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  • Gnome's 44 Software center marks Calibre as unsafe

So, as I was playing with opensuse MicroOS distro installed with gnome, I noticed that under it's software center in gnome, the Ebook management software known as calibre has been marked as unsafe, I heard that they marked all of Redhat's or Fedora's RPM items as unsafe too when I tried to look up in google about it, I found pages saying that gnome has been marking software that might be safe as unsafe, I used calibre for years on windows but this is a first that I am hearing that it might not be safe to use, its marked in red as unsafe because it can access files or something it reads along those lines, I also used calibre in normal linux like Solus 4.4 plasma, so what's the true is calibre safe or unsafe to use? and if its really unsafe, why do they keep it in their software center? Anyway if I recall its also in snap store and flathub too, but I don't think they have marked it as unsafe in red, such as software center from gnome has done so. Anyone have any Feedback on why it might be marked as unsafe, I think the software is safe, I used it for years now, for transfering free ebooks to my kindle paperwhite with my USB cord.

The software page itself recommends installing its Binary install direct from its website.

https://calibre-ebook.com/download_linux

Download for Linux
The latest release of calibre is 6.23.0. What's new.

Please do not use your distribution provided calibre package, as those are often buggy/outdated. Instead use the Binary install described below.

Binary install
calibre has a binary install that includes private versions of all its dependencies. It runs on 32-bit and 64-bit Intel compatible machines. To install or upgrade, simply copy paste the following command into a terminal and press Enter:

sudo -v && wget -nv -O- https://download.calibre-ebook.com/linux-installer.sh | sudo sh /dev/stdin
While you wait for the download to complete, please consider contributing to support the development of calibre.

Most RPMs on GNOME Software labeled as "unsafe" because it theoretically has access to filesystem. You can click on that "unsafe" label to know the details of what it means. Cheers!

    alfisya

    that unsafe thing makes it sound like its an dangerous app when its not, since I never seen calibre do anything bad to windows 11/10 or my eBooks as far as I know. unsafe in red and talk about how it could access to files and write to files being dangerous to the operating system that's the way it sounds, but I am sure that not true otherwise they would remove the app I would think instead of allow you to install it with their software center, thanks for the info, I will not trust anything from gnome software center, and use snap store or flathub instead, they sound like they can be more trustworthy than, gnome's software center app I guess whoever posts apps in that specific software center app has something against calibre and other stuff from redhat and fedora RPMs etc.. I read online they did the same thing to flatpak in it marking all their apps as being unsafe I read that in a few posts that are found in google searches. that's the way it sounds to me as a home user, since calibre is not an dangerous virus for linux nothing that bad is the red unsafe, because pretty sure I seen it under solus 4.4 Plasma software center it comes with and the same app calibre its marked as green as safe if I recall it was last time I looked or it was in something else but yes it was marked as green under solus 4.4, which is why I think something is wrong maybe with gnome 44 software center in Opensuse MicroOS Gnome installed version of it.

      Maximalprime2 under solus 4.4 Plasma software center it comes with and the same app calibre its marked as green as safe if I recall it was last time I looked or it was in something else but yes it was marked as green under solus 4.4, which is why I think something is wrong maybe with gnome 44 software center in Opensuse MicroOS Gnome installed version of it.

      Solus and MicroOS use completely different Software Centers. There is no way to mark "unsafe" apps in Solus' Software Center. But if any app was unsafe by any reasonable definition it would be removed, most likely. The definition GNOME Software seems to use here is "can make any sort of change to your filesystem" or "not sandboxed", which seems a bit strict / useless as information to present to the average user.

      See e.g. here https://gitlab.gnome.org/GNOME/gnome-software/-/issues/1450

        5 days later

        Staudey

        Solus and MicroOS use completely different Software Centers , thanks for the info does that mean that solus 4.4 does not have gnome software center in it?

        I have to check the iso image, I had downloaded again, but in any case I switch the linux I currently using from solus to fedora silverblue/kinoite versions for now, was going to use opensuse microOS with secure boot on but then the nvidia driver install went wrong on it, so I switch to fedora 38 versions of that, which seems to have a cleaner looking gnome and kde system or it just looks better than opensuse tumbleweed, I don't care for their default green images on it.

        I also used microOS but I find fedora method of doing that a bit easier I guess their about the same quality but last time I used microOS and tried getting the nvidia drivers installed I somehow broke the wifi connects in the system tray under plasma, it also required sign nvidia drivers like fedora silverblue but the one page so far its not broken but somehow I was able to break the opensuse MicroOS install, the wifi was still working under it but the wifi icon in the system tray went missing after I tried to install the nvidia drivers and sign them, I just of did something wrong but at this time I am not sure what, I did it was another late night being up working on linux, and I just don't recall how I broke it.

        I might of made of mistake or its in both, I got the nvidia drivers working in Fedora Silverblue yesterday, I gave up on opensuse tumbleweed the other day, I tried to install the nvidia drivers under it, and ended up with it breaking the OS, at bootup it when to the login prompt in its dos like linux terminal and didn't load either gdm or sddm, after I tried signing and installing the drivers, I might of broken it with prime-select nvidia I don't think that ment to be used with my 3D card. in any case I am sticking with silverblue and kinoite for now, but in kde plasma I do have to login with X11, wayland seems to do ghosting in the Launcher menu when selecting icons, with the nvidia driver 06 newest drivers for the nvidia rtx 2070 3D card, it seems to have some graphic bugs still with wayland for me, I don't know how to fix it, only effects the nvidia card in my desktop, wayland doesn't seem to have any problems laptop has nvidia rtx 1070 3D card I think.
        these two links are how I got it up and running the nvidia drivers with fedora, unlike opensuse which I think I might of had them working before, but when I reinstalled it I forgot the source I used for opensuse tumbleweed and microOS I think I messed up on the signing part on that os I am not sure, or an update to the console on it broke the method for making it work, or the fact I tried that prime-select nvidia thing which I think is a old how to on the web, I might of followed outdated information on that which might of been the problem.
        so far, the only problem I had with the info with OStree and both of them in the links below is just wayland on my desktop, otherwise this information in these two links worked perfectly for my laptop pc.

        https://rpmfusion.org/Howto/NVIDIA#OSTree_.28Silverblue.2FKinoite.2Fetc.29
        https://github.com/CheariX/silverblue-akmods-keys

        silberblue is gnome and fedora kinoite is kde, I still keeping my solus iso, but I am trying the ones like MicroOS, too , I was able to make fedora silverblue and kinoite work with the nvidia drivers and followed the instructions for signing the drivers for secure boot which isn't needed yet on solus but solus 5 might have to sign them I don't know yet. again logging into kde/plasma with X11 and the nvidia drivers don't see the same problem which exists on my desktop 3D card with wayland and its kde/plasma mode. which for whatever reason doesn't seem to effect my laptops 3D card, just the old desktop I used for linux.

        in any case, I loaded fedora 38 kinoite on my old desktop, for now, and loaded Fedora 38 silverblue on my laptop, since I like gnome better for my laptop use, in any case back to my main topic here that unsafe message is in a few items under software center on gnome 44 only like both opensuse tumbleweed and fedora 38 has the flathub packages marked as unsafe, I noticed a few other titles besides calibre is marked as unsafe, for example scummvm for playing old LucasArts games like day of the tentacle, and others such titles in linux, that package is also marked as unsafe under gnome's software center, like gnome from opensuse MicroOS like tumbleweed gnome is about the same when it comes to its software center, that loads flatpak and flathub packages, but the software center in kde doesn't have that unsafe rating system for the same apps, so if your using kinoite, calibre and scummvm will not be marked as unsafe since kde doesn't do that yet, it seems to be only gnome software center that marking the normal use items as unsafe.

        the unsafe items are only seen under gnome 44 software center with a few of the flathub/flatpak items like calibre and scummvm and a few other titles that should be safe that they marked as unsafe. I would think if solus gnome has software center in its gnome you might find the same items marked as unsafe too, if your installing it from the software center provided by gnome. also was able to make vlc work correctly from the terminal in kinoite, it crashes if installed from their software center, but manualing installing it with flatpak flathub command seems to work correctly, if any one else had that problem too sorry that info might be offtopic for this topic I wrote about unsafe apps, I don't recall if vlc is or is not marked as that.