Gnome 3 Discussions

[Richard Pieri]

On Apr 26, 2011, at 1:15 AM, David Kramer wrote:
> 
> Having a configuration setting in an advanced tab somewhere to turn on
> showing the names/icons/both in app links does NOT make anything harder
> for the beginners, and enables the power user.  This is just one thing
> that should be configurable of many, so please take this statement as
> addressing the larger "design pattern" of making things simpler by
> removing functionality instead of reorganizing functionality.  The same
> goes for only running one instance of any app, only one dock bar,
> automaximizing windows that happen to touch the edge of the screen, ...

> Yes, Rhythmbox.  Like I said in my last post, it crashes when working
> with my iPod and I filed a bug report and cooperated with them every
> step and they say they're not fixing it.  The short summary of the
> problem is it can't handle a collection with metadata over a certain
> physical size because they got cheap on field sizes.  I have a 120GB
> Classic with about 6800 songs on it, and it worked fine.  Then I started
> adding album art, and before you know it I was over the limit.  They
> understand and acknowledge it, but won't fix it.

These two paragraphs are a good capsule summary of why I dislike the GNOME Desktop and have since version 2 was released.  Moving customization options to an advanced settings tab or pane is good.  Taking those options away entirely is bad, yet that was the touted "improvement" going from GNOME 1 to GNOME 2: everything is simpler.  No, not simpler.  Dumbed down.  Not the same thing.  From the sound of it, GNOME 2 to GNOME 3 is even more dumbing down.  I'm not trying to be an Apple fanboy here, but look at Apple's UIs and UI guidelines.  That is simple.  That is consistent (except when Apple breaks its own rules).  Taking functionality away is not an improvement.

The second... how long have users been reporting and providing patches for the Metacity window sizing and placement problems that have been with GNOME 2 since before Day 1?  And despite this have any of these fixes been rolled into the mainline code?  No.  Based on their actions -- more notably inactions -- I think that that the GNOME developers simply don't care about users.

--Rich P.