Today, we are pleased to announce the release of MauiKit and Maui Apps 1.2!.
Are you a developer and want to start developing cross-platform and convergent apps, targeting, among other things, the upcoming Linux mobile devices? Then join us on Telegram: https://t.me/mauiproject. If you are interested in testing this project and helping out with translations or documentation, you are also more than welcome.
The Maui Project is free and open-source software incubated by the KDE Community and developed by Nitrux Latinoamericana S.C.
We are present on Twitter and Mastodon:
Stable release
The 1.2.0 version brings updates, new features, bug fixes, and an improved cross-platform and convergent experience from the apps and the framework.
For this release, the packages will be distributed directly from the MauiKit official webpage.
The packages for Linux AMD and ARM AppImages, Android APKs, Debian DEBs, and Windows EXE, will be released soon. We will keep you informed when this happens.
Some apps might be missing features or present some bugs; if it is the case that you want to report a bug or a feature request, you can open a ticket at the corresponding project repo; you can check the repositories at the Maui Invent Group.
Follow the instructions on how to file an issue.
We will have performance and bug fixes for the upcoming point releases for 1.2.1 and 1.2.2 before moving on to the 1.3 cycles, which will include new features.
For more detailed information, check out the previous posts from Maui Weekly:
https://nxos.org/maui/maui-weekly-report-5/
https://nxos.org/maui/maui-weekly-report-6/
https://nxos.org/maui/maui-weekly-report-7/
Apps
As of now, the Maui Project provides a set of applications to cover the basic set of standard utilities you might need on your personal computer, from a phone, tablet, or desktop:
A file manager (Index), music player (VVave), an image viewer (Pix), text editor (Nota), notes taker (Buho), terminal emulator (Station), contacts manager (Communicator), document viewer (Shelf), a video player (Cinema), a camera app (Booth), and web browser (Sol).
Some of the apps are in different states, most of them are stable, some of them are more feature-rich, and some others are in early stages.
We have been testing the apps on the PinePhone with Plasma Mobile, and they work quite nicely, there’s still work to be done for startup times, but we are on the right path to get you covered.
For this release cycle, we provide packages for Index, VVave, Pix, Nota, Buho, Station, Communicator, Cinema, and Shelf.
For users, we provide packages for Linux x64 and ARM (aarch64, a.k.a arm64) devices like Plasma Mobile, APKs for Android, and Windows installers for x64.
And for distribution maintainers, we provide links to the applications and the framework source code.
Index 1.2.0
https://invent.kde.org/maui/index-fm/-/tree/v1.2.0
What’s new
The Index file manager gained support for compressed file types, an embedded file previewer for font file types, archives, and other multimedia file types.
There are now more reliable configurations on the settings dialog, responsive support for split views, and a cleaner user interface.
When enabled now, there are thumbnail previews for video files and PDFs; this is only available on Linux; other platforms might get this feature in future releases.
The search field has been merged with the filter field, and the search now works correctly recursively.
For more details, you can read the previous MauiWeekly blog posts linked above.
Known issues
- Thumbnail previews for PDF and video file types are only available for Linux.
For reporting new issues, bugs, or feature requests, fill a ticket at:
https://invent.kde.org/maui/index-fm/-/issues
Roadmap
- Data syncing for cloud accounts using NextCloud API, there is already some work for it; further work needs to be done to bring it back.
Pix 1.2.0
https://invent.kde.org/maui/pix/-/tree/v1.2.0
What’s new
Optimized grid thumbnail preview sizes and shapes for small screens.
A better settings dialog with more options to tweak the browsing experience.
Paths are now added or removed correctly to the collection sources.
The database system has been dropped in favor of using the file system using MauiKits FileLoader for asynchronous loading images directly from the file system, meaning your collection is always up to date.
And overall, nicer browsing views for the tags, aka Albums and Folders views, with collage delegates that let you preview the contents and are updated dynamically.
A new information dialog.
Known issues
- The basic editing tools are only available for testing when using the KImageEditor component, only available on Linux.
- When AutoReload is enabled, and a new image is added to one of the collection sources, the whole collection is refreshed; this is not the desired behavior.
For reporting new issues, bugs, or feature requests, fill a ticket at:
https://invent.kde.org/maui/pix/-/issues
Roadmap
- Add simple image editing options, right now, thanks to KImageEditor tools like the rotation, flip, crop, and other transformation options are already implemented.
- Syncing of your image gallery across devices using NextCloud.
- Face detection using AI.
- Implement image metadata information with exiv2. Some initial work is done and should be ready for the next point release.
VVave 1.2.0
https://invent.kde.org/maui/vvave/-/tree/v1.2.0
What’s new
Gained MPRIS support on Linux and now can use multimedia keys from a remote control or keyboard function keys to control your music or any other services that consume the MPRIS Dbus API.
The backend for loading music files and creating playlists has been refactored to be faster.
The album and artists’ artwork providers have been fixed, and now the images are correctly retrieved from services like Spotify, iTunes, LastFm, MusicBrainz, and Genius.
Added a complete settings dialog with more options, like sorting, collection sources, artwork fetching, and many others.
The playlists view has been cleanup and now uses the MauiKit Tagging feature, so tracks added to a playlist, aka a tag, can also be browsed from Index, the file manager.
Several different small paper cut fixes were introduced, from the playback bar to the focus view.
The YouTube support has been dropped and is planned to be migrated into its own application.
Known issues
- The cloud view artist’s roll does not work for filtering.
- The streaming of cloud music files is not fully optimized and can take some time to load.
- Vvave makes usage of NextCloud Music app API, so this app should be installed in your NextCloud instance.
For reporting new issues, bugs, or feature requests, fill a ticket at:
https://invent.kde.org/maui/vvave/-/issues
Roadmap
- Faster streaming of cloud music files and full usage of the available API
Nota 1.2.0
https://invent.kde.org/maui/nota/-/tree/v1.2.0
What’s new
Faster loading times of text documents.
Correctly applying syntax highlighting styles when switching.
Added more options to configure the text document, like tab spacing, font sizes, and family.
A focus mode to hide distracting interface elements.
The improved workflow of split views and tabs.
Performance fixes on creation and deletion of tabs and splits.
The views for browsing the recent and local text documents have been reviewed and now use the newest MauiKit components and display more relevant information.
Known issues
- When the places sidebar is disabled, you can still peek at the sidebar by mistake from time to time.
- Rich text support is still not correctly supported.
- Some text document file types might not be recognized.
- Missing markup support.
For reporting new issues, bugs, or feature requests, fill a ticket at:
https://invent.kde.org/maui/nota/-/issues
Roadmap
- Add support for rich text file types and markup support.
- Support for loading external plugins to extend the functionality, initial work is already done, and some available plugins.
- Implement, find, and replace functionality.
Buho 1.2.0
https://invent.kde.org/maui/buho/-/tree/v1.2.0
What’s new
Redesigned books view with a bigger book and booklet pages.
The modal dialog popups for creating or editing notes have been removed to use stacked pages, resulting in more space.
The syncing and updating of notes is now better on internal or external changes.
The links view for collecting links has been dropped and is planned to be moved to Sol, the new Maui web browser app.
Known issues
- The syncing of notes can get mess-up if the internet collection is lost and the notes are modified; meanwhile, after the app is restarted, the notes might be modified and out of sync.
For reporting new issues, bugs, or feature requests, fill a ticket at:
https://invent.kde.org/maui/buho/-/issues
Roadmap
- Support for markup should come directly from MauiKit Editor and DocumentHandler components, benefiting Nota, and any other app using these components.
- Support for creating to-do lists.
- Improve the syncing of notes.
- Support for taking handwriting notes with Doodle component from MauiKit and image processing for translating the image to plain text.
Communicator 1.2.0
https://invent.kde.org/maui/communicator/-/tree/v1.2.0
What’s new
Redesigned views and contact pages, dropped the modal dialog popups in favor of stacked pages.
The backend was clean up and now adding or editing existing contacts is smoother.
The Contact page now has contextual actions depending on the field: email, phone, or address.
Known issues
- Android support was dropped due to some refactoring and code cleaning from MauiKit; Android support should be restored in the next point release.
For reporting new issues, bugs, or feature requests, fill a ticket at:
https://invent.kde.org/maui/communicator/-/issues
Roadmap
- Syncing of contacts using NextCloud API.
- Support for online accounts from NextCloud.
Station 1.2.0
https://invent.kde.org/maui/station/-/tree/v1.2.0
What’s new
Correct handling of split views and tabs.
Gained a settings dialog for basic configurations.
Known issues
- Station makes usage of QmlTermWidget; for the app to work, the version needs to be 1.0 and not later, which might cause the app to crash; this issue is still being investigated.
For reporting new issues, bugs, or feature requests fill a ticket at:
https://invent.kde.org/maui/station/-/issues
Roadmap
- Add more options to the settings dialog to further configuration.
- Improved touch UX interaction patterns.
Shelf 1.0.0
https://invent.kde.org/maui/self/-/tree/v1.0.0
What’s new
Preview thumbnails in the grid view for the document collection.
Updated interface using the newest MauiKit components, using AltBrowser for switching from list to grid views.
The usage of the Poppler library is now done using the binaries instead of building the sources for Android, macOS, and Windows.
Added support for CMake and added desktop file manifest for Linux.
Known issues
- Some of the viewer functions do not work.
- Bookmarks of document pages do not work.
For reporting new issues, bugs, or feature requests, fill a ticket at:
https://invent.kde.org/maui/shelf/-/issues
Roadmap
- Add support for other document file types, such as ePub.
Cinema 1.0.0
https://invent.kde.org/maui/cinema/-/tree/v1.0.0
What’s new
Cinema is a new app for playing video, browsing, and organizing your video collection by creating albums, aka tags.
It has support for not only quick-playing videos but also for queueing videos into a playlist.
Known issues
- Thumbnails previews for the video is only available on Linux.
- Some video file types might not have support, depending on the platform and available plugins installed.
For reporting new issues, bugs, or feature requests fill a ticket at:
https://invent.kde.org/maui/cinema/-/issues
Roadmap
- Polished the playback experience by allowing to have a different backend like VLC.
- Add MPRIS support.
MauiKit 1.2
https://invent.kde.org/maui/mauikit/-/tags/v1.2.0
MauiKit 1.2 introduces new components and a few more utilities for helping to build convergent applications. Some parts have been cleanup or dropped in favor of making MauiKit lighter.
There is still a big load of work ahead of us, and this new release takes us a step closer to that convergent future.
Since last May of 2020, when we had our first 1.1 stable release, we have been busy working on the framework components and utilities. With over 200 commits, later, we are ready to introduce the new 1.2 release.
What’s new
The updated components include SettingsDialog, Page, ToolBar, ToolActions, and AboutDialog, among other fixes for the rest.
New components:
- Separator.
- SettingTemplate.
- Platform – dependent integrations classes for different platforms.
- FileLoader – for asynchronous loading of files in the local filesystem.
- Thumbnailer – image provider for generating image previews of different file types from a file URL.
The FMH namespace implementation, which includes many useful utilities from file management, data modeling functions, etc., has now been moved to its won CPP file, clearing many compile warnings.
Some of the removed parts include the FilePreviewer, the Tagging TagsModel in favor of using MauiKit abstract modeling classes, and some Android platform functions like contacts loading, which only makes sense on Communicator, the contacts app.
Known issues
- The Thumbnailer right now depends on KIO, so it won’t be available for other platforms other than Linux.
- The Platform utility still lacks many needed functions and properties for getting relevant info like the presence or lack of input hardware, like a mouse, physical keyboard, or touch screens.
- Multi-selection with touch gestures is still not perfect and can accidentally cause scrolling.
Roadmap
- Data syncing classes and an improved API for it.
- Drop qmake in favor of fully using CMake.
What’s next for MauiKit & Maui Apps 1.3
- Enable syncing of data and images on Pix, files in the Index file manager, and of contacts in Communicator.
- Make Booth and Sol initial beta release.
Our plans for 2021 are:
- Fully utilize CMake.
- More feature-rich applications
- Improve data synchronization using NextCloud.
- Improve performance.
- Improve the UI cohesion on all supported platforms.
- Move beta apps to stable.