I thought the same thing with KDE3
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| Author | Content |
|---|---|
| nalf38 Jul 15, 2008 11:08 PM EDT |
So, in other words, I'm not sure what the big deal is. The times that I have used KDE 4, I thought the same things when KDE 3 first came out: namely, where are the applications? That's what makes the platform. |
| tuxchick Jul 16, 2008 7:01 AM EDT |
People have short memories. The transition from Gnome 1.x to 2 was also greeted with outrage and despair, and users didn't even have the safety net of 1.x to fall back on for very long, since it was pretty much abandoned not long after 2.x was released. |
| krisum Jul 16, 2008 10:04 AM EDT |
But the number of linux users has increased dramatically since the gnome 1.x - 2.x time (or KDE 1.x - 2.x which also had issues). |
| tracyanne Jul 16, 2008 1:39 PM EDT |
Since I started testing Mandriva Linux 2009.0 Alpha my opinion of KDE4 has changed somewhat. I've been able to find some really exciting new functionalities, and so there is obviously more to it than the eye candy plasmoids on the desktop, which are, to me, worse than icons, as they take up even more space and create an even bigger visual disconnect, while not supplying any genuine additional functionality. On the other hand since I stared using Mandriva's implementation, it's obvious and easy to resize the task bar, there's still not a lot of additional functionality, that wasn't in KDE3, and even some functionality that wa in KDE 3 that is still missing, for example you can't resize the task bar vertically (it's like to be able to make it smaller, and you can't hide the task bar yet, but I now recognise that KDE 4.1 is still very much Alpha software (as is the release of Mandriva 2009.0), and my expectations of it are suitably lowered. Dolphin lacks functionality, as in deed does the version of Konqueror that is currently available, Dolphin lacks more functionality, in the pursuit of simplicity, I suppose, it does have some nice additional functionality that i need to explore further, to see if it is actually useful, for example the semantic desktop. But the missing bit from both Dolphin and Konqueror, are, to me, is ike having my right arm amputated (I can work quite well left handed, and often do, but it's not as easy, and I get less done). For example Dolphin has no means, as far as I've been able to discover, of opening a console window, this is something I do a lot more than I ever realised(and the console opens in the current directory, which is invariably where I want to be), because it's incredibly convenient on the current version of Konqueror. I can't do that with Dolphin, I have to open Konqueror, which lacks the new functionalities such as the semantic bits, so If I want to use the console functionality and the semantic functionality, I have to have both Dolphin and Konqueror open. So I'm assuming they are going to fold this functionality into Dolphin, but haven't got there yet. Another thing Dolphin lacks, which is also missing from this version of Konqueror, and here I really do feel as if someone has tied my right arm behind my back, is some of the ways of viewing the file system are missing, and the one I use all the time is one of the missing ones. All that is available is Icon View, Detail View (which is like a cut down version of Detailed list view) and Columns (which is a simplified version of the Window -> split functionality). Dolphin has two additional options Preview and Split. But without Multi Column View, I feel blinded, I also feel that my choices have been reduced, not enhanced. But this is Alpha software, and I live in hope that it will improve. more to come... |
| dinotrac Jul 16, 2008 3:52 PM EDT |
I've been using KDE a long time, going back to the spring of 1998. I installed -- and used -- pre-release versions of 1.0, 2.0, and 3.0. They were mostly pretty good, and lined up with my expectations. 3.0 did start out a little bumpy...but, hey, what's a little excitement between friends? KDE 4 has been different in several ways. First and foremost, KDE 3 really is a very good desktop relied upon by a large number of people. KDE 2 had to contend with KDE 1.1, and that wasn't too hard. KDE 1.1 didn't even have konqueror yet, and konqueror is KDE's killer app. KDE4 has to contend with KDE3. That's a whole lot harder. Second, KDE4 has taken a long time, about 3 times longer than prior releases. From a developer's standpoint, I'm sure that's a lot of wanting to make it really cool and good. From the user's standpoint, it's also making us wait a long time. After such a long wait, you tend to anticipate something special and, so far, that doesn't seem to be the case. Third, and, perhaps, worst -- some pretty bad attitude by developers. Without wanting to excuse nasty bleating by users, let's face the facts: You didn't choose to work on KDE because you wanted to do some nifty little thing for yourself and a few of your friends. You chose to work on KDE because it is cool and because it is very well known. In short, you chose to work on it, in large measure, because it has a lot of users. When you make that choice for those reasons, you don't get to pretend that users don't matter and you don't get to claim that users have no right to complain. Very bad karma. For what it's worth, folks like Aaron seem to grasp that dynamic, and I am confident that things will get better. Wouldn't surprise me at all if, a year from now, I wonder how I ever managed to get anything done with KDE 3.0. In the meantime, some thick skin and a little PR -- along with tending to legitimate complaints -- can go a long way. |
| tracyanne Jul 17, 2008 1:40 PM EDT |
Mandriva seem to have listened to user complaints about the Kickoff Menu and configured it's implementation of KDE 4 with the Classic menu as the default menu, a good choice, I believe. Neither drakconf, nor kcontrol can be found on the menu, and kcontrol is no longer available anyway, it's been replaced with systemsettings. The menu editor is now accessed from the the menu's right mouse click context menu, so I opened the menu editor and added drakconf and systemsettings to the menu. Interestingly drakconf was on the menu, under it's menu name of 'Configure Your Computer', but it isn't displaying on the menu, more Alpha weirdness. Drakconf hasn't changed since 2008.1. Systemsettings is quite different from kcontrol, it's layout much better. The usual suspects for desktop customisation are still there. Selecting the Desktop option takes you to a new Form that gives you access to 'Desktop Effects', 'Multiple Desktops', 'Screen Saver' and 'Launch Feedback'. You can set up multiple desktops just the same as on KDE 3, but what is missing from here is the option to scroll through the desktops using the scroller on the mouse, I haven't been able to find it anywhere else either. Desktop Effects has a a General (Basic) option and an All Effects tab. In the all Effects tab one can set many of the types of eye candy type functionalities that are available on the Compiz Fusion desktop. I discovered that transparent Window effects can be controlled from here. I don't like transparent Windows, so I turned the effect off. It was in the All Effects tab of Desktop effects that I discovered the Desktop Grid effect. with this one can display all of one's desktops in a grid, like a super version of the pager, but integrated into the desktop, I like it. So I set up 9 desktops, now I can get an effect similar to the Metisse desktop only with multiple desktops rather than multiple areas on a giant single desktop. As soon as the ability to customise each desktop individually is available - from 4.2, so I'm told - I'll be trying out some customisation ideas, that I will apply to each of the desktops. Currently I can drag and drop any of the plasmoids onto the desktop, except the Folder View plasmoid, which causes the desktop to turn black and the task bar to disappear, definitely an Alpha Bug. |
| jacog Jul 17, 2008 10:15 PM EDT |
Bah, I prefer kcontrol to the systemsettings thing m'self. |
| gus3 Jul 17, 2008 10:44 PM EDT |
Give me "vi" and a file in /etc any day. Heh, just kidding. A well-done configuration GUI can work wonders for those who need it. |
| tuxchick Jul 18, 2008 5:53 AM EDT |
vi? I scoff. Real geeks use edlin. |
| dinotrac Jul 18, 2008 8:48 AM EDT |
>Real geeks use edlin And darned nice of Ed to let them, too. |
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