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GNOME's Stormy Peters on the Most Important Desktop Issue
2 weeks, 1 day ago
The GNOME Foundation executive director, Stormy Peters, recently wrote a bit about why the focus on "the KDE versus GNOME" debate is not the real issue. Many commenters on her post agree (while others actively demonstrate) that it is counterproductive. -
KDE on KDE 4.0
4 months, 3 weeks ago
"There has been a bit of a dustup about KDE 4.0. A lot of opinions have been expressed, but I thought you might like to hear from KDE. So I wrote to them and asked if they'd be willing to explain their choices and answer the main complaints. They graciously agreed." -
X.Org 7.4, Mesa 7.1 In Ubuntu 8.10
4 months, 3 weeks ago
Since last night's release of Ubuntu 8.10 Alpha 2 we have been trying out this latest work from the Canonical camp. While many Linux desktop users would just shrug off X.Org 7.4 as not being too relevant to them -- considering there aren't that many new blatant features -- if you're a faithful Phoronix reader you should already know about much of the recent driver work (especially on the ATI side) and Mesa advancements along with X Server fixes. -
The progress of X.org 7.4
7 months ago
If all goes according to plan, X.Org 7.4 will finally be released this month. This release isn't quite as elaborate as X.Org 7.3, which introduced input hot-plugging, EXA enhancements, and RandR 1.2 to just name a few features, but X.Org 7.4 is another update better enhancing this X server. -
Nine Improvements Needed in KDE
7 months, 4 weeks ago
Until KDE 4 settles down, potential users should be aware that it continues to be a work in progress, with a large share of unfinished features. -
dwm 4.9 Released
8 months ago
"dwm is a dynamic window manager for X. It manages windows in tiled and floating layouts. Either layout can be applied dynamically, optimizing the environment for the application in use and the task performed. It is the little brother of wmii." And version 4.9 has been released. -
Winefix - improved desktop integration for Wine
1 year, 1 month ago
I found this on the Ubuntu user forums, thanks goes out to (deadlydeathcone) here is his post. -
Xmonad 0.4 released
1 year, 1 month ago
Xmonad 0.4 has been released. "xmonad is a tiling window manager for X. Windows are arranged automatically to tile the screen without gaps or overlap, maximising screen use ... Window layouts are applied dynamically, and different layouts may be used on each workspace. Xinerama is fully supported, allowing windows to be tiled across several physical screens ...." -
Cross-platform graphics with Cairo
1 year, 2 months ago
Built from the ground up to create identical output on both printer and screen -- all in a cross-platform way -- Vairo is becoming a huge player in the Linux graphics space, as well as BSDs, Windows, and OSX platforms; a free software vector drawing library that can draw to multiple output formats. -
GNOME 2.20.0 UI Preview
1 year, 3 months ago
Last week marked the release of the first GNOME 2.20.0 beta, which also defined the user interface freeze for GNOME 2.20.0. With the UI freeze we have taken some screenshots from GNOME 2.19.90 for your viewing pleasure of the subtle changes. GNOME 2.20.0 Beta 2 (2.19.91) is due out at the end of this month with the release candidate falling in early September followed by the final release of GNOME 2.20.0 on September 19. -
The unforking of KDE's KHTML and Webkit
1 year, 4 months ago
There is one major web rendering engine that grew entirely out of the open source world: KHTML is KDE's web renderer which was built from the ground up by the open source community with very little original corporate backing. The code was good and branches were born as a result, the best known being Webkit. Now, after years of split, KHTML and Webkit are coming together once again. -
Interview with David Turner of Freetype
1 year, 5 months ago
"Today we feature a very interesting interview with David Turner, one of the main Freetype developers, discussing the project's past and future. These days, David continues his work in Freetype even after having been hired by Google ... " -
Cloud OS still pie in the sky
1 year, 5 months ago
Microsoft's latest Live services show it has a long way to go before it can replicate Windows over the Net, if that's even the goal. -
Display Controls and Linux: Poor Combination
1 year, 5 months ago
"Let's face it; some distributions have better controls for handling display issues than others. Two that do it right out of the box that come to mind include Fedora (Red Hat) and OpenSuSE (Novell). Each includes tools that minimize the need to do what I gleefully refer to as the “Xorg dance.” Basically, these options mean you are going to be spending more time exploring what these distros have to offer, yet less time wondering why your resolution looks completely off ... " -
There Is No Grand Theory of Usability
1 year, 5 months ago
Federkiel writes: "People working with Apple computers are used to a very consistent user experience. For a large part this stems from the fact that the Lisa type of GUI does not have the fight between MDI and SDI. The question simply never arises, because the Lisa type of GUI does not offer the choice to create either of both; it's something different all along. I usually think of it as 'MDI on steroids unified with a window manager'. It virtually includes all benefits of a SDI and and the benefits of an MDI." - More News
Linux.com : Graphical Environments
KDE 4 problems highlight shift from community users to consumers
The reasons for the user revolt against KDE 4, which we reported on yesterday, are still being sorted out. They appear to be a complex mixture that includes the assumptions that KDE used in its planning, the rush by distributions to include a release that was not ready for general use, and sensationalism in free software blogs and journalism. One reason that has yet to be discussed is one of the potentially most significant -- the apparent shift in the FOSS user base. Judging from the quickness and thoroughness with which KDE 4 was rejected, the audience for free software seems to have shifted from a small group of knowledgeable users that treasures innovation to a larger one that values convention and familiarity and is actively suspicious of change.
What went wrong with the KDE 4 release?
When KDE 4.0 was released in January, it was supposed to be the foundation for a new era of desktop development. But as 4.x versions began finding their way into distributions, negative reactions began to obscure other ones. With the upcoming 4.1 release due at the end of this month, it's hard to avoid wondering: what happened?
GNOME 2.22 focuses on utilities and standard applications
As you might expect, GNOME 2.22, the latest version of the popular desktop, which was released last week, has some functional tweaks and new default applications. If the release has a focus, it is on utilities, ranging from added features in standard GNOME applications such as Evolution and Archive Manager to improved accessibility and a handful of new applets. Few of these changes are dramatic, but the overall impression is of dozens of small enhancements that nudge GNOME toward greater usability.
Building a highly functional desktop with lightweight software
When my girlfriend visits me, she has to work on a mini PC while I use my laptop to finish whatever I postponed at the office. Her PC has a 1GHz VIA processor and 128 MB of RAM and runs Ubuntu. You can imagine how slowly it boots, even with Linux installed, and GNOME runs so slowly that it's quite irritating. I didn't want to reformat and install a lightweight Linux distribution like Fluxbuntu because the mini PC doesn't have a CD-ROM drive, and I already had 10GB of data that would have taken a long time to back up. Instead, I found and installed some lightweight software to improve her computing experience.
Using mouse gestures across Linux
My first brush with mouse gestures on the Opera browser was an accident, but the ability to quickly move backward or forward in the browser history, open new windows, close tabs, and more without using the menus or moving the mouse toward the navigation toolbar won me over immediately. Nowadays, this feature is available in Firefox and Konqueror too, and you can even configure mouse gestures for GNOME and KDE desktop environments.
Kommando: A floating panel for KDE
Inspired by the command wheel in the Neverwinter Nights online game, Kommando is a floating command panel for KDE. Although Kommando's development is almost as slow as an official Debian release, and is only at version 0.5.2, it is already a configurable and convenient addition to the array of panels available in KDE.
Master the KIO slaves
Hard-working KDE Input/Output (KIO) slaves perform much of KDE's functionality. KIO slaves provide consistent access to different resources, such as filesystems, network protocols, and search functions, making them accessible to all KDE applications in a standard way. For example, you can open a remote FTP session and copy, move, rename, or delete files as if they're on your own box, or connect via Secure Shell (SSH) and use remote files as if they were local. Even browsing the Web uses a KIO slave.
KDE 4 revises the desktop
After more than 30 months of planning and development, KDE 4 was released on Friday. The new version of the popular desktop environment is an ambitious revision on almost every level, from the performance and design to the applications and system tools. While it sometimes shows the influence of other desktops, most users should find something to like in the hundreds of new features. However, users' overall verdict may well depend on their tolerance for new layouts and logic.
Find the items you want with GNOME Do
The wealth of applications on a modern Linux system is phenomenal, but sifting through screen after screen of menu items is no fun. Likewise, it's convenient to have all of your files in one place, but the more you have the longer you have to look for the one you need. Blacktree software's free Quicksilver Mac OS X utility won over users by letting them start typing the name of the file or app they need, and popping up the best matches in a launcher. Quicksilver went open source recently, but you don't have to wait for a port to start using it on your Linux machines. Two clones already exist: Katapult for KDE (which we looked at in July) and the newest competitor, GNOME Do.
Give Wine apps the look and feel of GNOME or KDE
Wine allows users to run Windows programs natively under Linux without paying a dime. However, there's a tiny problem: programs running in Wine don't look so great. They don't even try to fit into your native GNOME or KDE color scheme or use your preferred fonts. You could use a Windows theme, but themes make Wine run extremely slowly. Luckily, with a little configuration editing, it's easy to make Wine applications look at lot more like the rest of the apps on your desktop.
Ubuntu Tweak off to a good start
For years, discerning Windows users have relied on Tweak UI, a semi-official Microsoft program for system settings not available on the default desktop. Now, in the same tradition and with something of the same name, Ubuntu Tweak (UT) offers the same advantage to Ubuntu users. Currently at version 0.2.4, for now UT is limited to features for GNOME and focuses mainly on changing default desktop and system behavior and how GNOME interacts with your hardware, but this small feature set is more than enough for proof of concept.
Take charge of your window manager with WMCTRL and Devil's Pie
There are literally dozens of window managers that you can use with your favorite desktop environment to get a beautiful and appealing desktop. If you want to fine-tune your window manager, here are two programs that can help you control everything from application window size to pinning an application to all workspaces to fixing a position for your application windows to resizing desktops. One, wmctrl, works with any window managers that adheres to the Extended Window Manager Hints (EWMH), while Devil's Pie is a window-matching utility, which means it can configure application windows based on defined rules.
Adding extended character support
If you need to type a diacritical mark such as an acute "e" (é) -- let alone a character not found in a Western European language -- the standard English keyboard layouts for GNU/Linux users are barely ahead of those of typewriters. However, adding support for both extended characters and multiple keyboards has become much easier in the last few years. These days, you can quickly add extended character support from both GNOME and KDE, and, should either desktop fail you for any reason, you can fall back on other methods to improve your input.
The Lightweight X11 Desktop Environment: A return to basics
The Lightweight X11 Desktop Environment (LXDE) resembles a classic Unix project -- it's partly constructed out of pre-existing programs, its emphasis is on speed, and its configuration requires taking time in a text editor. Even the relatively low quality of fonts on the desktop makes it feel like a vintage program. The result is a desktop environment that is short on innovation, but performs well on low-end machines, and blazingly fast on recent ones.
GNOME 2.20 shows significant improvement
GNOME 2.20 was released yesterday. Even though I use GNOME regularly, I normally don't get excited over new releases, because most seem to offer little more substance than previous versions, with most of the work being done under the hood. This time, though, GNOME has a solid list of new features and upgrades. It's worth taking a look at even if you aren't a fan of this desktop environment.
Taming the GIMP with KDE window-specific settings
KDE's window-specific settings feature gives you a fine level of control over the way windows behave. It lets you change settings such as minimum/maximum size, position, overlay, and transparency. The GIMP uses multiple windows to select tools, tool options, and other items used in the process of image editing. By changing the default behavior of the various windows used by GIMP with KDE's window-specific settings, you can improve the GIMP interface.
KDE's Plasma is heating up
If you visited the Plasma project's outdated Web site in past weeks, you might have gotten the impression that the team behind the project to revitalize the KDE desktop hasn't been up to much these past months. Delve into KDE's SVN repository, mailing lists, or the mind of lead developer Aaron Seigo, however, and you'll find a more exciting story.
