If you don't want to subscribe, that's fine, nobody's forcing you, by my guess is that your reasons are more of a rationalization that actually caring about "professional"ism. x2
No, not really. Like I said, I like Slashdot, and I will continue to post and come back often (since my present day job is a little, ahem, lacking in challenge.)
I'm just saying something very simple: Dupes and typos can be solved automatically. The 'we're gritty around the edges' doesn't really cut it as an excuse - in fact, that is a rationalization.
Spell checkers/grammar checkers abound, there are live humans there, and dupes are something that anyone who pays a smidge of attention to the homepage recognize nearly instantly (the human brain is fantastic at just this sort of thing - which is why dupes get yelled about).
It's just my position. I don't consider Slashdot any 'lesser' for the dupes and typos now. I just don't think its something that takes itself seriously.
Frankly - and maybe this is my hang-up - I'd feel like a chump for paying for a site with so many dupes, brutal submission structures, etc. Perhaps that's just a personal choice, but there it is. I bet others feel the same way, and it would be so so simple to just fix it. Then they wouldn't have an argument, would they?
I like Slashdot a lot. I come here every day. Despite the common flames (and downright freaky displays of human frailty around -1), I think the group consensus here is fantastic. It's often very funny, and I like knowing what all the really smart mf'ers think about certain issues and topics. I feel smarter for reading Slashdot.
Having said that, my lack of subscription is for a very simple reason: it's not professional.
I won't subscribe until I never see a dupe or typo. Really, for all of our vaunted technology, if Slashdot cannot surmount these two very simple obstacles, it doesn't deserve any real monetary support. It just doesn't. And again, I say this as a real fan.
Fix that, Taco, and you've got my money. And maybe even a little more credibility.
big corporates get the same treatment that your local drug dealer gets its called equality i know thats a hard concept for some to grasp
I do have a hard time grasping that, mostly because of its extreme variance from the truth.
I mean, I don't even know how to rebut that. Its so painfully, blatantly obvious that large corporations get preferential treatment in nearly all matters, vs. private citizens (and yes, drug dealers). Tell me, when's the last time you heard about a corporate office tower being raided at 4 a.m. with flashbangs and shotguns?
... I forget who it was, it wasn't Raskin... I read this interview once with some of the *original* Mac Interface design team. I'm paraphrasing here:
Interviewer: "So, tell us what prompted you to come up with the now infamous drag-to-trash as the way to eject a disk?"
Apple designer: "Well, we wanted to come up with a method that seemed to make sense, in the manner that you want to 'do away' with the disk, so... so that it would un-mount from the... okay, look. It's stupid. We did it a long time ago and now every Mac user out there knows this, and we can't very well change it now can we? No. So that's why it's like that. Doesn't make any sense. I'm sorry."
I wish I could find the original article, but I swear that's how it went. I laughed my ass off when I read that.
It's not just the iPod, it's content in iTunes 3.0.1 too -- and half the time this DRM thing, whatever it is, stops me from burning legitimate tracks from CDs I bought and paid for years ago.
I'd check your setup. That really doesn't sound like any experiences I've had with iTunes. It's not supposed to block any usage of legitimate CDs, ripped or no.
As a PC user, QuickTime is my main exposure to how Mac does things. And it is not a good introduction, as it is so unfriendly and obtrusive.
I don't know what to tell you, man. I've got the latest QuickTime running on my PC at work (Athlon 1.8Ghz w/XP and QT 6.0) and it has only asked me the upgrade thing once. It's not as elegant in operation as the Mac one, I'll grant you, but it's hardly the catastrophe you make it out to be.
It could be that you blew through the intaller, pounding Enter past the screen where it explicitly asks you how you want to map things. You also missed the control panel where you can set it after the fact. It's in the system tray usually upon install.
And, what's the problem with the interface? Pretty straightforward, don't you think? Did you miss Play, Skip back/forward, pause, volume? Worse, do you like the Windows Media Player, which is more like the mess you describe?
QuickTime was a real pig on Windows around v3-4 (some of which might be MS's fault), but it's really not a problem now.
Now this is an interesting idea. Apple in the music business. (Good thing they settled that other Apple Records thing a while back.)
$1/track strikes me as a pretty good deal. I imagine the price is not imformed so much by Apple (while you may think their stuff is expensive, this scheme does nothing to directly contribute to their bottom line, i.e. hardware sales), as it is likely informed by whatever potential deals they want to strike with the existing content providers.
The pieces are all there - Akamai's hooked up, hell, the whole QuickTime network must be in bed with several studios already with the movie trailer video streaming service (easily the best on the net). One wonders if they have already laid the groundwork for those music-based partnerships.
And, lets not forget QuickTime. It's fantastically powerful and flexible, and they could package their media any way they wish. Some have mentioned the lack of liner notes, artwork etc. I would consider that moot if they provided, some real digital packaging. In Mac OS X, you can assign graphic files to the background of windows, you've got those 32bit 256x256 icons... if I could browse through my MP3 folder and have those icons sized nice and big with the appropriate artwork, fully tagged ID3-wise, and it's a high-quality file... yeah, I'd bite. Absolutely.
On another note, there is DRM of a sort in the iPod, specifically for the Audible content, but I think that is unique to their format and not system wide.
Neat trick considering there never was a DirectX 4.
Er, surely there was *something* that came before version 5? Or did MS just start there, knowing that everyone hates versions 1 through 3 of everything they make?
Scarlet Pruitt, IDG News Service
Monday, March 03, 2003
Microsoft (MSFT) Corporation shocked the computer world Monday as it announced the sudden revoking of all Windows-branded products, to be replaced with a new moniker, Microsoft Portholes.
"It's a bold step, but a necessary one," said Craig Mundie, resident MS ho-ha. "We were just getting clobbered in court. Not that we mind that so much, really... but damn we were just tired of arguing. We've been in court for years. Also, Bill made us put little (R) stickers on every transparent surface in every employee's home."
Microsoft Portholes will work and behave exactly like their former operating system, with minor syntax changes. For example, file listings appear in a visual construct called a 'porthole'.
"That'll show 'em. Let's see Michael tell the judge that he commonly uses 'porthole' in everyday life. He can't! We're so smart it makes my teeth hurt", enthused Mundie.
He added, "Of course we can't do much about Lortholes. But still."
Microsoft also announced future rebranding efforts, beginning with Microsoft Menu, Microsoft Pointer, Microsoft Click, Microsoft Drag, Microsoft Scrollbar, and Microsoft Interface.
If TiVo knows what's good for them they'll offer a machine that has blue DVD-recording capabilities...
TiVo does know what's good for them. And it's to stay as far away from anything like this as possible.
Okay I see your point. Legally they have played it very smart so far and a blatant 'program-sharing' capability might get them in trouble.
Having said that,
...why should TiVo bother? Just continue offering a "Save to VCR" option and stream the data out a digital port where a D-VHS, or Bluray recorder, or whatever can suck it down and save it. Of course, I'm presuming that the HD TiVo will still have this...
... isn't this the same liability, essentially? As long as the show can come off the recorder they're gonna get nailed for sharing. I don't own a TiVo, but if what you say is true and they can do this now, I am curious as to why they haven't been challenged already. Seems similar to the 'no-FireWire' decree that DVD manufacturers agreed to obey. If the (digital) signal comes out of the box at all, whether on disc or via cable, I'd imagine they'd be liable in any case.
Your point is good, though. Sometimes I forget that the world is run by myopic hamsters with ties.
I hope that form factor for the recordable blue DVDs(shown on the UK reseller page) becomes popular. I've always thought that optical discs should come like that, just like a big floppy. No more of this 'handle by the edges crap'.
Of course knowing Sony it probably has a memory stick jammed up its ass, or something similarly proprietary.
If TiVo knows what's good for them they'll offer a machine that has blue DVD-recording capabilities. Not that they should discontinue the HD based ones, but another Blue DVD model in addition to those.... I could see this new Sony deck being a really popular item once it comes down in price. The HD doesn't offer any real significant advantages over such a beast other than continuous capacity. A disc-based TiVo would let you exchange shows like we used to on VHS. (btw, I'm from Canada, we can do that legally.)
Unless the Sony unit has some weird-ass DRM. Its certainly conceivable that they would mark each recorded disc with something that says 'only play in the deck I was made in'.
So, yeah. Once we crack that (is it done yet? huh? is it?), it's all good.
On a slight tangent, I see signs that Sony is backing away from DRM. The system in their NetMD players is a fiasco - especially now that they are actually poised to become popular - and they've pretty much admitted to that. Anyone catch that Wired article last issue? It was quite strange to see Keiji Kimura, head of Sony Electronics, basically admit that they got their asses kicked by Apple. In the Walkman space no less!
ugly as shit and expensive beyond reason.
macz suckz big time
die apple die
An excellent specimen. Succinct, to the point. If I may, allow me to draw attention to some of the more prominent features.
You see, your typical Apple Homo Trollus has a sloped brow, approximately 20% shallower than normal. Also, the knuckles are large and calloused from dragging on the ground. These two factors both work in tandem to create the keyboarding style of said troll: the lack of caps, the atrocious spelling, etc.
But more than that, the rage plays into consideration. Studies are inconclusive at this point; the theory currently in vogue points to a severe inferority complex, possibly misplaced feelings of abandonment by Homo Trollus' platform of choice.
The question as to the source of the Trollus' rage remains a mystery, however. While one would logically assume that a typical Homo Sapiens would simply ignore a computer choice that he/she deemed unsuitable, the Trollus is angred, and somehow threatened by the very existance of another choice).
In the end, we may never know what drives these poor stupid brutes to such outbursts. The only recourse is what we've always done... sedatation, and an absolute lack of 'feeding' are critical.
I've been following the development of Sony's console-based online efforts for a little while now, and I have to say they are definitely up to something big. Between this so-called Cell chip (or Grid or whatever), and now this interesting collusion with IBM (again) on their Butterfly.net... it raises some intriguing possibilities.
However no one I've spoken to has the slightest clue as to how they plan on using this Grid stuff. Does anyone know any details? All I see are people saying 'no bandwidth, latency', etc.... I still can't figure out what it's supposed to do. Which is maybe on purpose.
If you look at the chess pieces on the board, so to speak... MS with Xbox, MSN, flavours of XP with media/TV style abilities... then Sony, aligned with IBM for a new chip and a radical new network... not to mention the Cell sharing some tech with IBM's forthcoming Power derivatives for Apple...
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS HAS CONVENED TO DISCUSS THEIR NEW ONLINE MUSIC STRATEGY.
AOL SUIT #1
So, the idea is this - we've already got subscribers, and the music people want subscribers, so lets turn OUR subscibers into THAT kind of subscribers! I'm frickin' brilliant!
AOL SUIT #2
But, what if they pirate the music they download? Can't they just play it out of their headphone jack, onto a MiniDisc, or basically anything else?
AOL SUIT #1 motions to the gorillas standing guard at the door. With a quick motion, AOL SUIT #2 is sent through a trap door under his chair. At the same time, his stock options are released from a hatch in the ceiling and all the other SUITS scramble to collect them.
I'm dying to release screenshots, but I've held off. Sometimes just seeing a screen of something, without seeing how it works, can be damaging to the impression, you know? Of course I'll have to eventually.
For all the complaints about "cruft" and MS's failure to innovate, techies seem to want the same UI's and the same OS API's that they used 20 to 30 years ago.
I agree that the time has come to drop the desktop metaphor. It was OK when we were weaning office workers from typewriters, but maybe it's time to move on.
Yeah, that's pretty much where the idea came from. We've come to think of 'icons' and 'folders' more naturally as their digital counterparts, so why bother calling them that? Although, this messes with my idea too. I get hung up on names. Essentially there are 'nodes' that represent folder structures, with 'points' or regular icons representing individual files. Which brings me to...
I've never actually used a pie menu
Think Sims, as a starting point.
The advantage is that: you've got an area (a hexagon) in the middle...
You're right, and came to a similar conclusion I did. 8 points isn't really workable in terms of relationships with other 'bubbles' (as I call them.. like a constellation of files). Six in a hex shape is more manageable.
Another thing I've maintained is that this interface requires a 2-button mouse with a scroll wheel. Right-click opens the node, mouse wheel scrubs through files, left-click selects.. this also gives you a nice multi-selection ability, as opposed to standard drop-down menus where you need to make multiple 'trips' to choose more than one thing.
Ah, I'm getting ahead of myself. I'll put you on the list for more news if you'd like.
Okay, I'll let you know when it's ready to go out. For obvious reasons, I'm trying to polish the demo as much as I can, because one little omission and I'll get crucified.
Although I will warn you, I wasn't kidding when I said radical. One instance, as food for thought - would you give up the ability to have a desktop image of your choice, in trade for having 1-click access to all your data right on the (so-called) desktop? This is the kind of thing I'm talking about.
I can't debate how accurate that point is, but I have noticed, having recently read through the gnome interface guidelines, that most of the "not like this" examples are the myriads of various gnome apps. It'd probably go a long way if the developers that *do* write UI code (regardless of how "good" they are at "designing" said UI) actually follow UI guidelines.
I'll go you one further.
I'm a UI designer. I have designed a new OS UI. It's quite radical, and new. I've solicited opinions on it from slashdot (here)as well as from a few friends.
Basically, I'm sitting on the thing right now, for two reasons: 1.) the core group of people its designed for - techies, early-adopters - are incredibly resistant to changes of this type and 2.) its nearly impossible to solicit useful feedback from said group, for the reasons you outlined in your post.
It can be summarized in one of the responses to the above-linked post; I asked if anyone was willing to undergo (possible) major learning pains to learn a more productive system. I got the only one-word response I've ever seen on/., "No."
Everyone, absolutely everyone has an almost unshakable opinion of what they like, visually, and behaviourally. Witness the near-revolt of Classic Mac OS users trying OS X, versus the newbies and Unix/Win coverts who think it's the cat's ass (er, that means 'great'). You cannot underestimate this. In 10 years of graphic design, it still boggles me. Graphic design and particularly UI design in general get 'no respect', because its simply something that people don't respect educated opinions on. Put another way, if your code works, only another programmer is going to criticise you for sloppy coding. A user doesn't care as long as it works. But if I show a UI design to a room with 15 people, you will have 15 angrily opinionated asshats barking off about how this and that should work, with no thought whatsoever to how one arrives at those conclusions.
And the kicker: you must listen to every asshat in that room, because in a way they are all right.
Anyways. My point is this: I'm the guy you're talking about, and I find it really hard to 'break in' to this group. I don't even know where to start, actually. Hell, I get dissed just because I built the UI demo in Flash.
I tried this, and its really hard for me to test - the range of those DLink BT adapters is a good 10 meters. My phone gets picked up before I'm even in my apartment.
On another note, I've finally realized my dream of having theme music on cue when I enter the building.
Slashdot Mirror
No, not really. Like I said, I like Slashdot, and I will continue to post and come back often (since my present day job is a little, ahem, lacking in challenge.)
I'm just saying something very simple: Dupes and typos can be solved automatically. The 'we're gritty around the edges' doesn't really cut it as an excuse - in fact, that is a rationalization.
Spell checkers/grammar checkers abound, there are live humans there, and dupes are something that anyone who pays a smidge of attention to the homepage recognize nearly instantly (the human brain is fantastic at just this sort of thing - which is why dupes get yelled about).
It's just my position. I don't consider Slashdot any 'lesser' for the dupes and typos now. I just don't think its something that takes itself seriously.
Frankly - and maybe this is my hang-up - I'd feel like a chump for paying for a site with so many dupes, brutal submission structures, etc. Perhaps that's just a personal choice, but there it is. I bet others feel the same way, and it would be so so simple to just fix it. Then they wouldn't have an argument, would they?
Having said that, my lack of subscription is for a very simple reason: it's not professional.
I won't subscribe until I never see a dupe or typo. Really, for all of our vaunted technology, if Slashdot cannot surmount these two very simple obstacles, it doesn't deserve any real monetary support. It just doesn't. And again, I say this as a real fan.
Fix that, Taco, and you've got my money. And maybe even a little more credibility.
I do have a hard time grasping that, mostly because of its extreme variance from the truth.
I mean, I don't even know how to rebut that. Its so painfully, blatantly obvious that large corporations get preferential treatment in nearly all matters, vs. private citizens (and yes, drug dealers). Tell me, when's the last time you heard about a corporate office tower being raided at 4 a.m. with flashbangs and shotguns?
Sorry, not insightful.
Interviewer: "So, tell us what prompted you to come up with the now infamous drag-to-trash as the way to eject a disk?"
Apple designer: "Well, we wanted to come up with a method that seemed to make sense, in the manner that you want to 'do away' with the disk, so... so that it would un-mount from the... okay, look. It's stupid. We did it a long time ago and now every Mac user out there knows this, and we can't very well change it now can we? No. So that's why it's like that. Doesn't make any sense. I'm sorry."
I wish I could find the original article, but I swear that's how it went. I laughed my ass off when I read that.
I'd check your setup. That really doesn't sound like any experiences I've had with iTunes. It's not supposed to block any usage of legitimate CDs, ripped or no.
I don't know what to tell you, man. I've got the latest QuickTime running on my PC at work (Athlon 1.8Ghz w/XP and QT 6.0) and it has only asked me the upgrade thing once. It's not as elegant in operation as the Mac one, I'll grant you, but it's hardly the catastrophe you make it out to be.
It could be that you blew through the intaller, pounding Enter past the screen where it explicitly asks you how you want to map things. You also missed the control panel where you can set it after the fact. It's in the system tray usually upon install.
And, what's the problem with the interface? Pretty straightforward, don't you think? Did you miss Play, Skip back/forward, pause, volume? Worse, do you like the Windows Media Player, which is more like the mess you describe?
QuickTime was a real pig on Windows around v3-4 (some of which might be MS's fault), but it's really not a problem now.
$1/track strikes me as a pretty good deal. I imagine the price is not imformed so much by Apple (while you may think their stuff is expensive, this scheme does nothing to directly contribute to their bottom line, i.e. hardware sales), as it is likely informed by whatever potential deals they want to strike with the existing content providers.
The pieces are all there - Akamai's hooked up, hell, the whole QuickTime network must be in bed with several studios already with the movie trailer video streaming service (easily the best on the net). One wonders if they have already laid the groundwork for those music-based partnerships.
And, lets not forget QuickTime. It's fantastically powerful and flexible, and they could package their media any way they wish. Some have mentioned the lack of liner notes, artwork etc. I would consider that moot if they provided, some real digital packaging. In Mac OS X, you can assign graphic files to the background of windows, you've got those 32bit 256x256 icons... if I could browse through my MP3 folder and have those icons sized nice and big with the appropriate artwork, fully tagged ID3-wise, and it's a high-quality file... yeah, I'd bite. Absolutely.
On another note, there is DRM of a sort in the iPod, specifically for the Audible content, but I think that is unique to their format and not system wide.
Er, surely there was *something* that came before version 5? Or did MS just start there, knowing that everyone hates versions 1 through 3 of everything they make?
Says Old Names Were Pain In The Ass
Scarlet Pruitt, IDG News Service
Monday, March 03, 2003
Microsoft (MSFT) Corporation shocked the computer world Monday as it announced the sudden revoking of all Windows-branded products, to be replaced with a new moniker, Microsoft Portholes.
"It's a bold step, but a necessary one," said Craig Mundie, resident MS ho-ha. "We were just getting clobbered in court. Not that we mind that so much, really... but damn we were just tired of arguing. We've been in court for years. Also, Bill made us put little (R) stickers on every transparent surface in every employee's home."
Microsoft Portholes will work and behave exactly like their former operating system, with minor syntax changes. For example, file listings appear in a visual construct called a 'porthole'.
"That'll show 'em. Let's see Michael tell the judge that he commonly uses 'porthole' in everyday life. He can't! We're so smart it makes my teeth hurt", enthused Mundie.
He added, "Of course we can't do much about Lortholes. But still."
Microsoft also announced future rebranding efforts, beginning with Microsoft Menu, Microsoft Pointer, Microsoft Click, Microsoft Drag, Microsoft Scrollbar, and Microsoft Interface.
TiVo does know what's good for them. And it's to stay as far away from anything like this as possible.
Okay I see your point. Legally they have played it very smart so far and a blatant 'program-sharing' capability might get them in trouble.
Having said that,
Your point is good, though. Sometimes I forget that the world is run by myopic hamsters with ties.
Of course knowing Sony it probably has a memory stick jammed up its ass, or something similarly proprietary.
Unless the Sony unit has some weird-ass DRM. Its certainly conceivable that they would mark each recorded disc with something that says 'only play in the deck I was made in'.
So, yeah. Once we crack that (is it done yet? huh? is it?), it's all good.
On a slight tangent, I see signs that Sony is backing away from DRM. The system in their NetMD players is a fiasco - especially now that they are actually poised to become popular - and they've pretty much admitted to that. Anyone catch that Wired article last issue? It was quite strange to see Keiji Kimura, head of Sony Electronics, basically admit that they got their asses kicked by Apple. In the Walkman space no less!
While the linked site does provide a layman's interpretation of the topic, when you first click to that page you are presented with:
Two Plus Two Equals Four
Thought we had all been trolled... :)
I love this place! Classic!
Ladies (ha!) and gentlemen, I have discovered why MS named their products in such a way. It makes keyword searches harder.
Ever try to search for 'The The' on Gnutella? It's NOT easy.
ugly as shit and expensive beyond reason.
macz suckz big time
die apple die
An excellent specimen. Succinct, to the point. If I may, allow me to draw attention to some of the more prominent features.
You see, your typical Apple Homo Trollus has a sloped brow, approximately 20% shallower than normal. Also, the knuckles are large and calloused from dragging on the ground. These two factors both work in tandem to create the keyboarding style of said troll: the lack of caps, the atrocious spelling, etc.
But more than that, the rage plays into consideration. Studies are inconclusive at this point; the theory currently in vogue points to a severe inferority complex, possibly misplaced feelings of abandonment by Homo Trollus' platform of choice.
The question as to the source of the Trollus' rage remains a mystery, however. While one would logically assume that a typical Homo Sapiens would simply ignore a computer choice that he/she deemed unsuitable, the Trollus is angred, and somehow threatened by the very existance of another choice).
In the end, we may never know what drives these poor stupid brutes to such outbursts. The only recourse is what we've always done... sedatation, and an absolute lack of 'feeding' are critical.
Well said... uh, God.
Good example:
Guild assembles army on hill, opposite another army. Air is thick with tension. Our intrepid leader speaks.
Us:"We're sending out a ghol to negotiate!" Single ghol advances.
Them: Arrows. Dead ghol.
Us: "That's okay! We'll send out another one!" Another ghol goes out.
Them: Army charges.
Us: Army cheers! Fetch burn Peace symbol into hillside. Then a Twenty-one Wight salute. Everyone runs (or, walks... this is Myth after all).
Them: "WTF?!?"
Good times.
However no one I've spoken to has the slightest clue as to how they plan on using this Grid stuff. Does anyone know any details? All I see are people saying 'no bandwidth, latency', etc.... I still can't figure out what it's supposed to do. Which is maybe on purpose.
If you look at the chess pieces on the board, so to speak... MS with Xbox, MSN, flavours of XP with media/TV style abilities... then Sony, aligned with IBM for a new chip and a radical new network... not to mention the Cell sharing some tech with IBM's forthcoming Power derivatives for Apple...
Strange things are afoot at the Circle K...
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS HAS CONVENED TO DISCUSS THEIR NEW ONLINE MUSIC STRATEGY.
AOL SUIT #1
So, the idea is this - we've already got subscribers, and the music people want subscribers, so lets turn OUR subscibers into THAT kind of subscribers! I'm frickin' brilliant!
AOL SUIT #2
But, what if they pirate the music they download? Can't they just play it out of their headphone jack, onto a MiniDisc, or basically anything else?
AOL SUIT #1 motions to the gorillas standing guard at the door. With a quick motion, AOL SUIT #2 is sent through a trap door under his chair. At the same time, his stock options are released from a hatch in the ceiling and all the other SUITS scramble to collect them.
AOL SUIT #1
Now, as I was saying...
FADE OUT
I'm not sayin'.... I'm just sayin'.
I'm dying to release screenshots, but I've held off. Sometimes just seeing a screen of something, without seeing how it works, can be damaging to the impression, you know? Of course I'll have to eventually.
For all the complaints about "cruft" and MS's failure to innovate, techies seem to want the same UI's and the same OS API's that they used 20 to 30 years ago.
I agree that the time has come to drop the desktop metaphor. It was OK when we were weaning office workers from typewriters, but maybe it's time to move on.
Yeah, that's pretty much where the idea came from. We've come to think of 'icons' and 'folders' more naturally as their digital counterparts, so why bother calling them that? Although, this messes with my idea too. I get hung up on names. Essentially there are 'nodes' that represent folder structures, with 'points' or regular icons representing individual files. Which brings me to...
I've never actually used a pie menu
Think Sims, as a starting point.
The advantage is that: you've got an area (a hexagon) in the middle...
You're right, and came to a similar conclusion I did. 8 points isn't really workable in terms of relationships with other 'bubbles' (as I call them.. like a constellation of files). Six in a hex shape is more manageable.
Another thing I've maintained is that this interface requires a 2-button mouse with a scroll wheel. Right-click opens the node, mouse wheel scrubs through files, left-click selects.. this also gives you a nice multi-selection ability, as opposed to standard drop-down menus where you need to make multiple 'trips' to choose more than one thing.
Ah, I'm getting ahead of myself. I'll put you on the list for more news if you'd like.
Although I will warn you, I wasn't kidding when I said radical. One instance, as food for thought - would you give up the ability to have a desktop image of your choice, in trade for having 1-click access to all your data right on the (so-called) desktop? This is the kind of thing I'm talking about.
I'll go you one further.
I'm a UI designer. I have designed a new OS UI. It's quite radical, and new. I've solicited opinions on it from slashdot (here)as well as from a few friends.
Basically, I'm sitting on the thing right now, for two reasons: 1.) the core group of people its designed for - techies, early-adopters - are incredibly resistant to changes of this type and 2.) its nearly impossible to solicit useful feedback from said group, for the reasons you outlined in your post.
It can be summarized in one of the responses to the above-linked post; I asked if anyone was willing to undergo (possible) major learning pains to learn a more productive system. I got the only one-word response I've ever seen on /., "No."
Everyone, absolutely everyone has an almost unshakable opinion of what they like, visually, and behaviourally. Witness the near-revolt of Classic Mac OS users trying OS X, versus the newbies and Unix/Win coverts who think it's the cat's ass (er, that means 'great'). You cannot underestimate this. In 10 years of graphic design, it still boggles me. Graphic design and particularly UI design in general get 'no respect', because its simply something that people don't respect educated opinions on. Put another way, if your code works, only another programmer is going to criticise you for sloppy coding. A user doesn't care as long as it works. But if I show a UI design to a room with 15 people, you will have 15 angrily opinionated asshats barking off about how this and that should work, with no thought whatsoever to how one arrives at those conclusions.
And the kicker: you must listen to every asshat in that room, because in a way they are all right.
Anyways. My point is this: I'm the guy you're talking about, and I find it really hard to 'break in' to this group. I don't even know where to start, actually. Hell, I get dissed just because I built the UI demo in Flash.
On another note, I've finally realized my dream of having theme music on cue when I enter the building.