Linux Mint 21.2 Officially Launched With Latest Bug Fixes And Enhanced Features

An updated iteration of Linux Mint, a renowned Linux distribution, has just been released. While it is downloadable from servers, the official website has yet to be updated to formally declare the fresh release.

Linux Mint 21.2 marks the second incremental update within the Linux Mint 21 sequence. The original edition was rolled out in August 2022, followed by Linux Mint 21.1 in December of the same year.

Although upgrades are not yet activated, most users should find the built-in Upgrade Tool functional. Standalone ISO images are currently accessible for all three variations – Cinnamon, Mate, and Xfce – on the official download mirrors.

Support for Linux Mint 21.2 extends until 2027. Prior to the launch of the next major version, Linux Mint 21.3, the Linux Mint team plans to release another incremental update.

The official posts detailing the “What’s New” features are already available but are not directly linked from the main site. These posts can be accessed by navigating to the respective Cinnamon’s, Mate’s, and Xfce’s official pages.

A considerable amount of effort was invested in visual enhancements within Linux Mint. Cinnamon, one of the desktop variants, now flaunts design styles intended to “facilitate a seamless transition to visually appealing options and quick exploration of available themes”, irrespective of the themes installed individually.

Users of Linux Mint can opt for one of the provided styles, a visual setting – which can be mixed, dark, or light, and a color scheme. Users desiring more customization can toggle on the advanced settings link to revert to the previous method of setting themes individually.

There are a host of common changes across all three desktop environments. Notable additions encompass the ability to switch between distinct keyboard layouts from the login screen, a redesigned user interface for the Software Manager, substantial enhancements to Pix – an advanced image viewer and browser – with extended support for AVIF/HEIF, improved performance, and backing for RAW, Gif, and TIFF formats, alongside support for larger thumbnail sizes, and much more.

Folder icons are now displayed in a dual-tone style, with new color schemes introduced in this update. Tooltips throughout the system now sport a “larger, rounder, and more spacious” appearance, thereby ensuring consistent aesthetics across all desktop environments.

The implementation of XDG Desktop Portal support for XApp has been integrated for all desktop environments by the developers. This advancement betters the compatibility between desktop environments and non-native applications, such as flatpaks and GNOME apps.

Speaking of desktop-specific alterations, some notable updates are as follows:

• Accent colors are now utilized in Cinnamon notifications. (Cinnamon)
• Support for gestures has been included for window management, workspace administration, tiling, and media controls. (Cinnamon)
• XReader now has the capability to handle Adobe Illustrator files.

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