The WebKitGTK team has announced the release of a new stable branch, WebKitGTK 2.48.0, which is a port of the browser engine WebKit for the GTK platform. WebKitGTK allows users to utilize all the features of the Gnome-oriented software interface based on GObject, and can be integrated into various applications for web-content processing tools, from specialized HTML/CSS parsing to full-function web browsers. Notable projects that use WebKitGTK include the standard Gnome browser, Epiphany.
Previously, WebKitGTK was used in the Midori browser, but after the project transitioned to the Astian Foundation, the old version of Midori was abandoned and a new product with the same name was created.
Key changes in WebKitGTK 2.48.0 include:
- For WebGL, support for using a separate process for GPU interaction has been implemented.
- In cases where the GPU is used for rendering, drawing of page parts is transferred to worker streams.
- The Glib API in JavaScriptCore has added a function for creating Promise objects.
- MediaRecorder now supports the WebM format, requiring at least GStreamer 1.24.9.
- Added support for fine-tuning audio output.
- Support for Opentype-SVG fonts has been reinstated.
- PDF documents generated for printing now include metadata such as title and creation/change date.
Based on WebKitGTK 2.48.0, the release of the Gnome Web 48 browser (Epiphany) has been formed. The main changes in the Epiphany browser include:
- Expanded dialogue options for navigation history with reduced screen update operations and added reader mode.
- Added a warning when disconnecting from a site’s data storage access.
- Ability to close pinned tabs.
- Simplified interface for importing bookmarks and passwords from other browsers.
- Implemented cyclical scrolling for elements in the dropdown address bar.
- Improved mechanism for autofilling password fields.
- Added a page reload option in the context menu on the new tab opening page.
- Enhanced dialogs for managing bookmarks and displaying privacy-related information.