Linux Mint 20.2 Uma BETA is now Available for Testing. Download details inside with feature round-up.
The upcoming Linux Mint 20.2 code-named “Uma” Beta copy is now available for download. We wrap up the new changes in this post and provide you the download details.
As per the last update received, the BETA .iso copy of Linux Mint 20.2 Uma has passed the QA testing. Hence it is safe to download and test. Although the official post is still awaited as of writing this post which is expected in a day or two.
Linux Mint 20.2 Uma is the second point release of the 20.x series which brings a major list of bug fixes, standard improvements, and some new applications in comparison to its predecessor Linux Mint 20.1 Ulyssa.
Table of Contents
Linux Mint 20.2 Beta – Features
In Brief: Packages and Components summary in Linux Mint 20.2.
- Based on Ubuntu 20.04.2 LTS
- Linux Kernel 5.4.0
- Cinnamon Desktop 5.0.2
- Xfce Desktop 4.16
- MATE Desktop 1.24
- Python 3.8.5
- Firefox 89.0
- LibreOffice 6.4.7.2
- New XApp Bulky 1.3
- Warpinator 1.2.2
Details:
Core
The Linux Mint 20.x entire series is based on Ubuntu 20.04 LTS. That means, the Kernel version, packages remain aligned to the Ubuntu LTS version. Hence with this release, you get Linux Kernel 5.4 and other stable core updates.
New App – Bulky
A new native application is introduced in the Uma release. Named “Bulky” – this desktop utility helps you to rename files and directories in batch. It has options like regular expression and other search features which help while remaining files and directories of similar patterns. It is primarily for MATE and Cinnamon flavor. The application is available as “File Renamer” in the application menu.
Warpinator Updates
Warpinator which is one of the best Linux Mint app used to transfer files across the Network (Wired and Wireless), brings more enhancement. In the next version, it gives you the ability to select the Network Interface which you want to use for file transfer. If you have both Wired and Wireless ethernet, you can select which one you want to use to share files to another device on the same selected network interface.
Not only that, but it also brings compression settings which enable “3 times faster” transfer across devices – provided both the machine have the compression enabled.
Nemo 5.0
The Cinnamon file manager Nemo version 5.0.1 brings file content search which is part of the Cinnamon 5.0 release. Today, Nemo only searches in the file and directory names for matching search criteria. With this enhancement, Nemo can search inside the file contents for a keyword. The team says that Regular expressions and recursive folder searches are also supported. This feature will be very useful for many users who use Linux Mint as a daily driver and work with many files as part of their workflow.
Others
“Nvidia-prime-applet 1.2.7 was backported recently. It contains a fix for a regression in ubuntu-drivers-common which made the applet disappear.
It also contains support for computers with AMD/NVIDIA hybrids (i.e. systems with an integrated AMD GPU and a discrete NVIDIA GPU).”
Linux Mint 20.2 Beta Download
The official announcement is still awaited. And mirrors are still being refreshed. But you can still download the .iso file directly from any of the official mirrors under the ‘testing’ directory. I have provided 3 of them for your reference. They contain the latest Linux Mint 20.2 .iso files for Xfce, Cinnamon, and MATE.
Linux Mint 20.2 Release Date
Linux Mint 20.2 Uma final releases on August 2021 – September 2021 timeframe. Following this release, the third installment of the Linux Mint 20.x series expected by end of 2021, following that a new release in 2022.
Make sure to download and test. If you need help or encounter issues, create a post in the official support forum.
