The release of Fedora 28 marks another significant milestone for the Workstation edition. While many are excited about the modularity of the Server variant or the improved battery life handling, there is a specific set of updates that makes this release particularly important for our users in Eastern Europe.
From font rendering to localized input methods, Fedora continues to be the leading edge of the Linux desktop in our region.
GNOME 3.28: Better Typography for Cyrillic and CEE
The centerpiece of Fedora 28 Workstation is GNOME 3.28. For users in Poland, Ukraine, Russia, and the Balkans, the most noticeable improvement is the update to the Cantarell font.
In this version, the default interface font has seen a significant overhaul in character coverage and spacing. This fixes long-standing issues with specific Cyrillic glyphs and Central European diacritics, making the desktop feel native and professional right out of the box.
Regional Features and Localization
Fedora 28 introduces several “under the hood” changes that benefit the Eastern European tech ecosystem:
- Improved IBus Support: Switching between Latin and Cyrillic/Regional layouts is smoother, with better on-screen display (OSD) integration.
- Glibc 2.27: The new library version provides updated locale data for regional currencies and date formats, which is crucial for local developers and accounting software.
- Timezone and Language Selection: The initial setup (Anaconda) has been refined to better detect and suggest regional settings based on GeoIP, simplifying the installation process for non-English speakers.
Community Synergy
It is worth noting that many of these improvements come directly from the active community of contributors within our region. Fedora’s “Upstream First” policy ensures that these localization fixes are pushed to the core projects, benefiting the entire Linux landscape.
As highlighted in the regional tech analysis over at Lingonborough, the combination of Fedora 28 and GNOME 3.28 significantly lowers the barrier for entry for users who require robust support for Eastern European languages.
