Rants & Raves

[pfnorris]

Just listening to the latest podcast. I wanted to pick up where JR left off on gnome 3.2. Obviously 60 seconds isn't nearly enough time to have a good old rant.

So we're six months in. Things are settling down nicely with 3.0, and there's a thriving eco system of extensions, themes etc. So why do they decide to break all of that with the first update? What is it with these projects (Mozilla anyone?) who seem to have an attitude of sod everyone else, sod compatibility, this is what we're doing?

Then there are the new 'features' - Tracker - doesn't do a thing on my system, or if it does it's keeping it to itself. Online accounts appears to require Evolution, so tough if you don't use that.

Some of us do like the concept of Gnome3 and would like to see it succeed. But for goodness sake cut us some slack. Decide on an API and stick to it so installed extensions aren't broken. Make sure features are properly implemented and useful before releasing them. And for pete's sake start listening to the users!!!

Rant over

[Spangwiches]

What is Tracker?

The online thing works with Empathy (that may have been what you meant?) but is kinda annoying. I signed out of (i.e. quitted) Empathy the other day and, because I hadn't selected "unavailable" in the top right thing, was still online. So I've gone back to Pidgin.

I agree about extension compatibility, that's annoying. I was kinda expecting that so I'm avoiding extensions until it settles down (aside from the power one, obviously).

I accept that it's still very much a work in progress and things have to change, but I agree that... the APIs and stuff should really be the first things to finalise.

[pfnorris]

Tracker is the documents thingy that's supposed to give you a single interface between your online and local docs. Like I said if it's found anything on my system it's keeping it a secret.

I know that really it's still an evolving animal, and on the whole I like the direction it's going. But, I do get irritated with the somewhat cavalier attitude to the user community. And I'm not just pointing that particular finger at Gnome.

[Spangwiches]

Ahh, ok, I think I have that.

But aye, I don't mind them playing around with interface things because this has a long way to go before it's finished (I'd like a way to get to the dock without opening the whole activities view for instance). But there should be something stable underneath it all. Just so that it feels like they're building something up from a base rather than... tearing it down and rebuilding each time.

I still like it a great deal though. I find it very hard to use a taskbar-based desktop now.