Gnome 2.10 Released

Mad_Rain writes "The new version of Gnome (you know, the desktop of many Linux users?) has just been released. You can even try it out with a LiveCD (bittorrent link). There is a video player and CD-ripping utility included, and the all-important new splash screen!"

Comments

Future viability in question?

[Sheetrock]

Most people I talk to who use Linux have expressed a strong preference for KDE over GNOME. I don't know if this is because they get KDE with X-Windows on there system or if they switched in disgust, but they usually say that they think it's crisper and the look is more consistent across applications.

I suppose it's another example of form over function, but there you go. Hopefully Enlightenment comes out soon.

Re:Future viability in question?

[jdclucidly]

Disclaimer: I'm a KDE user.

I always give Gnome due dilligence for each release. Each time a new version comes out I test it out for one full week and see how it works for me. Since the release of 2.0 I have always gone back to KDE for this reason:

[on #gnome on irc.freenode.net]
Me: Where is feature X? It seems like I ought to be able to do X but I can't seem to find it.
Dev/Zealot A1: Yea we think that's a good idea but we haven't gotten to it yet.
or
Dev/Zealot A2: Well, X is too complicated so we did Y. You must use Y. X is not implemented.

As with other releases I will try 2.10 out and see how it's progressed but here's a list of show stoppers in previous versions:

* Inability to edit or affect the panel menus in an intuitive way (somewhat addressed through the addition of applications:/// which was hard to find)
* Inability to hold down the mouse button (drag through) while navigating the menus. The thinking was accessibility related. A click event occurs after some arbitrary criteria has been met that convinces Gnome that the user really wanted to click and just didn't know to let go of the mouse button and then click again. Very annoying.
* No window snapping
* Non-existance of KIO-slaves equivalent (ability to open and work with files on arbitrary network resources) -- very useful
* Gnome terminal lacking ability to rename tabs by interacting with the tab (can be done through menu option somewhere)
* Gedit lacking features as compared with KEdit
* Epiphany / Galeon (which is it now?) not as feature complete as Firefox
* Until recently, the Gnome file open dialog box was a nightmare. It still has some problems, though. Many of its features are hidden in shortcut keys that one would only know existed if one scoured the Gnome manuals.

A lot of people bitch about spacial Nautilus but I don't think that's nearly important as some other basic needed features (window snapping). I can modify the way my brain works with a particular computer paradigm if I think it might be more sensible but I cannot do without features that increase my productivity.

So here's to hoping.

LiveCD

[lakeland]

When KDE's last beta was announced on slashdot, many people commented that a live CD was a really cool way of showing off the new system. Now we see Gnome taking this really cool feature out of KDE and incorporating it.

That is why we need to keep two desktops around. Whenever either one invents something cool, both get it. (Friendly) compertition seems by far the best form of improving software.

Oh, and why wasn't a garnome link posted? ;-)

Re:Why so modest?

[Anonymous Coward]

>> I fail to see why I should get so worked up everytime a new version is released >>

I'm always amazed at how regardless of what is being announced, there is some ludicrously arrogant dork who complains that the announcement does not make him (one in six billion people on the planet) happy as if anyone would care.

Where do these people come from? Why are they unable to appreciate others' accomplishments? Is their ego so fragile that they can't accept a reality outside their subjective delusions of grandeur?

Mod these "snipers" as trolls, please, and let's get on with talking about Gnome.

Things I'd like to see from GNOME.

[Speare]

• Less feature churn.
• Less feature-creeping bloat.
• More consolidation of dependencies.
• More fixing of the long-standing bugs.
• More delivery of long-standing promises.

Every release seems to have a lot of superficial changes that don't seem to buy anything, but don't really address the issues that everyone seems to complain about. Example: you'd think that the gnome-panel would be pretty ironed out after a few years, but there are still at least a dozen "critical" unresolved bugs for it, where the panel just decides to crash or hang.

It's not as glamorous as mating a couple of Bonobos and getting a new SVG Pango baby, but please, for the sake of your users, focus on the fit and finish. What good is a HIG if the average user is put off by all the splinters?

Hula Hype

[twener]

> Hula and several other new applications were all being announced for Gnome.

Hula has absolutely nothing specific to GNOME.

Re:Still dissapointed with GNOME

[cortana]

Christ, what is it with you people? Did you all manage to remove libgnomevfs by accident or something?

I just ran "gnome-gv http://www.marcusevans.com.au/pdf/413.pdf" in Gnome 2.8 and it worked fine, just as it's done for ages.