of news highlights that you have mentioned in your release note.

Highlights of KDE Applications 19.12.0

• Calligra Plan has been updated with great news after two years.
• The new version of Kdenlive will be a great release, just as as promised. It comes with more than 200 changes. Many of the improvements are related to audio. There is a new sound mixer.

• Improvements in Dolphin include new search and navigation functions. The previews have also been improved, which now allow you to play GIFs, for example, just by selecting them. Other items that can be previewed are .cb7 comic file covers. If an external drive cannot be unmounted, now it tells us which program is preventing it.
• Improvements in KDE Connect, which includes a new SMS application that allows us to read and write SMS while viewing the entire conversation. On the other hand, we can control our computer from our mobile, specifically some parameters such as the playback volume of some software.
• Gwenview now allows you to adjust the compression level of JPEG files. Moreover, the performance for remote images has been improved and photos can be exported / imported to remote locations.
• Okular also supports the .cb7 comic format. Includes support for touch screens.
• KDE Music Library / Player Elisa has enhanced its image to better fit HiDPI displays. It has also improved the integration with other KDE apps and their indexing. This version also supports web radio stations and includes some examples so that we can test them.
• Like Okular, Spectacle also includes support for touch screens. A new autosave option has been added so that the images are saved as soon as the screenshot is taken (until now, you had to click the "Save" button or we would lose the image once the window was closed). Improvements have also been included in the animated progress bar that indicates the time until the screenshot is taken.
• Browser integration with Plasma has been improved, including a blacklist for multimedia controls. This feature is designed to avoid confusion on web pages where there is a lot of content to play. This new version also includes the ability to keep the source URL in the metadata file and adds support for the Web Share API, which allows us to share links, text, and files just like other KDE apps do.
• Complete list of changes to this link.

As we've explained above, the release is now official, but we won't be able to use it until later unless we use its code. More specifically, what they have released today is more intended for distributions that use KDE software to prepare them to include them in their operating systems. KDE Community is waiting for the release of at least one maintenance version (the last time was the third and last one) to add the new versions to its Backports repository.

KDE Applications 19.12 will be the version of the KDE app suite that includes Kubuntu 20.04 Focal Fossa, something else would be a surprise. The v20.04.0 will be released the same month as the operating system, so you shouldn't have time to add it in the new release.