If I liked the TWEAKUI approach that much...
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| Author | Content |
|---|---|
| BernardSwiss Oct 13, 2011 7:34 PM EDT |
... I would have stayed with Windows. Or at least, not have become a Linux fan. (A Mac would have been easier and less intimidating, and may friends would have been much readier to accommodate any issues over document formats or whatever...) Turning otherwise accessible components of a Linux system into separate and needlessly mysterious little "black-boxes" that a normal user can only interact with via the aid of some other "black box" (if one by good fortune should be oh-so-generously provided) or by undertaking a full course of study into the mysteries of software programming, is a horrendously regressive approach, an approach that undermines one of the greatest strengths of FOSS software, one that actually discourages and actively hinders users from "getting into" their computers and their software and becoming knowledgeable users and perhaps even contributors. This is Linux implemented by and for the inner circle of a developer caste, not the users -- and presumably (by design) never the twain shall meet. This is the kind of "Linux" one would expect from Apple or Microsoft , or from developers who think the "free" in Free Software about "price" rather than about "freedom". It's not what FOSS is, or should be, about. |
| tracyanne Oct 13, 2011 7:57 PM EDT |
It was made quite clear to me, though never actually stated, in an argument I had recently with a certain KDE developer, that they do care about, and do listen to their users, so long as the definition of users is another developer. |
| Grishnakh Oct 13, 2011 8:08 PM EDT |
@tracyanne: It does seem like a lot of FOSS developers are only concerned about users that are also fellow developers, but at least in the case of KDE this doesn't seem to negatively affect configurability. With Gnome, I'm honestly not sure how this minimalist, touch-screen-wannabe interface is supposed to be helpful for their fellow developers, unless the developers they hang out with are all from the Facebook crowd or something. @Bernard: I think you hit the nail on the head about FOSS software encouraging users to "get into" their computers, or at least it used to be that way before everyone jumped on the Gnome and Unity bandwagon. But again, as a software engineer myself, I'm dumbfounded how Gnome3's interface is supposed to help me; it seems instead like it'd appeal to non-developers who want to use their computer like it's an iPhone. |
| BernardSwiss Oct 13, 2011 9:14 PM EDT |
@ Grishnakh Good point. So they're actually screwing it up both ways. |
| dinotrac Oct 14, 2011 7:19 AM EDT |
Quoting: but at least in the case of KDE this doesn't seem to negatively affect configurability Maybe not. For the moment. But...we'll never know what these talented coders would have done had they stepped up to be real developers trying to create something for a broad user base. |
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