Perl, Pipewire, LibreOffice Update in Tumbleweed

Tumbleweed snapshots didn’t lack excitement this week as multiple packages received updates and a couple major versions arrived for openSUSE rolling release users this week.

The 20230809 snapshot provided an update of GNU Compiler Collection. GNU Compiler Collection. The new 13.2.1+git7683 version for developers that rely on the compiler includes the 13.2 release and various fixes. Notably, the update addresses a patch for a broken testcase in libbacktrace, which resolves build issues on SUSE Linux Enterprise Server 12. GNOME users received an update of gtk4 4.10.5. The release addresses various issues, including fixing ordering problems with filter model signals, avoiding lingering resize cursors, and resolving alignment issues on the Scalable Processor Architecture. The fuse3 3.16.1 package, which is an interface for userspace programs to export a filesystem to the Linux kernel, had some enhancements with an ability to enable readdir kernel cache from the high-level Application Programming Interface. Office suite libreoffice received a minor version update to 7.6.0.2 a day after updating from the 7.5.4.2 version. This release incorporates bug fixes and updates to bundled dependencies, which ensures a more stable and feature-rich office experience. A third update this week of libstorage-ng 4.5.136 had translation updates for Indonesian. The upower package for power management and device information updated to version 1.90.2. Notably, the release marks the end of lid handling in UPower since the functionality will now be provided by logind. A few other packages updated in the snapshot like python-importlib-resources, which updated to major version 6.0.1 and removed legacy functions deprecated in 5.3; it require Python 3.8 or later.

LibreOffice was updated in snapshot 20230808. The change from 7.5.4.2 to 7.6.0.1 incorporates a wide array of features, bug fixes and improvements like the handling fonts. It fixed an issue with an infinite loop when changing the document language. The package added missing dependencies on Java Runtime Environment (64 Bit) for RISC-V 64. The pipewire multimedia framework updated to 0.3.77. This update included a fix for Advanced Linux Sound Architecture sources to prevent xruns and a new L permission to force node links. The Virtual Broadcast Audio Network module now supports Musical Instrument Digital Interface and a range of cleanup and fixes were made with the package. An update of KDE editor okteta to version 0.26.13 improves translations, decoding tables, and structures tools. It also improves CMake Unity builds that are now possible.

Some changes for GNOME became available in snapshot 20230807. The gnome-software package rolled out version 44.4. This update introduces several noteworthy improvements like enhancing error notifications from failed GPG checks and improving the handling of updates that involve the removal of some packages to fulfill dependencies. Perl enthusiasts will be delighted with it’s current major version release in Tumbleweed. The 5.38.0 version introduces a host of new features, including the class feature and support for unicode 15.0. The language also improves defined-or and logical-or assignment default expressions in signatures, and more. There was a significant deprecation in the release with the use of ‘ as a package name separator. There was some translation enhancements for Georgian users with openSUSE’s libstorage-ng 4.5.135 update. There was also an update of python-alembic 1.11.1 in the snapshot, which was also a major release. It modified calling signatures and had fixes for typing use of SQLAlchemy classes along with some enhancements in error handling.

Snapshot 20230806 had about a handful of packages updated. An update of the plasma5-desktop 5.27.7.1 includes a fix for an issue where applets did not return focus after pressing an applet shortcut, and a fix for a missing feature providing more fluid and seamless handling was made for the desktop environment. The 9.6.0 libvirt update includes an upstream commit to fix max file limits in systemd, contributing to smoother operations for virtualized environments. Python developers get an update that aligns with the latest changes in libvirt to ensure compatibility and seamless integration for Python-based virtualization tasks. The libzypp package management library underpinning openSUSE’s software management received an update to version 17.31.18. The version addresses the respect of ZYPP_READONLY_HACK when checking the zypp-rpm lock. Version 2.40.5 of webkit2gtk3 introduces several crash and rendering fixes, along with multiple security fixes addressing vulnerabilities like CVE-2023-38133, CVE-2023-38572 and more.

The Linux Kernel updated in snapshot 20230805. The kernel-source 6.4.8 release had some Btrfs fixes and some changes related to KVM (Kernel-based Virtual Machine) with the s390 architecture. The GNU Multiple Precision Arithmetic Library gmp 6.3.0 update brought better handling of integer overflow, enhanced error handling for malformed files and improved support for building Link-Time Optimization. An update of harfbuzz 8.1.1 addresses a regression introduced in the previous version. There were also optimizations made to speed up font loading, subsetting and shaping. The 4.6/6 yast2-installation update fixed a status label toggle issue and improved the user interface and experience during software installation. The first of three libstorage-ng updates for the week came with the 4.5.134 update in this snapshot.

Graphics improved in snapshot 20230804 as Mesa 23.1.5 updated. The release notes show that several fixes were made to different graphics drivers, including Radeon, ANV and more. The Intel ANV driver no longer experiences GPU hangs on Multisample Anti-Aliasing tests with Angle. Gamers might enjoy the SDL2 2.28.2 update.The software package takes a leap forward by addressing various issues and ensuring better compatibility. The update fixes controller lockup initializing some unofficial PS4 replica controllers, according to the changelog. An update of openssl-3 3.1.2 addresses potential vulnerabilities that include excessive time spent checking DH parameter values and proper handling of associated data entries with AES-SIV encryption. The update of dracut introduces a series of critical fixes and features. These improvements covered a wide range of areas, including systemd-udevd, systemd-journald, base functionality, and more. The openssl-3 3.1.2 update includes fixes for the proper handling of associated data entries with AES-SIV encryption. Another update in the snapshot was made to for the policy analysis tool for SELinux; The setools 4.4.3 version includes better compatibility with Cython 3.0.0 and enhanced manpages.

Tumbleweed users have the option of choosing between open GPU kernel modules or proprietary drivers and can get more information on using NVIDIA GPU drivers on openSUSE Tumbleweed. Tumbleweed users are presented with a choice between open GPU kernel modules and proprietary drivers, and can find guidance on using NVIDIA GPU drivers on openSUSE Tumbleweed. Within the openSUSE repositories, NVIDIA’s proprietary drivers are available for installation through zypper. It’s important to recognize that these proprietary drivers originate from the NVIDIA repository due to licensing restrictions. Additionally, users can enhance their experience with improved download accessibility and reduced latency by enabling the 3rd party NVIDIA repository. Furthermore, users can elevate their experience with enhanced download accessibility and reduced latency through the sponsorship of a CDN subscription by Fastly.com, benefiting download.opensuse.org.