KDE desktop gets face-lift

The KDE Project on Wednesday launched the latest version of its desktop product for GNU/Linux and other Unix variants, KDE 2.2. The software features several improvements, such as greater stability, faster boot time and faster application launching, the group said.

KDE is a collaboration by hundreds of independent software developers working to create a graphical user interface for Linux and other Unix operating systems to compare with the usability of commercial operating systems. KDE, like Linux, is based on an open-source development model.

KDE said that improvements to the latest version include up to 50 percent faster application startup, increased capabilities and stability in HTML and JavaScript rendering, and a new personalization wizard.

The group will follow up the release later this month with the release of KOffice 1.1, a suite of productivity applications.

KDE 2.2 is available from KDE's Web site at www.kde.org.-- Matthew Broersma, ZDNet UK