Release Notes for the SbK Gnome 23.0.0 release.

I am not trying to reinvent the wheel. My main goal is to polish the desktop environment and application selection.

This spin is based on the Manjaro stable branch. Manjaro is a rolling release distribution and based on Arch. The stable branch may not be as bleeding edge as Arch Linux. But it more up to date than a lot of other distributions.

A lot of theming work went into this release. A benefit of the work is that now all SbK themes have a Gnome Shell theme instead of just the one used for Gnome. This makes the goal I have had for some time of interchangable themes a reality for all releases.

Both iso's in this release include:
1. The 6.1.31 LTS kernel.
2. The following Gnome shell extensions are installed and used:
 Dash to Dock
 Hide Top bar (The top bar is hiddin by default. Moving the cursor to the top edge will show it.)
 Desktop Icons NG (It is enabled. But end users will have to manually set  for launchers to be executable, or trusted. Until then they will have the generic launcher icon and will only open as a text file.)
3. Minimize and Maximize window controls.
4. The Lavender7 shell theme based on Rounded Rectangle thats been heavily modified.
5. The New KoraSpin-Lavender2 icon theme with light and dark versions.
6. The new SpinThemeDarkLavender7 matching Gtk and Kvantum themes in one package.
7. The new Usplash-23.0.0 desktop wallpapers. One of them is the background for the grub, desktop, and login screen backgrounds.
8. LightDM instead of GDM with lightlocker screen locking.
9. The iso's are up to date as of 6/7/2023.
10. Gnome icon in dock to bring up applications. Its color matches the shell theme.
11. A LibAdwaita Lavender7 theme. Please visit https://spins.tuxfamily.org/libadwaita.html for more information and other color options.
12. An optional Firefox theme, SbK Dark Lavender7,  that matches the color scheme is available at https://spins.tuxfamily.org/ffthemes.html just click on the image in Firefox to install it.


Both iso's also contain the standard SbK features.

1. The latest LTS kernel.
2. A Manjaro stable install that is also AUR compatible with a lot of packages used to build packages installed..
3. It is multiarch by default to make running wine games and other 32bit software you may run easier.
4. The Spins by Kilz signed repository is enabled for SbK project packages.
5. A signed iso. For information on checking signed iso's visit https://spins.tuxfamily.org/check.html
6. Bloatware has been removed (HP printer software and others).
7. Flat packs and snaps are not installed. The back ends are also not installed but can be installed by the user.
8. All SbK iso's contain Manjaro Architect script in case you want to do a custom install. To get any SbK packages like themes, icons, and other goodies you will have to add the SbK Repository http://spins.tuxfamily.org/repo.html after install.
9. Timeshift autosnap installed. It takes a snapshot before upgrading so any bad upgrades can be easily reversed.


Full iso

This iso is recommended for new Linux users. It has a lot of nice applications to make the desktop more functional. Everything can be changed with the package manager if you prefer something else.


Minimal iso

********* The minimal iso is not recommended for people who are new to linux. *********

The minimal iso is a bare bones install with few applications, themes or icons. Knowledge of what you want to install is required. That's not to say that a new linux user cant find the information. But a lot of research will need to be done to make the desktop easy to use. 
It is meant to be a canvas that allows the user to install the applications they want and nothing more. As such you will likely have to install a lot of applications. The minimal iso only contains the base fonts, icons, and themes. You will have to install others if you want to change the look of the os.

Thank you for trying this spin out,

Kilz 

Disclaimer: This is a FOSS project. It relies and builds on the work of a great many others. It is covered under the GPL3 though some parts of it may be under other free software licenses. Absolutely no warranty is implied or offered. This includes but is not limited to fitness of use or data.