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Planning Dapper +1, The Edgy Eft
Christian Jensen writes "On the ubuntu-announce mailing list, Mark Shuttleworth announced the plans for the next Ubuntu release - 'The Edgy Eft', the successor to Dapper Drake." This release is being touted as both cutting edge (edgy) and containing several comparatively "young" software additions ('Eft' being a 'youthful newt, going through its first exploration of the rocky territory just outside the stream.') like Xen, XGL/AIGLX, and others.
...WHAT?
Why must everything be "Edgy" now a days? When I think of edgy, I think of some dude strung out on too much caffiene and cigs.
If that's cool, whatever, I'm out of touch anymore anyway. But it still doesn't paint a good image.
Mod me down with all of your hatred and your journey towards the dark side will be complete!
As an Ubuntu user and fan, I'd just like to say: for fuck's sake, stop it with the stupid names! Breezy Badger, Dapper Drake, Edgy Eft. Seriously, I feel like a jackass enough saying "Ubuntu". I don't understand, are they actively trying to discourage people from using it?
Yes, Ubuntu, we get it. I mean, I know version numbers in press releases are so corporate and everything, but but some day (say, when they're releasing Zoroastrian Zebra or whatever) they'll look back on this little phase and feel a little silly. Like when you see your really cool high school yearbook shot about 10 years later, when it's so absolutley, positively, not cool (and worse: you realize it wasn't then, either!).
Don't disappoint your bird dog. Go to the range.
"We can afford to take some risks with Dapper+1, because Dapper has turned
out so well."
I love Ubuntu and all that, but jeez, get it out the door first!
This is rather off-topic so I'll expect the usual down-mod.
/. should get a new icon for Ubuntu instead of using the Debian one. Yes, I know that Ubuntu is based on Debian Sid, but seeing that Ubuntu is arguably more popular than Debian (based on Distrowatch stats), perhaps an Ubuntu section/icon would be in order?
Perhaps
It's real prevelant in the OSS world, unfortunately. Clever names that, well, aren't. OGG Vorbis is a good example. It just sounds... Odd. It's not descriptive of function and doesn't have a cool ring to it. I think that's part of the problem with adoption. MP3 sounds cool (so does AAC). They are the nifty-technology acronyms and they are easy to say.
OSS people need to think more marketing driven. Had I been the one in charge of making the Ogg Vorbis thing, I probably would have looked at calling it something that made reference to MP3. Call it MP5 maybe, for 5th Gen Music Packer. Something that's clearly intended to draw a reference to MP3. If not something so direct, then think up a cool acronym, and figure out something that works for it. AAC is good, nice acronym, good name (Advanced Audio Codec). Sounds all high tech and shit.
Same thing with shit like GIMP. Ok so the full name, GNU Image Manipulation Program isn't horrible, but calling it GIMP is fucking stupid. For nearly everyone the assocation is either Pulp Fiction, or a crippled person. Not something you want. Now Photoshop, that's a good name. Says what it does, sounds cool, conjures up ideas of picture editing, which is indeed what it's for.
So I'm not at all suppirsed to see Ubutnu (which is odd to Western ears at any rate) doing stuff like this. I'm sure they think it's terribly cool and clever, and I'm sure many people agree with them. However I'm also pretty sure they haven't thought it over marketing wise.
It's hard not to warm to this announcement, imho. It is written in a clear style by someone who comes across as open, approachable and not afraid to take risks. Such a contrast to corporate chiefs who bark out orders, rubbish their competitors or spout incomprehensible jargon written for them by a marketing droid. OK the names for Ubuntu releases may be a bit eccentric but this cool, direct approach is what attracts me to Linux. It's my PC to do with as I wish and it absolutely doesn't have to have a toad from the office or authentication central inside it.
Just my 2 cents, but I think Ubuntu does have some pretty big challenges in front of it quite apart from incorporating "edgy" new technology. It needs to find a self-sustaining financial model and some kind of interface with business and the enterprise, which the Dapper release is meant to kick off, I believe. Anyway, Kudos to them.
Las qué passoun
tournoun pas maï
Maybe you've heard of it. That's what us open source developers do, have fun. If you don't want to use our software, fine, don't.
What's the difference between open source software an proprietary software?
Open source software is made by engineers.
Proprietary software is made by managers.
How we know is more important than what we know.
Do you run Windows? Which version? Memphis? Cairo? Whistler? Longhorn? Or maybe you're a Mac guy. So would that be Cheetah? Panther? Tiger? Leopard? Of course, now that they've moved to Intel chips you can run either one on your Yonah CPU.
:P*
Everyone does it, it doesn't hurt anyone, and you can always call it by the version number if you really want. Well, except for Windows
*(yes, I know there really is a version number but it won't mean much to most people)
The ability to fork software away from bureaucracy is one of the greatest strengths of open source. I wish I could do that at my place of work.
How we know is more important than what we know.
I think that the original poster was hoping for some logical, specific arguments rather than name calling. Could you try to do that, please?
Karma: Terrifying (mostly affected by atrocities you've committed)
Yeah, I get Ubuntu versioning, but jeez... this version name sucks. The only suckier name I can remember is when SuSE named their Chamelion maskot "Geeko".
I initially thought Ubunutu was a bad name for a distro, but it's growing on me.
I thought Warty Warthog was a *GREAT* name for a "beta" or early release.
I thought Hoary Hedgehog was a dumb name - Hoary?!? Hoary???
Breezy Badger was a dumb name for a release. I mean... what end of the badger is the breeze coming from?!?
Dapper Drake was a less sucky name.
But... Edgy Eft! That's the worst yet! *NOBODY* knows what an eft is.
How many times are Ubuntu fans going to have to answer the following question: What the F___ is an EFT?
> Linux can use swapfiles. Swap partitions are just a generally better way.
Since Linux 2.6, the latter half of that statement isn't really true anymore.
As I understand it, it used to be the case that to use a swap file meant that
any swap I/O would have to hit the filesystem code, but that as of 2.6, that
is no longer the case. Swap files are the same speed as swap partitions and
a lot more flexible. =)
25% Funny, 25% Insightful, 25% Informative, 25% Troll
The vast majority of people on this world don't use English as a mother language. They don't even speak it, for the most part, regardless of whether it's the world's most widely spoken language or not. Do the names for various software applications mean the same thing to them as they do to you?
Is Ubuntu less offensive to a Corsican reading the newspaper "u ribombu" or a Zulu businessman using Linux to do his backoffice?
Does GIMP sound the same when read by a Frenchman, or by someone from China who doesn't even use the Latin alphabet?