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Code Name, Theming Update Announced For Ubuntu 12.10
benfrog writes "In a blog post, Mark Shuttleworth announced some changes for Ubuntu 12.10 (due in October), including the code name (Quantal Quetzal — no, really) and a theme update. He said, 'That will kick off with a project on typography to make sure we are expressing ourselves with crystal clarity – making the most of Ubuntu’s Light and Medium font weights for a start. And a project on iconography, with the University of Reading, to refine the look of apps and interfaces throughout the platform. It’s amazing how quaint the early releases of Ubuntu look compared to the current style. And we’re only just getting started! In our artistic explorations we want to embrace tessellation as an expression of the part-digital, part-organic nature of Ubuntu.' Some other more meaningful announcements include a focus on the cloud in the server version and the lack of a transition from Upstart to systemd."
What he calls 'quaint' I call 'usable.'
Didn't I tell you to quit making up animals?
Please consider this account deleted, I just can't be bothered with the spam anymore.
If by "priceless" you mean "gay", yes.
I live ze unknown. I love ze unknown. I am ze unknown.
Maybe if you have a tablet. It's a HUGE waste of space, extra mouse travel, and generally crappage on a desktop wiht a large monitor. I'm slowly moving all the machines I use to Linux Mint. Still Debian based, but with a sane interface for a desktop with a 24" monitor.
>part-digital, part-organic nature of Ubuntu.'
Don't tell me they're going to make my desktop start smelling brown, too....
I actually like the fact that Ubuntu is very organized and providing a direction for Linux desktops, but their UI choices have been idiosyncratic, to say the least.
They've released a few screenshots demonstrating the cleaner, lighter typeface and refined iconography.
How can I believe you when you tell me what I don't want to hear?
My problem with Unity isn't appearance (it's very pretty and slick looking), it's functionality.
In particular I'd like to single out the scroll bars as an abomination. I'm running Ubuntu Classic and I still can't get away from these fuckers. Not having the scroll bar appear unless I mouse over the little rectangle that appears to the left of where the scroll bar marker would be is god-awful. That the little rectangle appears inside the application window and thus can be obscured by, say, a same-colored selection rectangle (as happens in the file viewer, geeqie image viewer, and plenty of other apps) means I basically have to fucking *guess* where the scroll bar should be.
Is there an obvious "make scroll bars not retarded" option I'm missing? Is this shit supposed to be good on a tablet? Am I supposed to be glad that my desktop has a tablet interface?
I'm actually scared of upgrading my friend's desktop to a newer version of Ubuntu. He's computer illiterate and has been using Ubuntu more-or-less fine for several years now, but I know him and while I can tolerate even the most bone-headed of interface (I used old versions of Mentor Graphics for example) this shit is going to drive him insane and he'll stop using it.
The enemies of Democracy are
I don't like Unity either, but my plan for 12.04 is to keep Ubuntu, with which I'm otherwise still satisfied, and install MATE. There's no reason to throw out the baby with the bathwater.
Space game using normal deck of cards: http://BattleCards.org
No, that would be Queer Quetzal.
Space game using normal deck of cards: http://BattleCards.org
... should be called "Somersaulting Shark"?
I dumped that for Synaptic Package Manager as soon as I could.
Don't need to be loading lots of graphics and junk on my lightweight netbook when I'm just trying to manage packages through a menu.
Get off my launchpad!
Not that there's anything wrong with that.
Space game using normal deck of cards: http://BattleCards.org
The code names are just priceless
They certainly aren't clever, endearing, appealing, interesting, useful, memorable, straightforward, likable, notable, distinctive, marketable or easy to spell.
About the only redeeming quality they have is that they bring up that version in a search engine, so they aren't entirely useless, but again, you have to get the spelling right. It's actually frustrating reading it over the phone.
Open Source has always struggled with naming things in ways that aren't patently terrible, like the whole tradition of Something's Not Something Else.
But I think Ubuntu has managed to set the bar even lower.
Thanks! Worked like a charm!
I can't wait for the release of Ubuntu Varicose Veins
Yes, set LIBOVERLAY_SCROLLBAR=0.
http://www.webupd8.org/2011/04/how-to-disable-overlay-scrollbars-in.html
Hope it helps!
I'm a Debian user but have installed Ubuntu in a previous workplace. I recently talked to a friend who runs IT for a small company. He's moved from Ubuntu to Linux Mint over the GNOME 3 and Unity interface changes. (I personally am using GNOME 3 in legacy mode with a few changes to avoid the changes.)
Does normal seeking in the scrollbar work again (middle-click) ?
It indeed does.
Whose retard disabled seeking in a bar designed essentially to seek ?!
I don't know who the owner of the retard in question is, sorry.
The state you are in while your HEAD is detached... - wait, what?
It's not as automated, but it's still possible.
http://community.linuxmint.com/tutorial/view/344
Every time I go to google a way to fix the problems with Unity, I end up googling for other debian-based distros instead. Seems like the best way to fix all the issues in one fell swoop.
The enemies of Democracy are
I'm actually scared of upgrading my friend's desktop to a newer version of Ubuntu. He's computer illiterate and has been using Ubuntu more-or-less fine for several years now, but I know him and while I can tolerate even the most bone-headed of interface (I used old versions of Mentor Graphics for example) this shit is going to drive him insane and he'll stop using it.
I have been using an Ubuntu 11.10 computer with MATE installed, and I am happy with it. I have removed all the overlay-scrollbar packages and the result is a nice usable GNOME 2.x desktop.
http://mate-desktop.org/
Long-term, the future is probably Cinnamon, which is built on top of the new GNOME 3.x libraries but aims to duplicate the desktop features of GNOME 2.x.
http://cinnamon.linuxmint.com/
steveha
lf(1): it's like ls(1) but sorts filenames by extension, tersely
You happened to know those were called "overlay scrollbars". Not everybody does. How should one use a search engine without knowing the name of what one is looking for?
Red is the color of alarm, of fear. It is abrasive to the eyes and to our visual processing system and is often used to signify errors for these reasons.
I know it seems unoriginal but Ubuntu needs to move over to a blue/green color palette. Mac OS X and Windows screens heavily utilize blue for this reason. It is psychologically soothing. It makes you feel like you're awash in the operating system as opposed to standing apart from it. I think if Ubuntu switches over to bluish colors we'll see a sharp increase in adoption.
That said, they've done stupid shit before.
Once upon a time, they made a change to shave off about 1 second from boot time. The cost? USB keyboards only! No AT or PS2 for you! ... that really pissed me off, and that's when I departed from using Ubuntu. (note, this was a few years back)
For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
Indeed. I wish they would stop "fixing" what isn't broken. Even KDE is pushing it lately, for me.
I don't think this is a poison specific to Ubuntu or GNOME, it seems to be everywhere.
What am I supposed to do? Stop updating? Pretend it's still the last decade?
It's like everyone's trying to become the Next Big Thing as far as interfaces go, but the hardware is lagging seriously behind (eg, this stuff would be awesome on holographic tablets a-la science fiction games).
For large sets, this will be our guide even unto death, for the LORD will work for each type of data it is applied to...
Still Debian based
I don't really understand this line of thought. People use Ubuntu, dislike it, then move to (K|X)buntu or Mint... What's wrong with plain old Debian?
I must be missing something.
Sent from my PDP-11
Also, what is the point of the separate x-buntus?
Why not just apt-get install $other_window_manager, if that is what you want? Why is it a different distro?
Sent from my PDP-11
It reads like a press release for a product from some multi-billion dollar company; not a Linux distro. You can almost play bullshit bingo with that.
"Upstart knows everything it wants to be, the competition wants to be everything. Quality comes from focus and clarity of purpose, it comes from careful design and rigorous practices. .. For our future on cloud and client, Upstart is crisp, clean and correct."
"So there’s an opportunity to refresh the look. That will kick off with a project on typography to make sure we are expressing ourselves with crystal clarity – making the most of Ubuntu’s Light and Medium font weights for a start. And a project on iconography, with the University of Reading, to refine the look of apps and interfaces throughout the platform."
"In our artistic explorations we want to embrace tessellation as an expression of the part-digital, part-organic nature of Ubuntu. We love the way tessellated art expresses both the precision and reliability of our foundations, and the freedom and collaboration of a project driven by people making stuff for people. There’s nothing quixotic in our desire to make Ubuntu the easiest, steadiest, and most beautiful way to live digitally."
for me its the install process, the others its 1 disc and its like 90% of what I need already there in record time, debian wants to reach out for every single thing and when you have a shit internet (like I have 1Mbs) just getting a base system installed with a command prompt can turn into a couple hours
I would rather use debian, I am rather fond of it ... though I would rather just get an os on the machine and go about whatever it was I wanted to do
Actually it was a few releases back, Ubuntu 8.04 Hairy Hardon.
Mod me down, my New Earth Global Warmingist friends!
I use Debian myself because it is reliable and simple. But it is not without issues.
The software is old, old, old, old. Even with testing.
I don't really understand this line of thought. People use Ubuntu, dislike it, then move to (K|X)buntu or Mint... What's wrong with plain old Debian?
The Debian installer doesn't work as a live CD. I don't know where you can go to get a live CD with a standard Debian system on it and a GUI desktop that Just Works.
The Debian installer doesn't sort out all your hardware as well as the Ubuntu installer does. I have several laptops and I can boot an Ubuntu disc on any of them, and a GUI comes up with WiFi working. I am able to install Debian, but it would need to be with the laptop plugged in to a wired network, so I could manually install packages for the WiFi stuff until it works.
While I know a lot of people seem to hate PulseAudio, I want it running. With Ubuntu you just get it; with Debian you need to sort it out yourself.
Before "Unity" I could basically install Ubuntu and be productive right away. Now there is a step where I have to disable Unity and set up some other desktop, but that's still easier than installing Debian and fixing everything.
On the other hand, for servers, I run Debian Stable and I have for many years now. Rock solid reliable, and none of the above issues matter. (If I need to boot a server from a live CD, I can just use the Ubuntu one. But my servers are reliable and I basically never need to do that.)
steveha
lf(1): it's like ls(1) but sorts filenames by extension, tersely
The real mystery is why is stuff like this never on a GUI settings menu. There always is one, but it usually fails to be any good at configuring anything.
Just install gnome-session-fallback, log out and select Classic Gnome. To move or install indicators etc, alt+right click.
There is a Debian Live CD you can use.
Greylisting is to SMTP as NAT is to IPv4
Ubuntu has their LTS (Long Term Support) releases for that.
http://www.ubuntu.com/business/server/overview
That being said, for the desktop I've moved to Mint, because Ubuntu doesn't appear to listen to a large chunk of users like me who hate, hate, hate Unity.
I don't want to discuss this. I was only interested in the claimed waste of space. (Anyway, I don't think that you can say that - every GUI hides controls, because otherwise it would show them all, all the time, which no GUI does)
"When I first heard Daydream Nation it quite frankly scared the living shit out of me." -- Matthew Stearns
With ubuntu this has never been my experience. Instead it gets ignored and you get bothered every 5 months to a year being asked "does it work on the latest version"?
I've reported plenty of bugs to Launchpad. Sometimes bugs do get ignored, others get fixed immediately. It depends on the nature of the bug - Canonical isn't known for being a major developing force in the Linux kernel area, for example, but I reported a couple of bugs against the HUD feature a few months ago and they indeed got fixed, which involved going back to the design team and then to developers. They have a good workflow set up, but as a distribution with finite developing manpower they can't possibly fix everything. I wish Launchpad had automatic upstreaming for certain packages (especially those in Universe), but for packages in Main I can't complain.
Linux users (and that extends to most Free/Open Source software users) tend to have this annoying sense of entitlement that unnecessarily stresses relations with developers and turns everything into a flamewar. "Why doesn't MY bug get fixed?", ignoring how many OTHER bugs (likely of broader importance) get fixed, "Why don't you do this THIS way?", without bothering to consider that there might be an underlying design principle, or that your preferences represent those of a minority. My favourite is "That's it, I'm moving to Mint/back to Windows". Good riddance. Only in most cases they don't -- empty threats are a valid way of seeking attention, apparently.
The state you are in while your HEAD is detached... - wait, what?
I've never heard of any Linux software upgrades having a content filter applied. Care to provide an example or anecdote?
(I personally don't see why we should censor our language due to puritan interests. Why are people so afraid of sex and nudity, yet violence and war are almost welcomed?)
You're a temporary arrangement of matter sliding towards oblivion in a cold, uncaring universe
> Linux users (and that extends to most Free/Open Source software users) tend to have this annoying sense of entitlement that unnecessarily stresses relations with developers and turns everything into a flamewar. "Why doesn't MY bug get fixed?"
No, just no. I've filed bugs, committed code and developers have rejected the merges, i have made fixes that many people asked for but it something they disagreed with ideologically, and refused to pull. These people waste MY time because rather then say "we don't think that's a bug and we'll never accept something that fixes it", instead they lead people on with "why don't you submit a patch", then it's "not enough test cases", etc until it's finally just ignored.
Sorry but everything you said is bullshit, time and time again I have been leaded on by "@ubuntu.com" users on launchpad either "does it work in this release", submitting patches that end up rejected instead of just saying they'll never accept that, and bugs there were simply ignored that I simply won't waste my time there anymore. Ubuntu is great and I use it but i'll never go back to launchpad.
You sound like the typical apologist that's never strongly participated in contributions from the outside, because you wouldn't be saying what you're saying otherwise. I've contributed to many different open source projects but I never experienced the total lack of care if something gets fixed or not as I have with "@ubuntu.com" users on launchpad.
Many people have this same exact experience, it's not something you can just handwave away.
In general, words can have totally different emotional content for different people. I don't believe that is it sensible or practical to try to avoid offending people when using ordinary language (swear words are an exception as they are designed to offend and should be used sparingly to make them more effective).
The word Gigolo isn't always related to prostitution - it also means "A man who is hired as an escort or a dancing partner for a woman" which wouldn't involve sex at all. Where would you draw the line at which words are too offensive? Would you insist that the linux "man" command be renamed to avoid being sexist? What about "fsck" - it looks a bit like "fuck"?
You're a temporary arrangement of matter sliding towards oblivion in a cold, uncaring universe
Just use software that shares your philosophy, where updates don't remake the whole software package. Go with one of the less well-known window managers like Openbox or FVWM or even a minor desktop like XFCE. Build workflows around old mature tools like shells and terminals rather than graphical file managers. There are lots of projects that are not trying to become the next big thing, but none of them are associated with KDE, GNOME, or Ubuntu.
Penny - plain text accounting
Oh yeah, colours? My rule of thumb is not to use anything, the name of which I cannot pronounce without doubting myself.
Also I actually USE a COMPUTER as opposed to a netblet tablet bablet , so if it's unity then it's DOA for me.
You can't handle the truth.
I know *I* enjoy the confidence and professionalism that comes along with GSpot Codec Information Appliance and ScrotVM.
Unity? Screw that: XFCE. Slashdot Beta? Screw that: SoylentNews. Australis? Screw that: Pale Moon. UX developers DIAF