Please don't confuse usability with simplifying or 'dumbing down' and lump them together. Although this has been done by companies like Apple in the past, it IS possible to make things intuitive, logical and useful without appealing to the lowest common denominator. I admit I haven't seen much of BeOS, but from what I have seen, it seems to combine usability with power and control quite well. The installation is a breeze, the interface is easily manageable, yet the power and control still remains.
I sincerely hope quailties like these can be brought to Linux, but I don't mean by changing our titlebars yellow.
Re. sorting signal from noise... Why not a/. style setup? Moderate up the good stuff in each category. If an artist gets lots of votes, it might even give him/her some bargaining power for a decent contract with a record company if they feel the need to publish CDs widely...
I think the majority of/.ers confuse UI with GUI. Whenever there is an article like this, we get "Enlightenment is pretty", "I don't want Linux to be pretty", "Don't dumb down Linux".. All these are besides the point.
UI = User Interface GUI = Graphical User Interface
Not that GUI is merely a subset of UI. A CLI is a UI, it is a way that the **user** **interfaces** with the computer. What Linux needs is an effective method of user interaction in the GUI that is standard and interoperable with other programs!
Most Unix CLIs have very good standards for UI, eg. piping and >> etc. all tend to work nicely with other programs. --help gives you instructions 90% of the time, and the man command is even more consistent. So think about that sort of interoperability and now think of Linux GUIs. Drag and drop? Hardly. Copy and paste? Yeah right. Common menu commands throughout different programs? Nope. Proper WYSIWYG printing? Ha!
These are the sorts of standards that need to be adopted in Linux, for it to be an effective *interface* for the *user*. Talk of themes etc, for the most part evade the issue at hand, which is below the surface of how it actaully looks. Representing the computer environment graphically is a natural way for people to operate (yes, we have eyes and use them a lot), yet without standards in menuing, drag and drop etc, its incredibly inefficient and frustrating in Linux.
To bring this all back, it is a priority that Linux UI problems be sorted out, most probably by some sort of standards. The look of our titlebars is the least of our worries if we can't get things done.
Users do not need to worry about these things AT ALL. they are users. they use them. Administrators are the one who has to worry about these. you got it wrong from the beginning.
Yeah of course... and every person who uses a desktop OS at home has their own personal admin who lives under the desk and pops out and configures all their software to how they should be. Sure.
- Fast. 3-5 minutes, and minimal preperation/cleaning up time. Usually your saucepan can do with a rinse and sponge. Even more so if you microwave it in your bowl, but its not as nice that way. Even even more so if you use the styrofoam bowl ramens - no washing up at all!
- Configurable. Feeling creative? Dump in an egg, shallots, fried pork/beef strips, thinly sliced celery, bean sprouts, chives, sliced onion, soup stock, mirin (Japanese rice wine used for cooking), interesting sauces, bonito flakes, dehydrated prawns (shrimp for you Americans), whatever takes your fancy. Also, for a good change, you may want to try using udon noodles instead. Where I live, they're a bit more expensive than ramen but they make a good change and take roughly the same time to cook.
- Cheap. I bought a 30 packet box of Korean Shin Ramyon for about AU$15. 50c a pack! (as a side note, Shin Ramyon is right up at the top of my favourite noodle list. Mmmmmm.. Just don't be stupid and eat the firey flavouring by itself. uggghhhh....)
Hey.. sounds like some of the same reasons I like Linux:)
One of the most disappointing things I find with UI design in Linux in general, is that it has so much potential to be better, yet this is not used. Even though KDE etc. is appealing to newbies it still remains 'by hackers, for hackers'. In most situations, if Linux developers aren't sure of what they should be doing in terms of UI design, they copy Microsoft.
The open source development model of KDE/Gnome allows for some *real* innovation to take place on the UI front, yet it is being neglected. Look at most WMs, and count how many of them use taskbars, or start menu-ish controls. I don't think we can count on MS or Apple to break out of the mind set that "this is what a GUI looks like". Of course to attract users UIs have to be intuitive and natural to use for people experienced with win/mac UIs, but that can not be used as an excuse to halt UI development at the stage it is now.
I really have faith in projects such as KDE to break out of non-sensical conventions, as is the trend with OSS, and I hope that as well as doing a great programming job, the developers put some research into UI design as well. Remember that computers are slaves to us, not vice-versa.
I think the Evangelion fansubs have been out for a long time. I remember looking for them about a year ago and I found a couple of distros who had it. This is in Australia too - if you live in the US you may probably have more luck. AFAIK the movies haven't been picked up by any commercial distributors yet (or maybe they have - I have absolutely no idea), so you may be lucky.
Re: Nuku Nuku, if the rights have been bought, then you probably won't have any luck getting fansubs (that is if the distros/fansubbers etc. do things the right way). Most fansub groups will stop distribution once a series has been picked up commercially.
Otherwise, get cracking learning your Japanese so you can watch them as soon as they're released:).
Yes.. I've been following these guys for years now and they just keep getting better. Electronic music without the cheesiness and commercial crap. And small-ish files too!
I agree somewhat. Although Open Source can be a great business model for certain companies in appropriate situations, it is not perfect for everyone. While a lot of people quote the age old examples of Redhat selling docs and support, or hardware companies selling hardware with Open Source drivers/software etc, that is not the extent of all software development.
Not all software development is intended for big commercial use (in which case the companies buying the product would *need* the security of support etc.) Not all software is so complex that it *needs* support or docs. With smaller software projects, it is much easier to copy a piece of software, than if it had a huge code base, leaving the person producing the software and trying to sell it in a shaky position.
Open Source is not for everyone, although great for some, so stop criticising people for doing what THEY want to do with THEIR code which is a by-product of THEIR invested capital into R&D etc.
If I'm wrong, please feel free to correct me with facts.
One of the major things that pisses me off about this is the way our Government is treating the 'net. They inisist that they are just re-inforcing the internet with laws comparable to TV and print. They are yet to realise that the internet is not a passive entertainment medium! The net is interactive, and is a means of communication, not just an entertainment source like TV. Censoring the net is like listening in on, and bleeping out swear words in phone conversations.. Much different to censoring TV.
But the politicians only know of the internet by the stupid catch-phrases thrown around in the popular media like 'surfing the net' as if its just some sort of joyride not a real means of communication and expression.
Finally we get an effective means of free speech, extremely accessible to the public, and this is what happens. I guess thats the precise reason why this is happening.
When will governments get over their arrogant, egotistical belief that they must take it upon themselves to exercise control over the citizens they are supposed to represent?!
An interesting point is made about video and image recollection. In this way, the brain differs to what we consider as information storage (eg. videos take up lots of space, text doesn't). Comparing computers to memory recollection could be similar to comparing (for instance) bitmap graphics to vector graphics.
Instead of remembering things photographically, the brain tends to remember what happened, how it happened etc... and fills in the blanks drawing from other memories etc.
Similar to the way a vector line pattern is stored as points with equations defining the space in between, rather than a bitmap defining a line as a series of dots.
The power of the brain is in processing, extrapolating and interpolating the data that it has, rather than storing large quantities of information and just retrieving it, like computers.
That kinda reminds me of a little riddle thing I heard a while ago:
The more swiss cheese you have, the more holes you have. The more holes you have, the less cheese you have. Therefore, the more swiss cheese you have, the less swiss cheese you have.
Slashdot Mirror
Please don't confuse usability with simplifying or 'dumbing down' and lump them together. Although this has been done by companies like Apple in the past, it IS possible to make things intuitive, logical and useful without appealing to the lowest common denominator. I admit I haven't seen much of BeOS, but from what I have seen, it seems to combine usability with power and control quite well. The installation is a breeze, the interface is easily manageable, yet the power and control still remains.
I sincerely hope quailties like these can be brought to Linux, but I don't mean by changing our titlebars yellow.
Re. sorting signal from noise... Why not a /. style setup? Moderate up the good stuff in each category. If an artist gets lots of votes, it might even give him/her some bargaining power for a decent contract with a record company if they feel the need to publish CDs widely...
Exactly.
/.ers confuse UI with GUI. Whenever there is an article like this, we get "Enlightenment is pretty", "I don't want Linux to be pretty", "Don't dumb down Linux".. All these are besides the point.
I think the majority of
UI = User Interface
GUI = Graphical User Interface
Not that GUI is merely a subset of UI. A CLI is a UI, it is a way that the **user** **interfaces** with the computer. What Linux needs is an effective method of user interaction in the GUI that is standard and interoperable with other programs!
Most Unix CLIs have very good standards for UI, eg. piping and >> etc. all tend to work nicely with other programs. --help gives you instructions 90% of the time, and the man command is even more consistent. So think about that sort of interoperability and now think of Linux GUIs. Drag and drop? Hardly. Copy and paste? Yeah right. Common menu commands throughout different programs? Nope. Proper WYSIWYG printing? Ha!
These are the sorts of standards that need to be adopted in Linux, for it to be an effective *interface* for the *user*. Talk of themes etc, for the most part evade the issue at hand, which is below the surface of how it actaully looks. Representing the computer environment graphically is a natural way for people to operate (yes, we have eyes and use them a lot), yet without standards in menuing, drag and drop etc, its incredibly inefficient and frustrating in Linux.
To bring this all back, it is a priority that Linux UI problems be sorted out, most probably by some sort of standards. The look of our titlebars is the least of our worries if we can't get things done.
Yeah of course... and every person who uses a desktop OS at home has their own personal admin who lives under the desk and pops out and configures all their software to how they should be. Sure.
Why Ramen? Dear me...
.. sounds like some of the same reasons I like Linux :)
Ramen is:
- Fast. 3-5 minutes, and minimal preperation/cleaning up time. Usually your saucepan can do with a rinse and sponge. Even more so if you microwave it in your bowl, but its not as nice that way. Even even more so if you use the styrofoam bowl ramens - no washing up at all!
- Configurable. Feeling creative? Dump in an egg, shallots, fried pork/beef strips, thinly sliced celery, bean sprouts, chives, sliced onion, soup stock, mirin (Japanese rice wine used for cooking), interesting sauces, bonito flakes, dehydrated prawns (shrimp for you Americans), whatever takes your fancy. Also, for a good change, you may want to try using udon noodles instead. Where I live, they're a bit more expensive than ramen but they make a good change and take roughly the same time to cook.
- Cheap. I bought a 30 packet box of Korean Shin Ramyon for about AU$15. 50c a pack! (as a side note, Shin Ramyon is right up at the top of my favourite noodle list. Mmmmmm.. Just don't be stupid and eat the firey flavouring by itself. uggghhhh....)
Hey
One of the most disappointing things I find with UI design in Linux in general, is that it has so much potential to be better, yet this is not used. Even though KDE etc. is appealing to newbies it still remains 'by hackers, for hackers'. In most situations, if Linux developers aren't sure of what they should be doing in terms of UI design, they copy Microsoft.
The open source development model of KDE/Gnome allows for some *real* innovation to take place on the UI front, yet it is being neglected. Look at most WMs, and count how many of them use taskbars, or start menu-ish controls. I don't think we can count on MS or Apple to break out of the mind set that "this is what a GUI looks like". Of course to attract users UIs have to be intuitive and natural to use for people experienced with win/mac UIs, but that can not be used as an excuse to halt UI development at the stage it is now.
I really have faith in projects such as KDE to break out of non-sensical conventions, as is the trend with OSS, and I hope that as well as doing a great programming job, the developers put some research into UI design as well. Remember that computers are slaves to us, not vice-versa.
After using Windows for so long, I was always Micro and Soft. But, when I switched to Debian, I was so amazed because I got a Woody!
I think the Evangelion fansubs have been out for a long time. I remember looking for them about a year ago and I found a couple of distros who had it. This is in Australia too - if you live in the US you may probably have more luck. AFAIK the movies haven't been picked up by any commercial distributors yet (or maybe they have - I have absolutely no idea), so you may be lucky.
:).
Re: Nuku Nuku, if the rights have been bought, then you probably won't have any luck getting fansubs (that is if the distros/fansubbers etc. do things the right way). Most fansub groups will stop distribution once a series has been picked up commercially.
Otherwise, get cracking learning your Japanese so you can watch them as soon as they're released
Aha.. Egg on my face.
:)
Well at least it's foreign
Have you set the environment variable MESA_GLX_FX=fullscreen ?
Yes.. I've been following these guys for years now and they just keep getting better. Electronic music without the cheesiness and commercial crap. And small-ish files too!
I agree somewhat. Although Open Source can be a great business model for certain companies in appropriate situations, it is not perfect for everyone. While a lot of people quote the age old examples of Redhat selling docs and support, or hardware companies selling hardware with Open Source drivers/software etc, that is not the extent of all software development.
Not all software development is intended for big commercial use (in which case the companies buying the product would *need* the security of support etc.) Not all software is so complex that it *needs* support or docs. With smaller software projects, it is much easier to copy a piece of software, than if it had a huge code base, leaving the person producing the software and trying to sell it in a shaky position.
Open Source is not for everyone, although great for some, so stop criticising people for doing what THEY want to do with THEIR code which is a by-product of THEIR invested capital into R&D etc.
If I'm wrong, please feel free to correct me with facts.
One of the major things that pisses me off about this is the way our Government is treating the 'net. They inisist that they are just re-inforcing the internet with laws comparable to TV and print.
They are yet to realise that the internet is not a passive entertainment medium! The net is interactive, and is a means of communication, not just an entertainment source like TV.
Censoring the net is like listening in on, and bleeping out swear words in phone conversations.. Much different to censoring TV.
But the politicians only know of the internet by the stupid catch-phrases thrown around in the popular media like 'surfing the net' as if its just some sort of joyride not a real means of communication and expression.
Finally we get an effective means of free speech, extremely accessible to the public, and this is what happens. I guess thats the precise reason why this is happening.
When will governments get over their arrogant, egotistical belief that they must take it upon themselves to exercise control over the citizens they are supposed to represent?!
An interesting point is made about video and image recollection. In this way, the brain differs to what we consider as information storage (eg. videos take up lots of space, text doesn't). Comparing computers to memory recollection could be similar to comparing (for instance) bitmap graphics to vector graphics.
Instead of remembering things photographically, the brain tends to remember what happened, how it happened etc... and fills in the blanks drawing from other memories etc.
Similar to the way a vector line pattern is stored as points with equations defining the space in between, rather than a bitmap defining a line as a series of dots.
The power of the brain is in processing, extrapolating and interpolating the data that it has, rather than storing large quantities of information and just retrieving it, like computers.
That kinda reminds me of a little riddle thing I heard a while ago:
:P
The more swiss cheese you have, the more holes you have.
The more holes you have, the less cheese you have.
Therefore, the more swiss cheese you have, the less swiss cheese you have.
Now that's logic