I think Linux should have a totally different interface to Windows or OSX. The target audience for Linux are server administrators and power users and I think the interface designers should realise this. I really don't think that linux will ever beat Windows or Mac for usability, and maybe it doesn't need to. If Linux rewarded you for learning the bash shell then it would be a really interesting environment. As it is I can switch into the terminal to try and get some things done, and if I typeset my latex document I then have to switch back to the GUI to view the pdf. Linux is confused about whether it should be using a GUI to do something or whether the CLI is the better way.
Window Managers for Linux all seem to be relatively similar to Windows or Mac, and there doesn't seem to much reason to use linux for a DIFFERENT or better experience. I think this is mainly due to the many different developers involved and their total lack of interest in consistency for their users.
The idea of using the CLI is still basically an essential of the latex system due to compiling software. It should be developed to take over the interface, not be hidden behind an inadequate GUI. This would refocus the idea of linux into a straightforward, techie, scripting style interface. However, the CLI needs to be a lot more exciting than the crappy CLI we have now. They need to do things like allowing usage images and media, using search abilities, fixing file heirarchy addressing (as it makes CLIs really difficult) and doing spotlight like smart folders. An CLI interface of this type would need a really good built in text editor that is not quite as obscure as emacs or vi.
Linux should embrace its techiness, but not for techiness' sake.
That is the facts of the matter. Linux may be a good copy of server room Unix but it is a poor copy of windows. All the things that Windows works hard at are actively avoided by Linux users and developers: Backwards compatability, working with all available hardware, installing easily, requiring no configuration.Ok, and after we give up on all that what do we get. Buggy software, source code that won't compile, rpms that still need another package (that usually doesn't exist, or else needs another package itself), driver installation that requires you to know exactly which processor you have and to compile against kernel source and ugly fonts. Oh and don't forget that the UI looks exactly the same as all the other UIs, there is no innovation, and the whole thing is a total copy.
And at the end of all this, when the user complains about the crapness, they are told if they stopped complaining and started developing then maybe the world would be a better place. Well guess what - they are back on windows ASAP.
If the Linux user community realised how dissappointing the actual user experience is for the typical end user, and that money is not really a big thing involved in something I spend 8 hours a day in front of, they would realise how far they have to go before they are anywhere near the desktop. Geeks only.
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I think Linux should have a totally different interface to Windows or OSX. The target audience for Linux are server administrators and power users and I think the interface designers should realise this. I really don't think that linux will ever beat Windows or Mac for usability, and maybe it doesn't need to. If Linux rewarded you for learning the bash shell then it would be a really interesting environment. As it is I can switch into the terminal to try and get some things done, and if I typeset my latex document I then have to switch back to the GUI to view the pdf. Linux is confused about whether it should be using a GUI to do something or whether the CLI is the better way. Window Managers for Linux all seem to be relatively similar to Windows or Mac, and there doesn't seem to much reason to use linux for a DIFFERENT or better experience. I think this is mainly due to the many different developers involved and their total lack of interest in consistency for their users. The idea of using the CLI is still basically an essential of the latex system due to compiling software. It should be developed to take over the interface, not be hidden behind an inadequate GUI. This would refocus the idea of linux into a straightforward, techie, scripting style interface. However, the CLI needs to be a lot more exciting than the crappy CLI we have now. They need to do things like allowing usage images and media, using search abilities, fixing file heirarchy addressing (as it makes CLIs really difficult) and doing spotlight like smart folders. An CLI interface of this type would need a really good built in text editor that is not quite as obscure as emacs or vi. Linux should embrace its techiness, but not for techiness' sake.
That is the facts of the matter. Linux may be a good copy of server room Unix but it is a poor copy of windows. All the things that Windows works hard at are actively avoided by Linux users and developers: Backwards compatability, working with all available hardware, installing easily, requiring no configuration.Ok, and after we give up on all that what do we get. Buggy software, source code that won't compile, rpms that still need another package (that usually doesn't exist, or else needs another package itself), driver installation that requires you to know exactly which processor you have and to compile against kernel source and ugly fonts. Oh and don't forget that the UI looks exactly the same as all the other UIs, there is no innovation, and the whole thing is a total copy. And at the end of all this, when the user complains about the crapness, they are told if they stopped complaining and started developing then maybe the world would be a better place. Well guess what - they are back on windows ASAP. If the Linux user community realised how dissappointing the actual user experience is for the typical end user, and that money is not really a big thing involved in something I spend 8 hours a day in front of, they would realise how far they have to go before they are anywhere near the desktop. Geeks only.