OpenShot 3.3 video editor screenshot

A new version of OpenShot video editor is out (a video editor which doesn’t have the best reputation for stability hence the nickname OpenShut).

OpenShot—more accurately, ChatGPT or similar1—says “OpenShot 3.3 is here to transform your editing experience! This release is as powerful as it is beautiful […] Take your video editing to the next level with OpenShot 3.3. Download it now and see the difference”.

The headline change in OpenShot 3.3 is the use of a new default theme called Cosmic Dust. This apparently offers a “modern editing experience”. The new theme looks nice, it I’m not sure it does anything to the editing experience – UX ≠ UI.

Elsewhere, OpenShot 3.3 delivers ripple editing improvements, including playhead alignment during ripple slicing, multi-layer selections which are said to “effortlessly” realign the timeline on move, ripple delete (with keyboard shortcuts), and ripple select.

Users also get “seamless navigation” in the zoom slider, can “seamlessly” recover projects” using a new time-based recovery menu, and benefit from “simplified handling” of multi-file drag and drop of files on to the timeline.

Other “major” changes include the properties dock opening when an effect or keyframe is clicked; “streamlined workflows” through a new project profile matching feature; and an updated About dialog with word-wrap support and a “Copy Version Info” button.

Given this software’s rep, plenty of fixes abound. Most notably: resolutions to Windows 11 audio sync issues, making the colour picker on Linux work under Wayland sessions, and preventing timeline gaps from being inserted after innocuous actions.

Auditory hallucination?

To underscore why I’m cold on GPT-generated release announcements in software, OpenShot 3.3 is said to ship with a ‘brand new audio library’, but doesn’t mention which, what platform, or how it matches the claim of “improved compatibility” on what went before.

Keen to find out, I read through the (also GPT-generated) release notes on GitHub only to find that a new audio library/engine isn’t mentioned at all. The only notable audio tweak listed is the addition of ‘customisable audio buffer size in preferences’…

Which doesn’t sound like the same thing.

Get OpenShot 3.3

If you’re interested in trying OpenShot 3.3 out, you can download the latest release for Windows, macOS, and Linux from the project website.

Linux users can also get the app from Flathub, use the the official AppImage, or add the official OpenShot PPA to install prepackaged builds for Ubuntu 18.04 LTS (yes, 18.04) and up.

To add the OpenShot PPA, run:

sudo add-apt-repository ppa:openshot.developers/ppa

Then install OpenShot (and dependencies):

sudo apt install openshot-qt

Finally, launch OpenShot from the Applications menu.

  1. Nothing says “I’m passionate about my project!” like using generative AI to distil that enthusiasm for you through transition words, unqualified adjectives, copious colons, and hollow marketing terms like seamless — I’m amazed nothing got elevated or empowered in this update! ↩︎