Fedora 44 made me forget I was using Linux – in the best way
Fedora 44 made me forget I was using Linux – in the best way
https://www.zdnet.com/article/fedora-44-takes-the-distribution-to-new-heights/
Publish Date: 2026-05-05 21:00:00
Source Domain: www.zdnet.com
Jack Wallen and Elyse Betters Picaro/ZDNET
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ZDNET’s key takeaways
- Fedora 44 is now available, and it’s something special.
- There are tons of improvements on just about every level of the OS.
- You can download and install Fedora 44 for free.
Ah, Fedora Linux. I’ve used, abused, tested, and loved it for a long, long time. With each iteration, this open-source operating system has improved on its previous outings, sometimes with small steps and other times with great strides. There have been releases that showed remarkable improvement, while others only moved the needle the slightest bit.
Fedora 44 falls somewhere in between, while at the same time taking Linux to new heights.
Let’s talk about this latest release.
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I downloaded the flagship edition, which ships with the GNOME desktop. I’m not going to lie, I’ve kind of had a falling out with GNOME, mostly because the likes of COSMIC and KDE Plasma have both jumped ahead of GNOME in both aesthetics and usability. However, that should not be seen as an attempt to deride or discount the desktop. With Fedora 44, you get GNOME 50, which elevates the DE to be on par with those that have surpassed it over the past few years.
GNOME 50 is as polished as this desktop has ever been, and Fedora 44 puts that on display.
One aspect of GNOME that has been outstanding over the past decade is its rise to being one of the most stable desktops on the market, and Fedora 44 really highlights that. No matter how I used this workstation distribution, the desktop never failed. It’s as rock solid as any desktop I’ve ever used. On Fedora 44, GNOME 50 is lightning fast and steady. I never once worried that GNOME would cause a single issue.
I realize that GNOME is not everyone’s cup o’ tea, but I sincerely believe that if you give it a go, you’ll find it to be much simpler and more efficient than you might have thought.
But this isn’t about GNOME 50, it’s about Fedora,…
