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Ask Mark Shuttleworth Anything
In addition to founding Canonical Ltd., the Ubuntu Foundation, and funding the Freedom Toaster, Mark Shuttleworth is a space enthusiast. In April 2002 Mark became the second self-funded space tourist and the first African in space. He spent eight days participating in experiments on the International Space Station as part of his $20 million trip. Now he's ready to answer your questions. Ask him anything you like, but please limit yourself to one question per post.
We've seen Linux go from servers to supercomputers to smartphones in a very explosive manner but not as pervasively on the personal computer. What, in your opinion, is the next frontier for Linux and is that frontier part of Canonical's future?
My work here is dung.
In the 1990s you aided in Debian development and now you've brought the world Ubuntu. Since you diverged from Debian and became the Self-Appointed Benevolent Dictator for Life, do you have anything positive to say about Debian's progress?
My work here is dung.
Are you interested in colonizing Mars?
#
#\ @ ? Colonize Mars
#
Once Steam for Linux comes out on Ubuntu, what is the first game you will download and play?
sudo make me a sandwich
In your opinion, what technologies are yet to come before humans can live sustainably on Mars, but may not have been discussed in mainstream circles?
I heard a story of you sitting in on a LUG dressed in a Darth Vader mask so people wouldn't recognise you until the end of the talk. Do you find that people treat you very differently now that you are famous, and seeing that a lot of people take exception to the direction you have taken Ubuntu? How do you deal with this, and what steps do you take to make sure you stay grounded in reality?
Help I am stuck in a signature factory!
Dude. Really. WTF?
Windows 8 has been launched and did not receive a very warm welcome from the market so there's another chance for Ubuntu and although Apple's OS X is a nice alternative, Ubuntu would even be better, however when looking 'in the field' (European Enterprise, SME, ) there is so much Windows (custom applications, custom hardware, widely used applications etc etc etc) that the cost and process of replacing those is too complex and too expensive. And as always, end user like evolution, not revolution.
Wouldn't it be better to integratie a CrossOver alike solution (or Crossover) in Ubuntu that allows easier transition from win32//64 to Ubuntu?
If and when we colonize the moon, will you fight for Ubuntu to be the OS-of-choice?
Mr. America walk on by your schools that do not teach Mr. America walk on by the minds that won't be reached
"Can entropy be reversed?"
Why does Canonical implement and develop software that does not respect a user's four essential software freedoms?
- The freedom to run the program, for any purpose (freedom 0).
- The freedom to study how the program works, and change it so it does your computing as you wish (freedom 1). Access to the source code is a precondition for this.
- The freedom to redistribute copies so you can help your neighbor (freedom 2).
- The freedom to distribute copies of your modified versions to others (freedom 3). By doing this you can give the whole community a chance to benefit from your changes. Access to the source code is a precondition for this.
Dude. Really. WTF?
Although it doesn't fully address "WTF?", he has spoken about this in prior interviews:
DM: Ubuntu has adopted a new user interface called Unity. That seems well suited to tablet devices. Is this part of a plan to extend Ubuntu on tablets and other mobile computing and touch-based platforms?
MS: We haven’t said that, and it’s not the right time for me to say any such thing. [Laughs.] But if you look at it, Unity is born of an era where touch is important, and we’ve done quite a bit of work around touch generally and it brings a level of clarity and device-like simplicity to Linux desktops that just hadn’t been there before.
DM: Unity has attracted a fair share of criticism.
MS: Sure, it created something of a storm. The idea for us was we wanted to bring design-led engineering to the Linux desktop so we followed a fairly rigorous process of design. That meant testing assumptions and evaluating each little change on the basis of some realistic test of how people reacted to change. It is a fairly radical shift from where we were previously but we can see a fairly clear roadmap of where we want to get to over the next few months and years and not all of that is evident in the release so far.
[Unity] has raised the bar for usability on the Linux desktop. That’s not to say it’s without its issues. There are some quite definite issues in that first release, but when we did a detailed review of that versus the alternatives, it came out well ahead. It was the right one for us to ship at the time.
My work here is dung.
So, if he moved to the US, and became a citizen, he would be "African American"? Not sure that would go over very well with the Politically Correct Class.
Agent K: A *person* is smart. People are dumb, stupid, panicky animals, and you know it.
Hi Mark! It seems based on your blog and other sources that an Ubuntu tablet is definitely planned and should be in the works at least sometime in the next year. When do you think consumers will be able to walk into any decently-sized electronic store and pick up an Ubuntu-based tablet?
"What lies behind us, and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us." Ralph Waldo Emerson
What's with the advertising in launchpad and the software center in 12.10 and can it be disabled (I'd be willing to pay to get rid of it)?
Slashdot social media options: AIM, ICQ, Yahoo, Jabber and Mobile Text. Why no MySpace?
Did NASA bitch and whine about your trip on your ISS too, the way they did Dennis Tito (for daring to be a space tourist on a Russian rocket instead of a proper American-Non-Commie-John-Wayne one)?
What political party do you join when you don't like Bible-thumpers *or* hippies?
Since you like to comment on both government interaction with businesses and seem to be interested in space travel, what is the appropriate level of the government's role in space? Can you define what is too little and what is too far? What, if anything, should each nation regulate? Are nationalistic programs and races good for space travel or should it just all be privatized and given a sort of 'international waters' anything goes freedom?
My work here is dung.
When you made your trip to the ISS in 2002 there were reports that your body had some challenges transitioning into a micro-gravity environment. Many astronauts have similar challenges, can you tell us what physical challenges you encountered, the duration and what if anything did you do to overcome those challenges.
I just wanted to say that I was very excited when I first heard the phrase "Freedom Toaster", but felt sad and let down when I found out that it was actually a CD writer.
Is there any way that toasted bread can be used bring about individual liberty?
The business that made you money was pure genius in my view. Do you believe there are equal opportunities today, and is Bitcoin a technology worth exploring?
Will Ubuntu ever be a certified platform for running Oracle databases?
You're a temporary arrangement of matter sliding towards oblivion in a cold, uncaring universe
who do we blame for the Unity UI?
When you have the choice.
I work here -- http://theparkrowdentalpractice.co.uk no, really, I do.
(Insert my standard question for all ask /. tech people)
Describe a hack that you personally participated in that you find cool. Not you paid someone to ... or I once saw someone else ... or you bought something cool that ... I mean traditional hack like "identify problem" "flash of insight in ur brain" "minutes to days of sweat using techie tools" "something cool now exists, lookit". I don't care about the subject as long as its vaguely slashdot style technical and you think its cool and the slashdot audience would think its cool. The coolest hack is not necessarily the biggest or most famous, either. Maybe you have a hobby where you personally programmed the worlds coolest christmas light display on your house, or you handmade a truly elaborate model railroad fully articulated draw bridge, I donno, whatever floats your boat. TLDR just tell your hack story, and make it cool.
"Science flies us to the moon. Religion flies us into buildings." - Victor Stenger
There's the fun part: writing code, showing off your mental agility, creating stuff, adding the features you would want (and that are easy to do)
Then there's the work part: everything else: the testing, integration, support and documentation.
People love doing the creative bit - they'd probably even pay their employers to let them make software. However they hate every other aspect of producing a professional product. So whenever possible, the maximum amount of time will be spent writing code, adding features and the absolute minimum that they can get away with will be spent producing the least amount of testing, support material, bug fixes and "productising" - after all we (sorry: they) are software developers, not any of those other, lesser, jobs - and work should be FUN, not hard.
politicians are like babies' nappies: they should both be changed regularly and for the same reasons
There's a lot of rhetoric bandied about by political figures here at the moment. What do you think would contribute best to the development of South Africa?
One thing I know, and that is that I am ignorant...
Do you feel that Ubuntu might be losing its way amongst the more technical users with some of the decisions that are being made? For example, forcing a beta-level UI onto users for 3 versions of Ubuntu from 11.04-12.04, integrating paid search results from Amazon etc. Linux Mint, which is rapidly growing in popularity, would seem to be a backlash against Unity and is a splintering of Ubuntu (in fact the vast majority of packages are identical to Ubuntu). Do you therefore feel that Ubuntu's popularity has reached its peak and is at risk of stagnating or declining?
SURELY NOT!!!!!
And should world leaders be sent into space (I get the inherent joke) to see how fragile the little blue ball is? We are all one.
Do you think Canonical and Ubuntu will be able to deliver a good user experience without making (or assembling) their own hardware or laptops like Apple?
Linux is a huge success in mobile. Linux is a huge success in servers (and Ubuntu in particular seems to be doing very well in servers, congratulations).
But Linux on the desktop seems to be going nowhere fast as far as market share is concerned.
In your opinion, what would have to happen in order for Linux to start gaining ground in the desktop?
Can you tell me which computer to buy so that Ubuntu upgrades won't break? (arguably the question most people who have been raped by ubuntu upgrade breakages want to ask).
Lots of distributions are moving to systemd. Why not try to merge some of the upstart functionality into systemd, as it looks like a superior design, and use it rather than developing a parallel but incompatible alternative?
I understand than relying on someone else hard work saves your company a lot of resources. But it also brings bugs, disputable choices and uncomfortable legacy into Ubuntu. Why not cutting that umbilical cord once and forever and start walking on your own legs?
Sent as ripples into the electromagnetic field. No single photon has been harmed in the process.
Your viewpoint on how Ubuntu and Canonical contributes back to the community notwithstanding, there seems to be a stark difference between the management style of Red Hat and that of Canonical.
The perception raised with Unity is that Canonical has decided to diverge from upstream more and more: this is evident from the problems that the Debian project (which contributes the majority of code to Ubuntu) is facing, as well as GNOME and the dissent with the upcoming signed boot EFI implementations.
Red Hat (and the Fedora project) is trying to prevent the balkanization of Linux userspace with projects like systemd, which only Ubuntu rejects.
Red Hat's business model seems to be very successful, and Canonical, despite it's massive desktop market share, doesn't seem to be able to match it in reputation or revenue. Would you attribute this to Red Hat's deeper involvement in the kernel community and higher technical skills?
How much money you devolved to Debian organisation in the past three years?
Sent as ripples into the electromagnetic field. No single photon has been harmed in the process.
Orange is very pervasive throughout Ubuntu, but isn't often used elsewhere, at least not in the US. I'm wondering if this is your favorite color, or if it is more popular in South Africa, or if there is some other reason that orange was chosen as Ubuntu's signature color/
Over the last several years, Microsoft has done much to close the gap in terms of performance, stability and security. What do you see as Ubuntu/Linux's primary selling points on the desktop now, as opposed to the early years of the Ubuntu project when Windows had significant problems in these areas?
Ubuntu has made decisions that have been less than popular with the Free-software only crowd. Personally, I benefit from these decisions, for example, via easy access to Nvidia and Broadcom drivers on my laptop, but I also see the importance of the other side of the argument. What is your short- and long-term perspective on including restricted drivers and non-free software in Ubuntu? Is your approach simply pragmatic, do you hope to bring long-term change in industry practises by making free software a viable and important desktop platform, or something else entirely? Thanks!
When is Ubuntu going to ship Wayland by default?
I used Linux for over a decade as my main OS, eventually ending up on Ubuntu. When I started using Linux, it had a reputation for being rock-solid and about as stable as you can possibly get, and I was happy with that. Newer hardware wasn't supported very well, but older hardware support was unparalleled. This was also reflected in the beginning of Ubuntu - I seem to recall you had a push to make sure the hardware on every laptop model was supported as best it could be.
However as the years progressed, I found Linux becoming more and more buggy and unstable. The final straw was when I tried to upgrade Ubuntu, and not only had I lost hardware support for several things, but there were even crashes upon loading the LiveCD installer (this was solid hardware that lasted for a couple more years). I bounced around trying to find the stability from years ago, but never found it. Today, I'm using OS X, which is far more stable than Linux in the last few years I was using it.
What happened?
Bogtha Bogtha Bogtha
Is it worth the backlash (user migration to mint,arch etc.) of removing power-user configurability for better code maintenance(or any other excuse)? I for one can not understand this trend, the removal of dodge active window on lancher, middle mouse for new tab in firefox bookmarks etcetc from even the advanced settings.
During your round trip from earth to ISS and back, what was the *least* interesting, or dare I say, boring part of the experience for you or the mission crew?
Do you see ubuntu (desktop) evolving into a more "Droid" like interface or staying on the similar path it's on?
Have you talked with Adobe about bringing the Creative Suite (or parts of it) to Ubuntu? Please don't point to open source alternatives in your answer.
Why did you insist on integrating Amazon searches into the product despite users' concerns and complaints to the contrary? A large body of users including myself consider this to be abhorrent and a step back to the dark ages of sponsored software (remember Bonzi Buddy)?
two parter:
1. Do you think the touch screen interface already the standard on phones and tablets will replace the traditional standard of keyboard & mouse interface on desktops/laptops in the next 5 years, 10 years, 20 years?
2. On a desktop/laptop, do you think a touch screen interface would be as functional/productive/efficient as keyboard & mouse?
thanks
I love Unity, but notice all the work items this cycle are around things KDE already has (Widgets from multiple vendors, compositor performance, File manager isn't onboard, preparing for Wayland). Is the KDE compositor & utilities a better direction for Unity?
Science & open-source build trust from peer review. Learn systems you can trust.
Would you be interested in investing in an established business that could put robotics with your name on them on Mars, Europa, Venus and beyond? We are looking for an investor.
While I love desktop Linux as much as the next guy, it's the little bugs crawling here and there that often ruin the experience. What could be done to improve the general quality assurance of Ubuntu and other distributions?
Ubuntu's pull into the future has been muddled lately when better alternatives arriving later aren't embraced (even if just for the sake of work sharing). SystemD, no-scripts-in-boot, In-Kernel sound, file layout simplification/unification, Wayland, btrfs rollbacks, X32. Is being the most high-tech distro no-longer part of the Ubuntu plan?
Science & open-source build trust from peer review. Learn systems you can trust.
Ubuntu 13.04
Holy Cow! Someone has broken the space-time continuum and posted from the FUTURE! Check the Twin Pines Mall for Libyans driving a Volkswagon bus.
sudo make me a sandwich
Now that Ubuntu's kernel & GNU tools run Dalvik, PulseAudio has an AudioFlinger API, and Ubuntu creates its own notification system... if a few other libraries gain some APIs then an Ubuntu tablet would natively run Android applications. This could easily push a native Linux userspace into the mainstream. Do you think it should be done?
Science & open-source build trust from peer review. Learn systems you can trust.
What is the policy of Canonical regarding work with upstream projects, like GNOME? While some other parties are working quite closely with upstream (for example, RedHat is working very closely with GNOME, and GNOME is working closely with gstreamer), Canonical is inclined to make stuff in-house (SSO, online accounts, Unity etc.).
Punch a baby in the face, or kick a baby in the face?
...answer the question that's been burning in our minds. Just what is a Shuttle worth?
You said ANYTHING.
Tim Berners-Lee promotes the idea of linked data everywhere. Wikipedia is on board with wikidata. The Nokia N9 features a triple store, the same one that is used in Gnome. KDE implements Nepomuk. The UK is linking all legislature with RDF.
Ubuntu could make a large contribution by making the data graph of the user and of the distribution visible and searchable. Do you see a future for the semantic web and will you participate in it?
DNA is the ultimate spaghetti code.
Depends. How long will you be able to buy a 2004-era ThinkPad?
Sir, please examine this image and tell us what you see. Which "penguin" do you identify yourself with?
Forward! -- Emperor Norton, 2012
Dude, what's up with the scrollbars?!?
Curiously yours, crip.
Really? Nobody from the entire continent of Africa has ever been to outer space? What about Australia and South America? Nasa employs scientists from all over the world, I figured there'd be a few astronauts with roots from outside the U.S. and Europe.
There has been a huge discussion on what init system Debian would switch from sysv-rc. Roughly, we have the choice between systemd, upstart, openrc and stay with this old sysv-rc. The problem with upstart, is that Canonical is forcing every contributor to sign an agreement. This is a blocker for Debian. Is there any way that this may change, that this mandatory contributor agreement goes away, so that Debian can finally adopt upstart as well?
Will we ever see Ubuntu "nexus" hardware. That is Ubuntu branded hardware that is distinct and shows the Ubuntu vision.
The biggest obstacle to mass adoption of linux on the desktop are OEM preinstall arrangements. Windows has a hard lock on preinstalls.
What will Canonical do to get Ubuntu pre-installed on more notebooks, netbooks and desktop PC's? In which markets? When will we see Ubuntu preinstalled on ARM netbooks/tablets/smartbooks?
The data appears to indicate Linux desktop usage is higher than indicated by stats like netmarketshare.com http://www.netmarketshare.com/operating-system-market-share.aspx?qprid=9&qpcustomb=0 as the Humble Bundle data appears to show that Linux users are closer to Mac users in numbers http://support.humblebundle.com/customer/portal/articles/281031-prior-bundle-statistics How can Canonical and Linux desktop users in general do better with demonstrating their OS preference and real world usage to vendors?
The single biggest impediment to Linux adoption in the mass market is the lack of choices of netbooks, notebooks and desktop PC's with Ubuntu or any Linux distro preinstalled, at least in the United States. What will Canonical do to increase and develop OEM relationships to drive the option of Ubuntu peinstalls in the US market? Other markets?
In my view, Linux in general and Ubuntu in particular is greatly harmed by the concept of monolitic "distributions". Besides hardware drivers, this has been in my experience the biggest obstacle to Linux/Ubuntu adoption.
From the point of view of a Windows user, having to upgrade the whole system and _all other apps_ just to get the new version of one single app, is asinine. As a Linux advocate, I had many people I tried to make use Linux return back to windows just for this single reason alone. An Ubuntu app should install on any reasonably recent Ubuntu and not be tightly coupled to a particular release. When people get windows apps, they are usually not called "XP apps", or "Vista apps" or "Win7 apps", they are just Windows apps, and in most cases install without problems even on 10 years old XP machines. This is what made Windows win the giant market share it has, and this is an issue that has greatly bothered me on Linux the last 15 years, and Ubuntu might finally be the one Linux that fixes it.
Do you have this problem on your radar and are you going to do something about it?
The second issue is the too frequent releases of these distributions. You've just released 12.04 LTS a few months ago. Judging by published upgrade stats, a big number of users has already upgraded to a non-LTS 12.10, and in my view, devalued the LTS. I see here an example of the Osbourne effect at work. Too frequent new releases devalue the old releases (especially the LTS), so targeting the LTS becomes less attractive for games and other commercial vendors. I think that being a too fast moving and backward incompatible target is bad for Linux in general and for Ubuntu in particular. I think that forcibly slowing down the chaotic development Linux ecosystem would greatly benefit it as a target for commercial development.
Do you have this problem on your radar and are you going to do something about it?
Thanks.
Is there anything Canonical can do to increase the ease and likelihood of a normal consumer getting a refund on unwanted Windows licenses tied to notebooks, netbooks and desktop PC's when the buyer just wants to install Ubuntu/Linux? Could Canonical's relationship with Google be leveraged to approach the problem legislatively, i.e. anti-competitive or anti-consumer related laws that could improve the consumer's position in the general purpose PC OS choice?
Given Google's internal use of Ubuntu, and the Linux underpinnings of Android and ChromeOS, what will Canonical do to leverage that relationship re: improving ChromeOS/Android/Ubuntu integration? Any plans to merge ChromeOS and an Ubuntu variant to make "ChromeBuntu" suitable for pre-installs on consumer PC's at retail?
When will Ubuntu for ARM be preinstalled on consumer ARM netbooks/smartbooks/ultrabooks like the Chromebook: https://plus.google.com/109993695638569781190/posts/b2fazijJppZ What market(s)? We don't want to rely on hacks and technical installs like https://plus.google.com/109993695638569781190/posts/b2fazijJppZ forever ;)
NOBODY got ANY excuse WHATSOEVER for not using shell scripting & co like normal people.
Right O! I'll tell my grandpa to stop being such a pussy straight away! It's about time he learned how to use a computer properly, like the rest of us!
Get out of your bubble.
Have you considered making the one change to Ubuntu which would give it explosive desktop growth overnight - making it Android compatible, and making Android apps run in desktop mode?
...try to emulate him in that too?
Canonical has received some flack in the past for not contributing enough upstream. Greg Kroah-Hartman was especially vocal. Are you co-operating more with upstream sources and the kernel.org guys?
-- Linux user #369862
Mark, What physical ailments / deformities / disabilities do you think can benefit from living in a weightless environment and which ones would be worse off there?
Another South African entrepreneur, Elon Musk, is like yourself, a space enthusiast. Unlike yourself, Elon didn't buy a ticket to experience spaceflight himself. Instead he built a business model which will help lower the cost of spaceflight for everyone who wants to put a payload into orbit or, eventually, to explore other heavenly bodies like the Moon and Mars. Ubuntu has been a tremendous contribution to democratizing computing by putting a free OS in the hands of people everywhere on Earth. Do you see yourself participating in any effort to make humanity establish footholds on other planets, and if so, how?
It's evident Canonical and you personally as dude-in-charge have received a lot of flak over the past years, especially as you have started producing more software in-house rather than relying on upstream.
Linux seems to attract a horde of vocal fans that aren't afraid to complain when things aren't going their direction. Does that get on your nerves or have you learned to live with it? Are you happy as dude-in-charge-of-product?
It seems the missing link in the year of desktop Linux is preinstalls. Soooo.... when are we going to see mass roll-outs of Ubuntu through deals with OEMs?
I sincerely wish this gets answered!
Do you see distributions like Mint as serious marketshare competitors? Is there a possibility of merging some of their code up-stream or would you hold out & if needed possibly re-implement the features?
but here goes...is Canonical financially solvent? If it is why did you burn so much good will that you had with the users by allowing the Amazon search which doesn't even have an adult filter that works so that kids can be exposed to inappropriate, in violation of Amazon's own rules which state you have to be 18+ to use their market?
And if Canonical currently isn't in the black, how much will it take to make it a cash positive company? did the Amazon deal bring in enough, or is there gonna have to be MORE ads and MORE revenue making apps baked into Ubuntu to make the company solid financially?
Watch me get modded down for daring not to ask the cutesy ass kissing questions like what are being modded up here, but when one has the head of a company on the horn, and I don't give a damned WHICH company it is, one ought to ask the hard questions and use the opportunity to get some real answers.
ACs don't waste your time replying, your posts are never seen by me.
Since the Ubuntu project is committed to free software and the freedom entailed by it, I believe that underlying must also be commitment to the freedom of the donation flows which make this development possible. With PayPal and other companies arbitrarily withholding payments, based on competitve interest or government pressure, WordPress and others have taken a big leap forward in accepting Bitcoin for donations, because they have opened themselves up to donations from vast sections of the world left unserved by the traditional payment processors.
With that progress ongoing, what steps is Canonical taking, if any, to engage in the nascent Bitcoin economy?
I always end up in a broken installation *every* time I 'upgrade' - partial upgrade, full upgrade, and whatever else upgrade. Many times even simple kernel updates. Multiple devices that were working before stop functioning (particularly wifi, graphics and at times sound). Note: I always use the linux hardware compatibility list when I buy my hardware. Even then the story is pretty bad. Long story short, I am looking for a paid and supported linux. That's right, for an individual consumer. There are a lot of us, not just enterprises who can pay annual support. I am sick and tired of mucking with my system every time I upgrade at the end of a supported version. I want to pay, and get something that works on my system, and continues to work, even after upgrading (willing to pay for the damn upgrades too). Do you plan to offer such a thing? Or am I simply unaware of a product that already exists?
Since CDE and Motif were recently open sourced, will we see a Cubuntu or CDUbuntu distribution in the near future?
Make no mistake, I am a huge fan of Linux. But I have to wonder, after all these years and little adoption, what still drives you in developing the Linux desktop?
10 years ago there were Linux solutions, partly unfinished, you could recommend for a public office to adopt. Today it is more difficult as Free software runs into a complexy trap. What do you think about projects like Razor-QT who just focus on the basic stuff users wanted?
What books would you suggest on self development, business, and other subjects that have aided you?
Who can we hold responsible for the piece of crap known as Unity?
Follow up: Why don't you have a Nexus-style hardware program (promoted on the front page of Ubuntu.com) where hardware partners produce Ubuntu desktops / laptops that are certified to receive working updates for 3 years?
Put identity in the browser.
Unity looks okay on video displays that have a 16:10 or 16:9 aspect ratio or have greater horizontal than vertical real estate. The problem with such a widescreen "optimized" interface is that it looks cramped on a tablet or even smartphone in portrait mode, which is typically the orientation you'd use for reading full screen ebooks. The video demos I've seen of Unity on a tablet invariably show it in landscape mode. So how does Ubuntu plan to tweak Unity for gadgets that could be used in either landscape or portrait orientation?
Why is there no fool proof way to disable power management in Ubuntu? To be specific, i want the screen to stay on 24/7, why is there no built in way to do this?
Good-bye
In deciding to cut a new path with Unity, Ubuntu had some good reasons to break with Gnome as its primary UI layer. Gnome caused about as much stir with its initial 3.0 release as Ubuntu did with Unity. If Gnome, KDE, or other UI technologies are able to fix the issues that drove Canonical to create Unity, would they get more official, supported status than they now have? In other words, would Canonical ever consider moving away from Unity?
Funtime Candy Wow! - my plan for eventually conquering Japan.
Most of my toshiba laptops, several compaqs, Dells and generic machines have had no problems. In my case, I would ask what computers should I look out for that may cause problems...
Six years ago I posted some related ideas on your blog about a workshop the Shuttleworth Foundation held: http://www.markshuttleworth.com/archives/26#comment-397 ... So why build software tools oriented towards schools and a compulsory "curriculum" if the real goal is helping kids educate themselves and become productive citizens of the 21st century? Yes, schools could be made a bit less terrible, but why spend rare philanthropic dollars for such a meager outcome? Someone like Mark Shuttleworth has so much potential as an agent of positive change, but it seems like, despite the fact that his effort will do some small good for some school kids, it is mostly a non-starter as far as significant change."
"[Responding to: "Amazing two day workshop on programming and education" where you wrote: "I'm all fired up after two days of the most amazing work bringing together some very remarkable people to talk about a TSF strategy to ensure that we can give the next generation excellent analytical skills despite the global collapse in the supply of maths teaching capacity."]
Have your thoughts changed any since then after trying educational reform the old-fashioned school-based way? See also for more background my 2007 essay which grew out of discussion on the Python edusig list related to your workshop and my trying to create some new free software in a constructivist and unschooling direction: ... So, there is more to the story of technology than it failing in schools. Modern information and manufacturing technology itself is giving compulsory schools a failing grade. Compulsory schools do not pass in the information age. They are no longer needed. What remains is just to watch this all play out, and hopefully guide the collapse of compulsory schooling so that the fewest people get hurt in the process."
http://patapata.sourceforge.net/WhyEducationalTechnologyHasFailedSchools.html
"Ultimately, educational technology's greatest value is in supporting "learning on demand" based on interest or need which is at the opposite end of the spectrum compared to "learning just in case" based on someone else's demand. Compulsory schools don't usually traffic in "learning on demand", for the most part leaving that kind of activity to libraries or museums or the home or business or the "real world". In order for compulsory schools to make use of the best of educational technology and what is has to offer, schools themselves must change.
A 21st century issue: the irony of technologies of abundance in the hands of those still thinking in terms of scarcity.
... free and open-source self-replicating space habitats rather than mainly just better rockets and/or space tourism? http://science.slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=62113&cid=5821178
http://www.kurtz-fernhout.com/oscomak/
http://www.openvirgle.net/
A 21st century issue: the irony of technologies of abundance in the hands of those still thinking in terms of scarcity.
Dude. Really. WTF?
Unity, like most other operating system visual shells, is moving in a decidedly touch-oriented direction. Has this actually proved beneficial in pushing forward an OS that's primarily in use on servers and workstations? Have users (as a percentage of total OS users, or as a percentage of total Linux users) risen or declined since Unity was introduced?
Excellent question. Wish I had mod points.
I read on their website that the Freedom Toaster is now run as an independent project and that it is run as for profit. Now many, many years ago when the thing had no name, yes it didn't have a name once and the called it the Linux vending machine or some such, I was a member of the CLUG(Cape Town Linux User Group) and in one of my posts to the group I called it the Freedom Toaster. The name caught on and I was contacted to ask if they could use the name for the machines and also asked me to participate in choosing the design for the logo. The flying toaster was my choice and it's still their logo today. For a few years it was mentioned on the main website in the credits that I coined the name, but that has been removed. Anyway, my only condition was that the name stay in the public domain, nobody has any rights to it and that anyone who builds such a vending machine be allowed to post call it a Freedom Toaster. Now, it's a for profit project. What I would like to know is if Canonical or the Shuttleworth Foundation now claims some kind of copyright to the name? If the name is being commercialized or they claim some kind of copyright to it, I'm sure the CLUG logs would show otherwise and some kind of compensation would be in order if the name was to be moved out of the public domain.
Given the plethora of Ubuntu based distros out there, do you ever think that you should have built Ubuntu on something like FreeBSD (which has produced PC-BSD) instead of Linux? That way, Canonical could have kept sealed the most valuable improvements, and charged a good market price for it, say $10-20.
That way, Ubuntu would not even be under GPL, speaking of which, the FSF refuses to endorse Canonical due to a few of their policies, despite them being under GPL.
Do you have leverage over hardware makers as a consequence of Ubuntu's commercial success?
Are you able to get a better deal for the Linux/OSS community in general from hardware makers as a result?
While I don't very much like the *code* that Poettering contributes (pulseAudio took a LONG while to become stable), I see sense in a lot of his arguments:
1) SystemV initscripts are fine for systems that were designed 20 years ago. Things have changed quite a bit now.
2) After seeing some of the Apple launchctl things in action, I want some on Linux!
3) If we stick to POSIX, we might as well decide to throw in the towel, break out the old Slackware 1.0 distros and grow beards. If we can design a better interface/system that's more future proof, then DO IT.
4) Letting Upstart/SysV/OpenRC and whatever compete is *not* a good thing. It's the equivalent of having 3 incomplete kernels that allow you to run your audio, graphics or disk, one at a time.
5) Turns out pulseAudio got better AFTER PEOPLE FIXED IT UP. The architecture and the idea wasn't busted, but the execution was, for a long time.
The only reason Red Hat is upstream is because they contribute so damn much to the code. But, as Mark Shuttleworth said, Canonical contributes users and bugreports (sometimes directly to Red Hat, hilariously). Turns out, you have less control over code than the authors, go figure.
Finally, from my point of view, Unity and GNOME 3 are both abominations that should be killed with fire. I stand 100% behind Linus's statements about compatibility and ABI breakage. The fact that your app can only run on a specific distribution with a specific set of libraries is very rarely a good way to keep guys interested in developing for your desktop.
Can you say something about the usage of Ubuntu (or non-usage) throughout Africa since you created Canonical?
Is there any chance that Ubuntu will again support the ARMv6 architecture so it may be run on the Raspberri Pi board?
Is Android the real "Linux for humans" or has Ubuntu changed that motto for commercial goals? In other words, is Ubuntu trying to be like Android or will it go back to its roots?
When my girl friend recently asked me “what are you goals in life?” I said, I would like to have a career like Mark Shuttleworth! It is not only the career but I think you as a role model, because of your personality, what opinions you have expressed in various interviews. For example: that you think twice before investing in Canonical, since the money can be used for non-profit organisations helping poor people. What are you personal qualities that have got you where you are today?