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110 Comments
- soapboy, on 10/12/2007, -3/+45I think we have missed the point here. The article explains that this is not merely a dock transplanted from OS X. It is a physics engine, meaning it can do many things, a dock being one of them.
IMHO, linux has enough programs to give users dock functionality. Think superkaramba and it's ilk. GNOME taskbars are infinitely editable and should satisfy all but the extreme GUI junkies out there (no offense intended, I'm one of them). I would like to see what else Akamaru can do for the linux GUI that we have not yet seen. I believe THAT is the message of the article. - cdbeckman, on 10/12/2007, -2/+32You know, I've switched and become a mac user and I still can't stand this kind of elitism.
- aNoble, on 10/12/2007, -2/+30The webpage linked to is pretty vague. You really have to see it to belive it. I'd recommend going straigth to the video. http://youmortals.com/suse/compiz-quinn/vids/akamaru-dock.mpeg
It's a bit rediculous for a panel but it certainly has potential for a lot of other things. - MasteRR, on 10/12/2007, -1/+27http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8958142237254601573
Here is a Google Video for those that can't get the Mpeg to work.
Someone else posted it, just brining it up here to the top with the other links. - pbaehr, on 10/12/2007, -1/+25I don't understand why the submitter felt the need to separate Ubuntu and Linux. Or are they just relying on people digging anything with Ubuntu in the title?
- ahhell, on 10/12/2007, -12/+34What's the big deal?
If OSX is supposed to be so ***** amazing, why not try and emulate it? - Dracker, on 10/12/2007, -1/+23Instead of "Linux" it's "Ubuntu/Linux" in the title.
Yesterday someone in a comment to the drag and drop article named this practice "Ubuntu Pimping" - to get diggs just because so many Digg users are interested in this particular distro.
If it's for GNOME, have GNOME and Linux in the title for clarity, but no specific distro names. - adml_shake, on 10/12/2007, -0/+17Original? I think you need to remember where your pretty OSX roots are from my friend.
- Mejogid, on 10/12/2007, -0/+13"It's a bit ridiculous for a panel but it certainly has potential for a lot of other things."
It's certainly over the top, but effects like this can contribute surprisingly to the user experience. Take the 'wobbly windows' effect of XL - completely useless, but it makes the windows feel more natural and real when dragging (even though I can think of nothing in the real world that behaves as they do).
Having a physics based dock may do little from a functional point of view, but I think it could still prove use full.
On another note, the user is using xcompmgr - is a composited desktop (XGL/xcompmgr etc) necessary for this to run? I couldn't find anything on the subject in the article. - shakin, on 10/12/2007, -3/+16soapboy is correct. The OSX-like dock is just a tech demo. For demos it's useful to do something people are used to, but show how your tech can improve upon it. The demo does this fairly well and the video doesn't really show it being used as a dock at all. More like applying physics to icons and then tossing them around on the screen to see what happens.
As a demo it's great, but the functionality isn't very good yet. Hopefully some programmers can use this tech to make some really cool apps. - inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+13You're wrong. I can't think of how many times per day my boss calls me up and asks me to start dropping icons around my desktop to watch them bounce. This was hard with OSX, and damn near impossible in XP. My productivity has since skyrocketed, thanks Akamaru!!!
- playerx, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10You need to be composited to get the transparency otherwise there'll be black ugly boxes behind the icons. He is using compiz btw.
- jkeyes0, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8958142237254601573
- chris86wm, on 10/12/2007, -1/+10Do us a favor:
1. Unplug computer
2. Open window
3. Throw yourself out said window
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 if necessary - geoffp, on 10/12/2007, -3/+12Dudes --
QuickTime wouldn't play it for me, but VLC will just fine, reporting the codec as "DIVX". I think somebody silly called it an .mpg instead of an .avi. If I change the extension to .avi, QT will play it happily. - GlassCasket, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8@drakethegreat:
You're an idiot. How can commercial OS' such as Microsoft be steps ahead of Linux or even *nix in general? Several things which will be in Vista are already incorporated into Linux. IN my opinion, it seems that it's the bigger OS' that are taking ideas from Linux.
You also have to take into consideration that Linux developers program for barely any money, if any at all. But rather because they enjoy what they do.
And who gives a ***** if you don't like Gnome. They're are several other options, such as KDE, Fluxbox, XFCE... - blueigloo, on 10/12/2007, -4/+12Normal? Nothing but a fad. Its the distro of the moment.. not too long ago it was "Gentoo this, Gentoo that".
Gentoo - Linux for Ricers
Ubuntu - Linux for ... - playerx, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8No. Quartz is a compositing manager, linux has compiz, glxcompmgr and the cvs metacity.
- RadiantBeing, on 10/12/2007, -3/+10It didn't play in QuickTime but it played in VLC.
- nofxjunkee, on 10/12/2007, -2/+9/me laughs at drake ... behind in features? you have to install a damn linux compatibility library (cygwin) to get a usable shell in windows.
now that i'm done laughing, you are right that linux is behind in some ways that might stop grandma from using it (printing is still not flawless, wireless could use some work, etc) but in many others it's ahead of the pack. i run windows, mac os x and linux and though mac os x is most consistent, has the best keyboard shortcuts, and many innovative and useful time-saving apps (launchbar, quicksilver are 2 very useful ones), i still love linux because i use it everywhere from laptop to server, i can install it on any machine i use, and it comes with many useful apps and every last one is free to boot.
with things like FUSE (sshfs, wikipediafs and friends) you can't say we're behind in features, we just have different features than commercial OSs. ... (ok, userspace filesystems are from plan9, so what) - Visceral, on 10/12/2007, -4/+10Useless but fun looking :)
- M1ndless, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7Actually, gnome-dock is a separate project, which only tries to emulate the OS X dock and doesn't add any fancy physics. http://www.gnome-dock.org/trac
I've played around with this dock, It's pretty amusing, but obviously doesn't add any functionality. I'd love to see something truly innovative, like lowfat ( http://macslow.thepimp.net/?page_id=18 ) come to the Linux desktop. - LinuxZealot, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6I'd love to get this if it actually works. Right now I'm running XGL on OpenSUSE since I saw that dl tv episode. And for anyone who asks, Linux is far ahead of Windows Vista. Microsoft really should stop trying to be 15 minutes ahead of its time. It gets annoying after a while.
- playerx, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5It depends on gconf and gtk+, therefore the gnome name.
- tukten, on 10/12/2007, -5/+10Very cool. Very worthless as a dock.
- hexix, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8The problem with all these OSX-like docks for linux, is they are just application launchers. The dock in OSX is also your app-switcher and let's you know which apps are running.
I use to primarily use Linux, but now primarily use OSX. It took me a while to get use to the OSX way of managing my programs and windows, but now that I have I can't live without it. Whenever I go back to Linux or even Windows I'm annoyed by the fact that an new IM message can pop up and steal focus from my web browser. This wouldn't happen in OSX, as the web browser app currently is the active app, and no other app can steal the focus.
I think it should be possible to replicate the OSX model, but I'm guessing nobody cares to. I know KDE has the option to put the app menubar on the top of the screen, but it still doesn't do the app-focus (don't know what else to call it) that OSX does.
At least, as far as I know. - turpenine, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5it can steal focus if you specifically tell it to do that.
- kwojniak, on 10/12/2007, -3/+8QuickTime version here (532 KB):
http://tinyurl.com/rcrmy - ungamedplayer, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Normal, yes..
The right thing to do, no. But who am I to judge.
Btw, works out of the box on fc6t1. - antitab, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4"It doesn't seem to have progressed that much since then."
Clearly you haven't tried DR17 any time in the last year. - korteenea, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Well said... everything that Apple has done for Unix can be duplicated and improved upon for Linux. It's just that no one seems to care to try. I tend to chalk it up to programmers not really being too concerned about the user interface, but I suppose that's less true today.
What really needs to happen is there needs to be a team that can create a new desktop system or modify an existing one and that consists of not only great programmers capable of implimenting these changes well, but great designers who aren't afraid to question the way we currently interact with our computers. That's what Apple did, and it shows. - dpk87, on 10/12/2007, -3/+7Same for me (XP)
- xutopia, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Sometimes eye candy doesn't do anything but provide pleasing visual effects. Sometimes those visual effects are just annoying more than anything but this one looks like it gives a tangible feel to the objects you work with on your screen.
- inkswamp, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6> You know, I've switched and become a mac user
> and I still can't stand this kind of elitism.
I've been a Mac user since 1992 and can't stand it either. You're in good company.
> Original? I think you need to remember where your pretty
> OSX roots are from my friend.
And we all need to remember where our pretty GUI roots are from before we start splitting hairs in some platform/dick size war. - HobbesDoo, on 10/12/2007, -5/+9The video doesn't work for me. I'm on OS X. Am I missing something? All I get is a vertical thin bar and nothing else.
- DarkElf109, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Like your comment!
- inkswamp, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4> It's certainly over the top, but effects like this can
> contribute surprisingly to the user experience.
It can contribute to the user experience *IF* it serves a purpose. As cool as this effect is and as much as I can appreciate the difficulty of having programmed such a thing, I can't see what purpose it serves. In fact, removing an icon from the dock (apparently) caused the remaining icons to bounce around and fall back in different places. That would be a massive a headache if you're trying to keep it all organized.
I remember when Apple first unveiled all their effects and eye-candy in OS X and everyone carped endlessly about what a waste it was. The thing I noticed is that none of it was just for looks. It may have looked good *but* it served a purpose as well. - Dustyb, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3For the first time in my life, I'm almost compelled to install Linux.
- neko, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3If you wanted to be really specific, you could say Ubuntu GNOME Debian GNU/Linux... but that's more than a mouthful for most people.
- solidcube, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Isn't it obvious? They said ubuntu because ubuntu is the distro that everyone uses.
Or so it would appear around here. In other words, Ubuntu whoring. If Mac is the new black, Ubuntu is the new AMAZING! - neko, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4it's an AVI?
$ mplayer -identify akamaru-dock.mpeg
..
Playing akamaru-dock.mpeg.
AVI file format detected.
..
VIDEO: [DIVX] 1024x768 24bpp 25.000 fps 1270.7 kbps (155.1 kbyte/s)
oh yeah, didn't notice that, it's AVI/DivX after all, not mpeg. Huh. Someone stuffed up. - veritech, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Nice looking, but since when was it common practice to release software without a readme file?
- npodges, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2everyone needs to realize.. that the main point of this is the physics engine. they used the "silly dock" as a simple demo to show off a simple physics engine.
i think it's a great project. - markob, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Here is what I did:
download source
sudo make
sh ./populate-dock.sh
./akamaru - eckzow, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Sometimes I can get the app (not the dock) to run for a few seconds. But don't try to select grid. Or snake. Or...
Yeah, segfaulting is very alpha, this needed a lot of work before it was even ready to show to the guy's own mom, let alone publish on Digg. - korteenea, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2"You would start using linux because of bouncing icon toys and pretty desktop baubles?"
You make it sound like there's something wrong with that. If humans like pretty, tactile things in their user interfaces, then damnit, give us pretty, tactile things! The computers are supposed to be working for *us*, remember? - korteenea, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Agreed... those are things a good UI should think of. But this seems to just be a technology preview type of thing.
- seventoes, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3you can install gnome just for the libraries, so that you can run gnome apps. Im not sure about other distros, but ubuntu allows it. I run KDE apps all the time in my GNOME desktop.
- dpk87, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2youtube version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2qoF72PFic#GU5U2spHI_4 - DarkElf109, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2@kalisphoenix:
What, like security? -
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