tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post1651391982259106037..comments2023-05-10T17:32:28.225+02:00Comments on The Beez' speaks..: Desktops in troubleThe Beez'http://www.blogger.com/profile/14718864828133872589noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-44420676634960047172009-07-05T03:51:38.799+02:002009-07-05T03:51:38.799+02:00I could not see the video posted here. (flash plug...I could not see the video posted here. (flash plugin not installed on my Grand Paradiso on ArchLinux - I'd rather live without Flash). But I've been looking on a way to create shortcut for a few hours.. And here is what I learned.. <br /><br />First change the desktop from the default one to 'Folder View' (Right click somewhere on the Desktop, Click Appearance Settings, and change the 'Type' to Folder View).<br /><br />From then, it is almost same as any conventional desktop. Right click, Create New etc. etc.<br /><br />From my very personal perspective, KDE would have done better to keep 'Folder View' as the default, and include the Add Widget functionality here also. Seems the Widgets in the 'Default' desktop works here also. It is simply a .desktop file.Jasim Basheernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-80486134113968165242008-06-16T17:26:00.000+02:002008-06-16T17:26:00.000+02:00I too have been looking at E17. I think this will...I too have been looking at E17. I think this will be the next desktop, but they still have a long way to go, and everything is native to E17 yet. <BR/><BR/>I am looking forward to this though. I always like a good come back story, and maybe E17 will bring Enlightenment back into the spotlight once again.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-23774320558129026952008-06-15T14:42:00.000+02:002008-06-15T14:42:00.000+02:00I generally agree about loving KDE's customizabili...I generally agree about loving KDE's customizability (and frankly, my configuration is a <B>long way</B> from MS-Windows-like).<BR/><BR/>But there are a few things that <B>aren't customizable</B> that annoy me: (1) The window-list menu has a hard-coded "rearrange-windows" item that can destroy a carefully laid-out window arrangement, and that can't be fixed without hacking the source; and (2) "klipper" is insistent on its mis-interpretation of X-Windows selection, in a way that messes up, e.g., Motif apps coming from AIX (and some of us don't have a choice of <I>which</I> supercomputer we have to use ;-( ).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-65357121708035496942008-06-15T13:57:00.000+02:002008-06-15T13:57:00.000+02:00Honest question: You said you are a consultant? Do...Honest question: You said you are a consultant? Do you push this level of ignorance on your clients as well? If you do, then I feel sorry for them. If you had actually spent few minutes researching and thinking about this issue, this blog-post would not exist.<BR/><BR/>I find it REALLY annoying that people whine and complain about things that they are utterly ignorant about. So this blog-post was about how "KDE-developers removed icons from the desktop!", when in reality nothing of the sort happened. Yes, Aaron used eye-catching words in his title, but if people actually bothered to read (and understand) the words beyond the ones in the title, this "controversy" would not exist.<BR/><BR/>Yes, the old system of having icons on the desktop was removed. But it was removed with something that offers the user more power and flexibility, while giving the user a system that is for all intents and purposes 1:1 identical to the old system. Yes, you can still have your precious icons on your desktop.<BR/><BR/>It's really weird when users are being offered more power and flexibility, people like the owner of this blog start to whine how "KDE-developers are trying to force us in to doing things their way!". If this change is "forcing", then why isn't the old system not forcing as well? I mean, with that old system you had exactly ONE way of doing things. If you didn't like it, your only option was to not to use it at all! Now users are being offered power and flexibility, and people start to whine how they are being "forced" to do something! Really, this whining makes exactly ZERO sense to me!<BR/><BR/>I don't know which surprises me more: the level of ignorance in the world, or the fact that people openly flaunt their ignorance in blogs such as this! And these comments are coming from someone who is supposedly an "IT-consultant"....<BR/><BR/>And before you ask: How is this new system better? Well, you can display files 'n stuff from several locations, as opposed to just one location (like with the old system). You can filter what is being shown (so it will only display your music-files for example), and in the future you can have smart views that only display stuff that meet certain criteria (all attachments sent by certain person for example), Also, this new system could be automated, so that it only displays files that are relevant to the task you are currently doing. And those are all things that were not possible with the old system. Yet you are trying to tell now how the old system is somehow "better"? How exactly is it better? It's inflexible. It's featureless. It's nothing but a dumbing-ground for files and icons.<BR/><BR/>And still, when users are being offered something new and better, that replaces a old and busted idea, they start to whine. It just boggles the mind!Jannehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02488899319457962036noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-22343797140765563762008-06-15T00:36:00.000+02:002008-06-15T00:36:00.000+02:00Sorry, but what you are saying about KDE4 is just ...Sorry, but what you are saying about KDE4 is just not right. If you actually tried KDE4.1 and learn ed about what is planned for 4.2, you'd know that KDE4 provides (or rather will provide) everything: <BR/>- new Concepts for those who want something new<BR/>- the oldschool desktop<BR/>- configurability to the maximum (KDE)<BR/>- but basically easy (gnomish ;) )<BR/><BR/>CheersAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-41814628329107089882008-06-14T17:14:00.000+02:002008-06-14T17:14:00.000+02:00Lately I had been finding KDE with toomuch bloat. ...Lately I had been finding KDE with too<BR/>much bloat. I starting to look at<BR/>distros with a mini version of KDE <BR/>(e.g., minime, linut mint - miniKDE, etc) <BR/>or XFCE.<BR/><BR/>Just my 2 cents.<BR/><BR/>Sheng-ChiehAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-20866408390092110582008-06-14T16:53:00.000+02:002008-06-14T16:53:00.000+02:00This is probably going to be more of a ramble than...This is probably going to be more of a ramble than a cogent post but this topic is evocative. One thing I've always wondered about with opensource desktops is what if they weren't trying so hard to be Windows? The more an opensource desktop chases after Windows the more destined it is to be come Windows. And with that comes a dumbing down for the masses. This isn't an indictment. One can argue that the genius of Windows is making a complicated system like a computer available to anyone. If you read blogs or how-to questions related to Windows it is truly amazing how little users have to know and yet still use the Windows OS. I mean some of the questions indicate the truly clueless. But yet, ever since I started using Linux (about 2001) there is the annual question "is Linux ready for the desktop" or more accurately is there an opensource desktop environment ready for the masses. What if a desktop came along that was interruptive? Revolutionary rather than evolutionary. I haven't had a chance to see it in action but what I read about Sugar (OLPC's desktop) seemed to me to be a new way to think about a desktop. It looked to me like it was network centric. Like I said, I haven't seen it in action so I could be very mistaken about it. My question is, what -given the power of opensource development- could a user interface look like if "we" gave up trying to out Windows Windows?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-53970145720755618492008-06-14T14:56:00.000+02:002008-06-14T14:56:00.000+02:00KDE is no longer for computers that don't have new...KDE is no longer for computers that don't have new CPUs or large chunks of ram. When tic-tac-toe can sit you at 90% CPU usage with at 1.8GH chip, you know something is amiss.<BR/><BR/>XFCE is the current most configurable option for linux - although it is missing a few useful features, such as SMB and SSH browsing. FUSE is supposed to make that a non-issue, but it doesn't seem to be well supported by major distros when using XFCE,<BR/><BR/>Currently the option is to keep nautilus --no-desktop as a launcher icon; or konqueror.<BR/><BR/>XFCE is lightweight, modular and fast. With a little bit of trickery, you can even use Gnome components in the taskbar, or as a screensaver. <BR/><BR/>Gnome is quite slow, and KDE 4.x positively churns on older machines.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-19677416677812186532008-06-14T13:32:00.000+02:002008-06-14T13:32:00.000+02:00Honestly - i think the majority of users don't giv...Honestly - i think the majority of users don't give a damn about this desktop thing at all, and would be perfectly happy with good old win95 style. What they need is a solid platform to run their apps, and that's where the free desktops still feel fragmented and premature (although some progress has been made).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-15691036833667693272008-06-14T11:14:00.000+02:002008-06-14T11:14:00.000+02:00I think that KDE should be focusing on a dual inte...I think that KDE should be focusing on a dual interface - <BR/>1) A simplied ultramobile low overhead laptop interface with support for low resolution/small screens and touch screen, and mostly fixed function<BR/>2) A full desktop which is fully customisable with three default configurations that can be defaulted to: one that mimics Windows, one that mimics OSX, and one that mimics Gnome. To combine ease of use with customisability it should be possible to revert to the default of any of these three with the click of a button.<BR/><BR/>Having said this though, what is really important for KDE is not new features, but a reduction of resource consumption, increase in speed, continuing improvement in stability, rather than an unstable, new version with feature bloat.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-90227865774850974512008-06-14T11:00:00.000+02:002008-06-14T11:00:00.000+02:00> But the KDE team has taken another path by banni...> But the KDE team has taken another path by banning the icons from the desktop, claiming that all that clutter wasn't neat.<BR/><BR/>Are you trolling or just slow in the head? The DEFAULT is to keep the icons on the desktop as a regular folder view. What's your beef?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-62136239635656983572008-06-14T10:43:00.000+02:002008-06-14T10:43:00.000+02:00I accept and appreciate your view which I am sure ...I accept and appreciate your view which I am sure is meant to be constructive but I have to say that it's quite human to resist change. <BR/>I remember when XP came out in 2001, people were hating it (though not as much as Vista). What happened 7 years later is that they even came up with a "Save XP" website, resisting another change. This time Vista. <BR/><BR/>What will happen after KDE 4? Well as usual people will resist KDE 5 and protest against it saying that KDE 4 was the best KDE ever :)<BR/><BR/>I have been watching the development of KDE 4 for a long time now and I have to say that it has come a long way and it continues to evolve at a very fast pace. There are still a few uncomfortable areas in KDE4.1, which is a beta but they are also being ironed out and I am confident that it will be what everybody hopes and even more in the very near future.<BR/><BR/>Concerning stability, I am presently using openSuse 11 RC1 with KDE 4.1 Beta1 - rock solid. I haven't had a single crash until now. There are a few rough edges yes, but they haven't crashed my desktop as yet.<BR/><BR/>I would advise you to wait for the final release and give 4.1 a shot. There are a lot of wonderful improvements over 3.5x. The panel still lags behind Kicker in some ways (even though one can change it's size easier than Kicker's and it has true transparency) but apart from that one can see improvements everywhere.<BR/><BR/>Plasma is a true innovation and a brilliant technology, it's really something new,. A lot of us fail to see the vision behind Plasma but I am sure that we will all see the light very soon and I can already hear the wow!<BR/>I wish you a lot of fun with 4.1 :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-36874342320453294562008-06-14T10:40:00.000+02:002008-06-14T10:40:00.000+02:00Personally the only thing I've seen so far in KDE ...Personally the only thing I've seen so far in KDE 4.1 beta significantly less configurable than KDE 3.5 is the desktop panels. I will definetely miss them when I switch to KDE 4.1 but I hope additional functionality will be introduced in future versions.<BR/><BR/>Everything else is pretty much as configurable as in KDE 3.5 or even more!<BR/><BR/>KDE 4.0 as already pointed out wasn't meant as an end user version. It lacks many components and applications giving the impression that it is worse than KDE 3.5.<BR/><BR/>KDE 4 imho changes many basic concepts of the computer desktop as we know it from the last decade, thus it is inevitable to feel a bit unfamiliar and limited at first.<BR/><BR/>KDE 3.x (and Linux because of it) didn't won me instantly the moment I first logged in but it took it's time. I guess same goes for KDE 4.x.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-2139023495200418832008-06-14T10:37:00.000+02:002008-06-14T10:37:00.000+02:00Oh my... If you cannot figure out how to put icons...Oh my... If you cannot figure out how to put icons on your desktop in KDE4.X you are in trouble. Drag an drop what ever you like :)<BR/><BR/>The direction KDE is taking is just awesome. A desktop that can be tweaked to what ever you like. For PC, for UMPC for TV for presentation boards and what not.<BR/><BR/>I think that the author fo this blog just don't get it :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-76020514722014309192008-06-14T09:54:00.000+02:002008-06-14T09:54:00.000+02:00the last time I used a GNU/Linux desktop it was "i...the last time I used a GNU/Linux desktop it was "ion" after using KDE, WindowMaker, e16 and sawfish.... I switched to OS X after using Linux and its desktops/WMs for over 10 years.<BR/><BR/>After working around 1 1/2 year with it, I can say that Linux is dead on the desktop.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-77144981727657773882008-06-14T06:01:00.000+02:002008-06-14T06:01:00.000+02:00I've said it before and I'll say it a thousand tim...I've said it before and I'll say it a thousand times: If KDE Devs want to keep forcing me to go THEIR direction I'll tell them where to stick their lousy "direction" and go somewhere else. <BR/><BR/>I like the way my desktop works NOW, and I don't care to change the way I do things. If that doesn't set well with any one else, TOUGH! I'm not anyone else, I'm me. My point is simple: Make KDE configurable so that I can make it mine, and make it work the way I want to work, or I'll do what apparently some distros are doing, and switch to something ELSE!<BR/><BR/>I'm fed up with this crap, and if this direction of forcing users to use ONE paradigm and only ONE continues, I might as well go back to mickey soft!! I want my icons on my taskbar, I want some icons on my desktop, and I want everything to be as configurable in KDE4 and more, as it was in KDE3 not LESS!!<BR/><BR/>And Yes, I've tried and used KDE 4.0.x and the beta KDE 4.1 and they are HORRIBLE in every way. I don't want a "folder view" I don't care how much more "efficient" it is!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-7843931683208842352008-06-14T05:56:00.000+02:002008-06-14T05:56:00.000+02:00I've used KDE4.x on FC9, openSUSE, and Kubuntu. B...I've used KDE4.x on FC9, openSUSE, and Kubuntu. Bottom line: devs love their new playground, users hate it--users lose again. It's pre-alpha, at best and may never reach the heights that KDE3.5.x has. Too bad, really like KDE3.5.x. --dBAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-3648171539403575542008-06-14T04:24:00.000+02:002008-06-14T04:24:00.000+02:00Half of the things you link to can be taken from y...Half of the things you link to can be taken from your point of view or the opposing view. Posting links to them does only one thing, weaken your argument.<BR/><BR/>Sorry my friend, but you couldn't be farther from the truth in this respect. If you aren't riding the cutting edge of KDE 4.1 (or, in my case 4.0.82 r8198) then you just don't know. I also ride the forefront of Gnome development being a Foresight Linux user...I get EVERYTHING before Ubuntu. I get EVERYTHING before Fedora.<BR/><BR/>See, there is innovation still happening. There are things being done that no one has done before. Pulseaudio is a huge example of this. Plasma is another. <BR/><BR/>KDE 4.1, when released, will be everything it claims it should be and more...stop running crappy, months old iterations of code and instead check out a daily build.devnethttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07644844759013285692noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-86600863278610046492008-06-14T03:39:00.000+02:002008-06-14T03:39:00.000+02:00I'm very dissapointed to read this FUD about Plasm...I'm very dissapointed to read this FUD about Plasma on your blog here. What you've reported is factually incorrect, and you've simply added to the misinformation campaign that is going on right now against Plasma.<BR/><BR/>If you'd like to discuss the issue directly with me so I can help clear things up with/for you, please drop me an email (aseigo at kde dot org). <BR/><BR/>I don't even mind giving you a quick phone call or skyping if you'd like something a bit more "broadband".Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06688610708513558784noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-35232606203287131032008-06-14T01:47:00.000+02:002008-06-14T01:47:00.000+02:00Why does everyone assume because KDE released as 4...Why does everyone assume because KDE released as 4.x that it's production ready? It's a work in progress and every release seems to be getting better and better. Sure - there is missing functionality - but it's getting fixed with each new release. If you want to help shape KDE4 - stop blogging about the shortfalls and start sending feedback to the developers.<BR/><BR/>What I shake my head at most is how most people seem to have lost the ability to read. From the KDE4 website:<BR/><BR/><B>KDE 4 packages are currently in the experimental branch and are not intended to be installed on a production system.</B>Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-59146152179158016372008-06-14T01:08:00.000+02:002008-06-14T01:08:00.000+02:00I do not have any contribution to add to your post...I do not have any contribution to add to your post, I only want to say that I am in total agreement with every bit of it and I share the same feelings. Well done and thanks. <BR/>Antonio - BelgiumAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-27740253309029475402008-06-13T21:56:00.000+02:002008-06-13T21:56:00.000+02:00+1 for XFCE. Using XFCE with AWN give you a slick...+1 for XFCE. Using XFCE with AWN give you a slick yet functional desktop.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08675346258151267579noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-22037941083913618272008-06-13T19:47:00.000+02:002008-06-13T19:47:00.000+02:00I switched to E17 as a partial solution to xorg's ...I switched to E17 as a partial solution to xorg's no longer offering virtual desktop sizing/panning. I am very happy with it. Even so, I appreciate that the KDE people work hard to provide a good product. 4.0 may require more tuning than normal so you may want to use 3.5 until 5.0 comes out.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-9650622731792847472008-06-13T19:05:00.000+02:002008-06-13T19:05:00.000+02:00It seems that you haven't even used KDE 4. This po...It seems that you haven't even used KDE 4. This post is just a remix of "things people say around", crying out loud just to have a headline. If you don't have anything new to say, why bother? This "KDE 4 is alpha oh god it sucks" thing is got old a long, long time ago.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3813856659277593071.post-6176032118054085552008-06-13T18:11:00.000+02:002008-06-13T18:11:00.000+02:00The more you try to turn the desktop into somethin...The more you try to turn the desktop into something that behaves like a Web 2.0 app (i.e. do everything - just not too well), the more grief you're going to let yourself in for.<BR/><BR/>Murphy was right: the harder you work to improve something, the sooner you'll break it.<BR/><BR/>I'll just stick with xfce on my new box, and Fluxbox on the old clunker laptop I take on the road.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com