Chrome 59 is rolling out now to Mac, Windows, and Linux with a number of developer-focused features and security fixes. The biggest addition is support for native macOS notifications and full support of the animated PNG format.
Under development for quite a while, the Material revamp of Settings is finally available with various controls now appearing and grouped together as cards.
A new blue action bar houses search, with a navigation drawer providing quicker access to various categories of settings like People, Appearance, and more. A dropdown for Advanced will reveal options for Languages, Printing, etc. The About Chrome page has also been redesigned in a similar style.
For developers, there is a migration guide for sending alerts via the Notifications API and chrome.notifications. .
This version also adds native support for animated PNGs. APNGs are similar to GIFs, but with support for both 24-bit images and 8-bit transparency. Long supported by Firefox, the format is gaining traction after Apple adopted it on iOS 10 for iMessage apps.
Version 59 also has a new feature that allows developers to run the browser from a command line. The Headless Chromium tool is specifically aimed at running automated testing and for server environments where a visible UI isn’t needed. Support is available on Mac and Linux, with a Windows implementation coming soon.
Chrome 59 for desktop is now available, with updates for Android and Chrome OS coming soon.
