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40 Comments
- oobuntu, on 11/15/2007, -6/+29Am I the only one who thinks that online desktop is a bad idea? I didn't think "online sidebar" was a good idea on windows, so why would it be suddenly a good idea on linux?
If the online functionality is purely contained in the sidebar, then just call it the sidebar. I fear that they will integrate the latest online fads into more parts of the desktop environment. (On the other hand, it will make a bigger distinction between KDE4 and Gnome, and give users an easier choice, based upon their preferences) - linksus, on 11/15/2007, -1/+17OhYeah, SIDEbars are the future. Just like how i want to take it outSIDE and kill it with a large helping of /dev/null
- DrBob, on 11/15/2007, -0/+10No; I think it's a bad idea too. I'm all for integrating online services into applications (such as YouTube browsing in your movie player, last.fm support in your music player, and Flickr support in your photo manager), but I don't think we should scrap the desktop apps or any of the current desktop idioms and catch the bandwagon to online apps. Online preference storage seems quite cool though, although it's tainted a little by the fact that things don't use gconf properly (or at all) in many cases, so it could only really be used for core Gnome apps.
- seuaniu, on 11/15/2007, -4/+12If you had bothered reading the description under the link before you went to the site to have a look a the screenshots, you may have noticed that its pre-alpha. What that means is that it doesn't work, unless you're lucky. No, its not going to be pretty until the UI people have something to design for. At this stage the nuts and bolts are still being developed.
- nandorocker, on 11/14/2007, -4/+12He's got a point, though. Linux UI is, IMHO, ugly most of the time. Ubuntu, for one, has the ugliest default color scheme I've seen in an OS aside from Windows 1.0. I'm not saying the OS sucks, but design-wise, it could use some work. I understand this is pre-alpha, but it's good to keep that in mind. If Linux is to ever "make it" mainstream, it'll have to get over the hurdle of just looking like a second-grade Windows/Mac OS X and actually start being innovative and well-designed, aside from functional.
- TomKarpik, on 11/15/2007, -14/+22Wow. Has anyone over there considered hiring a *real* UI designer?
Ugly. - chronichyjinx, on 11/15/2007, -2/+8All this damn integration is horrible. Who says everyone uses Youtube!? or Facebook for that matter (like in gOS). It's especially horrible for the competition.
Did M$ not get in trouble for making windows prefer to use M$ applications? Same bloody thing is going on here people...
I understand you can change all this, but for all the noobs out there, it will just bring more traffic to the websites/companies that don't need it. - 0KonTroL0, on 11/15/2007, -0/+5I don't like it at all. If you are going to run Gnome, just run Gnome. Geez.
- rotten777, on 11/15/2007, -2/+6Well if you think the tonka toy XP interface was pretty by default, then you have issues. I have the Ubuntu theme on my laptop and have yet to change anything but the icon theme. I like it.
- FreakyT, on 11/14/2007, -1/+5No, no, everyone actually wants all windows to be the same drab shade of grey. As we all know, consistency is far more important than ANY other aspect of a UI.
- Ramble, on 11/15/2007, -3/+6Looks awful and is something I would never use. Eugh.
- inactive, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2That was active desktop, all that did was allow you to set a website as a background (and every time you restarted without shutting down correctly you got that horrible white error message and had to click a link for no apparent reason).
- nousplacidus, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2I agree completely with the above poster, but I would like to point out that the reason MS got in trouble is because they make lots of money from their software product.
- inactive, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2Having all the settings stored online seems nice, if things like pidgin kept my account information across computers it would be handy (i assume not my password). Even things like how I like to arrange my toolbars in openoffice (well I don't arrange them but if I did). Having an online list of my rss feeds aswell, like google reader but in a application like Liferea and remembering my folders for the rss categories.
I already use google reader for news and I keep my firefox bookmarks on del.icio.us so I can reinstall firefox in a few min (I have links to my extensions in a .xpi tag on del.icio.us so I can go down the list and click em off). Google reader doesn't integrate with the desktop though, so i can't have say a ticker on the wallpaper that pops up new news stories as they come in (this is probably a good thing from a productivity perspective since i spend hours reading crap already)
Obviously there are many core components - Dan2552, on 11/14/2007, -0/+2I've been looking forward to something like this, but I was hoping the username would be your gmail account - and then it let you access your email and documents straight off. GmailFS could be used to save settings...
- rotten777, on 11/15/2007, -1/+3It is also very anti-unix. The whole theology of unix is do one thing and do it well. Not mash up all the crap you can to do 30 things half-assed.
- sint4x, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2I think any improvement of intuitiveness, practicality and functionality would fall in the "innovation" category. I do see what you mean, however.
- inactive, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2Im sure you are being sarcastic but I whole heartedly agree with the above sentiment. though I have to point out colour themes != GUI
- buggu, on 11/15/2007, -0/+2This seems to be really pointless. Most of the services are going to be accessed through the web browser anyway, with the sidebar being a placeholder for launching those websites. Bar the few minor additions already available in the Gnome desktop, it seems to be a waste of space. Besides, since most online services are going to be used in a browser, why not simply use one like Flock, which integrates Youtube, Flickr etc.
- 44Bigs, on 11/14/2007, -0/+1It looks ugly, but interesting. All we need now are some good on-line productivity applications. The way this integrates with Google Docs looks promising, but that's about the most useful app around at this moment.
The Web 2.0 sauce make it look a bit cheesy too. - allywilson, on 11/14/2007, -1/+2To be honest I don't see the point of the sidebar (I still think the Vista sidebar is because microsoft were unable to come up with an idea equivalent to OSX's dashboard/widget system). It's totally time for some innovation on the GUI front from the opensource community - rebuilding imagination from the propriety world? Come on guys! You can do better! You are better!
- drgmdp, on 11/14/2007, -1/+2why does it look the same than a regular desktop? their nature is different, their interfaces should be too..
- mrjit, on 11/14/2007, -0/+1I like Zoho far more than Google Apps
- chronichyjinx, on 11/16/2007, -0/+1So true. If I wanted windows, I would use it.
- inactive, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1Who needs inovation for a gui ?
a gui design should be about intuitiveness, practicality and functionality. So tacking your bells and whistles simply because the end user wants a prettier desktop is doomed to comprimise the big 3. - kettlechips, on 11/14/2007, -0/+1It's not something I would use.
- inactive, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1yes we saw how well it caught on for windows 98se with its active desktop.
- nanostream, on 11/15/2007, -1/+2Talk about bashfest!!
- macoafi, on 11/15/2007, -0/+1There is a terrible lack of standardization among Linux wireless drivers. NetworkManager works with ones that use the Linux Wireless Extensions. If they use some other way of connecting, they won't work with NetworkManager. Incidentally, ndiswrapper seems to work with it fine.
- sirhomer, on 11/14/2007, -8/+8You can change the ***** color scheme you metrosexual
- SteveMax, on 11/15/2007, -6/+6This doesn't change the fact that the default one is ugly. I'd accept this mentality ("get an ugly default to force people to get used to customizing their desktops") on KDE, but it doesn't fit on a Gnome-centroc distro (whose motto is "let's make the default good enough for 80% of the users, and give hidden options for those 20% who don't like it").
- jsully, on 11/15/2007, -2/+2The only thing remotely nice about that is the wallpaper.
- GeekyGerge, on 11/15/2007, -2/+2As long as i don't have to carry for 3 hours then drop it in a missile, it's cool
- ptFoe, on 11/15/2007, -1/+1But does it support wallpapers for multiple desktops?
And proper support for the scroll wheel - zwaldowski, on 11/15/2007, -4/+3It's like Google Desktop for Gnome. I love it!
- FreakyT, on 11/15/2007, -7/+5Just like Gnome regular desktop, but ONLINE!
Incidentally, sidebars are the future of computing. - LordVoldemort, on 11/15/2007, -3/+1"My Desktop"
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"MY Desktop"?
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***** YOU! - inactive, on 11/15/2007, -3/+1Its pathetic, no before Im flammed to death here is why. Microsoft tried very similar crap back with win98se + ie6 ala active desktop and IT STUNK. I use google desktop but only for the ability to index my documents. The idea of having a big fat clock & calendar chewing up my desktop real estate is laughable.
- izzybr, on 11/14/2007, -6/+2Great. I hope is another half-usable, bleeding edge, 'release version', much like the new Network manager in Fedora 8. I love fedora, but it's stupid when soooo many people on the forums are switching back to FC7 because things in 8 weren't finished before the release
- idiggsrj, on 11/14/2007, -7/+1It's amazing.
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