New Ubuntu features allow Internet services to run like desktop applications

MarkShuttleworth, founder of Canonical, the parent company of UbuntuLinux, just announced at the open-source Conference (OSCon) that a new feature will be added to the Ubuntu Desktop version, allow popular Internet services such as GMail and Facebook to run as the website is like a desktop application. This feature will officially appear in the new version of Ubuntu12.10 (QuantalQuetzal) in February. However, the user does not need to wait for the time to experience this function.

Mark Shuttleworth, founder of Ubuntu Linux parent company Canonical, just announced at the open-source Conference (OSCon) that a new feature will be added to the Ubuntu Desktop version, allow popular Internet services such as GMail and Facebook to run as the website is like a desktop application.

This feature will officially appear in Ubuntu 12.10 (Quantal Quetzal), a new version in February. However, users do not need to wait for the time to experience the function. Ubuntu community administrator Jono Bacon said that the Ubuntu team has been working for a while, this feature will be available to Ubuntu 12.04 users in the next few days.

At present, there are about 40 such webapps, including Facebook, Twitter, Last. FM, and Google +. Currently, new features are implemented by calling the Firefox plug-in, but they also provide application programming interfaces (APIS) and Integrated script engines, allowing users to create their own desktop applications.

WebApps are integrated into Ubuntu Unity/HUD (Head-Up Display) instead of creating Web shortcuts on the desktop, so you can use Last. FM in audio control. At the same time, they are also integrated into Ubuntu APIs and programs, so you can also set a Gmail email receiving reminder in the Ubuntu message indicator.

This is another improvement in the integration of Ubuntu on the cloud. Last year, they integrated their personal cloud service Ubuntu One into the Ubuntu system. In fact, this is a natural process, such as Windows 8, Mac OS X Lion/Mountain Lion systems, and Google Chrome are integrating cloud services and Web sites and services into the infrastructure. As the most popular Linux release, Ubuntu is also actively following this trend.